Going Through A Rough Patch

It's the quintessential symbol of Halloween: the Jack-O-Lantern. Fortunately, it's also one of the easiest designs for a baker to make. Just take one round cake, ice it in orange, add a cartoony face, and...voilá!

AAAEEIII!!

Er. Heh, sorry. Let's try that again.

Voila!

That's...not a cake.

[rolling up sleeves] Voila!

Is that...plastic?

Cheater.

Voila!

A Pumpkin Poo-nicorn. Well. That's a first.

[through gritted teeth] Voi-la.

What the...what IS that? Come on, seriously, there's no way you could make this thing look less like a pumpkin!

Allow me to retract that last statement.

Knock, knock.

Well? Orange you glad I didn't say "voila?"

Hm. Maybe the problem lies in trying to make the whole cake look like a pumpkin. Maybe if the baker just drew a pumpkin ON the cake...

[blinking]

Um...

[more blinking]

Voila!

Dorota, Carra M., Melody N., Shanna T., Andrew M., Ted, Donny & Amanda, Kaitlin K., & T.A., don't ask me; I'm going with "abstract jack-o-lantern."

*****

P.S. I have to show you my new Fall pillows, because AHHHHH they make me happy:

I found an Eva pillow!

These are all pillow covers, actually, which means they're cheaper and easier to store later, a win-win.

Here's the other couch, with a bonus Suki:

Those velvet pillows are so soft and cozy. The cats are jealous; I keep petting the pillows instead. :p

Again, these are pillow covers, so I covered what we already had, then snagged a couple $3 thrift pillows to round out the set. HIGHLY recommend - and here come the Amazon links!

- 4-pack of 18-inch Maple Leaf covers

- 2-pack of 20-inch velvet orange covers

- Black Cat & Pumpkins cover

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot:

Sunday Sweets: Kids Cartoons!

Kids' shows get some of the cutest cakes, you guys. I don't even have kids, and I had a blast looking for these!

Just look at this adorable Doc McStuffins cake:

[By Valentina Pollicino in Italy]

Squee!

When I Googled the most popular kids' shows of 2018, I was amazed to see Pokémon still on the list. Good thing, though, since that means I get to show you this jaw-dropping Pikachu:

[By Le Delizie di Kicca in Italy]

The shading makes it look more like a ceramic sculpture than a cake! Also loving all the lightning bolts.

Oh hey, here's a show I've actually watched before: Miraculous: Tales of Lady Bug & Cat Noir

[By Soraia Amorim Sugar Artist in Portugal]

So impressed with the mix of 2D and 3D - plus that little ladybug & cat are adorable.

Judging by the amount of incredible Paw Patrol cakes out there, it must be a HIT with the little ones:

[By Medena Radionica in Serbia]

I like the little tower!

And speaking of popular shows, obviously My Little Pony is huuuuuge. John and I are even fans. I could do a whole post of great MLP cakes, but instead here's one of the cutest Pinkie Pie cakes I've ever seen:

[By Cakes By Ashley in Texas]

My favorite is how the flowers look like they're made of rolled-up balloon. I could totally see Pinkie making those with her stash of party balloons. :)

Here come another show I've been a fan of since the original: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

[Baker Unknown. Anyone recognize it?]

Look how fun this is, with the pizza base and that river of toxic sludge out the side! I would have loved this cake back in middle school... or heck, even today. (The reboot is awesome, I've got to catch up on it someday.)

I've seen a lot of people cosplay from this next one: Star vs The Forces of Evil

[By Andrea Bertini in Argentina]

The premise sounds hilarious in the best way, any of you watch it? I think I need to check it out.

One of my good friends has 3 young kids, and they are alllll about LEGO: Ninjago

[By Sweet Obsessions in Malaysia]

Even the figures are sugar! Wowza.

Speaking of my friend's kids, John and I got to theme her daughter's room after Elena of Avalor, so I've had a soft spot for that character ever since:

[Baker Unknown. Anyone recognize it?]

I love Elena's red-and-teal color scheme with all the bright flowers - so pretty, I want to wear them in my hair!

Years ago a reader e-mailed to tell me about this show her kids were watching: it was adorable and kind of steampunk-styled, so she thought of me. The show was called Octonauts, and now that I see this cake I want figurines of all the characters:

[By Amanda's Little Cake Boutique (new name) in the UK]

SO CUTE. Love all the soft pastels - and that submarine looks like a toy you could pick up and play with, not sculpted sugar! Amazing.

Happy Sunday, everyone! I think I'll go watch some cartoons now. :)

*****

P.S. Need a sweet gift for the person who has everything? Then how about a card that transforms into a bouquet:

Fresh Cut Pop-Up Bouquet, "Pumpkin Harvest"

I've been raving about Fresh Cut Paper for a while now, and they just added two new Fall designs: this "Pumpkin Harvest" bouquet:

...and a pop-up wreath!? Ohhh, this is cool:

When I send my grandmother cards she likes to tack them up up on her wall, so I just sent her this one, which is meant to hang up, and doubles as pretty Fall decor. There are more styles, too, so go see all the Fresh Cut Paper designs here.

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot: