Off we go into the wild blue yonder...

It's that time again... USAFA graduation time. I think this year there were 990 + cadets that graduated and became 2nd Lieutenants in the United State Air Force. A proud time indeed for the graduates and their families. I have only had the privilege and opportunity once to attend an Air Force Academy graduation, and it was amazing! Of course, my favorite part was the hat toss at the end and then watching the Thunderbirds fly over. Last year because of budget cuts, they cut the flyover... very disappointing. I was glad to see that this year they were back! Residing here in Colorado Springs, I always end up designing several AF cakes throughout the year for promotions and retirements, but at this time of year, I especially enjoy designing cakes for the new 2nd Lieutenants. When I originally started designing these cakes, everything was done with patterns pressed into the icing and filled with buttercream. The details became so much more precise and clean when I got my Cricut Electric cutter. But now... oh my gosh... with my new Zing electric cutter, I can cut out so much better details, especially with the lettering, than I ever have before. Thank you Klik-n-Kut for a great piece of equipment! And congratulations to all of the 2014 USAFA graduates!

One of the first AF seal cakes that I designed-all in buttercream... not bad, but not as precise and clean as this..

I use Tappits to cut out the letters outside of the seal.

Again, before cutter-nice, but not as precise as this...

One more... AF bars in buttercream...

AF bars in gumpaste with cutter

My Zing cutter makes it all possible. I LOVE my Zing!

Some of my other favorite AF cakes...

AF flag cake... one of my most popular retirement cakes

These are the planes he piloted... all edible images

USAFA Chapel for retiring chaplain

Air Force Flag cakes...labor of love

I had another order for one of my Air Force flag cakes that went out this morning. These cakes are a little more pricey for my customers...just because there is allot of work involved. It is a several days project whenever I decorate one of these cakes. First, I cut out all of the emblem pieces from gumpaste on my Cricut Cake. After they are all dry, I airbrush them, and again let the pieces dry. Once they are dry, I assemble all of the pieces together...it's kinda like a puzzle. I try to get these done a few days ahead of time. Two days before the cake needs to be ready, I mix up the Sugarveil, because the mixture has to set awhile before you can spread it out. That same day, I bake the cakes, so they can set overnight. The day I decorate, I make the fillings and icing, and then fill, ice, assemble, and decorate the cake...everything except the flag and emblems. Several hours before I'm ready to lay the flag and emblems on the cake, I spread the different colors of Sugarveil onto my silicone mats. This is the tricky part. The amount of time it takes for the Sugarveil to set depends on the weather conditions...how hot it is and mainly the humidity. So, usually it takes several hours, anywhere from 3-4 hours to overnight. You have to keep checking it because it has to be at the stage where it is set, but still pliable so you can work with it. If you let it set too long, it becomes brittle. So because I want the flag to drape nicely on the cake like a real fabric flag, I watch the Sugarveil very closely to make sure I catch it at the correct stage to cut and assemble the pieces. I recently purchased a new mini star scrapbooking punch, which is the perfect size for the stars I need. I cut out all of the pieces, and then assemble the flag. The pieces just stick to each other without adding anything special. I then position the flag on the cake, and put the emblems on top with a bit of icing. Each flag cake that I have done thus far, has something a bit different. This latest order had an oak leaf emblem that was half in gold and half silver, signifying the promotion from major to Lt. Col. So yes, the price is extra for the customer, but the the final product is a real showstopper!