so come over and join me.

http://kathryns-cakes.blogspot.com/

I was asked a few weeks ago if I'd like to be featured in Worcestershire Living magazine's Wedding Feature.  I submitted some photos and heard nothing more.  Until last week when 3 friends said they'd seen my cake in the February issue.  After searching out a copy, I have to say I thought it stood up well next to the others!

How fabulous is this?  It survived the journey to Liverpool and Mistie set it up before taking up her bridesmaid's duties.  Well done again girls!

Spent a lovely morning with Sandie and Mistie yesterday, helping them complete a wedding cake for Mistie's friend.
Sandie had a lesson with me a couple of weeks ago and had iced four (yes, four) tiers in preparation. A big achievement, particularly as they were black!
We dowelled and stacked the cakes and added the side decoration, ready for Mistie to transport to the venue.
Well done girls, look forward to seeing the photos :0)

9000 visitors to the website - traffic has increased by around 30% over the last 8 weeks so thank you to every one of you.

The latest edition of Wedding Cakes - A Design Source is out now and I'm thrilled to be in it again, this time with two full page photos!  Available from WHSmith or Squires online.

A Happy New Year to you all!  The year's off to a good start with 2 wedding cake bookings this week.  Several weeks, particularly in peak season, are now fully booked so if you are looking for me to make your cake, please make an appointment for a consultation as soon as possible. 

Phew!  Christmas is almost here, and I've just one wedding cake (and biscuits for pre-school) to complete before I can relax and  start 'family' Christmas.  It's been a busy year, and looking at the calendar for 2011, I don't think it's going to ease off.  Demonstrations are pretty much fully booked and I've wedding cakes in the diary for every month from March to September.  If you're thinking of booking, it's worth contacting me to 'Save the Date' and we can finalise details in the New Year.  In the meantime, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.

What do you think of my son's Christmas cake?  I'm sooo proud of him.  I covered the cake, frilled the tree pieces and helped with the reindeer's head, but he did everything else himself.  You should have seen the concentration on his face - not bad for a 3 year old!

Well!  What a surprise.  I always flick through the wedding magazines to see what's up and coming and there, on p261 of the current issue is my beaded rose cake.  It quite made my day.

A great weekend at the NEC with some fantastic work both on display and demonstrated.  A slightly disappointing silver for me in the competition but spoke to the judges and had been marked down for using internal supports in the monkeys. Lucky not to have been disqualified really!
More photos from the show can be seen here

NEC is drawing ever nearer and, as yet, only one of my competition pieces is iced, never mind decorated!  Hopefully, I'll get the second piece iced today and then the hard work begins...

Great News!  The British Sugarcraft Guild will be holding its next International Exhibition at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry, on 19th and 20th May 2012.  More details to follow...

A big hello to all those Brides and Grooms to be I met today at the Tewkesbury Park Hotel.  I hope you had the opportunity to talk to me and taste the cake.  If you're looking to book your cake for 2011, I hope to hear from you soon.

Well!  Not posted for a while - cakes, demonstrations and life in general :-).

So here it is, the steampunk cake.

The base is a 10”, covered in tan and then painted with a paste of chestnut and IPA to get the wood effect.  The banding strips were flowerpaste, painted Bronze Splendour The cogs were all cut by hand, dried on a curve and then painted in Antique Silver, Silver, Radiant Gold, Bronze Splendour and Copper Sheen.  They were attached with brown royal icing.

DH drew the cogs on AutoCAD and Keith at Dummies Direct cut them.  They’re 6” at the widest part.  I covered the edges of the cogs then the top and then the bottom.  Two were painted with Antique Gold and one with Bronze Splendour.

The board is a ‘marble’ effect, made using Steven Kirkby’s marbling method.

The pipework is pillars covered with sugarpaste and flowerpaste flanges.  These were painted Antique Silver.

The roses are a combination of SFP and APOC FP, both in Violet and coloured with Royal Purple, with Edgers Spruce ivy and rose leaves and wire leaves and twigs.

To put the top section together, I slotted the Bronze section into the bottom Gold section, holding them together with royal icing and a cocktail stick.  I glued the pillar to the centre of the bottom horizontal, again using a cocktail stick for a bit of support, then slotted the top cog on, using another cocktail stick to hold the two cogs together and royal icing to secure the pillar. 

I will be attending the Wedding Fayre at The Tewkesbury Park Hotel on Sunday October 10th 2010.  This event is organised by WOW Weddings and is an ideal opportunity for brides-to-be to view my work, sample my cakes and chat in an informal environment before committing to a consultation.  Entrance is free so why not come along?

The new issue of Wedding Cakes - A Design Source has just popped through my letterbox and I'm pleased to say I've five cakes featured in it, including a photo on the contents page.

