The Cupcake Gallery Blog

Cakes in the last 6 months!

2011-12-18T04:06:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's been too long!! My apologies for being a little quiet...I just cannot believe how a year of 'not doing cakes' can still be so crazy busy!

Since my third child Micaiah was born in May, I have been busy with a few things.

The main thing has been our application with mission organisation SIM (www.sim.org.au) to work in Malawi as Christian missionaries. Finally, after much paperwork, we are finally 'official' and are working towards leaving in July 2012! For more info see www.ongsinmalawi.com

But in the midst of all that, I still found time to do a cake here or there :) Here are some things I've been working on since June but haven't had the time to update here!

JULY

Rainbow cake cones with marshmallow on top

Engagement figurines for a friend

Child dedication/baptism spread for a friend

Replaced our dodgey oven so resumed macaron making!

SEPTEMBER

First workshop with my baby girl!

OCTOBER

Kitchen tea cake for a friend

NOVEMBER

'Half' birthday rainbow cake for my baby girl

Spy themed figurine for a friend's daughter

Baby shower rainbow cake for a neighbour

Rainbow cake for a friend's 40th

DECEMBER

My last workshop ever before we head to Malawi next July!

Mini gingerbread house decorating with the neighbours kids

Baby Jesus cookies for my 4 year old to take to preschool

Wedding cake for a friend

Surprise peach figurines for the above wedding. Their last name is peach related!

Snowman macarons for a gathering with ex-neighbours

And last but not least... my new book!

You can purchase it from here: www.blurb.com/user/store/jong78

That's all, folks!!

Have an awesome Christmas celebrating the birth of Christ!

Love, Jo

baby-marshmallows-cake

2011-06-28T23:57:00.000-07:00

So... what have I been up to in the past couple of months?

1. I had a baby!

Micaiah Joy was born on 5th May - a sister for Teaghan and Lucas.

She has a good set of lungs but is absolutely gorgeous and we love her to bits!

2. I made marshmallows!

With my oven out of order, I decided to give home made marshmallows a try.

This strawberry batch here is made with this recipe:

http://lisacampagna.blogspot.com/2009/06/boogers-and-phlegm-yum.html

Despite the disgusting name, this recipe turned out very well.

Mocha, passionfruit, and lime marshmallows for Teaghan's preschool teachers as an end of term Thank You gift.

I made these peppermint flavoured marshmallows cos I really liked this blue and thought it would go perfectly with mint flavoured marshmallows.

I made it using this egg-less marshmallow recipe:

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2008/07/homemade_marshmallows

This one turned out quite well. It was easy to make with less things to wash up but it wasn't as chewy as the recipe with egg. I think I prefer the egg recipe.

3. I made a mock cake.

I made this cake for a friend's adorable 2 year old. I made a similar cake for her 4 year old daughter when she turned 2 so it was only fitting that little bro got one too!

Sydney Royal Easter Show 2011 Cake Decorating Competition

2011-04-20T06:40:00.000-07:00

My Sydney Royal Easter Show cake decorating competition entries

Last Supper Cake in the 'Most Creative Cake (Novice Class)' category

1st prize

I've been wanting to make this cake since last year but wasn't confident that I could pull it off. So with another year of cake decorating experience behind me, I thought I'd give it a go this year!

I really wanted to do something related to the real message of Easter - that of Jesus giving up his life to save the sins of the world. I didn't want a 'religious' looking cake. I thought the Last Supper was perfect as it is a well recognised painting.

Japanese Udon Noodle Soup in the 'Most Creative Miniature Cake (Novice Class)' category

1st prize

Princess Cupcake Tower in the 'Most Creative Cupcakes (Open Class)' category

1st prize

The Princesses: Tiana, Belle, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Snow White

The 'accessory' cupcakes for each of the princesses

Mummy Pig with Baby Pigs in the 'Sydney Royal Easter Show Novelty Cake (Open Class)' category

3rd prize

It was exciting to also be rewarded two other special awards:

The Bernice J Vercoe Annual Prize, supported by the Cake Decorators' Association of NSW Inc., for the most successful Exhibitor in Cake Decorating and Sugar Art.

The E Neville Jones Annual Prize for the most successful Exhibitor in the Novice Section.

For more photos of these cakes, become a fan of The Cupcake Gallery Facebook page!

Last but not least... I couldn't have done it without my beautiful family!

Thanks Pete for looking after the kids so I could work on the cakes :o)

Thanks to my two beautiful kids Teaghan and Lucas for keeping their hands off my cake table :o)

Thanks baby #3 for not arriving before the deadline :o)

and thanks God for blessing me with these exciting results which I didn't expect to receive!

Mermaid figurine and cake pops

2011-03-18T21:27:00.000-07:00

I made this figurine for our next door neighbour's 4th birthday. She loves Ariel and mermaids.

Her mum made the delicious chocolate-strawberry layered cake covered with buttercream frosting.

Melody the Mermaid

Flounder and starfish

I also made some cake pops for them to give to guests at the end of the party.

Individually wrapped with a 'Thank you for coming to my birthday party' tag.

Happy birthday Teaghan & Lucas!

2011-03-13T03:06:00.000-07:00

With my kids' birthdays only a month apart, we decided to have a combined birthday party this year. We invited 20 of their little friends and together celebrated Teaghan's 4th birthday and Lucas' 2nd birthday.

The party was held at our church's beautiful outdoor kids area under a canopy of trees. I'm glad I managed to grab some photos before it started bucketing down with rain!

Our challenge this year was to keep everything under a very low budget, which meant a lot of shopping around in variety shops & ebay, and making most of the things ourselves... even if it meant twirling fairy floss at 4am in the morning!! I was happy with how it all turned out.

Princess themed girls table

The mini castle cake and cupcakes with marshmallow buttercream (find the recipe here)

I couldn't resist these fairy princess cupcake toppers by Robert Gordon! Aren't they just gorgeous?

Heart cookiepops, veggie sticks with beetroot dip

Juice, jellies, and watermelon tiaras

Pink sugar coated popcorn and favour bags

Favour bags and pink fairy floss

A very happy birthday princess :o)

The cars themed boys table

Lucas' car cake and cupcakes with marshmallow buttercream

topped with more Robert Gordon cupcake toppers.

Blue sugar coated popcorn in cups

Celery and carrot cars with hummus

Traffic light cookiepops

Favour bags

The birthday boy downing his first bottle of juice

Last workshop before Baby#3!

2011-02-26T04:24:00.000-08:00

I've just had the privilege of teaching yet another wonderful bunch of ladies at my latest workshop - the Princess Cupcake Workshop, and am now officially on 'maternity leave' until September!

Well, besides the cakes I'll be making for my kids' combined birthday party in a couple of weeks plus entries into the 2011 Sydney Royal Easter Show.... before the baby comes in May. That should keep me busy!

Princess Cupcake Workshop starring Tiana, Belle, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Snow White

The view from my 'teaching table'

Me with my lovely students and their beautiful princess creations

Greetings from my new home!

2011-02-24T01:39:00.000-08:00

This is my first post from our new place!
For those of you who didn't know. My husband Pete and I, along with our 2.8 kids, recently moved to live at Bible college while he completes his theology studies over the next 18 months before we head off to long term Christian missions in Africa. Read more on my family blog.

Here's my new cake table...which is a third of the size of my previous one. But I'm so thankful that I even have a place to do my cakes!

All my cake stuff has gone into the store room

I'm still getting to know this temperamental oven, which I need an ocky strap to keep shut.

It's not fan forced and things seem to burn at the bottom and remain undercooked on the surface.

So far I have baked a few failed batches of cupcakes...

This is the first order I did at our new place - a cake topper figurine of a photography enthusiast

Here's the cake I made for my dear little princess' 4th birthday. The kids here at college usually celebrate their birthdays with a cake to share on the playground. Teaghan has been eyeing the Snow White cake from the shops since last year, so I tried to make this cake as close to the one she saw at the shops as possible! The edible image was purchased from a party supplies shop.

It's not my usual style but the birthday girl was very excited!

and here's a photo of the 'Author Talk/Book Signing' I did at the Castle Hill Library recently.

It was a great turn out with all 50 tickets sold out. I did a demonstration of one of the designs from the book.

All participants received a scrumptious chocolate cupcake :o) Thank you to all who came along!

Thank you and goodbye (for now) !

2010-12-27T03:09:00.000-08:00

The last official order for The Cupcake Gallery was completed just before Christmas.

After almost 3 years of The Cupcake Gallery, I’ve decided to stop taking orders for now due to the many changes that will be happening for us in the next 12-18 months. With moving house, welcoming a new baby, husband studying full time at Bible College and me studying part time next year in preparation for our move to Africa to work as Christian missionaries, I really wanted to spend this year focusing on ‘us’ and catching up with friends and family before we head overseas. It is a little sad to see the end of this caking chapter of my life, but I’m excited about what the future holds. If you're interested to know more about our mission journey, go to www.ongsgreatadventure.webs.com

What a journey God has taken my family and I through in the past 3 years of the business and I'm so thankful to him for every minute of it!

If you are unfamiliar with my story, The Cupcake Gallery began like many other home cake businesses – with making the kids’ birthday cakes. I’ve always been interested in cake decorating but really got hooked on it after making my daughter Teaghan’s 1^st birthday Noah's Ark cake out of a Debbie Brown book. From there on, word spread and the rest is history! It has been great to be able to work from home as I was able to look after the kids while I worked, but on the other hand it has been hard to draw the line between work and home, which often had me making or decorating cakes all through the day and then until 2 or 3am in the morning. Wedding cake deliveries were always a family affair as my husband and I pack two kids plus cakes into the car for each delivery, but the kids loved wearing their 'uniforms' and dancing around on the dance floor at reception venues.

I never really planned on starting a cake business as my plan was always (and still is) to return to teaching one day (though I did teach part time in 2008 when I was pregnant with Lucas while still running the business, that just about killed me!), but found that I had to run with it when it took off and I'm glad I did. I have learnt so much in these short 3 years of caking. I’ve done new things that I never thought I’d do, and have improved my skills in all areas. I can still remember the thrill of getting that first ‘real’ order – an order from a stranger! Not to mention those first cakes I made to build up my ‘portfolio’. Cakes for a family from our church – the cricket cake for Joel, cat cake for Kaylee, and Bakugan cake for Luke (which to this day is still the most viewed cake on my website!). There's still so much I want to learn and try, but for now, those things will have to wait.

Feb 2008

June 2008

I started my cake making on our dining table which I had to pack up for meal times. I eventually made the move to an area of our lounge room complete with a designated caking table and shelving for my growing collection of caking equipment.

This is the sketch book my husband bought for me when I started. I still use it to sketch my cake designs.

and here is the little oven in our little town house that I've used for all my cakes!

God has given me sooo many opportunities that I feel I really don’t deserve! There are so many brilliant cake decorators from whom I still have so much to learn. But yet God has blessed me with opportunities beyond my dreams, including: competition wins, newspaper press coverage, fundraising event, book, author talk, selling through a cafe, workshops, a page in the local council calendar, and feature in US Brides magazine. Maybe he knew I only have a short time for my caking journey so decided to hit me with everything all at once! Cakes I have made ranged from cakes for a dog's birthday to a cake for politician Maxine McKew.

I have met some wonderful people through the business - mums, brides, fellow cake decorating enthusiasts etc. Then there are those who love and respect my ‘cake art’. It has been great to make new friends through The Cupcake Gallery – many who are talented cake makers I admire, oh how I stand in awe of some of the cake creations out there! A big thank you to all my fans who have been such a support and encouragement to me over the past years. I’ve had the privilege of meeting some of you and some I might only ever chat with online.

So... it is with mixed feelings that I stop taking orders. However, in 2011 I will still be making cakes for my family and friends, running workshops, as well as focusing on promoting my book Fondant Fun. So I guess this is not the last you’ll hear from me!

In summary, this is what I've done in the past 3 years:

3345 cupcakes (including 420 cupcakes sold through a cafe)

109 figurines

18 wedding cakes

30 cakes

10 sculpted cakes

Most challenging cake - Bakugan cake (see above)

My favourite cake – African Water Well cake for the Micah Challenge

My favourite cupcakes - Princess cupcakes (these will be taught at the 26th Feb 2011 workshop)

First order – Ami’s 30^th cupcakes (March 2008)

Last order – Lyn’s cakes (Dec 2010)

Lastly, if you are after some beautiful cakes/cucpakes, I'd highly recommend:
Bec-a-licious Cakes and
Creative Cakes by Julie

Love, Jo

Christmas Nativity Cupcakes

2010-12-23T20:27:00.000-08:00

Christmas cupcakes for the neighbours

Fondant topper with buttercream on small vanilla cupcakes
I was going to make the three wise man too but ran out of time when I dropped half an eggshell into the cupcake batter mid-spin and had to start all over!

Have a lovely Christmas everyone!

I hope you enjoying unwrapping the best present of all this Christmas - Jesus!

Last order!

2010-12-17T23:54:00.000-08:00

7" square red and black striped cake with figurine of the birthday girl (who loves her beauty sleep)

On her bed are: a tin of milo, camera, bowl of instant noodles, and sheet music

Cupcakes with a similar theme

Christmas cupcakes

Snowman, Christmas tree, baby Jesus and angel

Snowboarders wedding

2010-12-05T00:54:00.000-08:00

Snow mountain top cake with snowboarding bride & groom

on cupcake tower

200 small vanilla cupcakes decorated with mini snowboards, snowflakes, and initials

Some close ups of the figurines

the groom

the bride

New book!

2010-12-01T03:35:00.000-08:00

The Cupcake Gallery is excited to announce it's new book!

Fondant Fun by Joanne Ong

For your chance to win a copy. Simply 'like' our FB page and leave a comment under the status update about the book. Winner will be announced on Friday 3rd Dec 2010.

To purchase a copy of the book, click here or on 'BUY' above and follow the prompts. There is free shipping to the US, Canada, UK, Europe and Australia until 10 Dec. What a great Christmas gift idea!

