Jessicas Cakes

No More Baggage

There is a growing trend toward Divorce Cakes. I first heard about them several years ago during one of those odd streams of conversation where every topic seems to be remarked on. Someone in that group thought that since we mark the new life after marriage with great ceremony and celebration, shouldn’t there also be a milestone marker of some kind when life changes again after divorce? Otherwise, she asked, where is the closure and the nod to moving on? I’m sure I responded as did the others in the group, but it was probably a vague agreement since I had little or no experience with any requests.

That has changed. I have received several requests for divorce cakes. I’ve even been sent links to sites dedicated to images of cakes created for just this occasion. I found those images disturbing at best, as they represented violence, bloodshed and bodily injury.

Here’s my opinion on them. I won’t do them. Just as I won’t create lifelike people or body parts to be cut into and eaten, I won’t create a cake that promotes violence to others, bloodshed and other damaging acts. Blood dripping down a cake with an ex-husband at the bottom is not my idea of a celebration cake, no matter how difficult the marriage.
I prefer to create divorce cakes that focus on the new path to be followed, the new possibilities and a celebration of the conclusion of a difficult time, not the negative aspects of the situation. It’s never easy and some are harder to get through than others, I get that. I just don’t agree with violence.

So, here’s my newest cake celebrating “No More Baggage” for a friend of a client who struggled for several years to end a marriage that involved Italian legal red tape and endless other hurdles.  A big, indrawn breath of fresh American air, a new job, new opportunities and no more Italy for her.

Quinn’s Railroad

Quinn turned 2 over the weekend and his mom, Eyde wanted something special to celebrate. SInce he’s mad about trains it only made sense to give Quinn his own railroad company with a bright and shiny train to ride along the tracks.

I can’t decide if the engine or the caboose is my favorite. The logs were cute too, though. It was a fun cake to send off to the birthday boy. I wonder if he thought it could move?

The Van Dusen Mansion

I recently posted a site link to face book that allowed visitors to vote for their favorite from a list of historic sites to be a recipient for grant money from American Express. It seemed only fitting that I then talk about a lovely historic home that has been a wedding and event venue as well as a bed and breakfast for what feels like a long time.

The Van Dusen Mansion is located just a few steps from the intersecton of LaSalle and Franklin in Minneapolis. It’s  neighbor is another mansion, The Semple Mansion, which was more recently(less than a decade) purchased and returned to its original glory and is now also a reception site.

I have delivered to The Van Dusen since it’s earlier incarnation as a reception site when only the carriage house was available for dinner and dancing and the courtyard was lovely but used simply for the cocktail hour. The house could be a  part of the event but also ran independently as a bed and breakfast.

Jennifer and her husband Matt’s family purchased it fairly recently and both Jennifer and Matt now manage the space. The house, the carriage house and the banquet facility that was built adjacent in the 60′s, are now used for the entire event, encouraging movement, complete guest engagement and an unforgettable celebration.

I stopped by The Van Dusen to say hello and deliver a spray of sugar stephanotis to Jennifer early last week. She was generous enough to give me a tour, a complete tour, of every nook and cranny of every square foot of the estate. I was able to compare past and present amenities. Jennifer is a natural docent so I was privileged to hear  quite a bit about the house, the grounds, the banquet hall that I was sure had really only been built in the 90′s(maybe there were really big trees that blocked my vision?). Enough about my poor observation skills.

The house has been lovingly updated without losing the integrity or beauty of the era in which it was built. The third floor which had been a modest ballroom for the Van Dusen family, is currently being restored and will become an addiitonal space for cocktails, conversation and relaxation. The courtyard has been refreshed reconfigured so that it is now able to accommodate up to 200 for a ceremony. The carriage house has been updated with a deco nightclub style of sofas and bar furniture that give it a modern retro look sure to appeal to any age group. The Banquet area had been redecorated with a more open and bright persona.  It is classicly elegant  with all the carpet pulled up to reveal Terrazzo tiles. The ladies get ready in the Honeymoon suite and the guys are down in the pool room, complete with the original pool table just recently purchased back from Peteers Billiards where it has resided  after being purchased from the estate. Wow, the details that Jennifer has in her head. Now, if I can just relate them accurately.

I took up nearly an hour of Jennifer’s time and all I could think of was that I needed to tell more people about the updates, the history, the beauty and the generosity of The Van Dusen.

If you are planning an event, put it on your list of possibilities. If nothing else, call to see if you can get a tour! Why not add to your knowledge of the families and great houses of our Twin Cities?

The website for the mansion has much better photographs than I will share here, but just to give you a taste of what I saw, here goes nothing….

Sweet Blooms

My love affair with gumpaste flowers started almost two years ago. I had long admired cake designers like Sylvia Weinstock, Ron Ben-Israel and April Reed, but didn’t aspire to creating the lush extravagance of Sylvia Weinstock’s work or the elegant profusion of Ron Ben-Israel. April Reed’s look was sleeker, more minimalist, but still, I admired and moved on.

Then, a couple of years ago some gumpaste showed up on some of my cake designs. Just small additions here and there, no real thought to focusing on anything other than cake, frosting, some fondant and, okay, perhaps some carving. But those insistent little blossoms starting to poke their heads into other areas. I started teaching them in class at school which led me to wanting to do more varieties which led me to taking a class or two which led to teaching more in class which led to… you get the picture.

They’re fun. They challenge me and I keep finding new ones I want to make. I have become obsessed with mastering a certain floral nemesis called LISYANTHUS!!!

Of course there’s probably a few of you out there thinking “sure, it’s pretty, but who really wants it in sugar?” Well, that’s a good question. Who would really want a flower made of sugar? Why should you?

Here are my reasons: They never die, they can be tinted to match your wedding colors without resorting to paints or dyes. I am not bashing the well done tinted fresh flower, mind you, but we all know what happened to the poor maligned carnation after the incident with the green and gold glitter. And then there’s the daisy, it’s been getting the cold shoulder for ages. It’s a sweet little flower and quite pretty when used well. Here’s a big reason: Gumpaste Gardenias never turn brown.

Other reasons to think about gumpaste flowers: they are always in season and they aren’t poisonous nor likely to harm your guests. Can’t say that about a live Lily of the Valley or Holly Berry can you?

I couldn’t have added the new page Sweet Blooms to my website without the photographic genius of Katrina of Studio Laguna, the generosity of Ashley of Ashley Fox Designs for her studio and garden, not to mention all the props she let us pilfer for the day, and the ever talented Jesse of Creature Works who rearranged pages and made sure everything looked pretty.

For the full look of what I’ve added please visit the Sweet Blooms page. There will be more blooms and greenery to come so if you don’t see something you like,  just ask. It’s all sweet work to me.

Something’s about to Arrive

An idea germinated for several months, work was started and progressed for several weeks. These last few days have been the hardest as I’ve waited to show and tell. Just a little bit longer now.

Summer At The Boat House

Amanda just sent me this gorgeous image of her wedding cake! I can remember the day so well. A typical Minnesota summer day: hot, getting humid, bright and sunny skies. Everyone smiling and dolled up for the day. Amanda and Benjamin held their ceremony and reception at The Minnesota Boat Club on Raspberry Island so a nautical theme was applied with a light and breezy hand, including the gumpaste flags we swagged on the cake. The overall look was fun, bright, summery and oh so lovely. The cake image was graciously shared by Fong Cha from Focha Studios. I cropped it a bit for a closer cake image, but you can still see the flags that swagged the cake table.