Hoorah!  A letter today to say I've been accepted as a WI Recommended Speaker.  If you're booking a programme for any group or club, why not drop me a line to see if I'm available.

I presented at Worcestershire Federation of WIs Speakers' Evening a couple of weeks ago.  I modelled a designer handbag in 10 minutes!  Still not heard whether I've been accepted onto their Speakers' List, but two branches have booked me for one of their meetings next year so I can't have been that bad.  Demonstrations can be adapted to suit any group, whatever your interests or experience, so give me a ring.

I've recently been interviewed by Elaine Thomas of Creative Celebration Cakes.  See the full interview at Mystical Mischief's Madhouse.

Gosh, a busy few weeks with cakes and demonstrations following each other in quick succession.  A hugely successful wedding cake last week - Hayley's brown damask print cake can be seen in the Wedding Cake Gallery.  Lots of interest for next summer too with some high summer dates already booked up.

Just spent a couple of hours bagging and pricing up a bead and wire delivery.  There are some lovely new lines, including coloured bullion wire, pale gold Swarovski pearls and divine blue/black shimmering pearls.  I'm hoping to add them to the on-line shop over the weekend but please be patient if the photos aren't updated immediately.

Thanks to the ladies of Ludlow BSG for hosting a new demonstration last night - Shoes and Handbags.  It went well; lots of oohs and aahs and positive feedback.  I'm demonstrating again next Wednesday at Staffordshire BSG so if you're in the area, come along.

A big thank you to Lakeland, Worcester for hosting last night's event in aid of St Richards Hospice.  The shop was very busy and a substantial amount was raised for the Hospice.  I hope everyone gained something from watching my demonstration.  Have a look in the gallery for some of the ideas demonstrated.

Cake Jewellery still seems to be very popular.  I've given two demonstrations in the last week; the first to Cheltenham BSG and then last night to Monmouth and District BSG.  Thanks to both Branches for their hospitality.  Once people see how versatile wire and beads can be and how they can be incorporated into designs even by the most traditional of sugarcrafters, they are really enthusiastic.  Have a look in my Wedding Cake Gallery for some ideas and then in the online shop for supplies.  Happy Cake Beading!

Lakeland, Worcester are holding a charity event in aid of St Richard's Hospice on the evening of Thursday June 3rd.  I'll be demonstrating making and decorating cupcakes and cookies using Lakeland products and hopefully raising funds for a worthwhile local charity.

I've just taken delivery of a new edible photo printer and the print quality is *amazing*.  The printer I had was good, but this one is superb.  Priced at £6 for an A4 sheet and from £45 for a fully decorated cake, edible printing is a way to personalise your cake not just with a photo but with a favourite motif or design.  Click here for further information.

A big hello to all you brides (and grooms)-to-be who I talked to on Thursday at the Tewkesbury Park Hotel.  The Fair was a big success with a steady stream of visitors.  Many thanks to Teresa and Darren at WOW Weddings who went out of their way to make sure everything ran smoothly.  I hope those of you who've visited the website have found something you like.  Why not give me a ring or drop me an email to discuss your wedding cake further?

I will be attending the Wedding Fayre at The Tewkesbury Park Hotel on Thursday 29th April 2010.  This event is organised by WOW Weddings and is an ideal opportunity for brides-to-be to view my work, sample my cakes and chat in an informal environment before committing to a consultation.

I've sourced both the wax carvers used by Sue Rudge at the Spring Sparkle and the locking forceps used by Wendy Field at the Region 5 Meeting.  Keep an eye on the on-line shop for their arrival.

I had the very nice man from Environmental Health round a few weeks ago just to check my kitchen and hygiene practice was up to scratch.  I'm very pleased to say that he had no issues and was more than satisfied with what I was doing and as a consequence, I've been awarded five stars, the top rating.  View my rating here.

Kathryns Cakes is now on Facebook.  Why not become a fan?

Those of you who were at the Spring Sparkle will already have seen the new Gift Box Tutorial.  For those of you who weren't, it's now on-line on the Downloads page.  I do have kits with templates and formers available.  Contact me for further information.

I've added some new photos to the Wedding Gallery today; the same cake, presented in different ways.  It's amazing what a change in ribbon can do.   If you're looking for your wedding cake, don't be afraid to say, 'Could you...'  or 'I'd like to incorporate...'. 

My diary is almost full for August though I've availability left for much of the rest of the year.  I'm currently taking 'Save the Date' bookings for 2011, with initial consultations 6 months before your Big Day.

