Sunday Sweets: That Takes The Cake 2011
March 27, 2011 Ah, Austin. That sweet, funky town in the middle of a state that yearns for my death. I can actually feel its beady little state eyes glaring at me from here, waiting for me to fly over its borders so it can shoot down my plane with its state death ray. Or maybe make my spleen burst. Or - OR - maybe I'll just choke on a Texas peanut. But, I digress.
So, apparently, there's this "cake show" in Austin where bakers make cakes and show them. Which is why it's called a "cake show." And apparently, many of these cakes are freaking awesome. Let's take a look, shall we?
No, seriously. Wow.(You may have noticed by this point that I'm not all that "good" with "words" but I am "trying.")
Hey, look!
By Carley KingYellow is my favorite color!
Ya know, what's most impressive to me is that these bakers actually left the relative safety of their own homes and, as far as I know, Texas did not kill a single one of them. Frankly, I'm amazed.
By Chris Suson WinglerGreen is my favorite color!
By Top That! Cake DesignsI'm pretty sure those are daisies.
This next cake was part of the official Texas theme of the show:
By Ashlee TrotterWhich was death.
Wait. I'm being told that it actually wasn't death.
(Are you sure? It was in Texas, right?
Huh.)
Ok, apparently the theme was "Superheros."
Like this one:
Great. Now I have the theme from "Batman" stuck in my head.
(I'm also not so good with "Superheros.")
He looks like he's ready to kill me. Clearly, he is from Texas.
By Laura FinlaySo young. So angry. Darn that rap music.
The helmet is to prevent Texas bird flu.And finally, the most awesome cake I've seen in quite some time:
Those elephants look so life-like! Like they're about to trample me.A special thanks to our Texas liaison, Kimberly Chapman. And hey, maybe next year Jen and I will be able to attend the show! (They rent out the Popemobile, right?)
Have a Sweet to nominate? Then send it to Sunday Sweets [at] Cake Wrecks [dot] com.
Quick update: Thanks for the great comments today guys. For the record, Jen and I both agree that Texans are some of the kindest, most awesome people we have met. However, I've been to Alamo, Houston, Amarillo, Dallas and Austin and been sick, injured or hospitalized every time. But maybe it's just me... -j
Reader Comments (160)
Anonymous @ 11:18am - go to Kimpberly Chapman's site http://kimberlychapman.com/crafts/cakes/cakegallery.html and enlarge the piccies of Wolvie, and you can read the entire text. Clearly she is a woman after my own heart :D
Le sigh. Near-death experience or not, ease up :/ I have a sense of humor, absolutely... but it was kinda a lot.
We aren't HALF as bad as Arizona.
The Dia De Los Muertos cake was awesome! Come to San Antonio in October/November and you'll find out it's way less scary than you think :D Give us another chance at least.
Ooooh at that first cake and at the rainbow lit up one..wow. I so would be unhappy with the person that cut into that first work of art. If only I had that skill..
This Dallas girl's got your back. This city is pretty merciless to the unexpecting! Heck, we've managed to kill both a president and a superbowl, so count yourself lucky to have survived! However please don't avoid the whole state in future trips - just Dallas. San Antonio and Austin are far prettier anyway. :) Though if you do dare the big D I'm sure we can wrestle up a wreckie protection squad for your time here!
Though Texas is not trying to kill me, since I live in Austin, the cake show (That Takes the Cake) did actually kill my cake. A breeze hit the hall when the doors were opened, the partition curtain fell over, and the metal pipe smashed my poor little Japanese Garden flat. Sad, sad day. Fortunately, the judges had already seen it, and it won 2nd place in the Adult Sculpted category...posthumously... It still tasted yummy, though. :)
I've been to Texas several times, including... Dallas! [insert orchestral stab] All I can say is, nothing happened to me, so John, you must be mistaken about all that stuff happening to you.
Just thought you should receive at least one correction, lest you think the EPCOT didn't happen out of sympathy or something gooey like that.
