Friday
Dec112015
Missed Marks: Fondant To Fondant Edition
December 11, 2015 You may have noticed that whenever we post a missed mark with a fondant inspiration cake, like this:
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...and a buttercream wreck, like this:
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...we tend to get a lot of the same complaints.
"You can't compare fondant designs to buttercream!"
"The second cake would have looked FINE if it was done in fondant!"
"This blog isn't funny anymore!"
So, in the interest of fairness and maximum "I told you so" potential, today's missed marks are ALL fondant.
ENJOY.
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Thanks to Devon M., Jeannie S., Kat M., Amanda H., Summer R., & Ziggo for telling us so.
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Reader Comments (74)
I am writing as a cake respondent
Who would like to support all things fondant
But I looked at these wrecks
And feel nothing but blechs
They are making me feel quite despondent
You *should* be able to compare fondant cakes to buttercream wrecks, because "bakers" should not attempt to duplicate fondant with buttercream unless they are buttercream masters. That's the fail right there.
See, I'd consider the fact that a baker who sees an example cake that was done in fondant, and instead uses buttercream for whatever reason, to have created a wreck, because if your offering to do fancy cakes you should at least know what icing to use in what circumstances.
Did that say "Anchors Aweigh"?
I feel as if most of these would be so much better if the cakes only had sharp edges. They're still scary-bad, but if they had good bases to work with, maybe they'd look better? Nah.
Bwahaha - I needed that laugh. The pink princess... Thing... looks like a Dalek in a dress. Between that and the rising numbers on the MST3K revival Kickstarter, my day is made!
This is my favorite blog of all time.
why are the cakes so bulgy? ~shudders~
Yeah...the second ones are lesser, but what was the ratio between Pinterest Mom and a commercial bakery?
I saw a really fug multi layered rainbow birthday cake with manhandled fondant, but mom made it for her 4 year old. Should I bust her chops? No.
To be honest, the second cakes look like submission to my state fair's cake contests. If this was all amateur night, well...yeah..it's close. BUT if this is all commerical work, it takes real skill to make fondant look drippy wet. Lol...
I like the last one; Aging Superheros demonstrating their middle age spreads.
Uh... "This blog isn't funny anymore!" Who the heck says that? My guess is it's decorators whose cakes get featured here (not on Sundays).
That last one isn't good, but I'll give the baker a point for effort. It is at least recognizable
Thanks for the Friday laughs! And those nay-sayers about buttercream wrecks are wrong; one can make beautiful buttercream -decorated cakes, and none of the wrecks you have previously shown fell into that category!
I didn't know you even could make entrails out of fondant.
You learn something new every day.
Take that, complainers! Poor BMO, he got squished!!
Regarding "This blog isn't funny anymore!", how could anyone ever say that?!! i chuckle every morning at something, or shake my head, or laugh out loud! "You can't compare fondant designs to buttercream!" ?? That's your whole point! Love Cake Wrecks, Jen & John!
Jen, please continue comparing fondant to buttercream. Don't punish us like that again! Ack!
I think what really kills the misses for me is the shiny quality of the fondant. *shudders
That poor squashy robot just makes me want to give him a hug!
Was glad of the limerick by SuBee,
Who pointed out what we do see.
If they're Fondant or not
These cakes aren't so hot.
All these bakers need to say "Clue me."
Why are all the wrecks so shiny? How do you make fondant shiny? Why do you make fondant shiny?
Didn't get to look in on Cake Wrecks until I was about to go to lunch. Thanks for the appetite suppressant. We all need that around the holidays, right?
I agree with Degera. And on top of being funny, this blog is a real education to cake decoration. Main lesson: never, ever ask for a fondant design to be replicated in buttercream. Where else could I have learned that but here?
KristenSue's comment raises something that has been bothering me for some time. Real cake is soft and subject to the force of gravity. If you pile it high, it sags, as in the wrecks here. But the professionals whose work is admired seem to be able to sustain perfect verticals and horizontals to a great height. What's inside these fine-looking cakes? Is it actually edible?
First I was laughing over the post itself. Then I read @Borg's entrails comment and I laughed out loud at work. Since I'm the attorney who files the involuntary mental health commitments, I think my coworkers are all out there doing paper/scissors/rock to determine who has to do the paperwork to commit ME. I'm showing the entrail/princess cake in my defense.
Poor Batman -- he's being smooshed by the the weight of his friends. (Or, would that be Aweight? I caught that "aweigh" too @Olivia and was puzzled.And now the Anchors Away song won't stop playing in my head.)
