20th wedding anniversary cupcakes...

This is an order from Evonne where she wanted to order a set of 30 cupcakes for her brother and sister-in-law for their 20th wedding anniversary. She saw some of my previous cupcakes designs and she wanted the cupcakes to be something similar to the ones below.

Garden theme cupcakes.

 So I incorporated the number 20 into the cupcakes and the final product looks like this.

Wanted to have a more elegant feel thus added some champagne and gold lustre dust to make the cupcakes shine.

The whole set of cupcakes for the 20 years couple. Happy anniversary!

Wayne's gingerbread man cupcakes...

For your information, Wayne is my cute little nephew who is 5 this year. He loves to draw and is my no. 1 cake fan. One fine day while I was at home making cake, he came up to me and said that he wish he is a cake-maker like me. I guess it is because he loves to eat the cakes (mostly the fondant on top which is sweet) where his eyes will sparkle when he sees them. LOL. So from then on, he calls me Xiao Yi, the cake-maker.

So one day when I came back from work, my mummy told me that she got a new order for me and it is placed on the whiteboard that we use to write down the orders. Thinking that who can she get the order from, I thought the most possible one will be from my neighbour. However, I was wrong and my order looks like this.

Wayne's order.

This is the first time I got a drawn design for an order and Wayne ordered specifically 4 for his family of 4. LOL. If you are wondering what this is (it looks quite obvious, he is quite a good artist), this is the gingerbread man in Shrek and here's a picture of it.

He has a gingerbread man plushie from USS and he loves it. Ok, so now I have to work on the order.

Tadah! I made the fondant and the designs thinner so that he will not be eating too much of it (although he loves it but it is too sweet). I also added the gold balls cause he loves it and was eating most of it from the cake I made for my grandma and we had to stop him in the end. LOL.

The cupcakes based on his design.

He was so looking forward to the cupcakes and was hurrying me when I was doing it. When I finally finished them and asked him for payment he said he paid to my mummy. My mummy told me he wrote a $8 on a piece of paper and passed it to her. Oh well, I guess that is a form of payment too. At least my cupcakes are worth $8 in his eyes and I got a satisfied customer! LOL.

Another longevity cake for a hip grandma...

If you have read my previous post, you will know that my last order was not delivered and I made some changes to it instead and gave it to my friend for her grandma's birthday. If you have not read and want to know what happened, you can check out the link below:

http://jembakes.blogspot.sg/2013/08/21st-birthday-gone-wrong.html

Ok so my friend, Wan Jia came back to me and this time she want to order a birthday cake specially for her grandma who is celebrating her birthday at a chalet. And she said that her grandma requested to have a party at a chalet and invited her siblings and friends. Her grandma is so hip and cute! So this time round, I make sure that the cake is made custom to her grandma's age and something like the previous cake I did for my own grandma.

I love to make the "shou tao" and thought it is more appropriate for birthday cakes for the elderly. LOL.

Cake plus complimentary cupcakes.

Added some cupcakes to go along with the cake.

Her grandma at the party!

Hope Wan Jia's grandma likes the cake!

21st birthday gone wrong!

This is my first encounter whereby I've made a cake order and it was cancelled at the last minute. This is actually 1 of the 3 cakes that was rushed out in the 3 days span. Wasted effort but no one is really to blame for it. The story goes like this. Jolene contacted me a few months back to order her own 2-tier 21st birthday cake. I marked it down on my calendar and thinking that she won't forget her own birthday, I didn't contact her till the cake is done. Here's a look of the cake.

The key for 21st birthday.

I have been searching online for the key for quite sometime but couldn't find one so I had to make it by myself. 

Teal-coloured ribbon on the cake to make it look more elegant.

So when the cake is done and I msg her, her sister called instead and told me Jolene got into an accident and is now in hospital ICU awaiting surgery. My heart totally sank when I heard that as it seems like a serious issue and it had to happen during her birthday. I think it happened a few days back and her sis told me that they actually tried to contact me to cancel the order but somehow the line didn't get through. Anyway, obviously there isn't going to be any party and the cake won't be needed. I just hope that Jolene will be alright and wish that she will get well soon!

