Thursday, October 15, 2009

Teasers for the Coming Seasons

Thursday, October 15, 2009

There's nothing like the holiday season to put bakers in "the mood" - uh, to decorate cakes, of course. ;)

Why, last year we had so much fabulous Wreckage submitted from October through January that I couldn't get them posted fast enough! So here's a little sneak peek at what Wreckerators may have in store for you the next few months.

Halloween has its "monsters":

Gee, Frankenstein certainly looks hard up.

Thanksgiving has its "turkeys":

Outlines: making the vaguely suggestive so much more specifically nutty.


And "Winter" has...er...these things:

"Bat those baby blues at me all you want: I will NOT turn the photo around!"


Jill P., Anony M., & Barbara R., I would salute you, but these Wrecks beat me to it.

- Related Wreckage: Seasonal Non Sequiturs

Note from John: Wondering where yesterday's post went? Check out today's comments section.
Miranda said...

You have to wonder if they are doing this on purpose. It's too weiner-riffic to be accidental.

Anonymous said...

Things like this have to make you wonder if they do it out of juvenile flashbacks, and just assume that no one will notice because they are "that good!"

Taylor@MyOlderBrother said...

I would sooner eat a realistic baby cake than these "things". As long as they don't combine both ideas into an anatomically incorrect realistic baby cake.

I'm really fighting off the urge to make horrible pun jokes. I'll just have to do it anonymously.

Michelle S. said...

oh my

I'll never be able to look at a turkey neck the same way again.

thank you for that.

K said...

Bakers are pervs

Anonymous said...

Man, that Frankenstein's monster cake just has to have been on purpose. Really.

But very very very funny!
Shelley in Southern Illinois

Wendy said...

The decorator responsible for that Halloween cake could use some antidepressants. It's a scary holiday not a sad one.

Jael said...

Fronkensteen's nose goes way too well with those other two... instances of schwanzstucker.

April said...

Bwwwwwwwaaaaaaaahhhhhhh! You said "hard up"!!!!

Sarah said...

LOL too funny!

terri s said...

hilarious! obviously the wreckerators are so high on sugar and food dye that the don't see the suggestive content springing up before them. :~P

were you asked to take down the swastika cake?

Half Assed Kitchen said...

Not so subliminal.

Ashley said...

I love it. Nothing like confectionary phallus to start the day!

Anonymous said...

What happened to yesterday's post?

Unknown said...

Wow, the competition is getting pretty stiff for Best Wreckerator of the Year!

Mike

Anonymous said...

Thanks! Nothing like a few phallic symbols to get us 'in the mood' for the holidays!

Unknown said...

YIKES! Surely there are better ways to draw noses and the like. Especially without borrowing, ahem, other body parts! ::eyes rolling::

Elizabeth said...

I actually think the turkey cupcake cake is kinda cute...

Anonymous said...

HAHAHAHAHA! OMG, those are hilarious! Ever tried to laugh silently at work? It doesn't really work and my sides are hurting from the effort!

How, HOW could the decorator NOT see this????

Jedijson said...

So Igor not only retrieved an 'abby-normal' brain instead of the one he was supposed to get, but also got confused on what the good doctor meant when he asked for a "good sized schnoz," too?

Anonymous said...

The turkey reminds me of a guy I met in college. We called him 3ball.
*giggles*

Unknown said...

Sometimes a turkey neck is just a...wait that didn't come out quite right.

Keith in Kansas said...

Had to see your blog after reading about you in the Times. What a hoot! Thanks so much for your efforts. And today's entry - wow! Freud would have a field day with these decorators. The subconscious can be a quirky and mysterious place, especially when revealed in frosting...

Angela said...

Today's post was hilarious, but I did notice that yesterday's disappeared. How disappointing. : (

Unknown said...

I don't see a word about yesterday's post!

john (the hubby of Jen) said...

Hey guys,

Since several of you have asked, yes, we took down yesterday's post. It all started in good fun and we linked to the Mother of the Bride's website for verification. The bad part was that on her site she named the baker and smeared her pretty severely. And it turns out there were two sides to the story.

