Hi guys
I just noticed that a new friend of mine has his birthday soon and I would like to surprise him with a cake. Problem is I have no idea what to make, as designing for males is not my forte. He is very interested in modellism (not sure if this is the right word in English but it means he makes wonderful replicas of old ships and other things.) I can't compete with that and should not as it may end up being less of a surprise. Can anyone think of anything that a man would like and is not too complicated to make? He's in his mid 40s, single and a recent arrival to the UK. (Would a sexy bust be too much for someone I hardly know? LOL)
I would keep nautical. Royal blue base color
3d fondant wooden ships wheel large, laid on top.
Bulky rope on side and a woodgrain fondant covered board. Finish with a antiqued scrolled fondant banner.
OMG @amartin1900 what a great idea! I could picture it as you described it and felt like hitting my palm on my head and asking why didn't I think of that! It is within his interests but it is more abstract as I am not trying to build a whole frigate. I can have fun decorating a cake like you describe! I imagine imitating the rope texture and creating the woodgrain. Now I need to find out if he is a lover of chocolate. Thank you so VERY MUCH for helping me out. PS: how would I make a scrolled banner look antique? In normal artwork we used tea to stain paper. Should I put a watery yellowish brown mix on a plate and use a cloth to sponge it on the fondant? Maybe I'll do what I usually do: make more than I need and try different methods.
It depends on his personality and the people he's celebrating with. A boob cake might put his granny (who's at the party) off - or make him uncomfortable... hahaha. Tho' most men would love it I guess ;)
Okay... probably no granny ...and no girlfriend you said.
You could choose the party location as a theme (a barrel if in a bar f.e.) or make a wine/ beer bottle cake if he enjoys drinking that normally and the party is at his house.
If you wanna stick with the modelling theme, maybe "steal" a train of his and make a tunnel cake, use his train as topper. Or if he's into airplanes make a landing strip etc. If he only likes ships, make a 2 tier cake with a waterfall fromm one to the next tier and have a ship of his placed on the edge of it, like almost falling down. How big are his replicas anyway, lol?
I would keep it fun and rather nonchalant and simple as you don't know him too well yet.
I don't want to overwhelm him or put him in a tough spot. He hasn't got many friends here, yet, so he won't be having a party. He needs to watch the pennies, as we say, till he gets established here. His replicas are huge - one we were talking about is 1 metre long by 60 cm wide and goodness knows how tall. They would sell for ££££ to a collector if such a collector knew about them. We are talking about ships that he's spent 6 months building, bit by tiny bit, paying attention to detail, studying blueprints, etc. Not a kit from a hobby shop, but he has his own tools to cut wood, etc. He has even won awards! It is really sad that due to the state my country is in most of its brightest people have to emigrate to secure a living. If you guys know anyone who wants to own a beautifully crafted ship, I can bring them in touch. Just don't spoil the surprise! :)
you can brush your banner with cocoa to make it 'vintage' -- amartin's and Julia's ideas are great --
my little idea is to just do scrolls for a guy -- my favorite is choco on choco -- I would make a round cake and have a few tall proud colorful sail boats with pretty white sails asking around the sides -- I'd just pipe them --
not that that is particularly reflective of his model making -- it's just my idea of a masculine cake --
best to you
@Norcalhiker don't want to be giving him any ideas! LOL
Hi guys, today was the birthday and I managed to produce a sculpted cake which was nothing like I had imagined it to be as one idea gave way to another and so on. I did not finish it because I ran out of time - so many things going on in my life right now! So please be lenient with me.
He was happy, he loved the taste and asked for seconds and hinted at thirds. I suppose he would not have done so if he had not liked it. I gave him half a cake to take home with him.
Today's cake taught me a few things: do not spray colour from a spray bottle unless you have protected your work area and yourself - the paint went everywhere! Gelatine leaves make good windscreens. Press-on lettering won't show in dark colour (hence the white name plaque). Ganache can be bitter if not made my way (with the addition of some sweetened condensed milk). Ivory colour with a tiny bit of brown will give a good impression of polished wood. Royal icing is a cheap and easy method to cover a cake board.
I could have done with a few more hours to finish the cake, i.e. paint the railings, add some decorations, paint the name plaque, make a proper figurine instead of a tongue-in-cheek one or at least give him a red lifejacket...
I was quite annoyed with the cake leveller I bought recently because its blades swivel and does not cut level slices. This was the second cake I tried to cut and measured everything and made sure to set it up properly... nope, still problematic. So one layer ended up too thin, another too fat. I think I will go back to using my single wire cutter, to be honest. Cakes are too expensive to muck up with, don't you think?
Oh and I did tell you he is an expert in boats. He even knew the name of the model I used!!! But luckily he did not make any suggestions as to what is not accurate/should be changed. Phew!
i love it -- you did a great job and he's such a happy boater/ship captain -- some cakes are perfect and belong in competitions some cakes are sweet tasty blessings and belong in the heart
@-K8memphis you are always sweet and supportive! Thank you. :)
Lol...can tell you are a perfectionist...probably never absolutely satisfied with your cake (unfortunately I'm the same, so I know what you mean!) - but you should be happy because it looks great and apparently he liked it which is what you wanted! Well done 
@julia1812 and @remnant3333 thank you very much! It is a cute cake that brings a smile to the face of who ever sees it! It is not pretending to be a grand cake and it is an original. I am learning with every cake I make. There are so many great cake designers out there. I love seeing their work but understand that everyone has a style of their own. One day I hope to develop my own style so when you see a photo you will think, ah! that must be one of Shockolata's. :) God-willing! :)
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