Flower Power

Ann and her loved ones celebrated her 60th birthday this weekend up at the family's cottage retreat and this was her centerpiece.

One of her daughters emailed me a few months ago about the possibility of creating a gardening themed cake for the event. Ann loves flowers and gardening and the party was set to take place outdoors in a "garden party" kinda way so it seemed to be the most appropriate focus. We tossed around a couple of ideas and settled on a sculpted cake in the shape of a watering can. Gumpaste flowers were to complete the look in fall colours.

I wanted to keep this feminine and bright so I opted for a pale yellow watering can airbrushed in gold shading. Red roses and some orange fantasy flowers were used for a punch of colour and the "dirt" was also edible.

This was probably the tallest cake I have ever attempted to make and proved to be a structural challenge to say the least. Not to mention the stress of having to move it! I was actually terrified at how long this cake would have to sit in the backseat of a car to get to its destination because some cakes get car sick - and this one had the potential. BUT I'm happy to report that I didn't get any frantic phone calls of casualties so it looks like the watering can made it safe and sound.

Happy birthday Ann! Hope you had a great day with family and friends.