By CC (aka Cake Central) member sugarchiconeI don't feature sheet cakes too often here on Sunday Sweets, but this one is postcard-perfect; and all buttercream! Those are some sweet piping skills.
Another that looks almost too perfect to be real:
By Spring Lake CakeLove the bow.
Folks who share a birthday with the U.S. sure get some excellent cake designs:
See the little firecrackers on top? So. Fun.
Plus, this cake was beautiful *inside* as well as out:
Plus, this cake was beautiful *inside* as well as out:
Surprise!And then CC member themaytrix took the hidden flag idea to the next level:
Sweeeet.If you read the Reader's Digest, you may remember this couple:
This is Ralph Archbold & Linda Wilde, who play Ben Franklin and Betsy Ross in Old City Philadelphia. When they got married (on July 3rd, no less!) this was their wedding cake:
So pretty! The intricate star designs are fantastic.
And here's the gazebo the band would play in:
That's made of gumpaste and royal icing. Awesome.
Proving that simple can also be stunning:
Believe it or not, those daisies are also gumpaste. Gorgeous!
Here's a cool idea, and executed flawlessly:
CC member mimiguk wrote the words to the national anthem as the stripes in the flag. Painstaking, I'm sure, but oh-so-perfect! (Just looking at all that script makes my hand cramp. Yow.)And speaking of our national anthem, here's a cake celebrating its writing:
By MixinVixenThe top is Fort McHenry, which was where Francis Scott Key was inspired to write The Star-Spangled Banner during an attack by the British navy during the War of 1812. Just look at the little rockets on wires! So, so cool.
And finally, for our Canadian friends:
By KupKake TreeHappy Belated Canada Day! Sorry again for almost forgetting it on Thursday.
Oh, and btw: I'd like to say again that our Canada post on Thursday was NOT making fun of the Canadian national anthem. As I said in the post, it was making fun of the Epcot song about Canada - and even then, with affection. (I happen to love that song. I just don't know the words.)
Fortunately, most of you Canadians both know what your national anthem is AND have a sense of humor, but a select few who don't on both counts were "patriotic" enough to write angry e-mails and leave goofy cake blogs over an imagined maligning of said anthem. [sigh]
So, for those still here who were offended: wrong song, and we certainly meant no offense. We love Canada. We love Canadians. Your bacon is awesome, William Shatner is da man, and we like that Celine Dion song...um...well, her music is Ok. So, yeah. Hope the beaver cake makes up for everything. Wreck on, eh?
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124 comments | Post a Comment
lovely!! happy fourth to all, and yes, we love canadians too...
happy rebellion day, awkward colonials!
Happy 4th of July! The cakes are wonderful! And yes, I started humming Stars and Stripes Forever even before I read your comment about that one cake. I'd love to have any one of them at a party. As for the Canada cake --- that's just plain adorable.
Angry emails over a joke? Eternal birthday CCCs to those poo heads who wrote you angry emails.
Beautiful! Happy 4th of July!!!
OMG the flag in a cake cake is perfect, an the rest of them were beautiful-loved the anthem cake
Are those intricate star designs on the wedding cake edible? Just wondering. They're pretty awesome, definitely a lot of work to get the flag INSIDE the cake. I could never do it, neither could my local bakery.
As a Canadian, I am embarrassed to know there are people who misunderstood that post and I apologize on behalf of those who actually have a sense of humor and realized the true intent of what you were getting at. There's one in every crowd, I guess. You still rock Jen and the American flag design makes spectacular cakes; those are some stunning works of art!
I'm Canadian, I don't know what Epcot song you're talking about, but I found your version of the National Anthem hilarious. It is actually very similar to my version of your National Anthem: "Oh say can you seeeeee... by the dawn's early light... something duuuunnnn dun dun dun, dun dun dun...." - well, you can use your imagination for the rest.
Some people just have no sense of humor. And your blog is a funny blog. So why are they watching your blog if they have no sense of humor? That is the question.
Most of the time I like your Sunday Sweets. They're cute. They're amazing. But it's rare that they actually take my breath away. Most of today's did. (I wonder if it's because it was such a patriotic post - even though we are neighbors, I feel as though we are so closely intertwined that we are the same.)
And in conclusion: (well, I was going to write the ending of your National Anthem here, but I don't even know the tune at the end. My apologizes.)
Pretty cakes!
silly question, maybe, what is a CC member?
Thanks,
M
Happy 4th to everyone of you Yanks, and anyone who took offense to your mangling of the Epcot anthem should get over themselves..
In a recent survey on Canadian's choice of a national dish, "beaver" was mentioned...um, more than once..
We do have a sense of humour..can you say Jim Carey or Russell Peters?
Love this blog..except I have a 'Constant Craving' for cake after i look at it...(for the uninitiated, that's a kd lang song..our really impressive chanteuse...)
Heh. We weren't offended. Honestly.
And if we had been, that beaver would have been fantastic enough to make up for it!
Beautiful cakes! Loved the one with the daisies and the draped flag!
I so love this blog. I feel like something is missing if I can't check it every day. :) Keep up the fantastic work!
I've always hated patriotic cakes because I've never seen one that was well-done... until now. Thanks for proving that there can be beautiful patriotic cakes!
I LOVE these.
I don't comment much, but first: gorgeous, gorgeous cakes!
More importantly: as a Canadian I wasn't not the least bit offended, and thought it was hilarious! So boo to those who thought it was offensive!
Happy 4th of July! I really love the one with the lyrics! I can't imagine how painstaking the work must have been.
As for the Canadians... I'm surprised. They're usually the first ones to poke fun at themselves. How about the closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympics with Michael Buble and the dancing mounties and the giant inflatable beaver that looked a whole lot like today's cake?
Okay, that's funny as heck! Love the US cakes ... LOVE the Beaver the most ... since I'm one of those Canadians who actually had a great laugh over your "forgotten" Canada Day post ... too cute!!
Wow-- I am so impressed, and that goes double for the one with the Star-Spangled Banner lyrics written out. I'd say I wondered why I've never seen that done before, but then again... :P
Ben and Betsy's wedding cake is beautiful, but I believe those are plastic "flowers" attached with straight pins decorating it. If you left-click for a larger view, you can see the pins. That's okay as long as the baker is the one serving the cake and retrieves the "roughage".
These cakes were all outstanding. The flag done in script makes me wonder how you "white out" piping in case of an error. Though your Monday-Friday posts show most wreckerators don't bother. That cake required great skill and talent. Well done!
Absolutely AWESOME patriotic cakes!!!! I wish I wasn't so OCD, though! I counted 15 stripes on the second flag within a cake!!!
I'm Canadian and I absolutely love the beaver!! And I wasn't offended by thursday's post. i thought it was pretty funny.
Happy 4th, guys!
As a Canadian, I was not offended by your Epcot song. What I do find horribly offensive, though, is your reminder that Celine Dion is Canadian. We're pretty sure that she's been in the US long enough now that she counts as yours.
I love that beaver cake! of course like all other Canadians on this blog, I am sorry some of our fellow citizens have no sense of humour. As for Celine Dion, um you guys can keep her *flees*
Another reason to love Canada? Nathan Fillion. *sigh*
OK you're forgiven LOL.
However I still must take offense to that Canada cake: it doesn't look much like Celine Dion..... altho the poo color looked good!
BTW for all of you, Americans & Candians alike, astounded about us Canadians getting upset over the facetious Canada Day post....maybe it's because there are still too many people worldwide! who know nothing about Canada other than we are a land of ice & snow or who think we're an extension of the US of A.
so lighten up & don't apologize for the rest of us!
I'm gobsmacked. That flag in the sliced cake amazed me. How cool is that? The anthem cake was awesome, too. Well done by everyone.
I love the detail in these cakes - well, maybe not the FIFTEEN stripes representing the original colonies, but artistic license prevails. Norine
The second cake from the top... now THAT is how you combine "cake" and "cupcake!" If people were to follow this example, the scourge of the CCC would be no more!
The cakes are lovely, but I have to admit, two little things bother me. The first cake's swags are upside down; flag code dictates that blue should be on top, followed by white and red. And the cake you said was simple and stunning? They started the flag with a white stripe; really?!
I know it's nitpicky, but when my father is fighting so hard to defend our flag, I'd prefer it to be right.
Adorable beaver, though. :)
Loved these cakes. Not only flawless but you can practically see the hours of extra effort that make these cakes stand out.
(If it's any consolation, people who are easily offended by cake blogs eventually wonder why no one tells them jokes anymore, and why their lives are so bland and boring.)
-Teabunny
wv pressent - double ss means I get 2 gifts?
Holy Yankee Doodle macaroni! Some of these cakes are just jaw-dropping! The one by Nunuck is like.. fireworks personified as a cake. Cakesonified! So much fun, and I love the braided rope borders.
Also dyyyying over the little firecrackers on top of the Kyle cake!
Happy 4th to all the Statesies, and a belated Happy Canada Day to our lovable neighbors up north!
TysMomma & GotAppies - I noticed the same thing on both cakes you mentioned. If you're going to take the time to do something that well, take a second to make sure it's accurate.
The cake with the writing on is amazing. To be able to write that small and perfect with a pastry bag is an incredible talent.
Those cakes are absolutely breathtaking. Happy Fourth of July!
Those cakes with the flag hidden on the inside look amazing! But the second one looks like it has a TON of frosting - not sure how much I'd be able to handle!
p.s. My hubby thinks the written-out anthem was done by machine. Is he just bursting my bubble? Even if it was, it's an awesome cake and a masterpiece of creativity.
Wow....to think that people,e went all gah gah over whenI put red and blue food color in the cakes inside a flag cake that I made. I think the biggest part i likes about that is the dedication that went into making the layers that ended up being the flag. As an avid cake scuplter they might have put the cake in the Freezer before slicing it into layers to build the flag with. It's a common trick and one I use alot after either sculpting a cake to shape or just before I sculpt it.
You really should have a Sweets day devoted to gifted hobbiest like myself.
As a Canadian, I'm not offended in the slightest. Those who took offense probably dislike most things in their lives and are generally unhappy. The rest of us up here are laughing with you...as you laugh with us, right?
so you love all those things about Canada-the question is, do you love Justin Bieber, that well-known pre-pubescent 15 year old?
*my mistake, apparently he is going through puberty now.
To Jennifer at 10:53 AM--don't feel bad about not knowing the U.S. National Anthem. I didn't know Canada's, other than, "O Canada" until the Vancouver Olympics. By the end, I knew the whole first stanza because we'd heard it so often. Unfortunately, most of it is gone now except the first two and last two lines (of course, the last two are identical so I guess I technically only know three.)
To Jen, blog owner (and John, too)--I'm sorry that you were subjected to angry emails over a joke about a song that you plainly stated was from EPCOT. Even if it HAD been about the National Anthem, it is, IMO, silly to get angry about it unless one is the composer of said anthem. It's not a crime to forget the words of a song and make up silly replacement lyrics. Lighten up, easily offended Canadians! (By which I mean those Canadians who are easily offended, and not that every Canadian is.)
I'm a July 4th baby - and I've never had a cake quite so awesome as these! Loooooove them!
How about some Union Jack cakes for the Brits out here? I mean, we can't help it that certain Yanks in the 1700s didn't want to pay taxes. Now look, you can't spell properly (you all spell "colour" wrong), you can't make a proper cup of tea or a scone, your fish and chips are dismal, your beer is worse, you stole Hugh Laurie, and you inflicted something called an "English Muffin" on the world we want no part of. Let's not talk about your health care bollocks-up.
Now, taxes support schools, social programmes, police and fire, why on EARTH do you think its bad to pay them?
They are beautiful...
but...
there are 15 stripes on the inside of the cake and on the draped cake...
and...
the draped cake starts with white, instead of red....
otherwise, BEAUTIFUL!
Gorgeous cakes! Though I have to say, even as a Canadian married to an American-Canadian (or the other way around?), who served as a Marine but lives up here now, that the flag draped on the cake is a total NO-NO! A flag never drapes on anything and I realize it is a cake and just icing BUT the message is wrong.
Semper Fi!
And the angry emails? Understandable. We're sick and tired of being made fun of, especially when the States are hyper patriotic and seemingly would never do it to their own.
I however, will keep reading this blog :)
Captain Momma
Not to be nitpicky in an unfriendly way (well, nitpicky, yes; unfriendly, I hope not!), but there was indeed a 15-striped flag. In fact, the flag flying over Ft. McHenry, about which Mr. Key wrote what became the national anthem, was a 15-striper!
At the time, the idea was to add a star and stripe with each new state added to the Union, but it pretty quickly became obvious that wasn't going to work. So the flag was returned to the original 13 stripes and only the star field was modified as more states were added.
So one could depict a flag with 48 stars and not be incorrect at all, in other words. It would simply be the flag that was in use between 1912, the addition of (47)New Mexico and (48)Arizona, and 1959, the addition of (49)Alaska and (50)Hawaii.
I'm a Yankee who spent a couple of years in Canada, and I have to say, in my experience, the only thing Canadians like better than making fun of Canada is making fun of America, and boo to all Canadians (and everyone else out there) who doesn't have a sense of humor.
And, er, Jen? You may just want to cut out the Epcot references from now on. They seem to just cause trouble. At least among those who are easily offended and don't read the comments others have posted before posting themselves. Just a suggestion, I thought both the Canada song and the Spaceship Earth thing were hilarious.
Yeah. I love these cakes, especially the sheet cake--I didn't know it was possible for a piped cake to avoid being a wreck. and the hidden flags--WOW! I can see how it'd be done, but so much work!
*is reeling from the sheer awesomeness of these cakes*
Love the "hidden flag" cakes - those have got to be tricky to make! Major kudos to the bakers! :)
Also, the Canada cake is way too cute. :)
Diana- what the.. what? It was about taxation without representation in parliament (among other things of course.)
Perhaps you'll see some Union Jacks around Guy Fawkes day. or something. I could whip up an England flag cake no problem. ;)
-expat American living in the UK
Those are beautiful. Absolutely stunning - thank you for sharing! But count me among the group that is a bit bothered by the fact that they did such a fabulous job, but don't know how many stripes are on the flag, or which color comes first. (Bunting color order, too...but I can excuse that. And somehow it's one thing to "abbreviate" a flag with fewer stripes. But 15 of them?)
That said, if they do these cakes this beautifully, I'm sure they do other work beautifully as well. I would love to see more from them!
thank you for featuring our own ben and betsy in today's pix. ralph and linda archbold are wonderful city representatives and together they bring old city philadelphia history alive for our visitors.
now go shoot off some fireworks!
Amazing cakes! I love the national anthem-themes one!
Now...not to be nit-picky, but how is it that so many of the flags on the cakes have the wrong amount of stripes?
AWESOME!!!
I had never heard of that Epcot song before. Hmm. Live and learn.
This isn't our national anthem either, but is excellent. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWQf13B8epw&feature=related
Apologies for my fellow countrymen (country people?) with no sense of humour. They must be from Ontario.
*ducks*
I've been following this blog forever, but this is the first time I've felt compelled to comment (I'm usually laughing too hard to type!)
First off, let me just say that today's Sweets are gorgeous!
Now, as for my fellow Canadians, please don't let the anal-retentiveness of a few discolour your opinions of us ALL. We are a fun country, really!
I agree with Cdn, y'all can keep Celine, and Pamela Anderson and Shania Twain right along with her, but James Gosling, Russell Peters, Wilfred Bigelow, Todd McFarlane, John Callaghan, Jim Carrey, Robert Naismith, Keanu Reeves and Shannon Tweed are OURS! :)
Happy Independence Day, USA!
I'm sorry about the angry emails, but I did giggle a bit. You stated it was an Epcot song - does anyone else see the delicious irony of people misunderstanding the reference? Is that Epcot squared or something?
I love Canada too - one of my bestest friends is Canadian and he's got a brilliant sense of humour. Plus Wolverine comes from Canada :D
my comment to myself upon seeing the first cake was "i LOVE the bunting!" and then the cakes just got better and better and better! thanks for a fabulous 4th of July post. Happy Independence Day, Jen and John! and Happy Birthday America!
w.v. reken: I reken that there are the coolest patriotic cakes out there!
We love you here in Canada, and please don't mind those who are humourless. If they can't see that it was meant to be sarcastic (duh- a VERY Canadian trait, eh?) then I say 'good riddance and don't let the door hit you on the way out'.
It seemed kind of awesome that one could think the US would have a "let's talk about how awesome Canada is" day. :)
Happy Fourth of July!
