LoveYourCake Presents: ONLINE ORDERING!

Now you can order your cakes online with the click of a button! Amazing how technology works!

CLICK HERE TO ORDER YOURS TODAY!!

Let's all get baked, Vancouver! Err...Baking...let's all get baking!! ;)

The Most Delicious Burger Ever.

First you add the pattie...

Add some cheese...

Tomatos and Onions? Why not...

Can't forget the garnish...



All of these elements combined creates the most delicious burger ever - We even impressed ourselves on this one!

PRESENTING BBQ BURGER CAKE!

Complete with "ketchup and mustard" buttercream. Mmm!

Sonja delivering the burger cake for all to enjoy!

Free Advertising? Ummm....Yes, Please!

Here we go again - Love Your Cake has been blogged about for the third time. 3 million to go and we just might make it on Oprah!!!



I was first introduced to @ParksysCorner on Twitter, until he was unjustly banned without explanation. A true Vancouver Canucks fan, he writes a website called www.canucksnews.ca, and chronicles everything you could imagine involving the Canucks hockey team. We had blogged about these cupcakes in the past, but didn't get the response we were hoping for ... UNTIL TODAY!

He was kind enough to post this wonderful blog about our love of cake (and beer) for all the Vancouver fans to discover. For this - we appreciate you more then you know!!

Hopefully through this, we will be able to reach some Vancouver charities and fulfill our goal to share the love - and the cake.

Read the Blog HERE ->
http://web.mac.com/parksyboy/Site_5/Canucks_News/Entries/2009/8/14_For_your_Next_Canuck_Party.html

Thanks Parksys!

And if you have box seats - BRING US PLEASE!

The Unpredictable Learning Curve that is Cake Decorating

We were getting a bit rusty.

Was Love Your Cake still a business venture or just a horrible, all-consuming Twitter addiction?!

Tonight, thankfully, our question was answered in the best way possible...

We were up to our necks in icing sugar and our dirty aprons were in desperate need of a washing machine. We had banged out our corporate orders for August in the blink of an eye, and even got a jump on the cake for a BBQ this Sunday. We had a Beyonce and Kings of Leon karaoke party in the kitchen, while making fondant pieces for the stagette cake we have due next week. We even had time to take in the latest eviction on Big Brother. Take that, Jessie! Blind-sided. Love it! Oh, the drama of it all...

Things progressed a lot more smoothly then they did when we first entered the world of caking. By golly, we may just be learning something from this 24/7 sugar buzz!
Go figure!

Candice - "I Eat, Sleep, Breathe the stuff"

For those who are new to caking, or those who are thinking of tackling this creative hobby - let us fill you in on a bunch of things I wish we knew when we started:

cleaning piping bags is no fun at all - sorry, there's no way around it

when you decide on an icing color, make sure you mix enough of it since a new batch is hard to match

crumb coat! for the love of god - don't forget to crumb coat!

if you need fondant/modeling chocolate pieces - make them days in advance. The more firm they are, the easier they will be to work with

grease your cake pans with shortening and flour - comes out perfect every time

use cornstarch or shortening instead of icing sugar when kneading fondant, it won't get as dry and cracked

Purchase a cake level - it will be replace your best friend

I've said this before but I need to reiterate: Use vanilla frosting under fondant - chocolate is MESSY

Black food coloring will dye your light counter tops purple/pink. Although I love pink, it doesn't match my kitchen walls.

Magic Eraser really is magic

Sonja & Candice - Love Your Cake Sugar Faces

After 3 hours of hardly any bitching and complaining, the kitchen was spotless! The dishes were done, the counters were white and the completed cakes were boxed up for delivery.

All of the prepared pieces for the upcoming cakes will be spending the next day turning into edible and easy-to-work-with props. Once assembled - we will have accomplished 2 more unique cakes for two, hopefully happy, customers!

That is why we do what we do...

Because we love being praised :)

Haha! In all seriousness though, just being able to see people's reactions makes all the frustrations and learning curves worth while.

Sonja testing out the Garnish for BBQ Cake..Mmmm!

Please leave a comment below, and let us know what tips and tricks you wish YOU knew before you were up to your eyeballs in cake.

And if you're just starting out, feel free to ask any questions and we will do our best to share what little wisdom we have!

Motto: If you're not a mess, you're not doing it right!

Thanks for reading - stay tuned for more caking adventures ;)

-S&C

When Mastercard Meets Scissors...

We did it! We FINALLY did it!

Danny and I celebrate our freedom - Aug 2009

Well, for the second time...

Without coming right out and saying I'm a credit card junkie, I will say that my boyfriend and I have definitely leaned on those skinny pieces of plastic one too many times over the years.

Don't want to cook dinner? Put in on the card.
No cash for sisters wedding gift? Card it.
Payday and rent not meeting at the right time? Cash Advance.card.card.card.

I like to blame the Toronto Maple Leafs and cold hockey rinks for this card entering our lives. It was a Christmas gift for my boyfriend to go and see a Toronto hockey game. We hopped on the subway, scalped our way into the hockey rink, and were drinking cold beers in the nose bleeds. Hockey games are cold, even when your seats are closest to the sun. They had FREE fleece blankets (oooo!) for people who signed up for a credit card, and assuming this was my best shot at fighting hypothermia, I used only my real first name and all other false information. Thinking I had out-smarted those little credit devils, I returned to my seat and wrapped myself in the fleecy goodness of my new Toronto Maple Leafs blanket.

2 months later, I got a package in the mail...

Somehow, they had found me.

Not only did they find me, they found me at a time when I had a 6-month car insurance payment due. In full. With a simple call to 1-888- blah blah blah blah, I had my insurance paid and I was ready to go. Content with this being the only reason I would ever use my brand new gift - I put the card in my wallet and went on with life.


Long story short - Life added up.


I made SO many excuses for not cutting the card up in the past, even when we had managed to get the balance down to $0! The comfort factor of my plastic BFF out-weighed any argument given. No matter how many debt reducing strategies I read about, or how many hours I spent with a pen and paper watching "Til' Debt Do Us Part", nothing could convince me that slicing and dicing was the way to go.

Thinking back over the years, I don't know what we bought. I don't remember what we ate. I doubt I have any lasting memories. When the balance hit zero today, I handed my boyfriend the scissors and danced merrily around the living room.

With that being said, there was definitely a big lesson learned...



Next time I go to a hockey game, I'm wearing a sweater.

Love Your Cake wants to share the Love..and the Cake!

Love Your Cake has a lot of love to give...and a lot of cake!

Since we are new to the biz, there's only so many ways we can give back to the people of Vancouver who help us continue to grow.

Since we have always loved working with and being around children, we decided that we would like to offer a monthly donation of cupcakes to local Vancouver Children's Charities or Children's Hospital.

We would love the opportunity to attach ourselves with a local charity and make some delicious donations. Our donations would not come in the form of cash, but rather bite-size, creative and colorful cupcakes that are guaranteed to put a smile on any child's face. We will customize depending on season, holiday, celebration - you name it, we can make it happen!

Through our blog, we are hoping to gain the necessary contact information to turn this dream into a reality - we would really appreciate any help we can get!

Please pass along our link, retweet, post comments, or email any information in an effort to get the word out.


We thank you very much, and we will keep you posted on how things are progressing!!

xoxo

How Do You Compare Home to Home? A Vacation Synopsis.

Our most recent trip back to Ontario had me thinking a lot about the two places I now call home.

I decided to do a little side by side comparison of our vacation half-way across the country...




In BC - My boyfriend gets caught by paparazzi. That's him behind the vampire. So jealous.

In ON - My boyfriend gets caught with my best friend. No jealousy what-so-ever.




In BC - I sleep facing the city.

In ON - I wake up in the lake.





In BC - If I go for a swim, I run into Free Willy.

In ON - My biggest problem is being seen underwater by someone wearing goggles.

Come to think of it - These may be equally horrific...





In BC - A ski hill is something I worry about planes crashing into.

In ON - It could double as a runway.





In BC - I can roam free in the wilderness wearing sunscreen.

In ON - I need to wear an actual screen.





In BC - We're a couple.

In ON - We're a family.




Comparing my two homes, I realized something...

Without one, I would take the other for granted.

Life is good :)


“No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.” - Lin Yutang