Throughout the day, we got a few e-mails from the baker asking us to fairly represent her company which we did pretty early in the day. Unfortunately, as the day wore on, the baker began receiving racist hate mail and, I believe, threats. Now I'm not sure this post was ever really funny (more tragic) but at this point, all humor was gone. And since we are a humor site, we took it down. There comes a point when it's just not worth it.

So there you have it. Did we lose some kind of integrity because we chose to say enough is enough? Maybe. But we've always said that Cake Wrecks is not out to hurt bakers and that's what it did yesterday. Thanks in advance for your understanding and please feel free to e-mail me with any further questions.

Wreck On!

john

Anonymous said...

'coming' seasons? LMAO

Dog Mom said...

Oh My Gawd! I am laughing so hard right now!!! THANK YOU.

Anonymous said...

Another Turkey story - my teenage friend took the turkey neck from a frozen bird and laid it over the side of the trash can in the men's room (as a joke), and went home for the day. Instead of laughs though they got tears, vomiting and a police report. Ooops

SE in NY said...

Are those pretzels on the Rudolph cake? Nothing goes better with cake than salty pieces of bread disguised as antlers right?

serialcinz said...

Maybe the bakers are "deeply religious"?

Anutsymous said...

That turkey looks a little "cocky".

Frankenstein? More like BeefFrank-enstein!

These cakes are "nuts"! And they give me the "willies"!

Elaine B. said...

Mmm I just don`t want to point out the obvious!

Sarah said...

I think you did the right thing. It was definitely not all in good fun by the end of the day with the cake. Thanks for taking a stand and taking down the post.

Kate in Italy said...

Well today's Triple Testicle Turkey certainly made up for it, John. Good work on maturity, by the way. Thumbs up!

Anonymous said...

John & Jen: IMHO, you gained integrity for taking down yesterday's post. I went the the blog and was bothered by the story and it's presentation. You did the right thing and I admire you for it.

Unknown said...

Hey John and Jen,

I think you did the absolutely RIGHT thing in removing yesterday's post. I didn't see the baker's side of the story because it's nighttime here when you put things on the site and I was probably already asleep when you printed her side.

Your FAQ says: "Now then, if you see your photo posted here and it ticks you off (some people actually don’t mind) then just contact me and let me know you’d like it removed. Please go easy on the name-calling and accusations of “stealing”, though; all photos are user-submitted, and believe it or not, I’m really not out to ruin your day."

Hats off to sticking to your values and for taking that necessary step to "stop the carnage!"

Cheers!

curegirl0421 said...

I think you did the right thing regarding yesterday's post... it's all fun and games until somebody gets hate mail!

SarahW said...

I respect your reasons for taking the post down, but I was really irritated at the baker for using flickr grabs of cakes her business didn't make, to market her wares.

If you ever put out a guide to avoiding wreckage, one of the steps should be to make sure the baker has really made the example cake you want - and to independently google when in doubt.

Leslie@leserleeslovesandhobbies said...

Maybe you could feature yesterdays baker in the Sunday Sweets. Her cake was well done, just not what the bride was hoping for. And one guy mentioned that all symbols used on the cake were Native American symbols for good things (I don't remember what exactly).

Gary said...

I understand your reasons for removing yesterday's cake and comments, especially if the baker was starting to get hate mail and the like, but I regret that it came to that, because I thought the discussion it stimulated in the comments was quite interesting.

Riku said...

Thank you for taking that post down, then. I wouldn't enjoy something that actually hurt a baker. You made the right decision!

Sarah said...

I think the turkey is actually modern art. I spot at least two sets of testicles.

Anne said...

I somehow missed Frankenstein's, um, nose, until I finished the whole post. Time for some caffeine, methinks, to wake up the ol' observation skills...

I'm sorry to hear what happened to yesterday's baker. Yes, the cake had some things wrong about it, but the mistakes seemed like honest ones produced by someone who dashed off a cake they shouldn't have dashed off. Nothing deserves hate mail and especially death threats, much less a cake. The bride's mother obviously had a bone to pick with the bakery, but that was *her* bone to pick with the bakery.

Tigerwolf said...

As Freud might say, "Sometimes a turkey cake...is just a turkey cake. Except when it's not!"

^..^

WV: rerset. Good on ya for hitting the rerset button on yesterday's post when things went haywire.

Bookmom said...

Darn it, I didn't go back later in the day to read the comments on yesterday's post.