You'll need to enter in one of the following promo code at the 'payment Options' screen at checkout to get free shipping:
USD $ coupon code: FESTIVE
GBP £ coupon code: FESTIVE1
EUR € coupon code: FESTIVE2
CAD $ coupon code: FESTIVE3
AUD $ coupon code: FESTIVE4

Justine Clarke submarine cake

2010-11-28T02:40:00.000-08:00

Quest to find a new mixer

2010-11-25T01:49:00.000-08:00

My poor old mixer decided to have an early retirement after baking 530+ cupcakes for the Girls Night In. That's 11 batches straight in 2.5 days.

I started The Cupcake Gallery on a Sunbeam Mixmaster - the $99 model we got for a wedding present. This lasted me the 1st year of the business before it died. So I went and got another one which was exactly the same, but this one didn't last long so we had it refunded under warranty. Then I bought a $59 mixer from Aldi which went for another year, but I had to spin the bowl by hand which I got tired of. Then I 'splurged' and bought the Sunbeam Cafe Series for $429.
This one lasted me just 3 months... To give it some credit, it was the mechanism that spins the bowl that stopped rather than the main motor itself. I still think it is a great mixer, but perhaps just not built to take on so many cupcakes at once! Thankfully it was still under warranty so we had it replaced with a brand new one, then Myer was good enough to give us a full refund after that.

So began my search for a new mixer.
My first thought was to rush out and buy a Kitchenaid... then I decided that I really should do some research into what else is out there. I knew I wanted something a bit more pro this time, but without getting a commercial one.

Based on my circumstances, things I had to take into consideration were:

I wanted a hardy machine that could handle loads more than that of the average home-baker.
With the refund from the Sunbeam ($429), I didn't want to have to pay too much extra.
I wanted a planetary mixer this time.
I wanted a splashguard. No more draping a towel over the mixer.
I prefered a handle on the bowl.
Though I'm winding down the business and not taking any more orders, I am still running workshops next year, which means 150+ cupcakes for each workshop.
It had to be something that would last us for the next 10 years as we go on long term mission in Africa and may not be able to replace my mixer easily.
I like the idea of attachments, so that it is not just a mixer. It will also save storage space given we're moving to smaller housing at Bible College next year.
We're looking to replace our food processor and blender, so a machine that has these attachments at a reasonable price would be good.

So in the end, these were the mixers I considered.

Kitchenaid Artisan KSM 150 (from AUD$629)

I've heard nothing but good stuff about the KA, so I knew this was a quality machine. However, despite most people liking the way it looks, I'm not a big fan of the design...

Pros:
- splashguard
- 4.8L capacity bowl with handle
- Choice of colours
- good reputation for durability

Cons
- only 300w motor, though apparently this is not always an accurate indicator of power. I'd read reviews about the motor burning out for those who bake large batches frequently. I'd feel more comfortable with a higher wattage motor. However, I know a lot of semi-pro cake makers who use KA.
- Only 3 months replacement warranty

Kitchenaid Delux (from AUD$713)

I considered this 'commcercial' model too, but the only differences between this and the KA Artisan were:
- 315w motor instead of 300w
- Bowl lifts up instead of the top lifting up.
- only comes in blue or red

Kenwood kmix KMX51 (from AUD$548)

I really liked the look of this one! It was sleek and looked well built.

Pros:
- 500w motor
- Option of colours for an extra cost
- Splashguard
- 4.6L bowl with handle

Cons:
- I read a few reviews that said it didn't scrape the sides well and left lots of batter unmixed on the side. This is a major issue for me if I'm going to be mixing a lot of batches.

Breville Wizz BEM800 (from AUD$436)

This one almost had me sold. It had everything I wanted for the lowest price. But I found it hard to trust the name, as I heard that Breville is made by the same people who make Sunbeam - my last mixer.....

Pros:
- 1000w motor
- Big handle on bowl
- count up and down timer
- 4.7L bowl
- Splashguard
- Scraper beater tool which scrapes the sides of the bowl
- 2 year replacement warranty + 5 year motor repair warranty

Cons:
- I went to David Jones and had a look in person and wasn't happy with how it felt. It didn't feel as solid as the others. It was a bit chunkier than the other mixers and felt like they tried to make it feel solid when it really wasn't.
- I haven't heard many testimonials about the durability of Breville machines.

Kenwood EON Chef Classic Kitchen Machine KMC002B (from AUD$782.95)

This one came with a food processor and liquidiser attachment which was very tempting!

Pros

- Bowl with handle

- 1000w motor

- Attachments available

Cons

- Smaller capacity bowl at 4.4L

- I wasn't sure if batter will stick to the sides of this like the Kenwood kmix, but there is a separate 'flexibeater' that you can purchase for $60 that scrapes the sides.

- Splashguard not included. You have to purchase it separately for $100.

With this one I had to take into consideration that I'd probably end up buying an extra large bowl (4.8L bowl for $140), a splashguard, plus the flexibeater. Which will bring the overall cost to over $1000.

Kenwood Chef Premier KMC510 (from AUD$529)

Pros
- 1000w motor
- Splashguard with hinged lid over opening (I really liked this!)
- white - I prefer the white over silver
- 4.8L bowl
- Comes with a mincer attachment
- Flexibeater can be purchased separately

Cons
- No handle on bowl!
- No flexibeater advertised as being included

The verdict
So in the end it was between the Breville, Kitchenaid Artisan and Kenwood Chef Premier.

I decided on the Kenwood Chef Premier mainly for the following:
- 1000w motor
- Splashguard inclusion
- Large bowl
- Good reputation for durability
- Priced within my budget - to get the same in a KA would mean the commercial model (not the delux above) which is not readily available in Australia and priced waaaay over my budget.
- Design - it felt sturdy
- attachments more obtainable
- More attachments available
- Optional flexibeater
- I can get more for less $$$ and still get a machine that has a good reputation for durability.

I figured I could do without a handle on the bowl for now, but I'd planned buy a flexibeater for $60.

I called around Harvey Normam, Good Guys, Myer, DJs, Bing Lee, and Clive Anthony and managed to price match to get the price down to $475. When I went to buy it at the Good Guys, it turned out that some boxes had the flexibeater included (Kenwood is phasing this out). So I saved myself more there. Then there's a redemption offer for a free $199 Kenwood breadmaker. Bonus!

I still think the Breville and KA are good machines, but one was just a little over my budget and the other unfortunately hasn't been around long enough to develop a reputation for durability.

Going home a proud owner of a Kenwood Chef Premier!

I baked the first cake with my Kenwood today and was very happy with it, the flexibeater is a dream - a must to get if you're considering the Kenwood Chef, and the splashguard is great!! I could see what was going on inside the bowl without being splashed on. Also meant my 3 year old could help spoon ingredients into the bowl without me worrying about her getting her fingers caught in the beaters! However, I think I'll definitely be getting the bowl with the handles :o) Too bad I already got my early Christmas present (new flash for my camera)!

The tools: dough hook, flexibeater, K-beater, balloon whisk

Creaming butter and sugar

Mincer

Lastly, a few helpful things if you're shopping around for a mixer:

www.productreviews.com.au is good for reviews on mixers.

These online shops seem to give good prices, but be aware that they are not authorised dealers so may not offer the same bonuses (like the breadmaker) and warranties as major retailers:
www.pricebeaters.com.au (can pick up if you live in Sydney)
www.yourhomedepot.com.au (they price match)
http://shop.bigpond.com/
http://www.cheapbargains.com.au/ (price match)

Do call around electrical stores for price matching. By the time you've called around a few stores, the price would be almost as cheap as these unauthorised online shops and you have a peace of mind with better more trusted customer support.