I am in absolute awe of those layer cakes... I was just reading an article advocating the banning of food dyes, but I will happily imbibe, despite the threat of hyperactivity.
It's a well known secret that most Canadians actually despise Celine Dion.
-Stephanie
:D Awesome cakes! I'm especially impressed with the one that are flags on the inside.
<3 Happy 4th of July
and <3 Happy Canada day!
These cakes are so gorgeous (not to mention labor intensive)! Also, I'm from Baltimore (home of Ft. McHenry, Francis Scott Key, etc., etc.) and I have to say, I love "O Canada." It's a way better anthem than "The Star-Spangled Banner"; easier to sing and more melodic. When the O's play Toronto, I like to sing both of 'em!
I like the Canada cake best! And my husband, who was raised in Montreal, assures me that most Canadians share our disdain for Celine Dion. :)
Today is my birthday and I have been looking forward to Sunday Sweets 4th of July edition for a long time! These are great!
Mel
Another Canadian who was not offended. Its your sense of humor that makes your blog just the best for me. I wonder what those people who complained thought of South Park's Blame Canada song. Happy 4th.
Ok, so I missed Thursdays post (Damn life!!), so when I heard you say so many people were offended, I had to look! Really? I thought you were (as usual) hilarious and spot on. As a proud Canuck, I say keep 'em coming! Wreckerators know no boundries!
Loved all the cakes - and I'm Canadian and not the least bit offended by anything you post.
I'm glad you love Canadians. We love you... and we cringe when we go to Epcot and see the representation of Canada... log house, mine and lumberjacks (and Chateau Frontenac)? Really? How can we blame the rest of the world for thinking that's all we are when that's all we show them? The EPCOT song is corny, but hey, the movie is great. Who doesn't love Martin Short?
All I want to know is: when are you coming to Toronto on a Cake Wrecks tour? Huh? HUH?
PS Most Canadians are awfully glad that Celine Dion has left the country. You can keep her... we'll pay you..please?
Thanks for the Beaver and Happy 4th of July to you guys, eh!!
WOW!!! Those cakes are amazing. I'm insired to try the hidden flag style. I feel all patriotic inside! Great pics!
Ok, nitpickers who are upset about the number of stripes on the cake with the words of the national anthem, YOU write it out and fit it perfectly on only 7 lines (since there are 7 red stripes and 6 white stripes). I'm completely impressed at the skill of the decorator to write it so beautifully.
I'm another Canadian who wasn't offended and who thinks it's lame in the extreme that anyone was. We're not all like that. Really, we're not!
I get a kick out of Americans making fun of Canada because they generally use the most obvious stereotypes from which to draw humour... beavers, moose, our politeness, the cleanliness of our cities, "Eh?," hockey, curling, etc. Even the Simpsons fell back onto the stereotypes when they did that episode where they went to Toronto. It amuses me. Canadians know that we offer a lot more than that and we shouldn't feel threatened by playful jabs no matter where they come from. People need to lighten up.
These cakes are pretty awesome. Especially the one with the Star Spangled Banner written out. What a creative idea!
too bad there weren't more canada day cake wrecks for you to put up. as a canadian i feel profoundly ashamed that i let my country down in such a way. from now on i shall visit grocery store bakeries before canada day to be sure to get a few wreck pics (or sweet hits) if i can.
as to the song from epcot, did you know that since the lyrics changed some years ago, most canadians *don't* know the words to the national anthem? it's true. a lot of them pretend and lip sync at events where they are supposed to sing it. so don't let the nay sayers and grumps get to you.
happy 4th.
Long time lurker, but I just had to comment on my love for the Fort McHenry cake! My father was the chief ranger there in the late 80's, and I remember playing in the "dungeons" as a kid. The cake version is
SO COOL! Thanks for posting!
Happy b-day to our southern neighbors....
Thanks to all the Canadians for reassuring you that we found it funny... and thanks for keeping Celine and Shania (or whoever has her right now) ... We like knowing that people know us well enough to poke fun at us... we sure enjoy laughing at ourselves :-)
Wow some of these were really innovative and amazing... Happy 4th everyone!
check out my blog: nikkiscakery.blogspot.com
Aw, cute little beaver cake!
