Sunday Sweets: Modern Marvels

Today we're spotlighting wedding cakes with a modern twist. Unusual shapes, clean lines, bold colors - these aren't your grandmothers' wedding cakes. (Unless your grandma was really, really cool.)

Let's start with what I first thought was a stack of brilliant dishware:

By Baking Arts

Wowee - check out that color! And it's actually striped modeling chocolate, not fondant. Amazing.

I love it when bakers experiment with a wedding cake's shape and height. You know, like this:

Submitted by Elizabeth H. and made by Maggie Austin Cake

Formal, but still fun. Love it.

Extra tall bottom tiers are a neat way to liven up more traditional round cakes, too:

By Rouvelee's Creations

Plus that graphic black and white pattern manages to be both modern and timeless all at once.

This next one is also by Rouvelee, because I couldn't pick just one of her amazing cakes:

By Rouvelee's Creations

Look at those swirls! Totally swoon-worthy.

If you asked an artist for an extremely abstract, minimalistic interpretation of sea foam and crashing waves, you might get something like this:

By Gateaux Inc.

Kinda cool, right?

I had to zoom in on this one before I realized the ribbons weren't real ribbons:

Sub'd by Jennifer H., made by Salt Cake City

Sharp corners, crisp lines - just perfect.

Here's another that might fool you into thinking it's wrapped in real ribbon:

Submitted by Kaitlin M., photo by Lisa Lefkowitz, baker unknown

And those graduated colors! I literally gasped the first time I saw this - such great girly goodness.

There's something about sunny yellow accents with black and white that always makes me smile:

Photo by photoARTworks, cake by Something Sweet Cake Studio

Beauuutiful. And I was delighted when I realized this is by the baker who made our very first cake at our very first book tour stop here in Orlando. (Love ya, Johnnie!)

We've seen our fair share of peacock wedding cakes, but here's a more modern twist on all that beautiful plumage:

Submitted by Heidi T.; By Betty Crocker Recipes

So...would you call that shade Norwegian Blue? [innocent smile]

Happy Sunday!

*****

P.S. It's been over a year since I bought these sleep headphones, so time for another shout-out!

Bluetooth Sleep Headphones

I have the kind of insomnia old-timey bards would write songs about, so I listen to boring audio books on these every night to keep my brain from spinning out of control. Lately I've been wearing them like a sleep mask - like the model here - and WOW, that's helped even more than when I wore them like a headband! These things have been a life saver: comfy enough for side sleeping, not too loud like some of my old speakers, and they only cost $20.

Note that they do run on the big side, but that works out great if you have a big head like me. :D

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And from my other blog, Epbot:

We Are The World Wrecks

As you've probably guessed by now, most of the wrecks on this site are made right here in the good ol' US of A. Which may be a sad point of pride, but we'll take it. (America! Heck yeah!!)

Still, in an effort to give our American bakers a much-needed shot of schadenfreude, we've decided to search through 16,000 submissions to find a few wrecks from other countries.

"But Jen," you're thinking, "isn't that kind of like William Shatner picking on Andrea Boccelli for singing a single note slightly off-key one time while he had a cold?"

Yeah, kind of.

Are we going to do it anyway?

Heck yeah!!

From Denmark:

I'm not sure if these are actually cakes or just giant Danishes, but whichever it is, keep in mind that someone thought the green icing was helping.

From Egypt:

You might think camouflage triangles, shooting stars, and neon splattered rings would be a little crazy, but that white pom pom thing really pulls it all together.

From Taiwan:

I don't know what it is, but I think it wants to kill me.

From Morocco:

Is that...Doc? From Snow White? Hey, I think it's Doc!

No, wait. The little trees are all knocked over.
Must be Sneezy.

From Iran:

That's either a fish or a rubber chicken. Final answer.

Courtesy of the Ivory Coast, here's one way to cover up messy handwriting:

Inadequately.

From our friends over in China:

Say, is your tank dripping, or are you just happy to see me?

And finally, from Mexico:

I will now yell at a Mexican cake in a bad Scottish accent.

"Heed! Down in front!
"Would you look at the size of that girl's head? That's a 'uge noggin'! It's a virtual planetoid! It has its own weather system!"

Thanks to Stephanie B., Heather B., Alisa K., Cindy P., Lisa, Amanda D., Jacquie B., & Clau for that veritable tapestry of nations. A world showcase, if you will, providing illuminations for our own American Adventure.

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P.S. In the spirit of continued learning and broadening our horizons, I found you some take-home reading:

What If? Serious Scientific Answers To Absurd Hypothetical Questions

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And from my other blog, Epbot: