Fondant covered chocolate cake.

Blue and white hand piped design.

Yellow sugar roses.

Need I say more?

The bride and groom came to me with their specifications. Their unique spin on a traditional tiered wedding cake produced a square tower of sweetness.

I love my job!! Congratulations Amy & Sean! Best wishes in your new life together.

She lost her husband early this year.

She had major back surgery.

This frail little lady had borne such hardship in just a few months and now it was her 80th birthday.

Perhaps she hoped everyone would forget.

The smiling eyes and quiet voice had lost their spark.

She had wondered often in recent weeks as to what her purpose was. What good could there be left in life and why celebrate when there had been so much lost.

2009 had cost her greatly and though she, in true proper grace, was forging on, it wasn't easy to share a smile or keep her little chin up.

Somewhere a few miles away, a phone call was made to Frosted. Friends gathered for a surprise birthday party. I made a chocolate cake with vanilla pastry cream filling. I was only told that she liked birds. I chose two, since they had asked that I write "Faithful Friend" on the cake. As I was placing them on, one fell slightly. I grabbed my spatula to right him when I saw that he was leaning on the other bird. I smiled and let him be.

Sometimes, we all need to have a friend to lean on.

A couple of weeks later, her own son and daughter in law called to order another cake for her actual birthday. I was so blessed to make both of her birthday cakes. The second one was vanilla with chocolate cream filling. Since I know this sweet woman personally, I sent a birthday card with the cake. I explained the meaning behind each of the edible sugar decorations I had made for it.

The bow was to symbolize her life. Each life is a gift and a blessing.

The brooch to show that she has a rich legacy to leave behind.

The hankerchief for the hard times she has experienced and lived through.

but the rose to show that she is still blooming. She has more living to do and more to give.

As an oldest child I have always had a bit of a 'rescuer' in me.

I like to be the solution to a problem. Or at least appear to have the answer. :)

I've been humbled time and time again, but every once in a while I get to 'come to the rescue'.

I received a call just days before a wedding from the father of the bride. The cake baker had a heart attack and wasn't able to make the cake. I happened to be free that weekend and took the challenge.

Even with the late night hours, a harrowing drive to the reception and a last minute set up, I was pleased with the end result.

When I met her she seemed like any other bride. She was pretty and pleasant and there was nothing about her that seemed out of the ordinary.

Then I was asked if I could create a cruise ship wedding cake.

!!!!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE brides who think outside the box! Although I am a traditional girl myself, I thoroughly enjoy challenging myself with the cakes I make and trying new things.

This bride definitely wanted something different and was looking for a custom wedding cake to suit her pre-cruise getaway. After a little more discussion we nixed the cruise ship and designed a sea shell cake for her summer wedding.I had never tried sea shells before and really enjoyed working with the molds and creating the shells out of white chocolate. I painted each shell with edible dusts and coloring to attempt a more 'life like' appearance. I added tropical lilies made from gum paste.

Lena, the bride, had chosen red velvet for her cake flavor and a generous layer of cream cheese frosting as a filling for the cake.

The moments we make aren't near as important as the memories we keep.

May this moment as you begin your life together, be held in your hearts for always.

Blessings! Frosted.

This summer was a busy one for cakes. I found myself evaluating along the way. Am I sick of this? Do I really want to do this? But each time, I came back to the pleasure I feel in my core... I love what I do. I was born to create.

I love the chemistry of flour and leaveners. I love hearing eggs beat in a rhythm to a tune in my head. I never tire of it. I do tire, however. But I wake up the next morning with a recipe idea or a thought of how I could decorate or display a cake differently. What flavor combination might I try?

As much as I love the baking process, if I had to choose one element that is my favorite it would be the frosting or decorating of a cake. I love working with different cake mediums. I enjoy buttercream and piping with royal frosting. Fondant work is daunting but ridiculously clean and beautiful. Lately, I have tried my hand at sugar art. Rolled fondant and gum paste can seem overwhelming at first. It takes so much more time than I first imagined.

Each petal must be created by hand. Every vein is thoughtfully placed, each overlap or curl of a petal or leaf. ...Where it dries, it stays.

I had the pleasure of making a cake for a 90th birthday party. This beautiful lady had mentioned to her daughter that she had memories of her mother placing white flowers called 'mock orange' on her birthday cakes when she was a girl.

I had never heard of that flower, but I researched it and decided I wanted to bring back a piece of her past on this, a celebration of her 90th year of life.

Cakes are temporary. They are a momentary commemorative display of edible art. Not something you can keep forever, and hang on a wall or put in a cabinet. They are just placed on a plate or cake stand and cut and served to be eaten. Some might argue "why bother?" Why would I put in hours and hours to painstakingly create petals for flowers that will be eaten in 10 minutes?

I believe that anything worth doing is worth doing with excellence. And no matter how brief its existence, a beautiful cake is remembered not only for the sweet ending of an event, but for the feeling it gives.

Cakes have the opportunity to thrill the senses and touch the heart. They can be a description of a person and as individual as we all are. I hope each cake ordered from Frosted is a memorable one and that memory not only tastes good on your tongue, but reaches the heart.

Thank you for hiring me and allowing me to be a part of your story in this way.

- Julie, Frosted

I love weddings!

I loved my own, and I've loved being a witness to the weddings of my family and friends over the years.

Now, as a cake baker, I get the privilege of being a part of a bride and groom's wedding day by creating the cake to celebrate their union. I love choosing the design with the bride and groom. The cake is a centerpiece at their reception that showcases who they are as a couple. Creating something that is unique to them is a privilege and a passion I enjoy.

Abby and Chuck came to me to discuss their cake. Right away I was enchanted by their great sense of style and fun loving spirit. I loved watching them together and the joy that surrounded them.

I wanted their cake to depict that.

The bride choose a design that although, traditional in its structure had the pop of color and a unique design quality that intrigued me.

To Abby and Chuck, an amazing, beautiful and fun couple;

Congratulations and Thank You for having me create your cake!

May you have a lifetime of happiness!

When I met Sarah, she was a teenager. Years later, I was introduced to her fiance and excitedly agreed to design a wedding cake for the first day of their life as Mr. & Mrs.

Sarah was a classic bride; elegant, full of laughter and beauty. Her taste was classy and romantic. She and Daniel are a fun couple who embraced tradition in their wedding but wanted every detail to be personal.

I designed a vanilla butter cake with raspberry preserves and lemon pound cake with lemon curd. The cake was frosted in a rich buttercream and each layer had a different piped design on it. Fondant flowers decorated the top.