Southwestern Sweets
July 26, 2015 When I was a teenager I visited Taos, New Mexico, and immediately fell in love with all the local art.
The colors! The jewelry! The weaving and pottery and paintings!
So today I thought we'd celebrate all things South West, Native American, and totally awesome:
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(By Cake Heart)
This cake is singing my song, you guys. My favorite colors AND jewelry and flowers? Win!
Hold onto your socks, because I believe this next one is entirely fondant free!
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(By Queen of Hearts Couture Cakes)
I could be wrong on the basket weave, but the flowers and woven tier are definitely all buttercream.
And I can't stop staring. (How? HOW??)
[Update: Confirmed by Queen of Hearts: it IS all buttercream!]
When you manage to pry yourself away, check out this sweet little western number:
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(By Steel Penny Cakes)
So elegant! But the rope edging and little fence sections add just the right rustic touch.
More impressive buttercream; I think the only fondant here are the rope edges and belt buckle:
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(By Michelle's Patisserie, featured here)
The piped barbed wire is - dare I say it? - adorable.
More jaw-dropping pattern work:
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(By Hey There, Cupcake!)
That's got to be printed, right? On edible paper?
Although this one's all hand-pieced fondant:
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(By Butterfly Sweets)
Those little turquoise beads!! Fabulous.
Here's a baker that would make an excellent faux finisher:
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(By Ciccio Cakes)
That's some of the most convincing wood and embossed leather I've ever seen! If you look closely, you'll see there are even tiny stitch marks on the "leather" edges.
Looking for rich color? Then look no further:
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(By Cakes by Kristi)
WOW. And look at the sides of that bottom tier: see the sections sticking out? It's 3D!
Maybe you're after a softer palette, though:
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(By Avalon Cakes)
Dreamy soft pastels! Love the crochet look of those Dreamcatchers; I have to assume they're molded sugar paste?
(And can I just say how exciting it is to see cakes I can't fully explain? So many cool techniques out there these days!)
Completely crushing on this modern take:
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(By Caketini)
It's simply succulent! (Eh? EH??)
And finally, a whole trio of more perfect pastels:
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(By Peridot Sweets, featured here)
So much to love, but my favorites are that braided cord and the gold-and-turquoise stones. Gorgeous!
Hope you all have an equally gorgeous Sunday!
*****
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Reader Comments (30)
Those are all works of art :O love the fondant free ones :D
I stared at that Thunderbird marvel long enough to see that all THREE layers have the delicate, fine little black piped "crochet"-looking accent. What a way to make a lovely living...!!
Wowed, again! Y'all must have some doozies lined up for the new week. (I'm counting on it!)
=^~.~^=
The second one reminds me SO MUCH of my Mom; she adores Southwest Native American patterns (my parents' whole house is decorated that way) & she has a needlepoint hobby. But she does huge tapestries and blankets that take a year or more to complete, & the woven layer looks exactly like one of hers. Except I don't think she's ever done one in dark green; she usually uses pink/red & turquoise.
My parents' fiftieth anniversary is coming up in a few years; now I think I know where to get a perfect cake for the party!
@SarahCVT, you might want to check the website. That 2nd cake was made by a shop in London, England. Talent knows no boundaries. (Thankfully, at least one of those shops is in my part of the state.) Makes me laugh that there's cakes from Austin and Arizona, but also Pennsylvania, London, San Diego, etc.
The attention to detail on these cakes leaves me in awe. Every Sunday.
So much talent, so much to love! What a wonderful Sunday Sweets!
My favorite cakes were the one with the dream catchers and the one at the bottem!
I feel like I'm in Georgia O'Keeffe's house! <3
OMG....I Love them "Y'all"! And I'm a big fan of the Southwestern arts and the arts and crafts of the Apache,Zuni and Navajo people!
my best friend lives in taos! and my hubby and i are planning to move there in a couple years!
...2nd one!💟....the two sweet ladies of Queen of Hearts Couture cakes are just simply fabulous...everything they do is 100% buttercream.. go team buttercream!💗
I will be a spoilsport and say that they are all stunning but I think the flowery ones take away from the theme as they are not for the most part indigenous to the areas they're representing. All the rest are the prettiest I've ever seen. :-)
I always love your Sunday posts, but as a Southwestern Arizonan and a tribal member, this one blew my socks off. Bravo! And now I know what I want my 45th birthday cake to look like! Yay!
You sound Canadian, EH?? :) isn't it exciting when you see workmanship that blows your mind because you do similar work, just not that amazing? I love discovering those things!
Aw, makes me miss living in Arizona! Okay, maybe not this time of year.
I'm not a baker, and don't even eat that much cake, but I love to admire the artistry and shake my head at the wrecks. Could someone tell me what is wrong with fondant? So many times I see 'fondant free' in the description and don't understand. Is fondant bad, or is it that it is much harder to get a good effect using only buttercream? Please explain. Thanks.
These are so amazing! And I kind of can't wait to see the second cake's "What I wanted and what I got."
I love your posts - thanks
@Kilian Metcalf, I'm not a baker either, but I *think* fondant is easier to make intricate shapes with, because you can roll it out and work with it flat on the table first, and then you just stick the finished patterns onto the sides of the cake. To make intricate patterns with regular icing, you have to decorate the sides of the cake directly, without being able to lay them flat. It's like card-making vs. painting - it's a lot harder to fix a mistake in a painting. :)
@StriderGirl Thanks for the explanation. I'm so used to seeing 'gluten-free,' 'dairy-free,' etc., my mind immediately goes to wondering about people who are allergic to fondant.
Wow! Have lots of faves in this post. I love the texture on the first cake and the colors/detail/amazing piping skills on the second one. The leather detail is pretty amazing too.
Thanks for blowing my mind with the talent that's out there every Sunday, Jen!
I can't pick a favorite! They are all so unbelievably gorgeous! I would have a really hard time cutting into one of those cakes.
Beautiful - I love these!
While I loved them all (especially the buttercream - YUMMMY!!!), I am totally head over heels in love with the succulent one. OMG, that is a showstopper!
I've said this before, but I'll say it again anyway- I laugh all through the week with the wrecky cakes. But when it is time for Sunday Sweets I just say wow, wow, wow! I don't know a lot about Native American / Southwestern art, so it is such a joy to scroll up and down, enjoying each of these cakes! They really are works of art! The designs, the colors and patterns. Just breathtaking! Thank you so much!
I can personally vouch for Michelle's Patisserie! Not only are her cakes incredible works of art, but they are mmm, mmm FABULOUS tasting, too!
Now I just need an occasion to get one...
I left on Sunday for a week long roadtrip for a move from Virginia to New Mexico. Thanks for the timely southwestern beauty!!
I just noticed the subtle flower pattern in the white frosting on the first cake - gorgeous!
Also, regarding the "fondant free" question, it may be just my limited experience,but fondant is not always the most tasty stuff, while buttercream--well, it's *buttercream*! Is it just what I've had, or have other people also had fondant that was largely flavorless and "rubbery"? It looks great, but some of it is like a wrapper--peel it off before you eat the cake, and don't eat it!
That's some of the most convincing wood and embossed leather I've ever seen!
me too.
(And can I just say how exciting it is to see cakes I can't fully explain? So many cool techniques out there these days!)
a lot of times i find it hard to believe that these are "just" cake & icing (or fondant). many of the cakes featured in sunday sweets are simply mind-blowing.
I want all of these! They are so beautiful