I considered getting the Kitchenaid from www.appliancesurplus.com.au. DON'T! One shop I visited told me that they've had customers tell them that they never received their products, and there is no contact number or address for you to chase them up and they ignored emails re: missing orders.

If you're considering a Kitchenaid, their prices have been set to increase by 10% starting 1st Nov 2010. Shops are still selling off remaining stock at the old price, but once they've sold them all, prices will go up. So if you're considering a KA, now's the time to get it!

Happy mixer hunting!!

Girls Night In 19th Nov 2010

2010-11-24T06:26:00.000-08:00

The Cupcake Gallery hosted a Girls Night In Cupcake Night on 19th Nov to raise money for the Cancer Council.

It was a fantastic night with 86 ladies in attendance, all ready to be creative with fondant.

In total, we raised $3500 for cancer research

Girls Night In under way

The room was beautifully set up, thanks to the lovely ladies at Dural Baptist Church.

My lovely mum shared her story about beating breast cancer

My beautiful family and I all decked out in pink for the occasion

Goodie bags for everyone with goodies donated by businesses

Everyone was taught 2 designs, then had to design 4 of their own.

There were prizes for the best 3 boxes on the night.

Susan won first prize.

Julie won 2nd prize

Naomi won 3rd prize

A special thanks to the following businesses for their kind and generous contributions to the Girls Night In:

Sweetness the Patisserie

The Party Studio

PSP Three Towns Project

Sweet Deliveries

Dural Baptist Church

Front page in local newspaper!

2010-11-01T21:13:00.000-07:00

The Cupcake Gallery made front page news today (2 Nov 2010) in our local paper The Hills Shire Times. The article continues onto p.24.
Here's my beautiful girl and I with the cupcakes that I'll be teaching at the Girls Night In Cupcake Night to raise money for the Cancer Council.
Click to read the digital edition of the newspaper. It's the Nov 2nd 2010 edition.

Princess Cupcake Afternoon photo shoot

2010-10-13T02:18:00.000-07:00

My local council (Hills) wanted to come and take some photos of my work for their upcoming 2011 calendar, and asked if I could arrange for a couple of extra kids to come for some action shots of me teaching cupcakes. So I decided on a princess theme and invited a couple of my 3-year-old's girly-girl friends over for an afternoon of princess cupcake decorating fun!

Inspired by the likes of Mrs A in the Cove, I've always wanted to do a party spread like this, so this was the perfect excuse.

The whole thing turned out a little bigger than Ben Hur and I lost many hours of sleep over it, but in the end I was really pleased with the result!

the spread

Juice, macarons, cakepops, and marshmallows

What you see here are 2nd rate macarons...

After the first succesful few batches of macarons, I hit a macaron wall this week and all attempts flopped. Being a perfectionist, I just had to keep trying... but after 6 batches, even I had to say enough is enough.

Well, just ONE more :o) ... magic batch #7 turned out beautifully!

So the night before the photo shoot, I laid out the best of my batch #7 macarons to take some photos... and ended up smashing the whole box of them when I was packing up!!!!!

Lucky I had some list-B macarons waiting in the fridge for their moment of glory (the tops are a little browned)...

Cakepops - another thing I've been itching to try.

Love heart cookiepops
Meringues courtesy of Woolworths

Party bags

The castle cake.

Princess cupcakes (cupcake is under the dress).

'Upside-down' cupcake inspired by Debbie Browne

I was really happy with how these turned out.

Snow White

Cinderella

Tiana

Belle

Sleeping Beauty

Outside for the photo shoot

Cancer Council 'Girls Night In' Cupcake Night

2010-09-27T21:58:00.000-07:00

The Cupcake Gallery is excited to announce that we will be hosting a Cancer Council Girls Night In event.

The breast cancer cause is close to my heart as my own dear Mum fought and beat the decease about 8 years ago. So when I saw the ads on TV for Girls Night In, I just had to do something about it!

So come and attend a mini-workshop for a fraction of a normal workshop price and support a good cause!

Round up a few girl-friends have a great night of cupcake fun!

For more info, go to http://girlsnightin.cupcakegallery.com.au

Places are limited, so register now!

Click on the image to see a larger version

Drummer Boy

2010-09-24T21:44:00.000-07:00

When designing this cake, I was originally thinking of doing the cake as the bass drum, but that would've meant a huge figurine. Plus I wanted to make it so that the entire drum set could be saved and not cut.

In the end, I decided on making a mock cake as a platform for the drums so I could stick the cymbal stands in. This way, after the cake is cut, the top cake can be lifted off and kept as a memento without disassembling the drum set.

Being a drummer myself (once upon a time!), it was hard to skim on the details. I would've liked to include the legs of the cymbal stands too, but there just wasn't enough room on the cake! I think it still looked quite effective without the stand details though :o)

The base cake is a gluten free chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache.

the tom toms

snare drum

front of the drums

I decided not to have this as the front of the cake because it showed more of the details the other way.

the bass pedal

crash cymbal and hi-hat

floor tom

Time it took to complete this cake: approx 5 days

Price: from AUD$350

Pea Babies in a Pod

2010-09-23T22:13:00.000-07:00

Pea Babies in a Pod twins baby shower cake

Cake with matching baby themed cupcakes

Small vanilla cupcakes with buttercream, topped with embossed rounds

Special birthday cupcakes

2010-09-19T01:10:00.000-07:00

These cupcakes were ordered by the birthday girl from the previous Amish quilting cake post.

She wanted to give these to those who also celebrated their birthdays around the same time.

...for a bass guitarist

...for a lady who likes to shop

..for a keen reader and budding author

... for a soccer fan

(I've made this one before, but thought I'd include it here anyway!)

Amish quilting cake

2010-09-19T00:44:00.000-07:00

Amish quilting cake made for a special lady's 50th

The Amish ladies symbolise her strong faith in God and love of quilting.

The quilt on the table is a replica of a favourite quilt the birthday girl has hanging in her home.

Inside is dark chocolate mudcake with dark chocolate ganache

Amish ladies close-ups

When I was setting up the cake, someone commented: "Oh look! A basket of fat quarters!"

I'm not a quilter so was pleased to hear that my bundles of material actually had a name!

Cotton reels and pin cushion

The accompanying vanilla cupcakes for non-chocolate eaters

These buttons were inspired by Donna Hay button toppers I've seen around

This cake took 5 days (approx 33 hours) to complete.

Edible book competition win

2010-09-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is my entry into the local council 'Book to Devour' competition where it won first prize in the business category. 'Edible books' had to be based on a book cover/character/content. This was a meaningful win to me as it was the first time I'd entered into the business category rather than the individual category.
I chose The Large Family Five Minutes' Peace by Jill Murphy. Being a primary teacher, I wanted to choose a great popular children's book that wasn't too 'commercialised'. Being a mum, I could really relate to the story where all Mrs Large wanted was five minutes' peace to herself! The Large Family series is one of my 3-year-old's favourite books, and it was also a book that allowed me to show off my strength - an eye for detail.

At the viewing night at the local library where they announced the winners.
There were three long tables like this one, all packed with entries.
Categories were: Youth, Open, and Business.

...after the winners were annoucned :o)

Me with my beautiful support crew standing in front of the cake now on display at the library

The details...

Lester Large playing the recorder for mum.
Mrs Large's uneaten toast and cupcake

Mrs Large in the bubble bath surrounded by toys

Laura Large reading a book to mum
laundry basket, Mrs Large's cold cup of tea, tea pot, and newspaper

Toilet paper roll

the toilet and pot plant
The Little One about to throw his toy boat in the bath with mum

The making...

Sketch

Completed Lester, half completed Little One and Laura

All bits completed, cake covered (bath tub), all ready to be assembled!

Time it took to complete: 7 days
Materials: Fondant, chocolate cake, ganache

Noah's Ark animals

2010-09-01T04:29:00.000-07:00

I made these a while ago for a special little boy's 1st birthday and dedication.

The mum made the Noah's Ark cake for these little animals to go on.

All she wanted was three pairs of animals but once I got started, I couldn't stop!

Welcome to the world, baby Abby!

2010-08-22T06:37:00.000-07:00

I made this cake in honour of the birth of my cousin's 3rd child :o)

I already had the figurine made for one of my workshops, so just had to make the cake. She lives all the way in Hong Kong so unfortunately won't be able to taste this cake! I'm sure her two big brothers would've loved eating the cupcakes too :o)

Congratulations Stephen & Monica, on the birth of baby Abby!

I was at Bible Study a couple of weeks ago and the little girls of two of the ladies were drawing with their colour pencils... when one of them held up a purple and a turquoise, I thought "Those colours would look nice on a cake!", so thought I'd give it a try here :o)

Baby face and monogrammed 'A' cupcakes

Simple Roses

2010-08-21T05:57:00.000-07:00

Plain white three-tiered chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache.

Flowers arranged by Mazzika Events

I can't really take credit for how beautiful this cake looks because without the flowers, the cake is pretty plain!

When I was making it, I couldn't quite picture what the final product would look like. The bride had arranged for her decorator to place the flowers on top after delivery. But luckily, Mazzika Events was already there with the flowers all set to go when we arrived, so I was able to take some photos of the beautiful cake after its finishing touches were put in place. I thought the fresh roses on the simple white cake was really effective!

Bennelong Bake-off newspaper articles

2010-08-19T06:04:00.000-07:00

Northern District Times 11 Aug 2010

The Weekly Times 11 Aug 2010

New York cupcake toppers photo-shoot

2010-08-18T05:59:00.000-07:00

My package of cupcake toppers all set to go to New York for the BRIDES magazine photo shoot.

I was contacted by the style director of BRIDES magazine requesting some of my wedding cupcake toppers for a photo-shoot at the end of August. This is for an article on wedding cupcakes for the January 2011 edition of the magazine. Timing was a bit tight, I had to start work on them straight away after I received the email. I would've like to let the toppers air-dry for another week just to be sure that all moisture has gone and won't get trapped in the box in it's 3-5 day voyage to the United States of America. I pray everything gets there in time and in one piece (I used up most of a large roll of bubble wrap)! :o)

Crocs & lizards cupcakes

2010-08-14T04:12:00.000-07:00

small crocodile cupcakes

small lizard cupcakes

standard sized cupcake with both croc and lizard for the birthday boy

A week of caking....

2010-08-07T06:39:00.001-07:00

This is what a typical week of making cakes looks like for me :o)

A construction cake, a small cake with figurine, and 24 cupcake toppers this week.

CONCEPT SKETCHES

After discussing ideas, themes, and colours with a client, a rough sketch of the cake is then made to ensure that it achieves all the elements of their dream cake while staying within budget.

MONDAY

Morning: After dropping my 3-year-old off at preschool, I head off to my weekly Bible Study group. After lunch, my 1-year-old goes down for his nap and I work on final, more detailed sketches of the cake. I have my son's toy trucks to help me, just to be sure I make the construction trucks properly!

Afternoon: Preschooler comes home and we bake some gingerbread babies together. Then it was time to prepare dinner.

Evening: with the kids fed, bathed (by hubby) and in bed, I work on the vintage circus themed cupcake toppers.

TUESDAY

Morning: While my 3-year-old is at preschool, my son and I head off to do some boring grocery shopping. Tues is also my 1-year-old's swimming lesson. After lunch, I begin work on the figurines (construction vehicles) while my son naps... but he wakes early (40 min nap!) so all work is halted until further notice...

Afternoon: Preschooler picked up. Dinner prepared, Tues is spag bol night.

Evening: Kids fed, bathed and sound asleep. Hubby goes to Bible Study.

8:30pm-12:55am: I watch Packed to the Rafters while working on the vehicles.

WEDNESDAY

Morning: Busy day today with netball in the morning, followed by 3-year-old's swimming lesson.

Afternoon: 2pm-10pm: Killer headache. I lay on the couch while the kids take turns to poke, prod, and climb all over me...

Evening: Hubby makes dinner while I lay on the couch.

10pm-2:45am: Headache gone, time to get off the couch and work on the construction vehicles.

This is what I managed to achieve before going to bed. I need these parts to dry properly before moving on the the next step tomorrow.

THURSDAY

Baking day. 3 cakes to bake today.
I'm so glad I recently bought a new Sundbeam Mixmaster. No more spinning the bowl by hand!!

Two gluten free cakes fresh out of the oven while cake no.3 goes in.

Enlisting my husband's help to knead fondant for the construction cake.

A strong pair of man-hands is handy for kneading kilos of icing!

Those hands also do a lot of the washing up after I bake :o)

2:3oam - Work is finished on the people figurines for the two cakes

FRIDAY

Ganache and fondant-covering day.

Morning: Playgroup. Work begins after lunch when kids are resting from a busy morning of playing with friends. If I'm lucky, I might squeeze in an hour's work before the kids get up.

Ganaching cake no.1

Afternoon:
Cake no.1 covered. Figurines put into place.

Cake no.2 ganached and ready to be covered.

Evening:
Friday is Friday date night :o) Hubby usually feeds the kids first, then we eat by ourselves later. Uninterrupted adult conversation, what a treat! After dinner, cake no.2 is covered and more work continue into the night putting the final touches on the cakes...

3:06am - Construction cake done

3:20am - Maxine McKew cake done.

You may have noticed that I ended up making this cake shorter than planned, and I also changed the whole head because I wasn't happy with the smile (yes I am a perfectionist!). This is what can happen sometimes when I don't do a sketch to begin with!

SATURDAY

Delivery time!

This is a family event as my husband and I pack the two kids plus cakes into the car and head off for a morning (or day) of delivery. We all put on our Cupcake Gallery shirts, which my 3-year-old thinks is very special :o) She loves her 'uniform'!

This best part is delivering the cakes and seeing the looks on the recipients' faces as they see their cake for the first time :o)

There are a few things I couldn't do without in running this business successfully:

God's strength and blessing of creativity, my hubby, tea, chocolate, canned soup (easy lunch for me!), canned baked beans (easy lunch for the kids!), and two beautiful kids to cheer me up when I'm stressed!

Construction cake

2010-08-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

A construction cake for a special big boy.
The dump truck and excavator are both made from sugar.

Cake for Maxine McKew MP

2010-08-07T06:01:00.000-07:00

I received a call last week from the office of politician Maxine McKew (Bennelong MP and former ABC presenter) inviting me to come along to their electoral campaign's 'Bennelong Bake-Off'.

This cake was made for Maxine and was not an entry into the bake-off. She was thrilled with it and didn't want to cut it, wanting to save it for election night instead!

Gingerbread babies

2010-08-02T04:21:00.000-07:00

It's 'cooking/nutrition' week at preschool this week. So my 3-year-old and I made these little gingerbread babies for her 'news (show & tell)'.

My preschooler is not the most outgoing of little girls, so we always try to give her something interesting to take for news that'll give her plenty to talk about. Having taught kindy for three years, I've heard my fair share of "This is my toy, I got it from the shops."!

These little gingerbread babies are only 4cm tall and make a nice little special treat.

I thought they looked very cute together :o)

Cake fit for a king!

2010-08-01T04:21:00.000-07:00

This cake was ordered for a little boy's 1st birthday. The mum wanted the figurine of her little boy to be dressed in a Chinese 'king' suit. The material was shimmery and had some beautiful oriental dragons on it which, due to the budget, I didn't replicate on the actual figurine itself. It would've taken a while to hand draw the intricate patterns all over the suit, and would've looked very impressive too! I was almost tempted to do it being the perfectionist that I am :o)

I also decided to try for horizontal stripes with this cake, which turned out to be a little bit more involved than I had expected! Besides a little bit of a wobbly near the top, I'm happy with the how it turned out, along with the number 1 'badge' at the front.

my creative space

2010-07-19T23:41:00.000-07:00

This is where the magic happens. Where cake and fondant are combined to turn into works of art. This is my 'creative space'.

Note my recently acquired $5 garage-sale-shelf where I have just re-organised all my caking equipment. I was seriously running out of room for everything! My dream would be to live in a house where I can have a room dedicated to caking, a room with a wall to wall work bench, and ample floor-to-ceiling shelving for equipment and display cakes.... but until then, I'm more than happy with this corner of our lounge room :o) Afterall, art is not about the space in which it is created, but the hands that create it.

Winter Arctic cake

2010-07-16T03:35:00.000-07:00

All I really wanted to do was just experiment with ganache fillings... but ended up with the above :o)
This cake was made from leftover batter and ganache from making a wedding cake for tomorrow. But I couldn't really cover a cake without decorating it, could I? :o) I used what I already had sitting around (penguins) and added the icebergs and piped on some snowflakes with leftover royal icing from working on the wedding cake. Simple, but quite effective! Now for the tasting! I don't often make cakes for myself to eat, so this would be a nice change :o)

3D Cupcakes Workshop

2010-07-11T06:30:00.000-07:00

Finally, I've finished my sample cupcakes for the 3D Cupcakes Workshop!

I started working on these a couple of weeks ago but it's taken me a while to finish because I've been distracted by my latest obsession of making cookie cutters :o) Just made a Cupcake Gallery cookie cutter last night, hoping to try it out next week after I finish making Adrian & Vanessa's gorgeous wedding cake for their big day. I'm thinking of possibly including a Cupcake Gallery cookie in the workshop goodie bags.

My aim was to create a beautiful set of cupcakes that would be easy for beginning/intermediate learners to master. I like to have themes for each set of cupcakes for workshops, so it wasn't easy coming up with ideas that were all within the same theme AND easy to make. I spent quite some time just sitting and staring at my fondant, and then playing with ideas and colours before settling on the final designs. I generally plan 4-5 cupcake designs for each workshop. Students start off making the simplest design, and then work up to a more complex one as their confidence grow as we progress through the workshop.

These cupcakes were inspired by the current popularity of 'high tea'. At this workshop, students will be making cupcakes with the following toppers: Macarons, cupcakes, slice of cake, cupcakes in tray, and last but not least - the tea set.

Gnome and Toadstool Cookies

2010-07-09T19:01:00.000-07:00

I randomly bought a giant gnome for a friend recently. Gnomes have a certain ugly appeal about them that makes you want to gag but smile at the same time :o)

So while this giant gnome sat in our house waiting to be delivered, it gave me inspiration for my next cookie cutter - a gnome cutter!

My gnome sketch on the front of a set of workshop notes :o)
The closest bit of paper I could find at the time (like my new pen?)!

My new gnome friends.

This gnome cutter can also be used for Snow White's seven dwarves and Santa, come Christmas time. I'm sure my 3-year-old would love some seven dwarves cookies, as Snow White is her favourite princess at the moment :o) She's scared of Santa though so no Santa cookies for her!

Toadstool Cookies

Everyone together for a group photo!

Exclusive Cupcake Gallery cookie cutters!

2010-07-07T03:18:00.000-07:00

Cookies is part of my range but it has never been 'my thing', I find it too limiting to have to work within a pre-made shape. Kind of takes all the creativity out of the fun! I've read that you can make your own cookie cutters, so I took advantage of this past month of cake-less-ness to do some research on how to do it.

Off I went to the shops yesterday to buy the materials I need and the plan was to give cookie cutters a try after this week. My aim for this week was to make sample cupcakes for the 3D Cupcakes Workshop and get started on the wedding bride & groom figurines for next week.... But within 30 mins of getting home with my goodies, I just couldn't wait and got started right away! My mum would tell you that I am not a patient person :o) By the end of today, I'd made 7 cutters - a set of babushkas, an owl, a baby Jesus/snowman, and a rainbow.

Today, my 3-year-old and I spent the morning making cookies and this is what we ended up with:

I think I might have found myself a new hobby! The possibilities are endless.

The great thing about making my own cookie cutters is that I can claim that these cookie designs are exclusive to The Cupcake Gallery :o)

a month off cakes in June

2010-07-05T03:31:00.000-07:00

I had a month off cake-ing in June. It was nice to have a break, so I took that chance to stay clear away from cakes/cupcakes and bake something different.

Being a perfectionist, the challenge of baking macaroons was too much to resist. So I googled around and found a fool proof recipe. Here it is at A la Cuisine!

Having just finished watching Masterchef Australia's macaroon challenge pressure test, I've noticed that the steps in Adriano Zumbo's recipe was a little different to what I've seen on the net... I guess that's what makes his macaroons so outstanding!!

It was rather addictive trying to get them just right, and in the end I was more or less happy with the results :o) Here are some photos:

So what else did I do in my month off besides my macaroon obsession? I enjoyed time with my kids, I went on a picnic with my family, and I sat on the couch and did nothing which is very rare these days.

In the midst of that break, I also had a brain wave (with a surge of confidence added!) so decided to take the plunge and run workshops!

We've just had our very first workshop and I had a blast!! I couldn't have asked for a better first class :o) Having been a teacher before I had kids, it was nice to be teaching again, even if the 'kids' were a little older than what I was used to (kindy!). My eight students did brilliantly and all walked away with some beautiful cupcakes. For more information on the Cupcake Gallery workshops, click here.

