My friend Mikey opened a tattoo studio in downtown Long Beach, CA and asked me to make the cake for his grand opening party. I love making gum paste flowers and with all of the Asian references in his shop’s name and decor, settled on red, orange and golden yellow colors. The peony is my favorite flower to make and this technique I learned from a class with Jennifer Dontz (who is an amazing person and extremely talented artist). There are also tiger lilies, roses, briar roses, little blossoms and stephanotis. Although I do dabble in origami, I don’t know how to make cranes. But Mikey and his stepdaughter do, so they made several tiny little cranes that I mixed in among the flowers. It was red velvet cake inside, continuing the theme, and it was a focal point for the party. Probably one of my favorite cakes I have ever made!