Cakes by Lorinda.....

Di and I put so much work into each and every one of our dessert tables.  We expect nothing but the very best from ourselves and we give the very best to our clients.

Often the centerpiece to a stunning dessert table is a beautiful cake.  So when we need a beautiful cake we turn to Lorinda Seto of Cakes by Lorinda.

Lorinda has that eye for detail, that perfectionism, that creativity....... that little something that makes her so good at what she does.

Lorinda was kind enough to answer a few questions about her love of cake decorating.

I didn't enjoy doing the same thing day in day out, measuring my life in 6 minute units.  Being desk bound made me restless, and I didn't have any passion for the corporate world.  Also, as a lawyer, people come to see you when something goes wrong (or to avoid something going wrong), you don't meet people in the happiest of circumstances.  I wanted to do something more concrete, work with my hands, and create beautiful things.  As a cake decorator I now get to meet people in a spirit of celebration and share in the happiest moments of their lives and that brings me a lot of joy and satisfaction.

I have a love of eating baked goods, so I suppose I have to love baking too, although I would be ecstatic if the baking could just happen by itself.  For several years I baked bread every week, kneading a couple kilos of dough by hand.  If I ever get carpal tunnel syndrome, I know what to blame.  I enjoy tinkering with the science of baking, tweaking recipes to get different results.  Recipes are very individual things and some work for some people and not others; you have to find a lot of things out for yourself so it is an ongoing process of exploration and experimentation.  My favourite things to bake are chiffon cakes and tarts.

It would probably be the Wall-E cake. I spent a lot of time working on the minutiae and studied heaps of photos from different angles.

Points are awarded on the basis of such things as variety of techniques used and how well those techniques were executed.  Entering competitions forces me to master new techniques and to strive for a flawless finish, and you don't know what you're capable of achieving unless you are challenged in new directions.  I also wanted to show the public that cake decorating is a modern craft and has definitely moved on from the traditional granny image that it used to have.

It seems every day I jump on the computer there are more and more gorgeous cakes out there.  I love Ron Ben Israel, Alan Dunn and Greg Cleary for their stunning sugar flowers, Rouvelee Ilagan from Melbourne for her mastery of figurines, perfect finish and incredible attention to detail, as well as Faye Cahill, Mignon Daymond from Cake Face, Handi Mulyana.

Can't name just one. The Starship Enterprise. Or maybe in the shape of something iconic, like Duchamp's Fountain.  I'm fascinated by the little scale architectural models so perhaps a cake made to look like one of those.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Party invitations and stationery always provide inspiration with colour schemes and children's invitations especially have cute illustrations which make great figurines. I am also inspired by patterns and textures. Scrapbooking magazines and quilts.







Make sure you knead the fondant well before covering a cake, otherwise it will crack and tear at the top edge. In cold weather, zap it in the microwave briefly to make kneading much easier, especially if you have to tint it.  For a shortie like me, knead and roll fondant on a lower table (such as a trestle table) rather than kitchen height benchtops, as it allows you to use your body weight.  A pasta machine is invaluable and saves so much time when rolling fondant or modelling paste thinly and evenly; I use mine all the time; invest in a good quality Italian made one.  Don't overlook your local discount store - I have bought heaps of things there, such as plastic 'lace' doilies which can be used as impression mats, little screw on plastic containers for holding edible glue and colour dusts, non-slip shelf liners, turntables.





Thanks so much Lorinda for answering our questions.  Your work is simply divine.

More of Lorinda's stunning work can be seen at www.cakesbylorinda.com.au 

This is the cake that Lorinda made for Di's son's christening - it was just beautiful.  Just look at the detail on little Peter's jacket.....AMAZING!


Hope you enjoyed our little Q & A with Lorinda.



Kx