Shower Cake

My sister picked a cute, beach-themed cake for her baby shower from one of my favorite cake sites, Cake Central, and I did my best to copy it. I did make a few minor design changes but it is essentially the same. It took a lot of time this week, but it was all worth it in the end. She really loved it and I am happy with the results. It's definitely the hardest and most labor intensive cake I have done to date. Here's the baby I made from gum paste for the topper. Notice she's got a itty bitty pacifier.

Everything on the cake was made from edible materials. (The only thing I didn't make is the colored shells, the white shells are gum paste.) Each cake tier had 3 different flavored layers: pineapple, coconut, and banana ( I liked pineapple the best). They were filled with a coconut mango filling and frosted with a Cream Cheese Buttercream. The fondant was homemade. A friend told me this week that store bought fondant (Wilton) does not taste good, so I guess it'll always have to be homemade for me. Luckily, one recipe was just barely enough to cover the cake, the board, and some of the decorations. (The beach balls are fondant covered jawbreakers.)

Okay, so next week it's Thomas' birthday. He wants a Hobbit cake. Back to the drawing board....