Sugar High

June 9, 2009 at 16:58 , by nix

sponge high

I think I’m getting the hang of sugar-craft. Sugarpaste (or fondant, or whatever it is you call it in your country), is nothing short of the fun you get from playing with play-doh. But after a million pieces of  tiny, petite, germ-sized pea of a paste, it is safe to say that I am officially needing some good amount of R&R. That however, is nowhere down the horizon: it looks like I’ve been barraged by a stampede of orders. Which, and please don’t get me wrong, I am very thankful for ^_^. This has been one hobby that has exhumed a long dormant desire to vent out my creativity through any conduit possible. One that’s also left a big gaping hole in my purse, no less :D

But let’s not get too hung up on words today, shall we? I just want to showcase to you a few of the recent sugar craft  designs that I’ve managed to make the past weeks. Enjoy!

First off, He Who Lives In a Pineapple, Under the Sea.

sponge gor squarepants

As annoying as he is, tell me who doesn’t love this geeky piece of square sponge who couldn’t seem to pass his driving test?! (or maybe he eventually did. I have not watched him for a while). I wish I had come up with him holding his spatula though! Or a crabby patty on one hand. Ahh, the prospects.

Insides of the cake is a Rich Dark Chocolate Cake with a thick layer of Ganache filling. No, not a sponge cake. *ehem* doo be doo….

sponge close up

Close up, gap between the teeth and all. You can easily make the tongue by using a heart-shaped cookie cutter and chopping off the bottom part according to the shape of the ‘mouth’. Not too difficult if I must say, but just a bit of detail to tolerate with. And this cake came with a set of cupcakes, simplified, because I under-estimated the amount of time to finish the main cake. Simplified means that Spongebob has lost his eyelashes. tsk tsk.

bikini bottom cast

It would’ve been better to use 3D fondant toppers instead, but that would need a lot more time to make.. Since this was a rush order to begin with (remind me to never again!!) What is the cost of these, I hear you say? The answer is: one sleepless night. And the next day I had an important appointment at work too! hehe. The secret lies in the coffee brew ;p

Next, Spiderman. Yes, stark contrast indeed.

Spidey

I only have one photo of this cake because it was my second night in a week that I had no sleep at all. So I was pretty much useless with the camera by dawn (when the photo was taken). Loads of improvements to this one cake too! In principle it appeared easily executable, but in actual fact it took me an hour just to enrobe the cake!! The reason is because the cake is quite ‘tall’ or rather thick, and had an oval-ish shape. The kneading of the fondant alone took me almost an hour… and rolling it to the right size and thickness was no stroll along the park. At last it was done; though it took two layers as  I needed to cover some holes on the fondant which was a result of thinning and pulling. Boo you gravity! I also wish that the web effect was tidier.

The same order included a selection of sugar cookies: Elmos, Cookie Monsters, and Duckies. Pardon the bad lighting. Dawn was still dark; and I hate camera flashes.

elmo-et-al

Then, for the next day (yes! I made these after the ‘important appointment at work’!!) , I made simple 2D fondant toppers for some Nutella-filled cupcakes with cinnamon buttercream (which incidentally tasted very interesting). The birthday girl is a cute little toddler called Iman who is , not incidentally, my niece ^_^

cupcollage-iman

Phew! And here are some more from an order made by a young mommy who is so very proud of her very talented son named Kliff. Hope you liked them Kliff! He’s into hip-hop (and has won dance competitions, at only 8 when he did!). His mum was very excited and said the fondant figurine looks just like him ^_^ Cheers Lisa!

kliff1

In the lineup are his favourites: Converse shoes (well ok, ONE shoe), Transformers (I opted to make Optimus Prime), Goku the dood from Dragonball (I found out he’s got a monkey tail!), and a few hip-hop fashion and breakdance items (Nike wrist bands, breakdancer silhoutte strutting his stuff, Kliff himself in his hoodie and backpack, the infamous rock hand gesture, a radio, and a cap:

cap

Close ups, the Converse shoe:

converse

It took me a looooonggg time to finish this shoe, but it was so worth it ^_^ The details were insane. And the interesting part is that you can actually eat it in one bite! (Though I’d probably be sobbing in the corner if you did).

Here’s another one that tested my patience to the max, yo:

breakdancer

But not as bad as this one!! I know it looks simple and it’s not even 3D, but OMG it took me an hour an a half in finally making the most precise version seen here. Free hand too, as tracing was out of the picture because Optimus Prime here is very small. Ouh, say about less than the size of a 50 cent coin. Crazy, much? @_@

optimus prime gives me nightmares

And the other toppers, close up:

kliffcollage

And I have some more photos but I think I’ll stop here as this post has gotten pretty long! Till then.

8 Comments

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8 Comments so far

by qill

On June 10, 2009 at 09:30

haha usu lawa eh spongebob ah~ berapa th tu cake nya? qilah mau eh for my 19th bday :p hahaha never too old for spongebob

by kAkA

On June 10, 2009 at 10:42

Same here Niki….spongebob is never to old for us. Will show this to the boys and I am sure Hazwan will says “ask usu to make me one” heheheh. Don’t forget to book your diary on 23 December for the boys birthday…Irham is the star wars fan! Good work on the small pieces!

by Julia @ Mélanger

On June 10, 2009 at 19:19

Wow, this are absolutely amazing. How do you sell these?

by nikkita

On June 11, 2009 at 13:15

Hi Qills. We missed you last night at Destina Square! bah your birthday ah.. hehe. Oh yes, since plenty of ppl have been asking, the cake is $95, and $50 for a smaller version ^_^

by nikkita

On June 11, 2009 at 13:17

Kaaa! awu apparently our whole family is obsessed with the little sponge dude, ah?! Haha. Ok InsyaAllah december.. can’t wait. Thanks Kak for your endless support ^_^

by nikkita

On June 11, 2009 at 13:22

Hi Julia ;) thanks very much. I sell them based on the price of ingredients for the cake and fondant, then put a price based on the amount of work put in. I think I might be undercharging in most cases (esp. when clients tell me so), but I suppose it’s really about the self-satisfaction right? hehe.

The Spongebob cake is about 10×10 (lesser in fact because it’s carved slightly), and layered with a thick slather of ganache. The cupcakes have a base price (per dozen), and again, the toppers depend on the amount of work put in. Suppose it’s easier with the right tools which I dont always have hehe

by Fiona

On June 18, 2009 at 17:55

Nikki,

Fondant can be very addictive lor… Plenty of practise will make it perfect…. I wish I have more time to play with them… I tried making fondant myself the other day but haven’t use them yet so dun know if the texture is good or not.. hehehe…
I still need to get black colour gel paste… where do u get yours?

by nikkita

On June 18, 2009 at 21:07

Haha yes very addictive indeed! I have yet to try making MMF! My marshmallows have been sitting in the pantry for months now haha. Black colour I just get from le apple.. though it’s not the best ;) I want to order from Gina in Singapore for the gel type, she said last time end of May coming new stock.

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About Delisioucity

'delisee-Yos-sitee', an expression referring to all things delicious. Welcome and join me in my gastroventures! I am a Bruneian working towards a doctoral degree as a social demographer, who also dreams to be a patissier and food stylist! It's not that complicated if you subscribe to a similar world view - all things are impossible only in the mind. Thank you for visiting, and if you have any inquiries or just want to say hello, do write in the comments section or send an email to nikkita@delisioucity.com. Unfortunately I don't take in bake requests or orders anymore, but do write in anyway as I'd love to hear from you ;)

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