Sunday Sweets: The Fall Spirit
October 10, 2010 I must admit, the Fall wrecks didn't do much to get me in the spirit of the autumnal season. So, let's give it a try with Fall Sweets, shall we?
First, the cutest little 'shrooms you ever did see:
Submitted by Mathew B., baker unknown. (Anyone recognize it?)Check out that glass-smooth icing! And the corners - see how sharp they are? That's the mark of true talent, right there. Color me jealous.
By Merissa of Spring Lake CakeThe leaves! The basket! The turtleneck sweater!
Ok, I'm starting to feel a little Fall-ish.
No? (And you call yourself an art lover. Tsk.) Ok, I mean this one:
Take a minute to look back and forth between the two. See all the details? How the middle tiers are the couple's clothing? And the bottom is the building behind them? So. Cool.This is also the perfect season for anyone whose favorite color is orange. Which, it just so happens, includes yours truly.
By baking artsThat's modeling chocolate pleated around the cake. The texture is so smooth, I could have sworn it was fabric! Plus, look at all the detail on the hand-painted leaves:
Stunning. (And the teensy fruit! So cute!)
Speaking of pumpkins...
By Cake is LifeThose soft green stripes look perfect with all the orange.
And check out the topper!
Hard to believe those little leaves and pumpkins aren't porcelain. Fabulous.
Of course, Autumn doesn't have to be all about orange. I love the rich reds and golds here:
Perfection.
More sweet leaves, and a great bow:
By be cheery, who also makes the most adorable wedding cake toppers. Seriously, just look how sweet:
Oh. My. Cute.
Is it weird that I want this? Even though I'm already married? And don't have a dog? Or blonde hair?
(John? Sweetie? Does that offer to get married again still stand?)
Ok, that's it. I'm officially in the Fall spirit.
SOMEONE BRING ME A PUMPKIN!!
Reader Comments (66)
OMG those pumpkin cakes are amazing-soo real looking.
Huascar Aquino's American Gothic interpretation in cake - So clever! And beautiful! And Stunning! I waaaaant it!
wv: ealiidoo - I want it. eali i doo!
I love the teeny tiny blue birds on that topper holding the banner.
Jn, be sure if you hav another wedding that you get absolutely all the neat decorations, costumes (Star Wars wedding or Steampunk? Steampunked Star Wars?) jewelry, favors, etc in this time because John might not go for a third. Although you might need lots of mini weddings to get multiple themes, I think they'd clash all in one ceremony.
Wow, these are some of the most fun sweets ever! Love those little pumpkins.
Yay for fall!
That cake draped in modeling chocolate and accented with beautiful leaves. *sigh* And the cake covered in perfect pumpkins.
I love Autumn even more, now!
Kelly,
I would marry her every day for the rest of my life. She's my world.
john
Love the American Gothic cake and the scarecrow. The toadstool one is really well done, but the thought of fungus on a cake (however cute that fungus is) is a wee bit off-putting to me.
All of these are amazing, but I especially love American Gothic interpreted in cake -- such a great concept!
But like many people, you've mistaken the pair in the painting for a "couple" -- they are actually a father and daughter. (See the writeup on the Art Institute of Chicago's site here: http://www.artic.edu/artaccess/AA_Modern/pages/MOD_5.shtml)
Her faraway look makes a whole lot more sense now, doesn't it?
I puffy heart love, love, love fall!! And these cakes aer just the cutest ever!
But why, when the decorators put sooo much effort into making the leaves and flowers on trees look so gorgeous and detailed, do they just slap some rolled up brown fondant on as the tree branch/vine?! Gah! Makes me crazy!
Otherwise? I in love with todays cakes! :)
I love Be Cheery's cake topper, it's amazing! Is there a link to a website somewhere that I'm missing?
And these beautiful fall wedding cakes almost make me sad in that I decided to go with cupcakes next month.
@john(the hubby of jen):
Awwwwwww....Sniff.
And you said it out in public and EVERYTHING.
American Gothic is actually a father and daughter, not a husband and wife.
