Proving dark navy blues and blacks are a divine color match, the elements of these cakes by The Mischief Maker coalesce to evoke a transcendental fantasy. Accompanied by a pair of matching chandelier cakes and bathed in their candlelight, our bas-relief cake evokes a feeling of breathtaking opulence. While the flames of the two domed, Orthodox cathedral inspired cakes place a spotlight on the striking facets of the central cake’s sugar bas-relief, they also bring a fantastical drama all their own. From the edible isomalt rubies and sapphires embedded within the brass chandelier details to the ceremonial drip candles held up by sugar adorned arms lodged in the tiers of the cakes to the brass featured throughout the design, the accent cakes stand grand and emit a sacred majesty befitting the 14th to 17th century Byzantine era that partially inspired the collection. A wedding is a holy affair, so the collective mood for this mock reception, along with the featured trio of wedding cakes, is equal parts sacred and dramatic.

The crown jewel of the entire display is the sugar Victoria Crowned Pigeon, which receives its name from English Monarch Queen Victoria. Hailing from New Guinea, the exotic bird illustrates the natural beauty that comes from the complimentary combination of blue and black and provides an exotic, yet regal element that would have been at home in traditional sugar work and begs to be carried over into modern day. In order to incorporate characteristics of the central cake into the accent cakes, the sapphires were selected to reflect the deep blue of the sugar-sculpted Victoria Crowned Pigeon’s plumage, the rubies mimic the red of the bird’s irises, and the surreal tiled feathers atop the domes work as a callback to the bird’s own tiled feather details, while adding an additional architectural component that harken back to not only the exterior architecture of Orthodox monasteries, such as the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, but also to the ostentatious, sugar art pieces of the royal courts of Henry VI in 1429, Elizabeth I in 1582, and Louis XIV and James II in the 1600s that found similar inspiration in the natural, dramatic, extravagant, and exotic. In fact, sugar art dates back to around 4000 B.C. Papua New Guinea, home of the Victoria Crowned Pigeon, and 3500 B.C. Egypt and reached their zenith in the European monarchies of the Late Medieval Period and beyond, culminating in the beautiful sugar work created today. Also inspired by the haunting, romantic chamber music composed by the likes of Thomas Tallis and other early European greats, the feel of the music inspired achieving a visual, rather than musical, representation of solemn mood. The use of candles on the accent cakes was designed to emulate the sacred ritual that candles play in ceremonies, which is why we opted for traditional drip candles.

While the candles dripped on the tier below, they gave a level of theatricality that non-drip candles would not. To alleviate the spread of wax, regular candles could be utilized instead.

The cakes are a sample of a larger styled wedding shoot with Natasha Raichel Photography, originally completed in May 2016.

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