In the interest of fairness, maybe you should post the other side, just in the comments here, because believe me, that post lives on in news readers. I get posts various blogs later take down, including a couple from here!

Anonymous said...

I thought yesterday's post was funny, but I also didn't see any of the backlash. You guys continue to be classy, tasteful, and, most importantly, nice so I'm pleased to see that you pulled a post that people had problems with. Which is why you will always be my favorite blog! And congratulations on the NYT's bestseller list!

Anonymous said...

Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: For the experiment to be a success, all of the body parts must be enlarged.

Inga: His veins, his feet, his hands, his organs vould all have to be increased in size.

Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: Exactly.

Inga: He vould have an enormous schwanzstucker.

Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: That goes without saying.

Inga: Voof.

Igor: He's going to be very popular.

(sorry, couldn't resist)

mystic_eye_cda said...

I wonder if there is anyway that you could post the baker's side of the story without it causing insanity? Just for those of us that missed it?

Or is the baker's side in the comments on the other site?

Anonymous said...

It is so sad that someone feels the need to send hate mail or threats over a cake. I think the people who actually paid for the cake have the right to complain, but not strangers who have nothing to do with it. It's REALLY sad people!

Anonymous said...

Sometimes I find it sad that the swastika is poorly represented. The Nazis stole that symbol (and reversed it). In the non-reversed form the Navajo tribe used it, it's on a Buddhist statue in the Ling Yin Temple in China and so on. It actually meant peace and harmonious thinking.

I get grumpy at people who are ignorant of historical references and just assume that people are racist if they see that symbol. Anyone sending that poor baker hate mail is lacking in good judgment.

Even so, thanks for knowing when to draw the line. It makes me so much more willing to keep coming to your site daily and reading.

Oh btw - did you know that Cake Wreaks made the Yahoo news yesterday? (not for the swastika cake)

Martin said...

That turkey cake makes me think of the scene in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" where they get the guy to shout "Eko tre orxidia!"

Anonymous said...

Go ON! Looking at these holiday cakes, I'm getting so excited! Wow! Usually I sort of dread the holidays and all the associated stress, but whooooooooooooeeeeee I see I've been missing out on a lot of the fun. I hope Santa brings me something that measures up to these teasers! hooray! Lily

Kelly said...

If the bakery was getting hate mail, you absolutely did the right thing by removing the post. I never thought the baker was actually a Nazi and did it on purpose, I just thought he/she was sadly oblivious.

If you are reading this, bakery owner, best of wishes to you to recover from what must be very scary.

Amanda | Glittericity said...

I am convinced some of these are done by people just to see if they can get away with it. Of course, if you point it out, they feign innocence and YOU look like the pervert...

Either way, I laughed most heartily :)

Anonymous said...

I think you did the right thing. I had figured as much when the post disappeared. It is really a sad commentary on some people when they feel the need to harass someone over the poor execution of a decorated cake. Some people can't play nice and take things way too far. I think you will keep your integrity and your readers, too.

Blog on!

Unknown said...

Gee, Frank...is that your nose or are you just happy to see me?

Jessica said...

I think the title of the post cracked me up more than anything!! LOL!!!

Is the last one supposed to be a REINDEER?? OMG.

I busted out laughing at the turkey. That's phallic perfection.

Rachel said...

I vaguely remember somewhere in a Star Trek book (non-canon, of course) a mention of Klingons having three testicles. Perhaps a Klingon decorated the turkey cake?

Why, yes, I am a nerd. And I like it that way.

Caroline B said...

Oo-er Missus!! The Incredible Hulk appears to have left something behind on that cake...

Totally agree with the decision to remove yesterday's post - people had begun to get unnecessarily steamed up over what was essentially just a cake.

joyce said...

wow---thanks to your most observant commenters, I was curious that I had missed something about the monster and the turkey. Then, I was relieved to learn that I was not the only one who missed the first two, uh, double meanings... oh. dear. deer.

Erica C. said...

John, personally, I agree with the people who have suggested you post the baker's side of the story. Many of us visit the site soon after new posts are up and don't come back until the next day. All I saw was the post, as well as the Mother of the Bride's site. I think it would be beneficial to the baker to post her side of it, since many of us just heard one side of things. I did not have the most positive view of either party, but I would like to know how she defended herself, and I think she deserves for that to remain posted for everyone to see.