As a canadian, I wasn't the least bit offended by the canada cake wrecks, and I am rather embarrassed by the wet socks who are so devoid of their sense of haha, well, they shall not have ANY cake.
I have lots of US friends who didn't know what canada day was, and were delighted to learn.
So it's all good, and it's all cake and happy respective national days, US and Canada.
Happy 4th!!
I have family on both sides of the border (though I am a Canuck by birth). I can't believe some were offended by your fantastic July 1st blog!
I'll take the adorable beaver cake (& the Shat), but you all have to keep Dion. ;P
Oh wow these are stunning cakes! I love the flag with the words to the Star Spangled Banner on it.. all of these cakes are just gorgeous and a wonderful way to celebrate the 4th!
It's the 5th now, so...
Happy Easily Offended People Day!! Clearly the celebrations have been building over the past few days, and those thin-skinned folk that have the most trouble with reading comprehension and controlling impulse blasting have really gotten into fine form to kick off the festivities! I'd like to see some Easily Offended People Day cake wrecks now, please.
I apologize for the Canadians without a sense of humour. What they were doing reading your blog, I have no idea, but hopefully they are gone now. Out of 34 million people, there's got to be a few twits. Unfortunately.
And the beaver was cute :) I don't think I've ever actually seen a real one, but... I've seen bald eagles!
On to more important things: STUNNING cakes! Kyle's firecrackers, the flags inside the cakes, the stars-and-stripes-forever cake, the gazebo, the anthem flag... There's hope yet for designers with imagination, style, creativity, sense of fun, and well-placed patriotism! Hope everyone had a fun and meaningful 4th!
Anonymous, I have read all the comments and not one single person complained about the number of lines on the hand-written cake. The 15 stripes complaints were for the 5th cake which had one extra red and one extra white and could easily have been made with the correct number without compromising the cake. The other 15 striper was the one with the flowers & the flag draped down the front. That flag, although done beautifully, had an extra white stripe at the top and bottom. Nobody left any negative comments about the expertly piped anthem cake.
They are all nice, but it seems that noone knows how many stripes are actually on the American flag. There are 13, so while these are pretty, some of them are also wrecks.
I really like the cake with the writting but,I didn't know the Star Spangled Banner was a question....
Fellow Canadians, you're adorable for buying into one of our most-loved stereotypes by apologizing for everyone who got offended.
People will whine about anything (number of stripes on the flags?! SERIOUSLY guys!) so just a little note- Canadians CAN take a joke (mostly) but maybe not about our country on the day we celebrate it.
WrathOfDawn- yeah, you better duck.
I think maybe the problem is that a lot of Canadians had no idea what this "Epcot song" is.
I'm Canadian and although I wasn't offended by that other post, I had no clue what you were talking about. Isn't Epcot some kind of Disneyland thing? That's not exactly in our backyards, so a lot of us have never seen it/heard the song/have any inkling what it actually is.
It's either that, or maybe some people thought it was just another example of (many) Americans' complete and utter ignorance about anything Canadian (other than hockey and beer.)
I am glad to see that the beaver is less pooey than it could well have been.
Still, I think Canadians have let the side down by not providing more Canada Day wrecks (and more Sweets!).
And to all those idiots who sent irate emails.... As a Canadian, I can state hat they don't represent all Canadians.
Here is a traditional welcome to Canada http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sekLEG8xsOs
Okay, so I'm OCD about the lyrics to the anthem and I really feel bad about pointing this out, but there is one textual problem with the anthem cake: it's "through the perilous fight" not "through the perilous flight".
Renee--
You didn't know the Star Spangled Banner was a question? Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but it starts out "Oh say can you see" and the last line of the first verse starts "Oh say does that Star Spangled Banner yet wave...." Those are both questions, right? Or are you asking something more profound, and I'm just not getting it?
I believe the striped cake is the first doberge you've shown.
In New Orleans, they're everywhere, but only in New Orleans...
@Renee...The star spangled banner cake doesn't have ALL the lyrics on it. And where it does leave off, there is indeed a question mark.
The lyric is a question: "Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"
In other words, "does it still wave?"
Hi Jen and John,
Just another Canadian so NOT offended, but thanks for posting such a cute little RCMP beaver as a gesture of goodwill! Love it, love your blog.
Nice Beaver...