I've seen some gorgeous cakes done all in butter cream but looked like fondant. It really comes down to the skills of the baker! And I know an 11yr old that work completely in buttercream and her cakes are amazing!
Re that second-to-last one: AAAGH! They turned Harley Quinn into the Joker!
"I think that the first Battle of the Fondants entry is misunderstood," she said, tongue firmly in cheek. "The first exemplar was a fine example of imitating upholstery. The second is a tribute to strawberries everywhere!"
Why is the tiara wreck shiny? I'm generally in the camp of "eh, I'd still eat it" (excluding the baby cakes, why would anyone want to eat a slice of baby!?!?), but I'm going to pass on the shiny fondant cakes. Vasoline anyone?
i wanna see what the inside of that game boy fail looks like.
I actually thought this batch to be a bit better than normal! You can ac Gu ally see the inspiration cake in it. Albeit a bit off. Alright, quite a bit off. LOL
The one that was supposed to have mustaches looked more like a bra.
Well I certainly chose a good post to come back to. I've missed this place!
The princess thingy up there looks like it should be put in one of those red BIOHAZARD bags and never seen again. Why is it shiny???
SuBee wins the internet!
just want to point out, "when professional cakes go horribly, hilariously wrong"
professional cakes, not moms making cakes for their kids
The ruffles on the my little pony example cake are exqusite!
I too noticed "Anchors Aweigh"! Or is it "Anchors Awrigh"?
Shirley beat me to the comment! Soft in the middle aging super heroes...my kind of guys!
That Princess cake isn't fondant. I'm pretty sure it's chewed up gum.
I just believe the bakers shouldn't have attempted to agree to make these for clients until they knew they were capable of actually making them look good instead of just creating disasters. Regardless of fondant or buttercream or even any other issues honestly lol.
Also I still find this blog great/funny. I stumbled upon it in the sidebar of hyperboleandahalf 2+ years ago and enjoyed it, and eventually noticed Epbot which is also awesome, and have read both since. :)
(I have to admit though that I do like that the Sunday Sweets juxtapose the wrecks so there's something to break up the wreckiness if I'm looking back through a lot of posts at once)
((Lastly I think the last two bakers tried the hardest.))
Those who say this blog isn't funny anymore are right. It's not funny.
It's freaking hilarious.
I second--or third, or fourth--the commenters who reacted to the shiny/slimy appearance of the fondant on the wrecks. Perhaps that is a warning sign; if your fondant looks shiny on the cutting board, it's not going to look any better on the cake.
Bobot, your comment made me LOL!
"Accessorize! Accessorize!"
"Thay...Thay....THAY!! It's 'exterminate,' not 'accessorize'! And you look ridiculous."
"You are jealous of my superiority! Exterminate!"
"That's better."
It really puts the BM in BMO.
@ SuBee -- Your limerick is perfection!
Ford_Prefect
One of this site's stipulations is that the work is all by professional baskets. It would be mean spirited to mock the work of amateur bakers who are just making things for family and friends. So yeah, these are cakes that people paid for. Unfortunately.
Is it just me, or does the first missed mark look like a early Dr. Who alien monster? All those eyes.
Is it just me, or does the second missed mark look like a early Dr. Who alien monster? All those eyes.
This blog isn't funny anymore.
Just kidding!! You guys are hi-larious!! :D Thank you!!
"Dalek in a dress" @Bobot - you left me snorting coffee on that one! My next band name will be Daleks in Drag.
Right on, Erin!
I cannot believe you receive comments like you mentioned just for comparing fondant inspiration cakes to their buttercream-disaster-versions. I've always enjoyed those and as far as I'm concerned, post them whenever you feel like it.
Sorry to be controversial to popular opinion but "Anchors Aweigh" is correct.
I'm choosing to believe it's the icing running together on the BMO cake that makes the writing look like "A-w-c-i-g-h" and it's actually "Anchors Aweigh". :)
@Tachybaptus (great name, by the way!)
The professional cakes I've had the honour of eating in my lifetime (oh, the joys of having a dear friend who runs a baking business!) have all been very dense cakes. Not fluffy like the type of cake you get from a cake mix, but more like a very heavy pound cake. Definitely sturdy enough to stand up to multiple layers/tiers, and to keep their shape when covered in fondant!
These cakes that sag - they make me wonder whether the bakers used "ordinary" cake-mix-type cake instead of pound cake. That's a wreck right there, regardless of whether they know what they're doing with the icing. :)