Anonymous said...

That turkey! Wow. My exact thought was: "Aw, for a CCC that's kinda c- WHOA!"
- Leigh

Randy and Ladell said...

John and Jen,

First of all--how wonderful it is to see you posting John. Hope you are feeling much, much better.

Second, you did exactly the right thing. It was absolutely hilarious when it was just a wink, nudge kind of thing. And I'm sure that the baker would have thought so too, except that people always take things too far and make something innocent and funny into something ugly. I hope that she/he knows that we never thought this an anti-semitic cake, just a small mistake on an otherwise beautiful cake.

Third. OMG that reindeer. And that Frankenstein. And that... Oh man. I'll be laughing over those for days to come. As always, thanks! I needed that today. I'm supposed to be on vacation and couldn't go because of too much work to do. (sigh)

Karen said...

The Turkey CCC: what we have here is a failure to communi-cake.

Did you know that Cake Wrecks is mentioned in the newly released book "Uncle John's Endlessly Engrossing Bathroom Reader?"
pp 134-135.

WV: dessiste. The haters and name callers need to dessiste.

BlondeShot Creative said...

todays post is great! SO funny. As far as yesterdays, you made the right choice to pull it since the baker was getting hate mail. BUT WTF to the people who sent the hate mail? Why does everyone get so offended by everything?!

Jessica W said...

Re: yesterday's post- I saw the comment that said that you lost credibility by taking down pics at the baker's request, I disagree completely. This site is about laughing at the cakes, not the person. Although we may wonder what they were thinking, I'd like to think they are laughing at it too going "yeah not really sure what happened there!" When it's personal, it's not funny anymore.

Your removal of yesterday's post only PROVES your integrity not only personally, but professionally for keeping this blog what you want it to be.

Re: Today's post- What were they thinking?! ;-)

HorribleLicensePlates said...

Man, these are just dong.

I mean, wrong. These are just wrong.

Mella said...

Frankensteins nose does look very un-nose-y

faunablues said...

If you google for the post, the bakery's reviews on Yelp come up, on which the baker has posted her response.

Sabrina said...

Seriously, that cake from yesterday was a true wreck. Even without the symbol in question it looked as though my first grade students decorated it, not a professional baker.
Today's posts however, WOWZA! Thanks for the laughs and for being so darn wreck-tastic!

You Don't Know Me said...

Wow - I thought that first one was Big City Engine from "Thomas the Tank Engine" (he's very cranky). But Frankenstein makes more sense...

Anonymous said...

The phallic noses are too hysterical. It is amazing to me that the material for this blog is never ending... I'm not complaining, mind you!! I love it.

Amélie said...

I also would like to hear the baker's side of yesterday's post (I didn't get to see it). Is there any way you can post it in the comments?

Robin said...

I actually wouldn't have noticed the turkey if you hadn't pointed him out. He's kind of cute...

Anonymous said...

So the backwards swastika is in actuality a buddhist symbol? I remember a few years ago when all the little ceramic buddhas on the shelves of Jo-Ann Fabrics had to be recalled due to the offensive emblems on their bellies.
Anyway, shame on all the folks who sent the baker hate-mail and congratulations to you for taking down the controversial post. You always blog in good taste (pun intended) IMHO.
Blogless Mary Lou

Saigon & Baygon Inc. said...

@ Cake Wrecks:
Keep up the good work, fellows! I'm so sorry I missed your post yesterday (different time-zones, bad timing), but I feel you did the right thing! I'd definitely like to have seen that cake, though...

@ Martin:
It's "Exo tria arxidia", my friend. LOL :-)
Well done.

Greets from Greece!
L.

Kate said...

The baker of the ninja cake posted her side here: http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=fG0BdEwi3x_H6WNTxYcEbw

Lv2danz said...

I clearly need some coffee this morning, because I totally missed Frankenstein's schnoz until after I started reading the comments. And now I can't stop laughing. Thanks for always starting my day off on the right foot.

Anonymous said...