Edit: Beaten!
This is officially my favorite post ever.
If you appreciate American Gothic, check out my friend's art work. American Gothic done entirely in return address labels.
http://susankattas.com/collage.php?current=three&sub=none
Jen (and CW),
Thanks for the "Fall" spirit. Living in south Central Florida, fall means less humid and cooler days where you feel relief from heat. It's rare we see the fall colors - except on TV or someone's artwork. So getting in the mood takes more time.
These cakes are so beautiful it makes me want to try making some like it. I'm a novice, but love what others can do.
Thanks for the uplifting laughs - even when they are on the cutting - or bleeding - edge. We take ourselves too seriously sometimes. You usually give a warning or your first comment gives an idea of the "flavor" of the post - it's our choice whether to continue reading THAT post. You offer so much that can be appreciated that us readers can afford to skip one that might offend. By bringing light on the questionable ones, it puts a fire under the creators. Keep up the good work. And thanks for helping me on a couple B.A.D. days.
Joanie in Lakeland, FL
Long post.
* Aah, just the right proportion of leaves, acorns, and mushrooms.
* The scarecrow's so cute and appetizing. Wow, that's a lot of cake.
* Love this American Gothic cake. I was going to say each layer could stand alone, but then the top layer gave me a "Children of the Corn" horror movie flashback so I think it needs to stay in context.
* I like orange but I think I'd like this cake in separate layers. Dots, and stripes, and diamonds, oh my. That second layer is giving me ideas.
* Huh. You can wrap a cake in chocolate. Why am I only finding this out now? Spot on perfect apples, pears, and leaves.
* Pumpkins! Ooh, shiny. How did they do that?
* There's over 30 little pumpkins just on the front of this cake alone. Talk about work!
* That sweet one little layer cake with the fall colors. I want it for my birthday. Next summer.
* The color and sheen on that bow is stunning. Wonder if I can find a pair of shoes that color?
* I didn't know you could add a dog to a cake topper in a tasteful and unobtrusive fashion. The little orange ribbon and bow around the bottom was just bonus.
A few people already corrected you about the American Gothic misconception. But I just wanted to add some useless trivia:
the model for the farmer was the artist's dentist.
Most people didn't catch the corduroy overalls on the scarecrow. Now that's attention to detail. Also love the itty bitty acorns on the 7th cake. Heck, they're all gorgeous.
Oh, wow, there's something called modeling chocolate!
Dear Jen & John,
Between the enormous creativity, wit and public declarations of love I cannot believe you are real people.
Seriously, you two sicken me.
However, like eating frosting out of the can the tummy ache was worth it.
Sigh. Thanks for restoring faith in joy & love.
Beautiful Sunday cakes, as usual. Every time I see the American Gothic painting, I think of this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCf-fNygmKk&feature=related
I kept thinking, "Oh, I love this one!" and then I'd see the next one... and think it again. And again! AND AGAIN!! These are just totally awesome.
I think, though, if I had to pick an ultimate fav of all of these, I'd go with Aquino's interpretation. That's just freakin' amazing.
AMAZING!!
Favorite color = orange. Mine too! Does it match then that the best candies are candy corn and candy pumpkins?
Come visit Oregon again - beautiful fall colors to inspire!
wv: asomen - CakeWrecks is so asomen!!
These cakes are amazing! I think this is one of my favorite Sunday Sweets ever!
These are all wonderful! I love doing leaves in gumpaste. I did a giant cupcake cake covered in them one year for husband's office for Thanksgiving. (http://bphaines.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d1q8vi8)
I got to the red and gold floral and gasped, "perfection" only to scroll down another inch and see how in sync our reactions were!
I'm in awe of the American Gothic cake. The polka dots and stripes that I would usually be impressed with just don't have the same impact after that kind of art.
One of my favorite Sunday Sweets ever! Thanks for putting all these gorgeous creations in one place-- I wouldn't have ever seen them otherwise.
Lovely fall. Falling lovely.
Don't ask.
