Oh my goodness! What can I tell you about MY Kaite BUG?!?!? She is the sweetest, most precious young lady! MY first GRANDdaughter!!! A kinder soul you will never meet! So very BEAUTIFUL inside and out! …So much like her Momma, Jaime, my firstborn daughter! I would do absolutely anything for her! If life hands her lemons, she will hand it back a tall, frosty glass of the most refreshing lemonade you can imagine!
Kaite knew EXACTLY what she wanted!! …which is always helpful to me. She and Jaime drew out the groom’s cake and Jaime made templets for me. Kaite gave me a list of flowers for the bouquets she wanted on her wedding cake. ALL I had to do was, DO IT!
Day 1: The very first thing was to make ALL the beads, the initials, stars, heart, and the Fleur de Lis. These were all made out of fondant: white, purple, green, and yellow. I rolled out one color of the fondant at a time to about a quarter inch thick and cut it with a large round piping tip to make each bead. I needed “100” of each color, so I made fifteen extra of each. Keeping the fondant covered where I was not working, I would cut about twenty at a time, roll each one in a little ball (bead), and string it on a thin wire. FINALLY, 400 beads were made, strung, and laid out to dry. Using the templates, Jaime made for me, I cut out the initials, stars, heart, and Fleur de Lis. The initials were out of white fondant, the stars were yellow fondant, the heart was red fondant, and the fleur de Lis was purple/green/yellow fondant. All of these were laid out with the beads to dry.
Day 2: My precious husband, Steve, and I were going for four days to an Art Show that was being held in a hotel on Galveston Island. This hotel was about four and a half to five hours away from home. I knew I would have a good eight to ten hours combined for the trips to just sit. (Steve would rather me NOT watch the road anyway…I am a really bad “side seat” driver!) I took my white Gum Paste, wire, wire cutters, tiny pliers, scissors, and florist tape in an airtight bag along with a small box to put the finished flowers in. So, on the way down there, I made Baby’s Breath (Gypsophila) one little Breath at a time, placing it immediately on a tiny wire and into their box to dry. Intermittently during our stay, I worked on Baby’s Breath. On the return trip home, (yep, you guessed it) I made more Baby’s Breath! By the time we got home, I had all the Baby’s Breath finished, with each little one on their own wire covered with florist tape and wired together in little picks of Baby’s Breath, which was also covered in florist tape.
Day 3: I colored Gum Paste light blue for the Hydrangeas, light pink for the Carnations, medium pink for the Tulips, and light green for the Lamb’s Ear (leaves). Kaite brought me one of her bouquets so I could match the colors. I had special cutters for these flowers. I made the tulips first, as they would take the longest to dry. They were made one petal at the time, and I used a veiner to get the natural lines on the petals. Each finished bloom was put on its own wire and stood in a Styrofoam block to dry. Next, I made the Lamb’s Ear for greenery. I cut them with a smooth leaf cutter, textured them with a press, and put each one on a wire as soon as it came out of the press. I then laid them in an apple separator to form the shape and let them dry. Next, I made some Lady Bugs out of red fondant!
Day 4: Today, I made the Hydrangea blooms with the blue Gum Paste. The cutter for these cut the entire bloom and I used a press to get the majority of the lines but finished them with the veining tool to get a more realistic flow to the petals. They were immediately put on wires and hung to dry. Next to be made was the Carnations. They were made with a special cutter in three sizes that cut a row of petals at the time. I used a balling tool to thin out the petals and then the veiner to make them ruffled. They had to immediately be placed under plastic to keep them from drying out. I formed each bloom with five to eight rows of petals, starting with the smallest and working my way out. I placed them on a wire, after which I added a green Gum Paste Calyx. Each one was immediately hung to dry.
Day 5: Today, I put the finishing touches on the decorations. First, I painted the beads, Fleur de Lis, and stars with gold, green, and purple Sparkle Dust mixed with vodka. I painted the heart and Lady Bugs with red gel coloring. The initials, white Pearls (beads), and white Pearl picks I brushed with Pearl Luster Dust. After that, I wired the Lamb’s Ear together to make picks and covered the wire with florist tape. Then I started dusting all the flowers. I used some Fuchsia and Blush Pearl Dust on the Tulips, Navy Blue Pearl Dust on the Hydrangeas, Rose Leaf Pearl Dust on the Lamb’s Ear, and Blush and Powder Pink Pearl Dust on the Carnations.
