Our January issue features a stunning design by award-winning artist Rachel Grady. Her perfume inspired cake was created for the Oklahoma Sugar Arts Show, held in Tulsa Oklahoma this October. We share some beautiful close-ups of Rachel’s Design, which came a close second in the Grand National Wedding Cake Competition.
“I really fell in love with this piece since it caters to my personal taste and style. The cake was inspired by an obscure vintage perfume label, but it was the first image I saw that just screamed cake to me,” notes Rachel.
Other than the pastillage vase and gum paste flowers, all of the decor on this cake was created with royal icing. Rachel used bridgeless stringwork, South African wings, lace points, pressure piping, and more on the design. Even the people are piped in royal.
Describing her passion for royal icing, Rachel said, “I first got into royal icing in 2015 when I took a class with Dawn Parrott at a Dallas cake show. I was lucky enough to have a bit of a knack for it, and I was immediately hooked! I fell in love with the intricate beauty in all of the details. I started looking at pictures of complicated royal icing pieces and thought, “I have to do this!” I have been to six competitions in the last two years, and at each one, I use my entries as an excuse to try a new royal technique.”
Rachel had the opportunity to indulge her passion for the medium of royal icing this summer when she took an extensive class with her mentor, Dawn Parrott. Discussing the experience Rachel said, “This past summer I was blessed to spend more time learning from Dawn, and many of the things she taught me were incorporated into this cake. Obviously, she has been a huge inspiration and mentor to me. I love her work, and we have very similar tastes. I told my mom awhile before OSSAS that my goal was to someday have someone think one of my cakes was Dawn’s work. And apparently, several people thought this piece was hers! I told Dawn, “I can’t top that! I quit! Early retirement!” Although we both knew I would continue to compete. I’ve only been doing cakes for 10 years and competing for 3 years. So I can’t wait to see where this journey takes me!”