Happy Holidays

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season! I know you all are busy with baking, shopping, and more. I have one more thing to add to the schedule...our meeting next week!

For this month's meeting, we are planning a TREAT SWAP! Make your favorite cake, cupcakes, cookies, candies...whatever you wish! If you would like, you could also bring the recipe to share.

Plus, for the first time, we'd like to invite your family to join us in enjoying all the sweets! So, bring your husband, your children, your best friend...whoever you woud like to share some holiday treats with!

If you are planning on coming, please comment here or send me an email, along with how many "guests" you will be bringing, so we can have an idea of how many treats to make!

Looking forward to seeing you all next week!

Happy Halloween!

Wanted to say a quick thank you to the group of ladies that came to our meeting on Thursday! We didn't have a big group this time, but we had fun anyway...talking about the Day of Sharing, recent cakes, Holiday plans, and eating some candy apple cupcakes! 

Just a note, next month's meeting will be moved up a week to November 17th because of Thanksgiving. Mark your calendars!  

Halloween is just around the corner! At our Day of Sharing, Andrea had brought a gorgeous orange and black witch cake. She was featured in a couple publications, but the one from Half Baked was her favorite! Read all about it here.

Congratulations Andrea!

Hope everyone has a Happy Halloween...

and gets more treats than tricks! 

Three Ladies...and a Meeting

First up, I have to say a great BIG THANK YOU to everyone that came out on Sunday for our Day of Sharing!

We had a great time...learning new cake techniques, winning prizes, and spending time with cake friends! Thank you to our volunteers, your hard work was definitely appreciated! And to our demonstrators...it wouldn't have been a Day of Sharing without you, especially our very own SAGNFL members....Judy, Andrea, and Cathy! You ladies all did an amazing job and I can't wait to try your techniques out! And I have to give a special shout out to Simicakes, thanks for all your advice, your demo, and for being a vendor with some awesome products! 

Here are a couple pics from Sunday...

Judy getting ready for her demo...

Judy's adorable mini pumkin!

A couple of Andrea's cake displays...Gorgeous!

Andrea's completed wood grain box, looking so awesome!

Cathy and her daughter, Kalani, demonstrating Rice Krispie Turtles...

And the finished cake and turtles, taken home by a lucky winner!  

 The rest of the pictures can be seen here!

That's not all!

 Don't forget we have our monthly meeting tomorrow, Thursday, October 27th at our usual time and place! Plus, I will be making some fab treats to snack on, perfect for the fall! As always, if you have anything you would like to share...pictures of your latest creations, samples to give to someone other than family, friends that may enjoy cakes and such, please don't hesitate to bring them to our meeting!

I will see you all tomorrow!

Day of Sharing Volunteers

Sunday will be here before we know it!

I hope everyone is looking forward to the Day of Sharing as much as I am! 

For all of my volunteers out there, we need to be at the Ramada at 8am to start setting up. Also, I am still short volunteers, so if you know anyone that would like to help, please have them contact me ASAP!

If you missed the registration deadline, don't worry...you can still register at the event!

Registration starts at 8:30am.

Address for the Ramada:

3130 Hartley Rd.
Jacksonville, Florida 32257

Hope to see you all this weekend!

October Events

So excited to let everyone know that we have a special guest demonstrator for our Day of Sharing....

Geraldine Randelsome

She will be teaching new flower techniques...something you won't want to miss, considering she was recently named one of the TOP TEN CAKE DESIGNERS in North America*! 

If you missed our meeting, you also missed the rest of the lineup. Here they are...

Cathy David - Rice Krispie Treat Sea Turtles

Judy Morgan - Poured Buttercream Technique

Andrea Plumley - Painted Wood Grain

Michelle Galpern -  Isomalt Beer Bottle, from Molding to the Finished Piece

Lots of fun and exciting things to learn!

If you haven't registered yet, you still have some time. Early registration needs to be in by October 15th! Here's the form if you need it! Get those in ASAP!

