Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Purse Cake Tutorial

In September, I posted a cake carving tutorial which continues to be a very popular blog post.  So, here is another step-by-step cake carving tutorial of a very popular cake design - a Louis Vuitton Purse.

This cake was for a bridal shower and was a replica of the bride-to-be's checkerboard LV purse with a matching wallet.
Step 1:  Prepare the cake for carving:  The cake was strawberry vanilla and chocolate sour cream cake with vanilla swiss meringue buttercream.  I usually put the wrapped cake in the freezer prior to carving so that it is as solid as possible.  The cake is on a small fitted cakeboard and then on a turntable - ready for carving!
Step 2:  Carve Carefully:  I always post photos on my wall of the purse images in all different angles.  Make sure you have a sharp knife (I use a large bread knife and a smaller one for finer details) and I cover my work surface with the plastic wrap that my cakes were covered in.  Very easy clean up and you should always keep your work area and sinks as clean as possible. 
For this design, I started with the front angle of the cake, then moved to the side angle. I carved only small pieces off and then stood back regularly to look at the cake from every angle.  For this purse, I also added in some extra indentations as purses are never perfectly pouffy (is that a word?)
Step 3:  Cover the cake:  Clear away the cake shavings and clean your work surface.  I iced the cake with vanilla swiss meringue buttercream which I find the best and sturdiest for my carved (sculpted) cakes.
I added some additional white fondant to my chocolate fondant to get the proper LV brown.  
Once the fondant is fitted perfectly around the cake, I cut off the excess fondant with my scraper.  Some people use a pizza cutter, but I prefer the scraper.
Step 4:  Decorate! For this LV design, I had to find the perfect shade of gold.  I had to use a mixture of 3 lustre dusts, edible gold paint and some lemon extract.  This designed required perfect squares to be painted on the uneven surface.  I found some make-up sponges that I cut into a square and then I used it as a stamp.  Note: For the LV Logo purses, you have to freehand paint every logo.  I don't know of a stencil or any easier way to do it.
Once it was painted, then I moved the cake to the sturdy cakeboard.  It was covered in a pastel pink which I think makes the brown stand out more.  Then I added the rest of the decorations and it all came together. 

36 comments:

Loren @ The Baking Sheet said...

Truly amazing! I am in awe. Thanks for sharing!

Mar Varela said...

Thanks you! great tutorial...
A kiss from Spain

Destini said...

Let me just say you are my new hero!! I have to make one of these in a few weeks and I honestly didn't know where to really begin. Thank you for posting!!

em_102 said...

Great tutorial! Love the cake too!

Tanya said...

Thanks for posting! The cake looks fabulous!

Brandy L said...

WOW! You are a true inspiration to cake decorating. Amazing job! Thanks for the tutorial :D

Jennywenny said...

So beautiful! You've inspired me, maybe I should try some more 3D cakes!

Amy O'Kane said...

seriously amazing!

Cathie said...

wow, thanks for showing us this great pics!

Dorothy Rimson said...

Perfectly written article..

Libbie said...

I seriously think you are AMAZING!!! How cute! I bet the guests even took pictures of it! No one will EVER forget it! So cute!!!!

SweetThingsTO said...

Thanks so much for stopping by ladies!

Destini - Can't wait to see your purse cake - I bet it will be great!

Yum Yucky said...

LOL at me! I zoned in on the cake before reading title. You totallly had me fooled. It really IS a purse cake!

Anonymous said...

That is really impressive work. My sister in law does these for her friends. It must taste amazing. Keep up the great work with your baking tips and please stop by my health blog sometime. The web address is http://healthy-nutrition-facts.blogspot.com/.

faithy said...

such awesome tutorial! thanks for sharing! its' a beautiful LV bag!

Maria_the_Oiler said...

Nice Tutorial! Purse cakes are still very popular these days, and making those darn logo one by one if a pain in the buttucks! It takes a very patient person, and I am not one to harvest this trait all of the time, LOL!

Jilliann said...

I love your work!

Coffee Machine said...

Totally adore your work! You have gifted hands... Do you have your own bake shop or store?

SweetThingsTO said...

The Cakerator - You are right, it takes a very patient person and a very steady hand. Hard to paint when you can't rest your hand on anything. Or if you do - you are indenting the cake or cakeboard by accident.

Coffee Machine - Thank you for visiting. I have a small cake studio, but it is not a retail outlet.

Anonymous said...

AMAZING!!!

Beth said...

gorgeous cake... it really does look like a purse!

A said...

thanks you for the tutorial!! wonderful!

S said...

you are an utter genius- an artist. love your work- in awe of you.x shayma

Unknown said...

thanks.. thats awesome, thankyou so much for the tutorial.

nina said...

thanks for the tutorial! planning to make this cake this weekend. by the way what pan size did you use? it looks like the size of the real one!

SweetThingsTO said...

@nina Sorry, I don't remember what the cake pan size was. Usually I just go to the LV website as they give out the exact purse dimensions. Then I can figure out how big of a pan I need which then tells me how many approx. servings.

Anonymous said...

Truly it's lovly, thank u .hope to bake one this weekend.blessing

Vishal-Coffee Machine said...

You are really genius..Awesome and so perfect looking cake:) Wish to taste it:)You should continue your this skill and update more post.

Nothing said...

Wow...this looks so amazing. I am definitely going to try it

Freetime said...

amazing!!! wow! thank you for the tutorial, love it!!! :)))

Nilde lima said...

Biautiful!!!

wilma said...

you bake two cakes in what pan sizes?

SweetThingsTO said...

@wilma I'm not sure. It looks like 10" cakes. For high end purses, their dimensions are usually posted on the designer's website, so I try to make it the same size.

Madlyn A said...

Thanks for sharing, You are just too good and have inspired me.

Unknown said...

Please how did you move it to the board, with what?

SweetThingsTO said...

@Evelyn Michael I just used a bigger off set spatula, scooped it under the cake (also supporting it with my other hand) and plopping it on the cake board. I actually trace the outline of the purse cake on the board and cut out the fondant. Then the purse stays in there more sturdy. Hope that helps!