If they do start playing Stars and Stripes forever, just make sure you aren't standing in a circus tent at the time. If you are, please leave in an orderly fashion. Stampeding just makes the impending doom worse.
CC member mimiguk wrote the words to the national anthem as the stripes in the flag. Painstaking, I'm sure, but oh-so-perfect! (Just looking at all that script makes my hand cramp. Yow.)
What blows me away is the fact that she justified all the text! O_O Wow.
Angie
Wait a second. I'm looking at the cake for "Betsy Ross" and "Benjamin Franklin." Is it just me, or did htey stick PINS in the cake? OMG, that a wreck of a different kind waiting to happen!
I'm trying to decide if the 39 five-pointed stars on the script cake are sprinkles or hand-piped. Either way, that's another reason to have a hand cramp.
Wow, the written-out SSB cake is AWESOME. The rest are gorgeous (the first one looks like something out of a Wilton yearbook, and the flag-within-a-cake entries just boggle the mind) but that one wins for sheer technical merit and decorating chutzpah.
And yes, rock on Canada, home of "You Can't Do That On Television" and "Kids in the Hall." =D
Ok I love these pics, but I don't really like the first one. I often hear, Happy Birthday America!, but technically it's not America's birthday. Just had to throw my two cents in. Should this be a wreck or a sweet?
Brian
Anyone who thinks Canada is a land of ice and snow should come visit Montreal in the summer!
Please keep Celine Dion in America, Europe doesn't want her either.
I love these cakes! I must say though that I was surprised that no one said anything about the fact that the national anthem cake not only had 19 stripes, which I understand when you have to write out the words in script, but why did it have 39 stars? Did I miss something? 3 rows of 7 plus 3 rows of 6...And I don't think I've ever seen a question mark except at the end. Otherwise, beautiful cake!
@brian--What do you consider to be America's birthday? Or are you objecting to using "America" as a synonym for the USA?
My birthday's on the 3rd and my grandma made me a cake for my birthday in 1976 in the shape of a star, with a icing-molded Betsy Ross sitting in the corner, with the flag draped off her lap across the cake. I wish I could find pictures of it, it is one of my fondest memories of Grandma's cakes. We kept Betsy in the freezer for YEARS, lol!
As a Canadian, it's my patriotic duty to apologize. :)
Thought the original post was hilarious, and thanks for pointing out the funny Epcot song. Sorry about my humourless mates up here.
Freakin' LOVED that beaver cake!!
I hate to complain, but the National Anthem is incorrect on the cake. We did not have a "perilous flight," but a perilous FIGHT. Aside from that, these are all gorgeous.
Wow - that wedding cake is absolutely amazing! I am amazed that they actually are eating it - it looks too good to cut into!
On the national anthem cake is that a question mark at the end of the song???
I hate to say it, but the one with the gum paste flag and flowers should be a WRECK not a sweet! The flag does not have 15 stripes...and any 1st grader can tell you that the top and bottom stripes are red, not white...the "ArtistIn Training" should know better.
- Elle
As a Canadian, I think we have great senses of humour! And because of that, most of us get tired of hearing the same few jokes over and over again. That's why I think people get their heckles up rather easily. Most of us rarely hear any good, fresh jokes because most people outside of Canada don't know anything about us and thus rely on stereotypes.
Now, I don't think the post was as bad as all that, (I didn't think it was particularly funny, but nor was I offended) but those kinds of jokes happen so much that it's easy to have a kneejerk reaction.
Though I admit getting offended over a humour cake blog when one only has to read a few posts to know that this blog is all in good fun is silly. I know from following this blog for awhile now that the intention of Jen would never be to offend her readers. So I know that even if anything rubbed me the wrong way, it was totally accidental and won't think twice about it. However, I do know where my fellow Canadians are coming from.
So! Read a few news articles about Canada and crack a fresh joke! (Hint: no politeness, beavers, lumberjacks, saying 'eh' or maple syrup jokes allowed.) I guarantee we'll take it wonderfully.
Hi Soariee,
Okay. I see your point about Jen's jokes on this post. However, on the original Canada Day post, we joked about Canada Day being an American holiday and we mangled the Epcot Canada song. Now, it may not have been overwhelmingly funny, but I though it was completely unique. I do seem to be wrong a lot lately though...
john
I really gotta check CW on a daily basis instead of saving up the wreckage for heftier doses.