Hope to see you all there!

Other events this month...

October 15th - Ocala, FL - Patrice Drinkard

                       11am-4pm    Sugar Masks

October 16th - Ft. Pierce, FL - Sidney Galpern

                        1-2pm   Airbrushing 101

                        2:15-4:15pm   Fondant/Gumpaste Hibiscus, Frangipani, and Tiger Lilies

                        4:30-6:30   Fondant/Gumpaste Poinsettias, Holly and Berries

October 27th - Ocala, FL - Sherrie Goolsby

                        10am-12pm Baby Shoes



*According to Dessert Professionals Magazine

Meeting Tonight!

Once again, another month has flown by...September is almost over and our monthly meeting is tonight! We will have Emily Lisska the Executive Director of the Jacksonville Historical Society coming to talk to us about the Gingerbread Extravaganza! We will also give more info for our upcoming Day of Sharing. If you have any donations for our raffle, please bring them to the meeting. This can include anything cake related...gently used pans, equipment, books, etc. 

Usually I bring a treat for everyone to munch on, but, unfortunately, I won't be able to make anything for this meeting. If anyone else would like to contribute, that would be great! I know a few of you ladies mentioned cheesecake at our last meeting...that sounds delicious!

Hopefully I'll see you all tonight!

On a side note, Michelle and Sidney Galpern sent out a new email with upcoming classes and events. See below for the details! 

Hello everyone,

We have a great classes and events coming up!  This Sunday we have classes in Chocolate and Gumpaste Flowers.  Tami Utely will be visiting our classroom from California.  You have to check out her website and come to her incredible classes in November (http://sugarartbytami.com/).  We have listed amazing sugar artists around Florida that are teaching and upcoming events.  If you would like your class or event listed please email us and we’ll be happy to spread the word.  We hope to see everyone on Oct. 23 at the Florida ICES Day of Sharing in Jacksonville! 

Tip of the Week:  Don’t have any colored candy melts for the project you need?  You can color white candy melts with food color gels and get just the right color.  What if you are working with white chocolate, gels won’t work.  Use powdered or color oils instead to achieve the right tone.  Here is a great blog on 15 ways to color and flavor chocolate the natural way:  http://eyecandy.nanakaze.net/?p=385    

Cake Decorating and Sugar Classes

9/30     Palm Bay, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3 Homeschool Cake Class-Sculpted Rice Cereal Treats in Fondant

10/2     Palm Bay, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3pm Painted and Filled Chocolates including Chocolate Ornaments

            3:15-5:15pm Fondant/Gumpaste Hibiscus, Frangipani, and Tiger Lilies

10/15   Ocala, FL-Patrice Drinkard www.patricespieces.org

            11-4pm Sugar Masks

10/16    Ft. Pierce, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com
               1-2pm  Airbrushing 101
               2:15-4:15pm Fondant/Gumpaste Hibiscus, Frangipani, and Tiger Lilies
               4:30-6:30 Fondant/Gumpaste Poinsettias, Holly and Berries

10/27    Ocala, Fl-Sherrie Goolsby sherrieg54@yahoo.com
                10-12noon Baby Shoes

11/4     Palm Bay, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3 Homeschool Cake Class-Owl in a Tree Fall Cake

11/6     Ocala, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3pm Painted and Filled Chocolates including Chocolate Ornaments

            3:15-5:15 Fondant/Gumpaste Hibiscus, Frangipani, and Tiger Lilies

11/12   Palm Bay, FL-Tami Utely info@simicakes.com

            9:30-11:30 Gelatin Bubbles and Gems

            12:30-2:30 Brushed Embroidery

            3-5pm Cocoa Painting

11/13   Palm Bay, FL-Tami Utely info@simicakes.com

            8-12pm Oriental Stringwork

11/20   Palm Bay, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3pm Isomalt Ribbons and Blown Christmas Ornaments