And so what am I going to do with the cake? With no cancellation policy and anything, this cake is totally wasted and unpaid. But, no one is to blame for this to happen. Apparently I'm not going to cut up the cake and eat as my family and I have been eating cupcakes for the past few days and we are really tired of it. LOL. But I'm not going to just throw it away either as it is really a waste of food (and my effort). So, I contacted my friend, Wan Jia, to give away the cake and see if she wants to have it for supper/breakfast or whatsoever. Thank god her grandma's birthday is next week and she doesn't mind having a birthday cake for her and celebrating it earlier this week! However, the design will have to change as the name and key will not be appropriate for her grandma's birthday.

Putting a few longevity buns on top in replace of the name and key.

This is the best I can do to alter the design to suit her grandma better although I think it's still a bit girlish and modern for an elderly's birthday. Check out my grandma's birthday cake below if you have not.

http://jembakes.blogspot.sg/2013/08/longevity-cake-for-my-grandma.html

But anyway, at least the cake have not gone to waste! This is really something that I have not expected but well, there's always lessons learnt from all these happenings. Hope Jolene get well soon!

Madagascar cake...

If you do remember, my first two-tier cake was made for Shi Han's 21st birthday ordered by Wenqing. If not, you can check out the link below:

http://jembakes.blogspot.sg/2013/07/two-tier-retro-theme-21st-birthday-cake.html

So why am I mentioning this? Cause this time round, Shi Han contacted me and wanted to order a Madagascar cake for her Bf's birthday. I'm so glad that there is repeat customers and word starts to spread around for Jembakes! She initially wanted just the zebra (which is called Marty or what if I remember) on the cake, but I suggested a full set of the Madagascar toy figurines on the cake instead. And the first thought that comes to my mind is to get into USS (Universal Studios Singapore) to get the figurines since there is a Madagascar area there. For your info, I got an annual pass to USS from my dearest Da Jie on my birthday this year as she knows that I love the roller coaster rides there, especially Human and Cylon! So, I thought this is a good chance for me to get in there and have some fun while getting the figurines for the cake. But, it wasn't a very fruitful trip as both rides, Human and Cylon, were closed for the day and there isn't any Madagascar toy figurines selling in the theme park at all! Not even Toy r us sells these figurines. Luckily I got my hands on the figurines while searching online and the seller is very prompt in the delivery as my cake is only due in a few days time. Really happy with the buy as the figurines are very nicely done and not out of shape. Check out the figurines below.

The Madagascar characters on the cake.

I have to admit that I suggested putting toy figurines on the cake as I'm worried that I will mold the characters out of shape. And also, it will be more practical to use toy figurines as it can be kept as an ornament or toy while the gum paste figurines will have to be thrown away instead (to sweet to be eaten for some people) as it cannot be kept for long.

Madagascar cake.

And tadah, the cake is done with a jungle feel to fit the Madagascar theme. And Shi Han also ordered 10 minions cupcakes for the party. Minions again! LOL.

Minions invasion!

Hope the party went well and her Bf likes the cake!

Minion 2D cake...

This is a very quick order which was ordered just one day in advance by Jen Yang. Judging by the requirement and simplicity of the cake, I took up the order despite my tight schedule this week where I have to make near to 200 cupcakes + 3 (including this new order) cakes over a span of 3 days. Nevertheless, this is yet another great challenge for me!

2D minion cake.

I just blew up the proportion of my minion cupcakes to make this minion face cake with some slight changes. I think I had enough of these minions over these few weeks and to think that some time back I was still telling my sis that I do not have a chance to work on minions yet cause there is no order for minions related cake. Now all of them came together. LOL.

A box of complimentary 3D cupcakes for him.

 But, still hope Jen Yang likes the cake and cupcakes!