I don't think you understand. Those of us who live in Texas have spent years building up an immunity; that's how we're able to go about our daily lives in safety. We would be completely vulnerable, though, to (say) Australia's murderous tendencies.
Just sitting down to read my weekend blogs here from Dallas, Texas.... wait a minute- Oh sorry I just heard the zombies outside rustling in the bushes. I've got to go get my assault rifles and pistols that hide in the kitchen...
Ok, I'm back- Texas isn't hostile, it's just- wait a second- I reckon I hear a wild armadillo being rastled by a zombie- Let me go get a handle on the situation....
Poor armadillo- I reckon it did nothing to provoke that zombie- but it IS allergy season where even the zombies are prone to some crankiness due to sinus infections.
Anyway, as I was saying- I reckon if you try to come back to Texas another time, those danged zombies will get you for all the anti-texas rhetoric that varmits like you spread all over the internets.
Don't mess with Texas...
Impressive cakes, more impressive comments! Based on most Texans I know, I was expecting a full-on freak out "defending the honor" of their precious state! But somehow, most of them got the joke. I suspect this is the work of a PR firm hired by the state, and not the comments of actual Texans. ;)
I do know some cool Texans though. Few of them are native, however, so draw your own conclusions from that. :)
Great cakes! I'd love to go to that show someday.
--kate
On behalf of my beloved hometown I state for the record...we are not out to keel you! We love you and your cake wrecks! Come visit sometime...it will be better than last time I promise
That first cake...WOW. I LOVE IT! I want to epoxy it and keep it in my house forever.
Don't be lulled in by these nice people trying to assure you Texas isn't going to kill you. I've been there and I can assure you.
1. The people in Texas are wonderful people.
2. The state of Texas tries to kill any non-Texan that crosses its borders.
Last time I went it was baseball-size hail, time before that a blizzard (in TEXAS?!?!?!), then there was trying to drive through Dallas the Friday before Christmas. So please all you wonderful Texans come visit us, 'cuz I'm not sure I'm brave enough to go back.
I'm in Texas right now and if accidents don't get you, the heat will!!
But really though, oh my amazzzzingness!! Gorgeous cakes, seriously the talent people possess just floors me.
And the "death cakes" is a sugar skull... dia de los muertos (Day of the Dead), a Mexican holiday for clarity on some!
I have lived in Texas for over 30 years and it has failed to kill me. Not that it hasn't tried, mind you, but I figured if it hasn't by now it'll grudgingly give up. I may be wrong, we are entering angry bird-flu season here.
That yellow/black/grey cake is adorable!! And I NEED the angry birds cakes - NEED it!!
I'm terribly sorry my state is trying to annihilate you. It's not personal... well, maybe it is...
Truly hilarious and beautiful all at the same time! I love how you have decided that it is an entire state's fault that you have been injured, hospitalized or gotten ill in Texas!
You know that is just a little bit nuts, right?
Oh, and you should know that I do not speak to people named Chris. It all started in college, but we don't discuss it now.
Shelley in So. Illinois
As a long time fan and one of the ones who sat in the front row at your stop in Austin, I humbly say "Thank you" for not cancelling the stop after your awful stay in Dallas (when last I went up there, I got trapped in an ice/snow storm).
I hope all is forgiven and you don't skip us on the next tour (I have a seat reserved)!
By the way - these cakes were just beautiful and can't wait for next year's Rennaisance theme!
Thank you, that is all.
Duuuuuude. Born and raised in Texas (with a sense of humor, which is fortunate, since we all have massive arsenals at our disposal, what being from Texas and all - if there's anything Texas has massive amounts of, it's guns and allergens...and inexplicably large food, including giant deep-fried donuts).
The post was hilarious, and the cakes looked amazing. I think it is highly unfortunate that Texas has tried repeatedly to kill you, john (the hubby of JEN). To quote my favorite astronaught, "I didn't do it".
-K-dogg
Actually, Wolverine is from Canada.
