Southern Flowers with Ron Ben Israel 2010

I'm just getting back from two wonderful classes at Custom Cakes in Savannah, Georgia...both taught by the fun and fabulously talented Ron Ben Israel! Working with Ron was an amazing opportunity - he truly is a creative genius - and he happily shared so many of his great ideas and techniques. Thank you so much Ron, for your time, patience and expertise!

I also had the chance to meet some lovely and very talented people from all over the country...and made a wonderful new friend who traveled all the way from London!

Minette Rushing, owner of Custom Cakes, took great care of all of us with her generosity, grace and incredible southern hospitality. Thank you so much, Minette...and thank you to your incredible staff and interns as well!

The first class covered sugarpaste Southern Flowers including gardenias, tulip magnolias, camellias, dogwood, and jasmine. We worked for three full days to construct our flowers and corresponding buds and leaves, and ended up with a box full of beautiful blossoms to take home!

Here are some photos from our class...enjoy!

My work station:



My first attempt at a camellia flower:



We had an entire baker's rack of camellias drying...everyone's flowers were gorgeous:



Beginning stage of the jasmine flowers - and a photo for inspiration:



The gardenia center:



Dogwood and gardenias drying:



My magnolia petals taped together:



Starting the coloring process:



Jasmine flowers and buds dusted:



One of my favorites from the week - the gardenia - with a touch of yellow-green at the center and pearl dust for a beautiful sheen:



My box of completed flowers:



Here are Ron's beautiful flowers...they all have his special touch - and are absolutely stunning:



And to give us an idea how the flowers would look on a cake, Ron arranged them all to create a gorgeous, over-the-top floral design:



I was so focused and busy during class that I did not take any photos of Ron while he was teaching! But I know several of my classmates took some amazing pictures throughout the week - as soon as they share them with me I will definitely add some of them here.

Please stay tuned for my post about our second class - more details and photos coming soon...

Copyright © 2010 by Jacqueline Butler of Petalsweet Cakes. Content of this blog (including text, photographs and layout) is the property of Jacqueline Butler. Please feel free to use the ideas and concepts discussed on this blog, but please do not claim any of it as your own work. Thank you!