Yes, please post the baker's side of the story. You have no idea how many bride and mom "zillas" have emailed or called in an order to my bakery expecting us to match the cake vision in their heads without supplying us with actual information that's usable. One lady picked up a 3 tiered cake for her son's 1st bday and she complained because the outlines on the baby block design weren't symmetrical enough for her and this color wasn't quite the blue that she wanted.
Of course, she couldn't be bothered to come in and actually talk to us about the cake she wanted to order or give us some color samples, she just called in and said that she wanted x,y, and z and "whatever we think looks best would be perfect." So while I think the baker should have been a bit more careful in the use of design, we definitely should get to hear her side of things because there are a ton of people who complain to everyone at a drop of the hat but very few who actually will take the time to say "Thank you". She deserves to have her side presented and we shall find the truth somewhere in the middle of both versions.
Also, glad you are feeling better.

Anonymous said...

"Hey Bill, the order for the cake of that bachelorette party is canceled."

"But I already started working on it."

"Well don't throw it away."

"Alright. Well Halloween is coming up..."

Heidi in Louisiana said...

I have to say I thought the Cakewrecks fans and readers were above hate mail. The cake was a poor example of the bakery and a very sad story but I would still not hesitate to order from them; with an early pick up time and photos or drawings of exactly what I wanted. Aztek, Ninja... well, if you want it to be right (and it was a great idea, sounded very cute) you really have to be clear. I never would have known it until Cakewrecks. Thanks for educating the cake buying public!

Anonymous said...

That turkey is just...um...awkward? Wrong? Too darn funny? All of the above?

Anonymous said...

maybe the baker was feeling inadequate that day?

denise said...

Frosting frosting everywhere and not a penis to be found... Oh well, a gal can dream... *LOL*

RE: yesterday's post - good call, no loss of integrity in my eyes, in fact taking the stand gives y'all points :-)

So glad we're back to laughing!

denise
Surviving breast cancer...
http://TeamDenise.org

Mira8 said...

You guys are seriously classy. For what it's worth I not only support but admire your decision to pull yesterday's post. I'm a big believer in saying "enough is enough" when the situation calls for it, and think in general there should be way more of that. And after all, as you said, CW is a humor site. Rock on!

David B said...

I'd hate to see where Dr. Frankenstein put the nose.

Oliver said...

Brings whole new meaning to "gobble, gobble, gobble!"

Jarrett said...

I read the baker's side of the story, found here:

http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=fG0BdEwi3x_H6WNTxYcEbw

Quite honestly, I can come up with several reasons why this cake was decorated the way it was. I just doubt that any of them were good reasons.

I believe the baker was providing exactly what the customer wanted, and I question the customer in the contraversy. Was the baker tricked? We may never know. The answer may lie with the person who submitted the photo.

I hope that better judgement is used from now on when it comes to making light of such hurtful imagary. Kudos for taking down the post. I am a longtime fan of this site. You manage to make me smile everyday.

Fluffy Cow said...

hee hee

wrecky phalluses

Anonymous said...

RE: yesterday's post

I had no idea until looking at the posting of the baker's side of the story that they are in fact one of my favorite neighborhood bakeries. They make the most amazing French pastry! I was also taking pastry classes at the same time they were utilizing the school kitchen to get their business started. These are very nice, conscientious people. Not oblivious at all. The bride got *exactly* what she requested. I think the bride's mother over-reacted and should have backed off. The baker is Jewish, for crying out loud, and grew up in Israel! The bride herself apparently didn't even see anything wrong with the symbol, otherwise don't you think she would have said, "all these symbols, but not THAT one"?

CW was absolutely right in taking down the post. It was not funny. It was just simply unfortunate.

Little Lovables said...

holy cow, the ONE day I miss visiting Cake Wrecks, and I miss this cake controversy, hot dang.


but these disgusting viagra induced confections make up for it, so thanks!

Barbara_in_COviaWA said...

BWAAAAAAAAAAA
HAAAAAAAAAAAAA
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!

Those are just friggen WRONG!!!!

hahaha...word verification: beddist
The wreckerators tried to do their BEDdist work on these cakes, and succeeded actually!

Mary Connealy said...

I'm sharpening my 'cake' slicing knife right now. :D

Hobbit said...

A Young Frankenstein reference AND a Star Trek reference? I love Cakewrecks!
And I think you guys made the right call regarding yesterday's post. I mean, hate mail because of a cake? Really?