I teach a class on American Culture and these Sunday Sweets would have gone great with my lesson about July 4th and the red, white, and blue on Tuesday. Good thing I still have another class this week.
To John (The Hubby of Jen):
You aren't doing anything wrong. You rock. *HUG*
I'm Canadian and have to say I found your posts hilarious about the Canada day cakes! It's all good...we don't tend to hold grduges and those Canadians who got fussy must have just been having a bad day. The cake with the US flag layers inside is beyond inspirational...now I'll have to attempt a Canadian version of that! Song mockery of the Epcot Canada song is always welcome :)
I don't understand. Doesn't anyone realize that when The Simpsons, Family Guy, South Park, and Cake Wrecks use Canadian stereotypes (moose, beer, snow, maple syrup, log cabins), they're MAKING FUN of the stereotypes themselves, not Canadians?
I'm sure many Americans are just as tired over "Yank" jokes -- pick up yer banjo, har har! All of America looks like New York, or else Colorado! Americans don't speak anything but English, durp! And they're all fat, har har! -- but I'm not about to get my hackles up about it on a cake blog.
One of the lines from Epcot's "Canada" song is definitely "You're a lifetime adventure for the traveler." It has stuck with me lo these many years, and yes, when I first heard it as a kid, I did think it was the Canadian national anthem.
But then I also thought that the first time I walked in on someone singing "God Bless America", since all I heard was that mountains and prairies and oceans part, which sounded a lot more like Canada to me.
Cutest beaver ever! Waiting though for someone to get offended over a perceived double entendre. Awkward colonials, indeed...
PS Please do a tour to Canada. I'm sure we can wreckerate some beaver tails in your honour.
Oh my gosh!! Imagine my surprise when scrolling through these pics, to see my own pop up!! I enjoyed making the Fort McHenry cake, although I didn't really make it for a fourth of July event. The theme of our annual country fair was "celebration" and I wanted to do something more than the stereotypical wedding cake or other accepted celebrations. Although far more technical and clean in execution, I ended up with the second place ribbon, since my theme was more obscure than the "wedding dance" cake that won first place. This is still one of my favorites though!
I understand the flag is a symbol of the country that it represents. I understand the stars represent the states and the stripes the 13 original colonies. (Noting however, that one poster did write that there was a 15 stripe flag.)
Why is it offensive to some that there are the wrong number of stripes on a cake? And starting with the wrong color? (No, I never knew that and I have a master's degree in teaching.) That seems petty. For pete's sake, the whole thing is going to get cut up and eaten. Is that desecration of the flag?
The whole draping thing eludes me as well. Don't athletes drape their sweaty selves in flags quite often at winning celebrations? If there is some kind of traditional rule, I'd be curious to know.
Whipped Bake Shop put paper scrapbook flowers on STRAIGHT PINS ?!? in a cake?!
Pretty, but deadly.
It's such a shame that the baker of that hidden american flag cake didn't put some white chocolate chips into the blue cake to make stars.
I LOVE these cakes and the flag cake IN the cake was awesome...and then I counted the stripes. I have big question marks over my head, to have gone to ALL that trouble and then do 15 stripes?????
Just commenting to say, wow, Mimiguk. Awesome.
A) John should not be apologising for Jen's original post. Show some accountability.
B) A sarcastic "What-were-you-too-obtuse-to-understand-that-it-was-a-joke-so-lighten-up" apology does not ring true. If you think it was funny and that you meant nothing malicious, stick by it. If you're genuinely sorry, sound like it.
C) People are allow to have opinions and to be offended. They are not "hating", but sharing their opinions because they cared about what you said.
D) One Canadian cannot speak for all Canadians, so stop telling other people to lighten up or learn about sarcasm. They're not idiots, they just didn't find it amusing.
E) Be grateful for comments and emails. It means that people read and like what you do. Most of the comments I've read have been well-reasonsed and not abusive. I cannot speak to the emails, but I hope they were as well.
I only write because I care.
Just so you know, Francis Scott Key wrote the Star Spangled Banner during the Revolutionary War, not the War of 1812. :)
Star-Spangled Sheet Cake:
while my hand is cramping, my
mind is boggling. Wow!