I am a home baker and started cake decorating when my Mother was diagnosed with an illness that was very stressful. My husband suggested that this might be a good time for me to take 'that' cake class at my local craft store that I had been wanting too, but never seemed to find the time. I had always been interested in the gumpaste flowers as I had seen a show featuring Ron-Ben Israel and Sylvia Weinstock and the beautiful realistic flowers they made from sugar. A fascination was born, many, many years ago. The first cake I made was a Mother's Day tribute. I made 3 cakes, ambitious, but each cake was a replica of an item that had special meaning. I called the cake ensemble, Mother's Sunday Best. The hat box was an almond gluten free with cherry filling and SMB and covered in homemade fondant. The Hat was a white and chocolate swirl cake with chocolate ganache, also SMB and fondant. The ostrich purse was a chocolate fudge cake with chocolate ganache, SMB and chocolate fondant. I even made a pair of gumpaste high heels and gloves. I had not taken any classes, only searched the internet, and learned by trial and error. It took weeks to make the flowers, lots of breakage, lots of patience, and often a quest for just the right tutorial.