Glad (most) Texans have a sense of humor so you didn't have to pull the post. I am reading this on Monday, so I would have missed my favorite post in, well, days. ;-)
Don't you know, you should never go up against Texas when DEATH is on the line!
Those cakes are awe inspiring. I really can't pick a favorite.
Andrea
Just want to say that the Mushroom entry was not cake. It's cookies. The centers of the flowers, stone steps, the ivy leaves, tree stump house and fungus roof, the 10" base and the 6" round mushroom caps, as well as the additional stones are all cookies! As for weird, I am from Texas, do not live in Austin, and you know, everybody has a different idea of what an art piece is. There were some gorgeous day of the dead cookies next to my entry. My idea was this - every year I've been to the competition I see the really pretty and well done cut out cookies, but no one takes it to the next level and that, to me, is what competition is about. So, I tried thinking outside the box and I guess it worked because I took first place with that entry (my first time ever competing). So, maybe the unimpressed will be a little more impressed to learn that they are cookies - sugar cookies at that, from a real recipe, not a structure cookie recipe.
I am happy I can see SOME of my fellow Texans have a good sense of humor. ^^ I did look again and it was Dallas that tried to kill you, eh? Yeah... Dallas is pretty bipolar that way. I live about 2 and a half hours away from it and I've never had a problem.
I think my favorite cake on this is the first one. The imagery is just so...beautiful. ^^
And, once again, Wolverine is Canadian. I have one Canadian friend who is very upset about this mix up ;P (j/k)
I actually got to attend this show and the cakes posted as well as some not posted were awesome to see up close. Looking forward to next years show. :)
Ok, I love your posts...no I mean really LOVE your posts. They totally crack me up. BUT...I am from Texas and although Austin is our capital in no way do I consider the people of Austin to be our (Texas') representatives. I am from San Antonio and I can guarantee you that we do love bakers. (gotta have our sweet bread and cakes n stuff) Also I am SURE that no one here wants to kill you. You'll find the people from Texas (excluding Austin, again cause some of them can be weird folks!) are some of the nicest people in the country! Take another trip down, but this time come to San Antonio and we will prove to you how great this state can be! Love ya for all you do to make us smile! Have a good day ya'll!
the death one was stunning! I'm living in Texas ( notice I didnt' say "I'm a Texan.") and after a couple of years here you figure out that's for Dios de la Muertos. :-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day_of_the_Dead
wv: datiess: that datiess is in November when we celebrate Dios de la Muertos.
The Day of the Dead cake was AWESOME!
John, Those Texans that hate you need to lighten up. My daddy was born and raised in Texas and I was raised here and still live here. Not that I've lived in other states, but do Floridians proudly display their state seal, the name of their state or other symbols that represent their state on lawn ornaments like Texans? Seriously, if you live long enough once you cross the state line, look around!
Izzy
I read your post about John and got teary. So sorry you had such troubles in Texas, if it makes you feel any better my Aunt lives in Texas but I hate the state as well. Not entirely sure why but I was a kid when I visited so it must have traumatized me somehow. I love Cake Wrecks but am kind of a lurker. I'm not good with the comments. But I had to let you know that I am glad you guys are okay. And I hate Texas. I do think I made my point, right?
Posted a comment earlier but forgot to mention that the "death" cake, in case you didn't know the history, is referncing La Dia De Los Muertes. Which in Hispanic culture, of which there is plenty of here, LOL! is about celebrating life. It is a day of respect to those loved ones who have passed. It is really fascinating and the graphics and symbols related to them are very similar to that on the cake. Thanks for posting those amazing cakes for us! Such beautiful works of art and talent!
I love the "Angry Birds" cake. They did such a perfect job on making those little guys look exactly like they're supposed to. And who doesn't love Angry Birds!
As a non-native Texan who married a native Texan and is thereby NEVER going to move out of the state, I will say that I've seen zombies in Austin. WAIT! That was THE Zombies...and I HEARD them in Austin.
