This was my first time EVER to be asked to submit a cake for Cake Central, & I was absolutely shocked when they contacted me saying they chose it as the COVER cake for the current issue! I pretty much ran screaming around my house in glee!

This is the inspiration pic they sent:

I did a lot of research & came across a Sputnik Sea Urchin in exactly the colors that I wanted to use on the cake. I hadn’t seen those before, but immediately fell in love with their beauty. I HAD to make that the focal point of the cake, as the topper. The map is hand-painted, & since I am CRAZY about all things pirate, skull & dragon, those elements had to be included.

The shells on the rosette & the pointy ones on the sea urchin are created from molds that I made myself from shells we picked up while cruising the Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway on our boat. The rose is gumpaste.

This cake will also be featured in a styled shoot in Austin Wedding Style magazine, so here’s a couple sneak peeks of the GORGEOUS setting it was photograhed in. Fantastic photography By Keegan Attlee!