Day 6: Making Bouquets!! Today, I grouped the flowers together to make bouquets, wired them together and covered the wire with florist tape. Jaime brought a clothes steamer to my house for me to use on the bouquets. When the bouquets were all done, I ran them back and forth in front of a steamer for a few seconds and it was amazing to see how they came to LIFE!
Day 7: Baking Day! Today, I baked two 6-inch, two 8-inch, and two 12-inch vanilla round cakes, and two 15-inch chocolate square cakes. While they were baking I made both, vanilla and chocolate Buttercream. After they cooled I crumb-coated them all with white Buttercream and put them in the fridge to chill a little. I then carved the two 15-inch chocolate cakes into Texas and Louisiana and gave them a good crumb-coat with the chocolate Buttercream, after which, I put them in the fridge to chill.
Day 8: Today, I put TX/LA on a gold foil, rectangle cake base. Then, I covered them with two coats of chocolate Buttercream using a palette knife to make texture. Texas was in a dark chocolate, and Louisiana was in a little lighter chocolate. I then turned my attention to the Bride’s Cake! It was suppose to be a naked cake so I put a coat of the vanilla Buttercream on and started smoothing it until I got a naked effect with the cake peaking through. I left a ragged top edge for a more rustic look to better go with the event. Last thing for today: I painted the black parts on the Lady Bugs, and I made a light brown Lasso out of fondant.
Day 9: This is WEDDING DAY! First, I glued the Lady Bugs on the bouquets with edible glue. Then, I turned to the Groom’s cake. The Madi Gras decorations were, of course, for Louisiana. The Fleur de Lis went in the center with the beads draped across the boot of Louisiana, and the star was to mark where the groom was from. For the Texas side, the star went where the bride was from, the heart was where they met, the Lasso went around the heart (because HE Lassoed HER Heart), and it draped across the cake, and then on top of that was the initials. I glued them all in place with a dot of chocolate Buttercream. For the Bride’s Cake, I put the cake on the beautiful wooden cake plate that Jaime had gotten. Also, put white pearl lace around the cake base and put that bottom tier on the wooden plate. I put wooden dowels in the bottom two tiers for support and started stacking. I put a large, long dowel through the entire cake for stability. Last, before leaving for the event, was doing a little touchup at the bottom of the top two tiers where they joined the tier below. I packed the bouquets and pearls in a box to carry separately and put on at the event.
At the event, Jaime’s best friend, Karla, came out to the car to help us carry things in. When we got everything inside, I took a second to breathe before placing the topper, bouquets, and pearls on the cake. I put the couple (topper) on the cake and went to get the bouquets, but I couldn't find them anywhere. I was frantically searching for them. I KNEW I put them in the car!! Karla saw me in a panic and came over to see if she could do something. I said, “I can’t find the bouquets for the cake. I know they were packed in the car. They were in a little box. Have you seen them?” Karla ran over to another table and came back with my box of bouquets. She said, “I thought they were the corsages for the wedding! Those words were the greatest compliment I had ever received!!
After the ceremony, while everyone was getting ready for the reception, I took Kaite to the cake table for a look. When I saw her face light up, I knew she loved what I created from her pictures and words. Then I showed her the little Lady Bugs! This was a special surprise for her from HER Granny! (ME) When Kaite was born her father was stationed in England so that’s where she was born. I didn’t get to hold her for quite some time! Jaime and I talked on the phone as often as possible. During one of our conversations soon after Kaite was born Jaime was describing her to me. (We didn’t have video calling or Zoom!) Jaime said, “Momma, she’s so perfect! I have her dressed in a little red outfit with black on it and she looks like a Little Ladybug. She’s gonna be our “Little Kaite Bug!”” I said, “Oh, Jaime, I love it!” So, from that moment forward, Kaitlyn Dian has been OUR Little Kaite Bug!!
I absolutely do not have the words to convey how much I love Kaite! She is so precious to me and I am so VERY proud to be her Granny!