Here are some photos from the day:

Everyone working hard

Photos of some of the students' masterpieces:

Wendy's cupcakes

Keryn-Leigh's cupcakes

slight change to the 3D figurines workshop

2010-06-20T20:18:00.000-07:00

I was at Bible study this morning, and the lovely ladies I meet with every week gave me the idea to make a fishing boat seeing as it is Fathers Day (5th Sept) the day after the workshop.

So this is now what you'll be making if you attend the 4th Sept workshop!

Click here for more info on the workshop.

3D Figurines Workshop

2010-06-18T01:25:00.000-07:00

4th September 3D Figurines Workshop

Click here for more details

Beginners Cupcake Workshop

2010-06-13T02:42:00.000-07:00

This is what you'll make if you attend the beginners cupcake workshop

Cupcake Workshop

2010-06-09T06:23:00.000-07:00

(Click on the image to see a larger version)

We are so excited to announce that we are now running workshops!

The first one will be a beginners (2D) cupcakes workshop to be held on Sat 3rd July.
Click here for more details!

African Water Well

2010-05-29T06:03:00.000-07:00

A friend was helping their church organise a 'Survive under 5' event as part of the Micah Challenge. It was a local event which aimed to raise awareness of high child mortality rates around the world, and to challenge action to reduce these deaths by two-thirds.

Part of the event was a 'baking contest' and she suggested I enter it. So I did!

The criteria was:
- Must include at least three fair-trade ingredients.

- it has to incorporate the themes of child and maternal health and the goal of seeing more children survive past the age of 5

So this is what I came up with:

You can't see it well in these photos, but around the cake are the words: "5000 children die daily from unclean water. $600 pays for a well to bring clean water to a community"

My fair trade ingredients were: dark chocolate, coffee, and sugar.

I won first prize out of the 4 entries there, but felt a little bad because my competition was a 7 year old, a 14 year old, and an 80 year old who entered their delicious sponge cakes! Cakes that I'm sure were yummier than my plain old chocolate cake (hidden inside the well). My prize was a fairtrade cookbook, presented by politician Maxine McKew!

I had fun making this cake which is now my absolute favourite creation out of all the cakes I've done so far. I just love it! Probably because it was for a cause that is close to my heart.

Mother daughter birthdays

2010-05-23T03:14:00.001-07:00

Happy 70th Birthday Mum!

2010-05-11T03:08:00.000-07:00

Cake I made for my mum's surprise 70th birthday.

I tried something a little different this time. I made the edges of the cakes sharp rather than rounded and was rather pleased with the result!

The Cupcake Gallery in the Hills Shire Times

2010-04-27T06:57:00.000-07:00

Article in my local paper Hills Shire Times
27. 04. 2010

Baby Baptism

2010-04-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

Plaque with 3D teddy holding silver cross

Chloe cake

2010-04-24T05:06:00.000-07:00

This was made for a dear little girl who is very special to our family :o)

Her most treasured things are her baby doll and blanket, and her favourite colours are blue and green.

The size of the board is 35cm x 40cm and the cake stands about 35cm high. It's sculpted from two 6" and two 7" chocolate cakes. It took me a day to bake the four cakes and 1.5 days to decorate it.

I wasn't entirely happy with this cake. The weight of the head from all that fondant icing was making it tip backwards slowly, so by the time it endured the 35 min drive to the party, the 'birthday girl' was looking slightly skywards! despite there being dowels to hold the head in place inside the cake. The weight of the hair and hat also made the cheeks droop... luckily this photo was taken before any of those things started happening... But as my husband said, no one else probably noticed the imperfections except for me, and most importantly the birthday girl liked it... so much that she didn't want to cut the cake and had to be taken out of the room so we could dismember the cake without her seeing it!

Bunny lover

2010-04-10T07:45:00.000-07:00

Cupcakes for a lady who breeds cashmere bunnies. The theme was black and silver.

Sydney Royal Easter Show 2010 cake entries

2010-04-03T04:41:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited to announce that I'd recently won two 2nd place ribbons at the Sydney Royal Easter Show cake decorating competition! :o)

Most Creative Cake (Novice Class): 2nd Prize
Most Creative Miniature Cake (Novice Class): 2nd Prize This was the first time I'd entered the Easter Show cake decorating comps and I had no idea what the standards were, though suspected they'd be pretty high.

It was a memorable trip to the Show for my family and I this year as we didn't get notified about the competition results prior to the Show, so we found out as we checked out the cake decoration displays on the day. It was a pleasant surprise to find ribbons on both my cakes, which was way beyond what I'd hoped for! We celebrated afterwards with my favourite Easter Show food: fried cheese-on-a-stick :o)

There are some gobsmackingly spectacular cakes on display this year, so if you are going to the show, do take the time to go and have a look. My favourite one is the Easter bunny cake :o)

Easter treats

2010-03-29T22:34:00.000-07:00

Cinnamon sugar bunny bikkies for my daughter and her preschool friends

... and hot-cross bikkies (chocolate ganache sandwiched between chocolate bikkies) for the teachers

Have a safe and happy Easter everyone!

Halleluia, Jesus has risen!!

Soccer

2010-03-24T03:14:00.000-07:00

Soccer ball cake I made for my hubby's birthday

I'd bought a ball shaped cake tin a while ago and have never tried it,

so this was a good excuse!... though I only made half a ball, will have to try a whole ball next time! It turned out well, though putting the soccer ball shapes on were a little trickier than I thought. Did you know that the black and white shapes are not the same? The black ones are pentagons, and white ones are hexagons :o)

The soccer ball measures about 16cm in diameter

Serves approximately 15 finger slices

Jungle Safari

2010-03-19T22:59:00.000-07:00

I made this cake for my 2nd child Lucas' 1st birthday.
Happy 1st birthday, precious boy!

The birthday boy

Baby zebra

Baby giraffe

the sneaky monkey eating cake

Monkey up a tree

Swarovski wedding cake

2010-02-27T03:41:00.000-08:00

Square two-tiered chocolate mud cake with 96 genuine Swarovski diamantes
There are no other decorations on this as the bride & groom were providing their own flowers

Garden cake

2010-02-20T03:27:00.000-08:00

Cake for my daughter's 3rd birthday garden themed party :o)

The top cake is a 'dummy cake' with foam instead of a cake inside.

This way I could make it ahead of time and not have to worry about making that and the cupcakes, along with everything else you have to worry about the night before the party!

And best of all, I can keep the entire cake as a keepsake too!

The birthday girl loved it :o)

Happy Anniversary to Ewe

2010-02-09T01:29:00.000-08:00

I made this cake for my husband and my 7 year wedding anniversary.

The traditional symbol for the 7th anniversary is wool :o)

WE HAVE MOVED!

2010-01-30T22:26:00.000-08:00

We're excited to announce the launch of our

new-look website!!

Check it out at: www.cupcakegallery.com.au

This new website is more user friendly for our customers and has new features such as the
enquiry form, bookings calendar, and testimonials section for our happy customers!

This blog http://www.thecupcakegallery.blogspot.com/ will still be used

from time to time for 'works in progress' so please continue to check here as well!

