Back to School: Sugar Flowers
July 17, 2008 at 9:49 am | Posted in cakes & tortes, classes, sweet things | 25 Comments
Whenever I’m between jobs, as I am at the moment, I like to make a little investment in what I’ll call “professional development.” I love going back to school to learn something new about aspects of pastry that I don’t often get to dabble in.
Having worked in several restaurants, and with several different pastry chefs, I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that most restaurant pastry chefs and cooks don’t know much about cake decorating. It’s not something that’s needed in that realm day-to-day, and it’s such an all-consuming, specialist craft that there would never be the time in between daily menu production and crazy service to really even begin to develop that talent.
That being said, I did work for a few years in a restaurant with a large function area that hosted its share wedding receptions, anniversary, birthday and other private parties throughout the year. Many people arranged to have cakes delivered by outside shops, but if they didn’t mind a simple cake covered in basic buttercream or fondant and just decorated with some fresh flowers, then my chef K and I were happy to take care of it in our kitchen. That planted in me an interest in cake making and decorating, and over the last couple of years I’ve taken several courses to play around in this area.
I’ve written about the classes I’ve taken at Planet Cake before (here, here and here), and that’s where I took this latest one as well. Greg Cleary, owner of a shop called Sweetums Designer Cakes in Brisbane, came down to Planet Cake to teach the class, and pass along his tips and expertise. We learned how to make gumpaste tulips, sweetpeas, lily of the valley and ivy.
I was really happy with the end result, and I had a great time in the class! Greg was a wonderful teacher, and he is really amazing at what he does–I’m so glad he was willing to share. This was actually my second sugar flower workshop (I took a fantastic week-long one at the CIA a couple years ago), and who knows if I’ll ever use it professionally, but I’d love to learn more. And despite the fact that it takes a lot of concentration to keep my self-diagnosed ADD tendencies under control for this kind of thing, I’d like to practise at home, too, because I think you really do forget this stuff if you don’t…you need quite a lot of equipment (cutters, wires, tools, all kinds of powdered colors), though, so I’ll probably have to accumulate that over time.
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a whisk and a spoon 
that is really neat that you all have those classes around to take. we have a couple places here in KC. your sugar flowers are fantastic. i think that you could totally do this professionally.
Comment by Courtney— July 17, 2008 #
Gorgeous! I’m jealous of your skills.
Comment by Jules— July 17, 2008 #
So fun! Very beautiful!
Comment by Holly @ PheMOMenon— July 17, 2008 #
steph those flowers are sooo beautiful!! i am so absolutely jealous that you have such a specialty cake place nearby that you can take these classes. all we have is wilton…!
Comment by Mara— July 17, 2008 #
Absolutely beautiful Steph!
Comment by Nicisme— July 17, 2008 #
your flowers are breathtaking!!! I’m sure it takes alot of patience and hard work
Comment by lorraine— July 17, 2008 #
Your flowers look amazing, I’d never have the patience to do that. You should feel very proud of yourself!
Comment by mari— July 18, 2008 #
Absolutely stunning! I can practically smell the lily-of-the valley. They could pass for the real thing had I not known they were sugar.
Comment by Camille— July 18, 2008 #
Those look incredible!
Comment by Ari (Baking and Books)— July 18, 2008 #
Amazing! I want to learn how to do that. You are so talented!
Comment by Mary Ann— July 18, 2008 #
Truly awesome looking works!
Comment by DaviMack— July 18, 2008 #
Your flowers look great, maybe someday I can muster the patience to make some 🙂
Comment by Sandie— July 18, 2008 #
wow I can’t even believe those are gumpaste flowers. They are so beautiful! You have some serious talent.
Comment by DolceDeLuca— July 18, 2008 #
Absolutely stunning flowers!! The presentation is excellent. Great job on the cake.
Anitha
Comment by Anitha— July 18, 2008 #
Wow – those flowers are just perfect!
Comment by Maya— July 19, 2008 #
Aw such beautiful flowers! well done, it looks so hard to work on those little gentle details. I’d go crazy I think…
Love your blog btw:)
Comment by Tal— July 19, 2008 #
Wow – I’m so impressed!
Comment by Madam Chow— July 19, 2008 #
How gorgeous. If you told me they were real I would have believed you.
Comment by giz— July 19, 2008 #
That is amazing, those flowers and ivy look so wonderful.
Comment by Jenny— July 19, 2008 #
Gorgeous…I would have thought they were real as well. Just incredible. I would absolutely hire you to decorate a cake if we lived on the same continent!
Comment by Min— July 20, 2008 #
Why are you not a professional.Holy cow, this is so amazing!!!
Comment by nina— July 20, 2008 #
wow!!! those are beautiful
Comment by Jaime— July 21, 2008 #
wow, they look so perfect! You are very talented!
Comment by tammy— July 22, 2008 #
Steph, these are absolutely gorgeous flowers. I’m trying to take a class with Nicholas Lodge sometime before I croak(LOL) I could always try and teach myself but it isn’t the same thing.
Comment by Landa— July 23, 2008 #
WOW! Wonderful! Great work of art.
I hope I can also learn from your great teacher but I think it’s impossible since I live in US.
Comment by xuen— April 30, 2009 #