Jembakes does charity again!!!

As my friends know, I'm not a full time baker although I will sometimes proclaim that I'm a full-time baker, part-time worker. LOL. So, I'm actually working in a foreign bank that doesn't sleep (although I do get to sleep a lot). And our department is having a charity food sale this week to help the needy and I've volunteered to make cupcakes for the sale as that's my forte (and only thing that I know how to do). There comes the minion cupcakes which I have previously made for this charity event that I have been saying. My boss suggested sending out emailers for pre-orders to test the "market" and to our surprise, the response is really good and we managed to collect up to $1000 donations for the needy. But, that aside, it will also mean that I have to make 100 plus cupcakes for this event. Therefore, I started making my minions a few days in advance everyday after work, with the help of my mummy. Thanks a lot!

My workplace for the week!

 Minions eyes staring at me.

So after getting the minions ready, it's time to assemble them!

Minions in their new home!

The different expressions of the minions.

2 big boxes of orders!

And finally I'm done with all the orders! A huge relief and tiresome week with orders all packed together again. But nevertheless, feel good that I've done my part for charity!

Check out our last charity event here :
http://jembakes.blogspot.sg/2013/07/barclays-charity-bake-sale.html

Longevity cake for my grandma...

This post is dedicated to my grandmother who is celebrating her 80++ birthday this year (lost count of how old she is). As I've started on this baking business, as a matter of fact, I should be making the birthday cakes of all my loved ones from now on. In fact, I have actually tried making a cake for my grandma's birthday a few years back and it looks like this.

Tiramisu cake...

Pardon the poor decoration skills as back then I have not went for lessons and know nuts about the wonders of fondant and gum paste. Nevertheless, I still managed to whipped up quite a decent tiramisu cake and it is actually quite a big project for me as the cake is quite huge. But feedbacks were given saying that the cake is too dull and black which may not be that nice for an elderly's birthday. I didn't think of that while I was "decorating" and I used dark chocolate chips to lay out the word "shou" thinking that I was very "creative" but it turned out too dull. Oh well, we always have to learn from our mistake. Therefore, this time round, I make it a point that the cake must have red elements on it to make it lively and appropriate for the elderly.

Getting the decorations ready to be placed on the cake.

The main trunk on the cake which branches out to smaller branches with flowers and leaves on it. Actually, this is placed to cover up my mistake where my intention at first was to brush the whole cake in champagne lustre dust like how the base is done. However, I realised that it will take too much effort as the cake is big and the colour effect is not even. But I have already brushed a few strokes on the cake and therefore, to cover this, I came up with the trunk and place more flowers and leaves! LOL!

 

Learning from past experience, this time round I had my "shou" in red and gold!

And not to forget those longevity buns which signifies longevity and which I love to eat too. LOL!

And two big ones on top! I actually wanted to buy real longevity buns to place on top of the cake but was thinking that the colour may be off from the cake. So instead, this two "buns" are actually wrapped cupcakes which can be eaten as well!

Final product!

Check out the birthday celebration below!

The kids eyeing the cake!

The older generation.

The younger generation.

The youngest generation.

Happy Birthday Ah Ma!

Burberry bag cake...

This is an order from my cousin-in-law Jacqueline for her mother's birthday. While deciding what theme to make for her mother's cake, she suggested a burberry theme as her mother likes the brand. Therefore, we decided to go with a burberry bag cake.

This is quite a simple cake as well as the brand is very iconic for the colours and the stripes. Hope her mummy will get a real Burberry bag for her birthday instead of just a cake! LOL.

Carebear cake...

Joyce's birthday party part 2 requires a 10" carebear cake for her friends and teachers in school. However, Pey Ling and I had some miscommunication and they nearly had no cake on the birthday party. I had to rush out the cake on the very last minute and luckily, she had passed me the carebear figurines beforehand and therefore I can work out the decorations quickly. Despite the scares and the short time frame, I think the cake still came out well and the carebears look cute on the cake. On a side note, realised that this is another sky, rainbow and clouds theme which is similar to the Rainbow Dash cake I did earlier. LOL.