            3:15-5:15pm Fondant/Gumpaste Poinsettias, Holly, and Berries

Nov TBA Jacksonville, FL-Patrice Drinkard

            Christmas Ornaments

12/2     Palm Bay, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3 Homeschool Cake Class-Holiday Theme

12/4     Ocala, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            1-3pm Isomalt Ribbons and Blown Christmas Ornaments

            3:15-5:15pm Fondant/Gumpaste Poinsettias, Holly, and Berries

Dec TBA Jacksonville, FL-Patrice Drinkard

            Poinsettias and Snowflakes   

12/11   Palm Bay, FL-Sidney Galpern info@simicakes.com

            TBA

Events

10/23                  Florida ICES Day of Sharing, Jacksonville, FL  www.flices.org

11/19&20           Festival of Chocolate, Palm Beach, Fl http://www.festivalofchocolate.com/
1/13-15                ICES Mini Classes, Orlando, FL  www.flices.org

3/25                    Zonta Chocolate Festival, Melbourne, FL http://www.zontaspacecoast.com/

3/31 & 4/1         Florida ICED Cake Competition, Ocala, FL  www.floridaiced.com

8/2-5                  ICES Convention, Reno, NV www.ices.org

Sidney  & Michelle Galpern

Simi Cakes & Confections, LLC

simicakes.com

info@simicakes.com

321-543-3492

A Little Info

Anyone interested in demonstrating for our Day of Sharing?

Not only will you be teaching some hungry (for learning) cake enthusiasts, but you will also save money by having your DOS admission waived for simply sharing your talent! If you are interested, please let me know ASAP!

Sorry to say, but volunteers and assistants do have to pay. And everyone is encouraged to have their registration and payment in by the October 15th deadline!

Also, the FL ICES mini classes put up the class list. Check it out here!

Happy Caking Everyone!

FL ICES

The Florida ICES newsletter was just sent out! If you're not a member of ICES, but interested in reading the newsletter, you can check it out here. Lots of good stuff in there!

In it, you'll find info for the ICES Mini Classes, taking place in Orlando in January. Registration starts in just 4 days for members. If you are not yet a member of ICES, now would be a great time to join!

Can't wait to see all the awesome classes available!

Hopefully, I'll see some of you there!

Day of Sharing

We're so excited that Jacksonville is holding the next FL ICES Day of Sharing!

October 23rd will be here before we know it!

For more details and to register, click here. Register ASAP, you won't want to miss this event! Registration deadline is October 15th.

Also, if you would like to volunteer, demonstrate, or donate items for the raffle, please contact us at SAGNFL@hotmail.com.

On another note, Patrice and Jane are sorry to announce the Tea Cups and Roses class has been canceled as there were not enough students signed up. 

Last, but not least, our monthly meeting will be on September 29th. Same place, same time! As always, if you have anything to share...pictures, treats, friends, etc, bring them along!

See you all in a couple weeks!

Happy September!

Is anyone interested in a new job?

I just saw an add on Craigslist for a new bakery that needs a baker/cake decorator!

Here's the link if you're interested!

And good luck if you apply!



Who is ready for September?!

Here are some updates of fun things that are happening soon!

First up, Patrice will be teaching a two day class on her gorgeous "Teacups and Roses" on Saturday and Sunday, September 17th and 18th. All the details can be found here.

There needs to be 6 students, so contact Jane to sign up now!

 Also, we have scheduled a Day of Sharing, right here in Jacksonville for Sunday, October 23! For those of you who don't know what a Day of Sharing is...imagine spending the day with 125 other cake artists, learning, eating, sharing, and just plain having fun! There will be demonstrations, a cake gallery (everyone is encouraged to bring a display!), food, vendors, and raffles, with the *BIG* prize being a new Kitchenaid Mixer!

For the Day of Sharing (DOS), we are looking for anyone that has a special talent and would like to share it with others. Or if you would like to work more behind the scenes and volunteer, here is a list of duties that we need to perform to make the DOS run smoothly. Plus, we need items for our raffle! If you have any cake items (magazines, cake decorating supplies, gently used cake pans or equipment, etc), please consider donating them! If you are interested in any of these things, please email me at SAGNFL@hotmail.com.  

We would be so grateful for your contributions!

Also, more details will be added as soon as I get them!

So, cakers, get ready for some FUN!!!

The End is Near...

For August, that is. Which means that our monthly meeting is almost here! Our next meeting is this Thursday, August 25th. We will start, as usual, at 7pm. We have a lot to share this month and I hope you all will join us! If there is anything you would like to bring, (ie. pictures, goodies, etc) please don't hesitate!

On another note, if you haven't signed up for CakeFu yet, you're missing out!  They offer online training videos from well-known cake artists, such as Sharon Zambito, James Rosselle, and Kerry Vincent. Tomorrow they will have Peggy Tucker (I just had the priviledge of taking her class at Convention)!

Here is what CakeFu had to say:
   "Peggy has gained an amazing skill in working with
    isomalt sticks to make cast and poured sugar
    sculptures, and she plans to share with us how she
    does it.

    (Plus, she has an AWESOME giveaway planned

    with a $100 value, so you need to be on the training

    for a chance to get that!)"

Sounds like an awesome technique to learn...plus a great chance to win! To watch these training videos, simply enter your name and address, and they'll send you an invite to watch.

Hope to catch up with everyone on Thursday!

Gelatin Slipper By Tami Utley

Sugar Delites sent out their August Newsletter with an awesome tutorial by Tami Utley! I posted below for your caking pleasure...you're welcome!

Gelatin Slipper
By Tami Utley
www.sugarartbytami.com

This slipper will not break or be affected by humidity and lasts years.  Although I did 2 thin layers of gelatin, you can probably use one layer of gelatin and still have a good slipper.




I use Knox gelatin. If you use a higher grade of gelatin you might need to adjust the amount of water, but don’t fret, this is not a fussy recipe so different proportions of water to gelatin will still get the desired effect.





I use a 2:1 ratio of water to gelatin.  Put 2 T water into a microwave safe glass bowl and sprinkle 1 T gelatin into it.  *Tip – if your gelatin is too yellow, add just a tiny touch of violet food paste color/gel to whiten it, however, you will find that the yellow won’t be noticeable anyway.




Let this sponge for 5 minutes.




Pop it into the microwave for about 10 seconds to melt the gelatin (some microwaves require less/more time due to power differences).  Stir and remove any un-dissolved gelatin.  Let cool a little, remove any foam and then heat again if needed in 5 second bursts to dissolve the gelatin completely.  Let sit again for the bubble/foam to rise if necessary.  You want the gelatin very fluid and runny so don’t wait too long.



While the gelatin is still warm , pour into the chocolate mold and coat the inside completely. At any time, you can re-heat the gelatin to liquefy it with a 5 second burst in the microwave.

Use a soft brush to paint up over all the edges of the mold and make sure the entire inside is coated.  This is because the gelatin will shrink as it dries and will pull away from the mold possibly causing a wrinkle in your desired shape.  Any bubbles in the mold can be brushed away quickly.



Pour the excess gelatin out and brush the excess off.

Let the gelatin in the mold sit for 2 minutes or so (depending on your weather and humidity) to firm up.  Once you can touch the gelatin in the mold and it won’t stick, re-heat the gelatin in the bowl (about 5 seconds in the microwave) and re-coat the mold a second time.  You will need to work a little faster, as the gelatin gets cool as it dries and will firm up faster on the second coat.

Pour off the excess and brush any areas needing touch up. Don’t continue to keep brushing the inside too long, as the gelatin will get sticky and rubbery. Turn the mold over to let the excess drip off.  Let dry overnight or, use a fan on low, blowing over the mold to speed up drying time to a few hours.