Harley couple

2010-01-04T02:31:00.000-08:00

Bride & groom on a Harley Davidson 2008 Sporters

Pink blossoms top cake and cupcakes

Birthday cupcakes

2009-12-21T19:06:00.001-08:00

Birthday cupcakes for a girl who likes singing/music, ancient history and drawing

Christmas cupcakes

2009-12-21T18:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas four-pack cupcakes

the baby Jesus cupcake topper line-up :o)

Our Saviour born in a manger

Doves

Jesus - lamb of God

Angels rejoice

Maisy book cake

2009-12-21T18:45:00.000-08:00

Maisy Mouse cupcakes

2009-12-14T19:21:00.000-08:00

Assorted Maisy M0use birthday cupcakes with special birthday girl cupcake on top

Red Roze

2009-12-05T19:55:00.000-08:00

Simple elegant top cake and boxed cupcake bonbonierres arranged on stand,

decorated with scattered rose petals

Lavender wedding

2009-11-29T21:55:00.000-08:00

Individual cupcakes for the bride and groom

Small animal cupcakes for the kids

Chocolate cupcakes with buttercream swirl topped with dried lavender sprig

Koala Brothers Homestead cake

2009-11-20T18:50:00.000-08:00

Koala Brothers homestead with Ned, Frank, personalised birthday girl, and Mitzi

from $580

Baby cupcake topper set

2009-11-04T02:04:00.000-08:00

baby cupcake topper set $20*

baby only - $10*
baby + bottle or duck - $12*
baby + bunny or blocks - $13*

baby custom made according to skin, hair, dummy colour

*cupcake not included. $3.30 extra with cupcake.

Baby topper set on a mini 3" (9cm diameter) cake in clear box $55

$5 extra with baby's name on side of cake

Spring Garden

2009-10-31T04:27:00.000-07:00

6" cake with Spring Garden figurine from $165
Spring garden cupcakes from $5.50 each

Ripples Pink Ribbon Breakfasts

2009-10-28T17:00:00.000-07:00

The Cupcake Gallery was recently invited to take part in the

Ripples restaurants Pink Ribbon Breakfasts in support of breast cancer research.

My own mum fought and won the battle aginst breast cancer 8 years ago,

so this is a cause that is very close to my heart :o)

Guests at the Ripples Milsons Point breakfast were each treated to a delicious chocolate cupcake
topped with strawberry buttercream and fondant pink ribbon decoration.

Discount vouchers and 'cake cash' gift cards were also donated and given to guests
at the Ripples Milsons Point and Ripples Chowder Bay breakfasts.

Cotton spool and birthday buttons

2009-10-24T22:07:00.000-07:00

Cotton spool cake with thimble and needle

Small vanilla cupcakes with buttercream swirls and round birthday buttons

Edible shoe

2009-10-15T17:40:00.000-07:00

Nike Air Yeezy glow in the dark

From $180

Purple Swirly

2009-10-03T06:43:00.000-07:00

the bride's high heels

Two tiered chocolate cake with personalised figurines

from $290, not including delivery & set-up

Deep Blue Sea

2009-09-30T03:11:00.000-07:00

From $170

Half Birthday

2009-09-25T00:33:00.000-07:00

My son's 'half' birthday cake :o)

Mini 4" cake with rough royal icing
and personalised figurine
From $72.50

Shoe lover & Fisherman

2009-09-22T21:55:00.000-07:00

A wedding gift for a couple.

The girl loves her dog, and collects shoes and handbags.

The guy is a keen fisherman.

Cute doggie

Gucci handbag! :o)

heels

Fishing reel

Boxed and ready to go!

Plum Blossoms

2009-09-19T06:25:00.000-07:00

85 small vanilla cupcakes with buttercream swirls

top cake with personalised figurines

$520 including stand hire and delivery + set-up

Wiggles Big Red Car cake with Wags

2009-09-12T06:18:00.000-07:00

Sewing Cake

2009-09-12T06:08:00.000-07:00

Sunny

2009-09-08T19:32:00.000-07:00

Top cake with orchids, and 70 small cupcakes in three designs
From $420 including stand hire, delivery and set-up (Sydney metro)

Birthday cupcakes

2009-08-30T04:07:00.000-07:00

Baby Baptism Cake

2009-08-30T03:02:00.000-07:00

Small vanilla cupcakes in white and green with white polka dots cupcake paper.

Happy Anniversary

2009-08-30T02:59:00.000-07:00

9th Birthday Celebration Pack

2009-08-18T01:50:00.000-07:00

Made for a girl who likes to read, rollerblade, hula hoop, and draw.

Pirate cookiepops

2009-07-31T06:06:00.000-07:00

Pirate 'cookiepops' - $7 each, $7.75 wrapped

Also available as cookies (without the stick) - $6.75 each, $7.50 wrapped

Flavours: Cinnamon, gingerbread

Individually wrapped

Wedding cookie bonbonierres

2009-07-24T05:09:00.000-07:00

X Large bride/groom (11cm tall) - $5, $5.75 individually bagged

Large bride/groom (9.5cm tall) - $4, $4.75 individually bagged

Large heart (7.5cm across) - $3.50, $4.25 individually bagged

Initials 30c extra

Available flavours: Cinnamon, gingerbread

Steinway Wedding

2009-07-18T07:49:00.000-07:00

Two tier wedding cake made for a muso couple

with a Steinway grand piano model made entirely of icing

This cake was featured in the online newsletter of Theme & Variations Piano Services - exclusive dealer of Steinway pianos for NSW and QLD.

Hearts

2009-07-03T02:37:00.000-07:00

6" top cake with personalised figurines

Cupcakes with smooth white fondant icing and single pink and silver shimmer dusted hearts

The Academic Cake

2009-06-24T01:52:00.000-07:00

I made this cake for a friend who has just completed her Bible college thesis.

from $180

Small two-tiered cake

2009-03-23T03:33:00.000-07:00

Simple small two-tiered cake with rough icing and mini personalised figurine

Isabella Cake

2009-03-08T04:55:00.000-07:00

'Red' cake package with personalised bride & groom

2009-02-28T20:19:00.000-08:00

The happy couple

Complete with chin/lip studs!

Veil, hair, and dress train detail

Wiggles & friends

2009-02-21T02:43:00.000-08:00

Wiggles Big Red Car cake

Makka Pakka from 'In the Night Garden'

Birthday girl's other favourites: Peppa Pig, Maisy Mouse, and Elmo

Closer look at the Big Red Car, with Sam, Jeff, Dorothy the Dinosaur, and the birthday girl driving!

Baby Shower Cookies

2009-02-20T04:50:00.000-08:00

Baby face cookies $5.5o each

Baby face cookiepops $5.74 each

Baby face cookies $6.25 individually packaged
Baby face cookiepops $6.50 individually packaged

Available with pink, blue, purple, or yellow dummies

Babies can be personalised according to hair/eye/skin colour

Fairy ballerina cake topper figurine

2009-02-15T02:16:00.000-08:00

2009-02-05T08:11:00.000-08:00

Fisherman

Two sides of a man

Dog-lover Celebration Pack

2009-01-31T03:49:00.000-08:00

25th Silver Wedding Anniversary

2009-01-27T19:21:00.000-08:00

Flower cupcakes

2009-01-27T06:22:00.000-08:00

Butterfly Embossed bonbonierres

2009-01-04T05:15:00.000-08:00

Wedding bonbonierre cupcakes, individually boxed

Pink icing with white butterfly and embossed with floral ring dusted with a slight shimmer

From $8 each