Awwww, John, hubby of Jen. Lucky girl, great couple. May there be many, many happy returns of the wedding.
~~Di
Those Jack O'Lantern cakes are stunning. They look more like lacquered carved pumpkins than cakes.
Wow...(rendered speechless)
#1,4,7 -- now those are acorns!
#5 Do I even want to know how long it takes to do something like that?
#6 "So if my pumpkin carving experiments don't go well, I suppose I could always try baking one. :)" Why would you want to bake a pumpkin?
#8 Ah, the first daisies of fall. Why are they on a branch? (ducks and runs)
#9 Classy. Love the tartan. Scottish ancestry, ye ken.
#10 I see just a hint of Tim Burton in the figures, but it is a cute topper.
John, I feel the same about my Sweetheart, and our first wedding is pending. Real guys say it real loud, so everyone knows. Rock on!
I think that the scarecrow is wearing a scarf, not a turtleneck. You can see the end of the scarf wrapped around his arm.
Regardless, all of these are fantastic! Thanks!
If you want pumpkins, come to New Jersey! We've had them for weeks now! (There's a reason we're called the "Garden State!")
Oh yippee! I love that Richard's modeling chocolate cake was featured...I've seen it IRL and it was GORGEOUS. And he's such a nice guy, not to mention a wonderful teacher. I've taken a couple of classes at baking arts and they've been fantastic. You remind me that I keep meaning to sign up for the gumpaste flowers class...maybe I can convince him to show us his technique for those beautiful leaves while he's at it!
I don't think my love for all things orange helped TOO much... they were all just amazing even if I was a fan of something awful like pink.
omg - the creative spirit IS alive and well!!! And so is exquisite detail and high quality!! Breathtaking!!!
I just bought a 'shroom necklace -- a scene of a butterfly landing on 'shrooms, but PAINTED on a PIECE of a SHELL! (Not even a whole shell!) I LOVE 'SHROOMS!
(and fall)
@ John (hubby of Jen)
AWWWWWW!
Oh my! What yummy eye-candy! That chocolate wrapped one - OUTSTANDING!
What a wonderful Sunday Sweets.
@delibird - is it sad that we actually remember that commercial.
I wanted to let all the CW fans know, that there is a new mystery book series out about a cupcake bakery. (No ccc's in sight) The first is called "Sprinkle with Murder" by Jenn McKinlay.
We had leaves on our wedding cake, and they were nice...but in a weird Technocolor-on-smack sort of way. Not in this oh-dear-lord-it-looks-like-it-just-fell-off-the-tree sort of way.
(And I heart Grant Wood. All I'm saying about the American Gothic cake.)
Awww... the one with a gazillion pumpkins on it reminds me of my mom's miniature pumpkins that she makes out of sculpey clay for dollhouses.
ALL of those cakes are amazing!! EVEN the cake topper, though I myself do not have blonde hair either, but I do have 3 dogs...8 cats.....3 birds....and fish!
I want those pumpkin carving cakes! Better than carving my own pumpkin and far more beautiful. I cause quite a mess trying to carve a pumpkin into a vampire face..
I think this is my FAVORITE Sunday Sweets ever! :D I have an October birthday and I LOVE pumpkins! :D
Just a tip - you can make fondant shiny by steaming it, like with a portable clothes steamer. They do it all the time on Buddy's television show about Carlo's Bakery in NYC. (I can't remember the name of the show and when I watch it, I turn the sound off because I can't stand to hear them all yelling at each other all the time.)
Also, the first cake is lovely, but there are no corners on a round cake. Those are edges. ;)
I love the Sunday Sweets, but I can't imagine actually cutting these beauties.
Unbelievable design of all cakes. Really well decorated. Thanks for sharing your post. I never seen such a beautiful cakes.
I love the American Gothic Cake. That is sooooo clever!!
To all the geeks who may be in the vicinity of Iowa, you can visit the house and have your photo taken there, in full costume (available at the gift shop).
Check these out:
http://www.wapellocounty.org/americangothic/gallery/visitors.htm