If your gelatin starts to get ‘gummy’,  ‘rubbery’ or sticky as you brush, it’s getting too cold and will ruin your piece.  You can heat this up with a hair dryer to warm up the gelatin again.  Or wait, re-heat the gelatin in the bowl and re-coat the mold.  Any imperfections will shrink as the slipper dries so will most likely not be noticeable.



Once dry, the gelatin will release from the mold and will just lift out.  Trim both sides of the slipper with a small pair of scissors.


You can leave the slipper closed at the top, but I marked mine with a felt tip marker and cut an opening on each slipper half.   Clear tape can be used to hold the slipper together temporarily to mark it evenly. 






Then pull the tape off to cut the opening.





Re-heat any leftover gelatin and paint it onto one side of the slipper and attach to the other half of the slipper.  Let this dry a few minutes until the two sides stay stuck together.  Depending on the weather, it may take more time to set.





Use piping gel to paint over the seam of where the slipper halves where joined together.



Pour rainbow disco dust over the gel to hide the seams.  Use a soft brush to brush away any excess dust.
Take a look at these beauties!!!  Cinderella shoe on a pillow cake?  Can you picture it???  Jen :-)

This can also be done with the larger 8 ½” mold, however, there is a bigger chance of the gelatin getting a ‘wrinkle’ since the gelatin shrinks as it dries. Depending on where the wrinkle is, it can be hidden with the disco dust.  It is also harder to cover the surface of the larger mold before the gelatin starts to cool too much and ‘gums’ up, so you must work much faster.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Tami, for this FANTASTIC guest tutorial!  I'm sure everyone is ooohhhhing and ahhhhing out there reading this :-)
 
Sugar Delites carries both the large and small shoe molds.  Here's links to both:
 
Large shoe mold ($6.00)

Small shoe mold ($3.00)

Here's a link to the rainbow disco (LOVE this stuff!)

Very awesome! Thanks to Tami Utley and Sugar Delites for sharing this with us!!!

Classes in Florida

Michelle and Sidney from Simi Cakes and Confections sent out a new email. Read below for all the details! 

 

"Happy Summer Everyone,

We have a couple seats left for our Isomalt Class Series in Panama City Aug 19 and 20.  We are scheduling classes in Tampa, Ocala, and Ft. Pierce for the fall, so watch for more information coming soon.  And the big news is:

We will be hosting classes by Tami Utley, http://www.sugarartbytamicom/index.html, award winning sugar artist, instructor, and ICES approved teacher  from San Diego, California.  Her classes are amazing.  We will hold the classes in Palm Bay on Sat Nov 12 and Sun Nov 13.  You may have seen Tami's tutorial on gelatin bubbles in the ICES national newsletter.  She also has tutorials on her website for free.  She wants at least 8 students, but no more than 12 per class.  Classes must be paid in full to hold your seat, no refunds.  Please email us atinfo@simicakes.com or call us at 321-543-3492 to register or for more information.   

Here are the classes:

Sat, Nov. 12 ,  9:30-11:30am

 

Gelatin bubbles and Gems - All levels *

2 hours - $45

Class equipment: M

In this part demo, part hands on class, you will learn how to make beautiful

gelatin bubbles that look like blown sugar. Gelatin Jewels will also be demonstrated in this class and more as time permits.

 All supplies included.

*Note - we will not be doing the project shown,  students will do 2 bubbles and receive one that is already dried to complete.

 

 

Sat, Nov. 12,  12:30-2:30pm

 

Brush Embroidery - All levels *

2 hours - $45

Learn brush embroidery painting with royal icing.  This is a beautiful technique to get a dimensional look with your flowers and figures.  Students will complete a plaque of a briar rose and leaf and learn shading techniques.  Also how apply this technique to buttercream instead of royal.  All materials supplied.

*Note- students will do a more simple design.

 

 

Sat, Nov. 12-3-5pm

Cocoa painting - All levels

2 Hours - $45

Class equipment: M

Learn how to do cocoa painting in this hands on class.  Students will learn traditional cocoa painting, shading and texturing.  We will also cover paint with with color and backgrounds.  All supplies are included.