Wow!  Did I enjoy yesterday, or did I enjoy yesterday?  I was demonstrating at The Spring Sparkle, a demonstration day in Harefield.  It was great to spend the day with fellow sugarcraft enthusiasts and see two other fantastic demonstrators.  I met up with friends old and new - it was nice to put a few faces to names - and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

A big thank you to Chris for organising the day.  Unfortunately, I'm already booked to demonstrate on the day of the planned Autumn Sparkle but I know that will be a great day too.

A big hello to all you brides (and grooms)-to-be who I talked to today at Menzies Welcombe, Stratford on Avon.  The Fayre was a big success with a steady stream of visits.  I only had one cookie left at the end of the day so must have talked to almost 50 brides.  I hope those of you who've visited the website have found something you like.  Why not give me a ring or drop me an email to discuss your wedding cake further?

I will be attending the Wedding Fayre at Menzies Welcombe Hotel Spa & Golf Course, Stratford-upon-Avon  on Sunday 28th February 2010.  This event is organised by Amanda at www.perfectdays.info and is an ideal opportunity for brides-to-be to view my work, sample my cakes and chat in an informal environment before committing to a consultation.

View venue here

www.graze.com is offering all visitors to my site a free grazefruit box.  Type in code PY71HLD for your free box.  http://www.graze.com/p/PY71HLD.

I've put a couple of ideas on the downloads page for you to try.  Both have been made as cards, but will work equally well as cakes; indeed I've made both as cakes and they were a great success.  Why not give them a go?  Send me a picture of your finished creations.

Where to start!

I’ve not updated the blog for a few weeks now and I’ve realised I’ve quite a lot to report.

Firstly, after my demonstration on 4^th November at Gloucester BSG, I’m now an Accredited Demonstrator.  It was a fun night, once I got there.  The SatNav sent me to the worng place and I arrived with 3 minutes to spare.  Not ideal.  However, the demonstration went well and I was relieved to get my Accreditation.

Then it was straight home and onto my pieces for Cake International Exhibition at the NEC.  After three evenings work both pieces were finished, photographed and boxed ready for the off.  I recognised a couple of people’s work when I arrived at the NEC but just dropped off my entries and left.

I was delighted to receive a Merit for my celebration cake with wired flowers, a new class for me and a departure from my usual style.  But I was even more thrilled when I saw I had GOLD and third in class for my novelty cake.  The standard was very high - well done to everyone who entered.

I had a great day on Sunday, meeting friends old and new, and giving a short demonstration on the BSG stand.  Roll on next year.

After weeks of work, the online shop has gone live today.  I do hope you see something you like and that your 'buying experience' runs smoothly.  I've looked for tools that I've found useful, not necessarily 'sugarcraft' tools, but extras that I now couldn't be without, and beads and wires that I'd use on cakes, or even jewellery to wear.  All the crystals are Swarowski AB, meaning they catch the light and twinkle beautifully, and the range of beads means there's something to suit every bride's budget.  Enjoy!

Well, what a weekend!

I had to finish a two-tier 'wonky' Christening cake for collection Saturday lunchtime, then crack on with my competition pieces for Cheltenham and Gloucester's Exhibition on Sunday.  It was 11pm when I called it a day on Friday night with nothing finished and after a quick trip to the hairdressers on Saturday morning, it was back to it.  At 10.30pm, I'd finally finished my pieces and went to bed, ready for an early start.

I was in the car and away at 8am as delivery was between 8.30 and 9.30.  Then followed a nerve-wracking wait.  The exhibition opened at 11am and I have to say, it was a great show. 

By 12.30 the Novice Class results we out - Silver for my flowers.  A good result as I'd not entered a floral piece before.

It was 2.30 before the Open Sugarpaste Cake results were announced - Gold and Trophy.  What a result!  I'm just coming back down to Earth now! 

Many people have asked where I got my Corian board.  For those of you unfamiliar with Corian, it's a man-made composite which looks similar to granite, ideal for rolling out flowerpaste, pastillage and sugarpaste.  It's very hard-wearing and lovely to work on.  I've sourced some boards, 25cm x 25cm, which are available at my demonstrations or direct from me by post. Priced at £15 plus p&p, I think they represent very good value for money.  I'm also looking into a larger board, approx 50cm x 50cm.  Drop me a line if you're interested in either size.

Last weekend saw a new one for me - a kilted groom!  Fiona and Donald are a lovely couple: 'Don't worry too much about the tartan - no-one will look that closely' - yeah, right!  Hopefully, I got it right and, having seen Fiona at the hotel on the morning of the wedding, I'm happy that she looked as she should.

Great news!  I've added two downloads.  Why not take a look and have a go at creating your own Christening topper?  Kits with templates and formers are available - e-mail me for details.

So here it is, the new website.  The old one was looking a bit tired and outdated.  I've gone for a clean, clear layout and hope to give visitors something extra with free downloads and tips (the first ones should be live by the end of the week).