Monday, September 29, 2008

OSSAS!

OSSAS=Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show. And it is a huge deal for anyone in the cake world! It is pretty much the biggest competition in the US, and there were SO many famous cake decorators there that my head was spinning. One of the coolest things I got to do was sit in on a class taught by Marina Sousa and her adorable assistant Dawn of Just Cake. It was a lot of fun!
My cake ended up taking a different turn from what I had expected. I had intended it to be taller-four tiers, with the bottom being a 14 inch petal shape. But, for some reason, I just could not get the bottom tier to behave. After several hours of wrestling with it, I trimmed it down to three tiers.
I waited until Thursday to cover my dummies because I was afraid of the colors fading on them. I was working late into the night (with my husband sitting at the kitchen table finishing up his work to leave early with me Friday), and took a step back to look at it. The mermaid wasn't on there yet, but with the turquoise crown, and the ocean-y colors, I turned around and told him that it looked like a mermaid princess cake. He agreed, and we felt like a good way to add an extra element to the cake, and also to help buffer the issue with the missing tier, would be to add the mermaid on to it. What a great decision that turned out to be! It's funny how differently things can turn out from what you intended!
The mermaid I think is really special. Her body and tail are all one piece of sculpted fondant. The tail I made using the end of a #5 tip for the scales, and then painted it with a mixture of Vodka, turquoise gel food coloring and white sparkle dust.
The purple flowers are whimsical dogwood blossoms made from gumpaste. I used a lilac cutter for the turquoise flowers, and then used pearl dragees for their centers.
I piped the middle tier in turquoise, and then added more pearls for some extra details.
The crown on top is from gumpaste. I used lace cutters for the top points, as well as the pretty detail around the base. The pearls on top are hand rolled pearls dusted with Super Pearl.
Then over the entire cake, I very generously brushed White Sparkle Dust all over it to make sure it would shimmer and shine. I was pretty proud of it...
And very happy to announce that I won second place in my division! Woohoo!

Now on to some of the other AWESOME cakes I saw. First, let me say that I don't know the names of the artists who created these, so if you do, please email me so I can give them credit!
There were so many there that were just amazing....I'm going to start with my favorite one.
This one was an Alice in Wonderland themed cake. It's so inspiring to me to see that a cake that is whimsical and pretty could still be entered into the main competition, because honestly, competition cakes can be so stuffy sometimes.
I love all the cute little details on it. I really like the Cheshire Cat on the top. I also really admire the tea pot shaped tier in the middle. Amazing.











My next favorite is a cake inspired by Coco Chanel. This cake is really beautiful in person, but I am sad to say that it was damaged by a spectator. Can you even imagine? Working for weeks on a cake, only to have to damaged by someone's wandering hands? The Do Not Touch signs are there for a reason!
Everything on this cake is in the theme this artist intended. From the black quilted fondant to replicate a Chanel bag, to the fabric looking roses, this cake was breath taking. And very original.









My husband loved this one. It was really cool in person. This was not in the wedding cake competition, but in the general competition. To me, it looks like something Duff would have made!
I'm guess this person made the cool things on front by layering paper thin piece of fondant, then rolling them, and then slicing them like cookie dough. I'm not sure, but that's my best guess.





Unfortunately, last night I snuck out before the competition was over because of the 5 hour drive home, but from what I understand, Rebecca Sutterby of Sugar Creations took the top prize! Her cake struck me when I saw it, because of the flawless turquoise piping. How in the world do these people get their piping so perfect? But against the white cake, it was stunning.
Congratulations to everyone!
There was so much inspiration this weekend...and so much to learn. I've always thought my cakes were pretty good, but compared to the flawless ones around me, I can't believe how much I need to learn! I better get to practicing for next year...

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I saw your cake at this show and loved it. Congratulations!

Heather said...

Congrats on taking 2nd place!

Flour Confections said...

Congratulations on placing 2nd in your division! Mermaids were popular, my daughter did one for her entry as well. I remember seeing your cake at the show.
I"m also writing to say not only did you take a wonderful picture of my cake (Coco) but I'm so pleased to read your comments about it. Thank you very much - and I'm pleased to say that it will be featured in Brides in 2009!
I've just finished creating a cake based upon one of your tiered cupcake cakes - thank you for the inspiration.
All the best
Lisa

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