Anyway. LOVE the calavera/Dia de lost Muertos cake. And for those of you who think the skull on the cake is "weird", it's a Texas thing. Ok, it's a Tex-Mex thing. It's part of what makes Texas, especially south Texas, unique.
The Wolverine (Superhero) cake - the cake may be from Texas, but he's from Canada :-)
Jette
I heart the day of the dead cake!
LOVE the Angry Birds Cake!!
@ Peggy - I was already impressed with the mushrooms when I assumed they were mainly fondant &/or sugar paste, but cookies?!? Color me amazed! They're fantastic.
I thought one texas joke - ok, but then over and over. Really? Sorry you had rough trips to TX, but the jokes lost their humor after the (lost count) times you slammed the state. If your point was to express your displeasure - mission accomplished. I guess I like this blog less though - now.
I can't believe y'all thought you could get a rise out of us Texans!! We're the friendliest bunch of cake-wrecks lovers you'll ever meet! Having a sense of humor is a requirement to live in Texas. Just quit telling people about the zombies! They're a surprise....
I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas and I could never live anywhere else. Visit other places, sure, but Texas is my home. And for once, it's refreshing to have someone make fun of us for something other than cowboy boots, guns, armadillos, and "y'all." :D
The first one is AWESOME and, being an elephant lover, the last one is equally AWESOME!
Anita
It's good to see that there are still extraordinarily awesome bakers/cake decorators out there who can wield their experience and make us all shake in fear at their greatness!
Love them all
As a former Texan and a cake decorator hobbiest...I am NOT offended by any of your comments. :) Just to warn ya though...they have the death penalty down there and they use it. :D :D (As Ron White would say)
All of these cakes are AMAZING! I think it's a toss up between the first one and the african themed cake. The artestry is amazing!
And don't stop blogging you guys! The world needs a sense of humor!!! :)
Sara
Re: smallpox in Texas
Do I spy a Fringe reference, or is that just my wishful thinking? And if it IS a Fringe reference...where's all the geek love in the comments?! For shame, Wreckies! ;)
--DFM Marlink
I'm confused..(a normal state for me...) but WHERE'S THE CAKE??
:)
This Texas household <3's you guys! I still crack up when I remember the Christmas before last when I was given the Cakewrecks book. I was helping our nieces with something and we kept hearing my hubby burst out laughing from the other side of the room. He was off on his own, reading the book and laughing out loud...loudly. The inlaws didn't get it and thought he had lost his mind! ;)
I just read an article that said that a county in Texas had more deaths than births! I immediately thought of this post!
The only certainties in life are death in Texas.
For the record, I'm pretty sure Jen/John know Wolverine is Canadian. And I'm going to guess they probably knew that there are two references to said Canadian heritage on the cake.
The thing about him being in Texas and about to kill them is a joke, folks.
If anyone should be upset by that joke it'd be this Canadian living in Texas who made the cake, and I thought it was funny. It probably is trying to kill them, mostly because it's pissed that it looks so unlike Hugh Jackman and just wants to go stabby on anybody it can.
Except it can't, on account of being destroyed, except the head which is in my cabinet. Muahahaha. Heal from that, suckah!
Maybe Texas has it out for you :P I have yet to see any zombies outside my house :P I love all the cakes! They are amazing!
"so young, so angry- darn that rap music!" ahhhh!, love a good Robin Williams quote! :) I have been following you all (the site, not as people, stalking is bad!) since the beginning (again, of the site), and as always, you all are my favorite! Keep up the great work! :)
WV:"tedgillo"- a gigolo named ted :) OR an armadillo named Ted...can't decide.
I moved to Texas from Ohio 3 days ago.... It's scary here. But the people have been super nice!! And those cakes were amazing, maybe I'll have to venture to Austin soon!
Ok, I'm a born and raised Texan and I just almost peed my pants laughing!! The pics on CW are funny, but none of it would be worth looking at if it weren't for you and Jen and the jokes ya'll make. Man I haven't laughed this hard in a while...
Genna