Cupcake Cafe Wedding Cakes...how Do They....?
Decorating By Kiddiekakes Updated 30 Nov 2006 , 11:06pm by bobwonderbuns
I just love the decorating done by the two ladies who own the Cupcake Cafe in New York.I have a 2 tiered 50th Birthday cake due for tomorrow and it is all iced and ready to decorate.If you look at the cakes on the link does anyone know how they achieve the great standup flowers petals,branchy leaves etc.What tips do you suppose they used.It is all BC so it can be done but I am trying to figure out the best way to go about trying....I make really good BC roses so that is not the issue but I wish I knew how they got some of the techniques on the sides of the cakes.Any help would be greatly appreciated!!! 
www.cupcakecafe.com/wedding.htm
Laurel 
I just love the decorating done by the two ladies who own the Cupcake Cafe in New York.I have a 2 tiered 50th Birthday cake due for tomorrow and it is all iced and ready to decorate.If you look at the cakes on the link does anyone know how they achieve the great standup flowers petals,branchy leaves etc.What tips do you suppose they used.It is all BC so it can be done but I am trying to figure out the best way to go about trying....I make really good BC roses so that is not the issue but I wish I knew how they got some of the techniques on the sides of the cakes.Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!
www.cupcakecafe.com/wedding.htm
Laurel
Aren't they great?? I met Ann Warren last year in NYC at her bakery and she signed her cookbook for me and everything!!! 
To achieve the kinds of designs she makes, use a medium consistency frosting and make sure your base (of any petal/leaf/stem) is thick to support an upright petal. If the flower is against the side of the cake for example, build the base, pull out (meaning against the side but away from the base), touch down briefly and pull away from the cake. This helps to get flowers to stick to the side of the cake but also helps give dimension to the cakes. Hope that made sense!! 
Sorry I can't help out, but that is some amazing work! I wouldn't ever have thought to just pipe flowers like that right on the cake! I always make a whole bunch so I can pick out my favorites. You kind of only get one chance the way the do it. That is some real talent there!
Those cakes are awesome...I love the garden cupcakes too
All of their work is wonderful! Bobwonderbuns, what type of a cookbook does ann warren have? Where can I purchase it?
Her book is called the Cupcake Cafe Cookbook and it's now out of print (which makes my copy with her autograph much more valuable -- and I'm NOT selling!!). I did see it on Amazon -- some used book sellers have it up for sale but you can probably find it cheaper I would assume. Her book is awesome because she details how to do a number of these flowers and techniques and has many recipes in it too.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0385483392/?tag=cakecentral-20
Ann Warren was on Martha Stewart's show some years ago (where I became aquainted with her work) and I'm not sure what her buttercream would be called, but it's a cooked buttercream with eggs. I watched her pipe -- I thought it was way too thin, so to emmulate her style I brought mine up to a medium consistency (I use a regular buttercream, not cooked) and it worked for me. If I'm not mistaken, she has a background in art, particularly painting, so that's where her flair comes from. It is funny, to see her on Martha she almost looked like a happy housewife doing the cakes, but in person she was like a hippie -- very folksy/artsy. Very fun person!! I really like her!
I was going to say that it looks like a meringue buttercream icing, and it appears the flowers are piped on the cake directly (no flower nails for this crew!). But what beautiful, inspirational work! Wow! 
I am so very jealous of you, Bob, for getting her to autograph your copy of her book. I looked at it on Amazon and nearly choked on my cookie ... $74.99??? 
I would have NEVER thought to spend that kind of $$ on a cupcake book, but NOW, I want it so baaaaaddd!!! 
Wonder if hubby can afford it for me for Xmas??
But I digress here...
Laurel, just try, try, try everything that you thing might work, and even some things you don't think will work. You've got to have the courage to make the attempt. Knowing that this woman has a background in fine art tells me that she's using those skills to turn icing into flowers like she would use paint and a brush. So, a brush is usually a flat ribbon shape, right? Stands to reason that she probably uses just a flat ribbon tube or rose-type tube with very little added dimension at the bottom (like, a 104 would be too fat ... if you get my point.). Then think about how you might use that brush to make a leaf ... now, how can I get this tube to make the same effect?
I guess that's how I'd go about it. And, in fact, now I'm thinking about trying it myself. What an inspiration! Great thread! thanks for the inspiration!
Happy Baking!
Happy (Icing) Painting!
Odessa
Her work is really great. Isn't it funny though that we all think her flowers and everything are so pretty? If you look closely they are not perfect little copies of each other. That is what makes them look so real but we always expect our work to be 'perfect'!
Cindy
I bought her book years ago when it was new and out in regular bookstores -- and considerably cheaper I might add! If you want to see it, many libraries do have it. Ann works with what I call "bakery style" piping -- flowers (including roses) all done on the cake, without flower nails. Her buttercream was soft enough that the petals relaxed to give it a more honest look. I personally think her flair is with color, not the flowers. I got many pix of cake and cupcake orders waiting to go out that day too -- I'd post them here but I believe it's against the rules. Suffice it to say, I was really blessed to have the privilege of meeting her! I still have many fond memories of that day! She was so accomodating!!
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