Sunday, Nov. 13-8-12

Oriental stringwork - Intermediate and Advanced level piping *

4 hours - $60

Class equipment: S

Learn this gravity defying delicate stringwork technique.  Oriental stringwork is done with a small tip and royal icing.  Students will learn to measure and mark their cakes for top, bottom and center string patterns and layering.  Students must bring a 6" x4" dummy cake and  a 10" board both covered in royal or fondant and the board must be attached to the cake (and dry).  Also tip 1 and tip 0 (best if you can use a PME brand tip).  The rest will be supplied.

*Note - time only allows for stringwork, the design on the cake top will not be included

 

 

Michelle

 

Sidney  & Michelle Galpern

Simi Cakes & Confections, LLC

simicakes.com

info@simicakes.com

321-543-3492"

Meeting Tomorrow

The end of July is almost here, which means it's meeting time!

Since we did not get to do a drawing last month, Jane would like to do it at tomorrow's meeting. Once again, it will be a drawing for 50% off a one-day class of your choice, excluding special guest instructor classes. Everyone that comes to the meeting will be entered! Also, if you sign up for any class at the meeting, you will get an additional entry into the drawing...so take a look at our Class Schedule!

We hope to go over the Cottage Food Law, plus Jane wants to share with us a recent trip she took to Georgia. Can't wait to see what she brought back!

 As always, there will be some treats for everyone! 

If there is anything you want to bring (pictures, goodies, etc), please don't hesitate to share it! 

On another note, Jane found a new website, CakeFu, that holds webinars taught by well-known sugar artists. If you want to be a part of this, visit their website to sign up and participate! 

Hope to see you all tomorrow night at 7pm!

SAGNFL In The News!

Hi everyone! Hope you all had a fantastic time celebrating the 4th of July!

This month, the Guild was pleased to be featured in the Mandarin NewsLine! If you don't receive a copy in your mailbox, you can read the article here. 

Plus, I have a few reminders for you:

The ICES Convention is now less than a month away. If you want to go but have not registered yet, you only have until July 10th (FIVE more days) to do so! You can find the registration forms (one for ICES members and another for non-members) here. If you have more questions about the event, you can find all the info on their website.

 Also, the Cottage Food Act became a law on July 1! Here is a document from the Food Safety Department outlining the basics of selling "cottage foods". I will try to have more information available next week.

Last, but not least, we have another class coming up this weekend! Jane will be teaching you how to make gorgeous, not to mention easy to make, petit fours. If you need to sign up or get more info, contact Jane.

Until then,

Happy Caking!

Meeting Tonight

Hope you all are ready for a fun night! We will be going over the new class schedule, eating some yummy treats, and having a drawing or two!

One of the classes that is coming up is going to be taught by a very talented lady, Giovanna, from Tampa. She is a true artist when it comes to her sugar work, especially her sugar flowers. You can see many samples of her work on her website for the Sugar Art Studio. Also on her site are a list of classes she will be teaching, including the class in Jacksonville in August. I know she is looking forward to meeting everyone here in North Florida, so sign up for her class tonight! 

Remember, if you sign up for any of the classes at our meeting tonight you get an extra entry (or entries) into our drawing! You can find out more about our drawing here.

Hope to see you all in a couple hours!

Meeting And Drawing

One more week until our next Guild meeting. And because of all the excitement surrounding the new classes starting, along with the Cottage Food Law being passed, (and just because she's a nice lady) our President, Jane, is offering a wonderful promotion for our members!

I'm sure you've seen the classes, and had your eye on your favorites. So, would you like to take one and save 50% off the class price? How, you ask? It's very simple...come to our SAGNFL meeting next Thursday. What a simple way to save money!

Every member that comes to our meeting will be entered into a drawing where the winner will receive 50% off a one-day class of their choice (excluding special guest instructor classes). She's also offering an additional entry for each class you sign up for, no limit!

Join us next week for a good time, 

some tasty treats, and the drawing!