I love themed parties. They are such a great chance to stretch the creativity, try something new, and they are just so much fun! We had a whole party of Pinstrosities sent to us from Rav from her "Monster"ous party...it was a graveyard smash.
The Original Pins
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| http://www.parents.com/holiday/halloween/decorating/spooky-decorations/?page=9 |
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| http://thebakeryspot.com/creative-halloween-cakes.html |
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| http://www.meetthedubiens.com/2011/12/happy-3rd-birthday-camden.html |
My hats off to Rav, those are quite the pins to be pursuing. I love the go-get-'em-ness!
Here's how Rav's turned out:
The Pinstrosities
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| "Hmmmmmm...didn't even make it out of the tupperware container. Couldn't find green ice-cream cones, the eyes all fell off and it was a super windy day in the park so they would have all blown away anyway." |
While I still love how they turned out, there are a few things that could help get the desired look.
- I have only seen green ice cream cones a few times in the grocery store, and there were only 6 or so in the box (along with pinks and browns), so you'd have to buy quite a few boxes to get enough green ice cream cones if you did it that way.
- Regardless of the color of the cone, the decorations will make or break these little guys. One way to get the desired look is eye placement. If you look in the original picture, the eyes are down on the narrow end of the cone rather than up on the wide end. This will give the look of filling the monsters head a little more (and if you are using the green cones it will help give that tall Frankenstein-ish forehead).
- To get a similar eye look without having to order candy eyes, use mini candies and a good glob of white frosting to stick them on.
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| Rav told us the original pinspiration was "Far beyond our culinary capabilities but this little cake turned out super cute anyhoo." |
Honestly, I love this monster cake; so cute and creative! The other cake would have scared me off too.
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| "I actually think these have more 'personality' and they were very delicious." |
The only way to get exactly the look of the original pin on this one is to have the same decorating supplies. I think Rav did excellent with these; they resemble the original pin and still look like monsters, but they have their own personality, as Rav said herself.
As a confectioner (and cake baker/decorator) I can give some tips here too!
ReplyDelete1) Green Frankenstein Cones - you can buy an inexpensive cake airbrush pen (like $20/$25) and tint the cones green. Or you can mix the green cake coloring with vodka. Put into a spray bottle and apply in light coatings allowing to sit and dry between. This keeps them from getting mushy, and the alcohol will evaporate leaving the green color behind. 2) A great way to make "eyes" without ordering them... grab a bag of the mini oreo cookies and use the white centers. Then tack on your mini m&m for the centers.
2) Orange Hairy Monster - so much easier than you think! Head to your local craft store's wilton section and get the "grass" icing tip. It has about 10 tiny holes in it that make this look. Start at the bottom 1 inch of the cake and pipe the grass bottom to top. Then go up about an inch to inch and a half and repeat. Continue to do this moving toward the center of the cake. And for the cake pop eyes, if cake pops aren't your thing... swing by your local Dunkin Donuts and get some munchkins. Dip in the candy coating and decorate.
3) Monster Cupcakes... thinning out the icing will give the smoother finish. All of the candies used can be picked up at most CVS/Walgreens type stores. No need to go to a specialty shop or order them. Not usually found at the grocery stores.
Your "Monster Cupcakes" look more like "Plants vs Zombies" not a bad look if that was what you were going for.
ReplyDeleteI agree with anonymous. With practice you can get better. I myself am a cake artist and I always kinda chuckle to myself when people watch cake boss then think they can do what they see. Just because something LOOKS easy doesn't mean it is. What's a good way to make sure you get the results you want? TAKE YOUR TIME! Your refrigerator will keep frosting from becoming too runny. Invest in frosting tips for fur and other decorations. Walmart sells a 5 pack of frosting tips for 99 cents. :) If you find you can't keep your hand steady hold it with your other hand while you pipe (frost with the tips )
ReplyDeleteI know the icing isn't fancy, but the good old basic Wilton shortening/powder sugar recipe has worked well for me (and the monster hairs did get stiff pretty quickly afterwards).
ReplyDeletejenadkinsdesigns.blogspot.com
These are really cute, and just the inspiration I needed. Thank you for sharing your ideas! I love the thought of taking something "unachievable" from pinterest, and turning it into something more "do-able" for busy moms. If that is your general blogging M.O. I'd love to have you guest post on my site!!
ReplyDeletewww.chasingsupermom.com