17 Comments

here’s the cake: https://cakesdecor.com/cakes/180731-fabric-and-jewels-ci-entry

Well Sawsen, I cannot weigh in on the subject as I’ve never entered a competition. They are sorely lacking here in Canada. There’s one in Sept, @ Canada’s Sweets & Baking show, it’s so so. It’s only been around 3-4 yrs.,so it’s in its infancy. One very small competition , at a local cake decorating shop about a hour from me, in Nov, one in another Province I’d have to fly to….prohibitive at almost $1000 a plane ticket to do so. And one where you have to be a member @ $50 a year to have the “privilege” to compete. I could go to ICES in USA, but also prohibitive financially. I would kill to attend your CI, just for the fun of looking at all the amazing entries.
Perhaps you will get more feedback on this topic from some more seasoned decorators who’ve entered cake completions.

Thanks for your reply June… I’m surprised they don’t have competitions near you, having to pay 1000 to enter one is insane! We’re very blessed we have CI here with all the locations pretty much driveable within a few hours from most people. I really did enjoy attending and the experience of participation. Perhaps you should petition the organisers to start one where you are too!

I love the cake Sawsen, it’s a dream. I have never been in a competition or know what they are all about but somehow it seems they pointed out a lot of things on your cake while I have seen a lot of cakes that were not that great and won before.. I think I need to learn a bit more about it and the requirements. As said you are still my big inspiration, your cakes are amazing!!

Selma you’re just one of the loveliest people ever. Yes, the grading was a bit of a mystery to me before I participated this year, I remember being surprised for similar reasons as you say when I attended my first CI in 2014. It has opened my eyes to technical aspects which I didn’t consider before, which is good, and helped me better appreciate the perfect work I see from others here and in fb. But part of me would love to see recognition for the creative, design and artistic elements as well… Perhaps in classes other than wedding cakes this is more the case already x

What an articulate and thoughtful article Sawsen. I attended CI on Saturday, would have loved to have seen you to say hello, but I also went incognito. Your cake was amazing, and I must admit I find the whole judging criteria very baffling, that would explain why I can’t understand why you didn’t get a gold for such a stunning cake. I had toyed with the idea of entering, but as a full time primary teacher I haven’t the time required to devote to competition entry. However, I think I may now just shelve the idea and get on with making cakes for friends and family made, as you said, “with love”.

Thank you Roo. After the judge explained what they’re looking for I could indeed see the small things she referred to – I made sure to snap enough close ups to show them if anyone wanted to see and those attending could have seen them from all angles. The only problem was that I don’t really agree this is the highest criteria a cake (or piece of art) can be judged by. There were many pieces I fell in love with which earnt gold, but the technical accuracy of the work (while impressive) wasn’t what made me love them. Hope you had a great time, and I would love to see you enter – for yourself, and others like me who will see the beauty in your work and not the imperfections xx

I was a first time entrant and in wedding cakes I am sure the judge more harshly in this category! Because everyone wants their wedding cake flawless, I got a silver award for my Harry Potter cake but they only pointed out the imperfections that I knew about already, I’m a full time teacher too Roo and it was a lot of work so I was happy with the result but I don’t see why your cake was only a merit, there were a few decisions that surprised me, I had been told to avoid cutters and moulds where possible and not to use cake lace in its naked form…. So I piped it by hand and eye, I modelled by hand… And then some of the golds and Indeed rosette winners were cutters and moulds!! It’s a
L a bit baffling but I enjoyed the experience, my husband also competed and got silver with his green dragon sculpted and our autistic 8 year old son got a bronze for his Dr whooves tardis rainforest cake. Don’t give up, use it as valuable feedback and know where to improve in future, that is where the feedback squarely lies for me. For the record I loved ur cake x

Thank you! I agree that I couldn’t figure out how some wedding cakes with ragged edges on their fondant cut-outs and dents in their covering scored higher, but very early on I decided not to compare myself to them, even if the judging really was inconsistent. I think a big influence on grade was their expectation that the pleats should be exactly symmetrical and evenly spaced and rounded, and the ruffles were tightly packed, it seems they decided on first sight those were inaccuracies instead of considering they might be deliberate features of the cake. The judge certainly seemed surprised when I told her I looked at a lot of rosettes and decided tight was prettiest, and that I didn’t try to get the pleats even or I would have cut even strips for each individual one instead of ruching a larger piece several times. I feel if there was an opportunity to stand next to the cake as it was judged and introduce it’s inspiration and features and answer questions it would have been a different story, because to be honest the only “flaws” that could be truly considered “noticeable” according to what they pointed out in the feedback would be those x

Sawsen, your cake is beautiful, as I said on your cake post, first time in comp work is scary and I did not tell anyone either because I was led to believe by a certain person that I’d never be able to get it all done and was phsyced down. but I rallied in there anyway and like you, told no one, other than my family.
I could talk a lot on this subject, but all I want to say is each person entering a competition has their own agendas as to why they are doing it… And as far as I’m concerned it’s a good thing to challenge yourself and see how far you can push your own boundaries and I’m sure you do. Ive exhibited five times for Cakes International, but two were groups, the other three were comp pieces. One bronze and two silvers of which I cherish and feel a great sense of achievement. But my biggest achievment was a personal one as I had stepped out of a comfort zone and felt the fear and did it anyway… And I’m so pleased I did, and I’m sure you must be too… I really hope you will keep on entering… Talk to the judges, their comments and feedback I always find invaluable. I learn something each time. Sorry I did not see you in Manchester and hope to see you at the next one… Please feel free to message me anytime xx big big hugs and congratulations … XXXX

Thank you Calli <3<3 I too learnt a lot and valued the experience, I definitely don’t regret entering. I’m sure with the experience of so many group & competition pieces you have a wealth of insight you could give. your work is beyond gold (platinum!) in my eyes as in the eyes of so many all around the world, you’re one of my biggest inspirations and I would say on that basis alone it’s evidence they should revise their judging criteria to make it suitable for art and not pure technicality without consideration of style, flair & heart. I too am proud of my achievement for personal reasons, and was thinking of taking out my degree certificate and putting this in the frame instead XD thank you for all the love xxxxxxx

Awww hon, keep that smile on your dial… Your so talented xxx

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Sawsen your cake is amazing!!!! That is a lovely read too. I too find it baffling at how the cakes are judge. I entered it last year for the first time and got Silver (I was a complete nervous wreck, sick as a dog for days leading up to it) and like yourself only told my closest family. Some people said that the cakes are judged on ‘techniques’ used but as you and some others have said it was hard to understand why some cakes got Gold when the cake next to them were far better in detail and finish were awarded either a Silver or Bronze? As Calli also said, stepping out of your comfort zone is a BIG thing and I really thought I was a complete nutter for entering when I walked into the room with my cake and saw all the other AMAZING creations …………..I wanted to turn round and walk back out! Don’t be too disheartened you have brilliant feedback from loads of cakey peeps. time to think on your next cake for the comp! xx

Thank you for all your encouragement Carol :) I hope I will be able to compete again but not for a while yet I think xx

Sawsen, let me start by saying I love your cake and well done on your award x I’m a ‘serial competitor’ and that’s how I’ve developed my skills to date. It is nerve wracking the first time however it does get easier :-) The actual marking/score is never divulged at any of the shows (not just CI). It’s important to make a design you love else it will never be quite ‘right’ in your eyes, which is the most important thing. You need to balance your mark with ‘crowd appeal’ – people stopping to take time to admire, feedback on social media etc. Last year I entered two in the same category, both golds, 1st and 2nd – the one that was placed second always attracts far more comments! Once you’ve had time to ‘recover’ from show pressure you will find your own way of incorporating the feedback you were given into your next piece and, far from being a ‘sterile’ affair, you’re likely to push the boundaries even further :-) You may wish to consider entering a British Sugarcraft Guild competition – these are usually 1 day events and you can buy a competition handbook (in advance) for just £2 which explains what they are looking for and how their scoring works, and judges feedback is available too. Hope that helps x

Thanks for your feedback Mandy. My observations are based on the detailed discussion I had with the judge asking about both my cake and if I had tried various other things and some of the scenarios I mentioned at the start of the piece (simple plain cake vs large, ornate, complex, detailed). The feedback I got was that it didn’t matter what you did as long as it was completely technically accurate. The piece of paper I accidentally glimpsed confirmed that, the only time the design was mentioned is for gold, where the word imaginative was used. The lower levels were pretty much all about technical aspects xx