Carebears having fun!

Thanks Pey Ling for ordering the two cakes from us! Hope you liked both the cakes and Joyce enjoyed her parties!

Despicable Me Minions cupcakes...

As I've mention, Aug is a busy month for me with a few orders in line. This order is a sudden order from my grad trip friend, Wee Loon who happens to see the Minons cupcakes I am making for a charity sale coming soon in late Aug and thus wanted to order 75 of it for his colleagues as a farewell gift. This is a huge order where he requires them to be individually packed and is due within two days which also coincides with my other order as well. This is the first time I'm really working under time pressure where all the orders are due one after another. A real challenge has came for me. Nevertheless, once the order is confirmed, I started working out on the 3D minons cupcake toppers which is very time consuming. Luckily, I got the help of my mummy, my sis and her bf where we divided the workload and worked just like a factory line.

Minions body and hand.

Minions in the making.

Spot the bad minion in the crowd.

So after working hard and considering packaging and other factors, we have lowered the order to 50 cupcakes instead.

The minions on the cupcakes.

The bad among the good.

The baddies.

The individually wrapped cupcakes.

And therefore the 50 cupcakes are individually wrapped and is ready to be given as a gift. I made a few bad minions for my colleagues as well and they have not eaten the cupcakes at all, reason being they think it is a pity to eat the minions! LOL. I wonder should I be happy or sad about it? Will you eat the minions? Anyway, thanks Wee Loon for the order!

Rainbow Dash Cake...

This is an order from my sec sch friend Michelle who wanted to order a Rainbow Dash cake for her boss who likes rainbow dash. Now the question is, who is rainbow dash? Haha.. Seriously I have never heard of it so I went to google search it and tadah, it is actually one of the character of My Little Pony and it looks like this.

Her requirement is simple, she just wants Rainbow dash on the cake with a rainbow theme. Therefore, I bought a Rainbow dash figurine and placed it on the cake. This is a very simple and neat cake where I dyed the few rainbow colours and had them placed on a blue based cake to represent the sky and the rainbow with clouds on it as well.

Happy Birthday Eddie!

Hope her boss likes the cake and have fun with the Rainbow Dash toy!

Princess Cinderella Castle Cake...

An order came from my neighbour Pey Ling who's daughter, Joyce, is celebrating her 4th birthday. She actually wanted 2 cakes, one for her party at home and the other for her party in school. So for the birthday party at home, she wanted a Princess Cinderella theme and thus I suggested a castle cake for her (I once made a castle cake for Sophie's 6th birthday in my previous post). Therefore she decided on a 6" and 8" castle cake with a Cinderella figurine on top. As they preferred pastel colours, I've changed the colour theme to ivory and baby pink instead.

It actually took me quite some time to find the Cinderella figurine and this actually came with the mouse (I forgot her name) and is a collectible edition. This is really a cake that requires lots of effort and it took me 6 hours to complete the decoration. So for the decorations, I placed vines and flowers on the castle which is ivory based. I also placed a pillow under Cinderella's heel to prop it upright as it was looking downwards and I wanted to make it look straight instead. I hard a hard time making the base of the cone as it was too soft and is not able to harden. But thinking that the ice cream cone is not very heavy, the base should be able to withstand its weight. However I was wrong, hours after the cake was delivered, one of the cone actually came off as the base kind of soften and tilt to a side. I'm really apologetic but luckily the cone can be placed right back and the cake is still in a good shape thereafter. But this is really a good lesson learnt for me whereby next time I have to make sure that the base is sturdy enough to withstand the weight. I'm really sorry about it but luckily the party still went on smoothly. Thank god!

The mouse on the castle.

Happy Birthday Joyce!

Complimentary lemon cheese cupcakes!

Therefore part 1 of Joyce's 4th birthday party is done! Stay tuned for part 2 of her birthday!