Anonymous said...

I can't stop giggling! Love your site!

Tracy said...

You know what? Its your blog, do as you please. I agree with what you said, and the pulling of the post. I researched it last night (since i checked CW after it had already been pulled.)and I think its just a horrible situation, and will probably get worse between the Mother and the Baker. Its best to get yourself out of the mix. Plus you always said you would pull posts if requested.

It was also bad timing that this happened on the day you were all over the news. That brought a lot of new (and aparently malicious) readers in at the wrong time.

So now its behind us, lets keep wrecking forward :-)

WV: Dippi.....another work for the hidden "message" in those cakes!

Darn it. I messed up the WV and it gave me another. Now its 'redida' as in I just redida that!!!

Adventure Girls said...

So, you cakewrecks folks are funny and talented and kind, too? I am all for taking down a post that hurts someone's feelings - even if it means I have to go a day without a new cakewreck to laugh about. Candragulalions on your integrity. It is greatly appreciated.

Brookely90 said...

Oh baby baby.

Anonymous said...

Jen & John:
Thank you for sticking to your values. I love a good blog that doesn't sell out.

Even though I realize the power/sadness/hate that belonged in such a symbol, it had other uses before it became a sign of hate.

In Buddhism, it's sacred. Check it out:
http://www.ancientsculpturegallery.com/images/2952.jpg

I hope that the baker of the cake feels better than yesterday. I hope she knows that in other parts of the world the symbol she put on the cake was holy not just hateful.

Glad you're feeling better John(:

All my love,
A Fan

Anonymous said...

I applaud you for taking down yesterday's post, since so few people could see past the 'swastika issue' to the fact that while the layers were straight and the fondant smooth, the piping was a last minute rush job that my eight-year-old could have done. I think was the bigger issue in the long run. Though, I don't understand why the baker didn't just omit that one symbol (since they were given several examples) and avoid the whole issue.

Mistakes were made on both side4s of that debacle. Thank you, Jen and John, for maintaining your professional integrity by presenting both sides when asked and removing the post when it was obviously causing problems.

As for today's post.. hillarious! I think maybe some bakers need to get certain things (like CCC's!) off the mind these coming seasons... lol

Anonymous said...

I checked out your website after I saw it on yahoo and NY times. I just love it! That frankenstein and turkey kept me laughing for a good hour! Thanks cake wrecks I needed it and "conglulations" !

Melissa (& Billy) said...

Poor Frank. He looks a little put-upon. "It's not easy being green?"

I thought the turkey was one of the cutest CCCs I've seen, until I looked a little closer. Eeeeyikes! I can just see this being delivered to a kid's party--the kids devour the cake while the adults stand around going "Oh, dear..."

The rest? No words. Just...no words. 0_0

Unknown said...

Kate: Thanks for the link.

It appears that the pastry chef at Butter, Sugar, Flour did exactly as the bride asked.

John and Jen, you two are classy. Thanks for the phallic cakes today.

Nikki said...

GREAT call on pulling yesterday's post. I think the baker did a major fail, but it is NOT worth getting death threats over. That's insane.

WV: favar - you did the baker a big favar by pulling that post. Good for you!

Nakia said...

I too wanted to post my support of your decision to take down yesterday's post. These cakey controversies often seem heightened by inadvertent unfortunate timing, and I'm sure the increased traffic yesterday ended up hurting matters more with the baker.

Today's post is a great way to move on and get back to the laughs again :)

Lucille Ball Jr. said...

laughing my face off! ;) can't wait for more of these!

Christa said...

Your blog gives me a few minutes of laughter everyday and I thank you for that! I was hoping to see you in Denver but it didn't work out unfortunately. I hope that John is well on his way down the path of recovery. As for yesterday's post, it is unfortunate that baker had emails of that sort being sent to her. I think that she really should have did a rough draft/drawing for the bride and groom before she made that cake. I did look at her website (which I found from the mother's blog) and most of the other cakes that she had up looked great. I think you deciding to take down the post was probably the right thing to do.

AlisonH said...

CakeFX, which does such marvelous work and has been feted in your Sunday Sweets posts, says on their site that they will not make any cake that would make it difficult for any member of their staff to look any human in the eye.

Good advice. Meantime, thank you for doing right by everybody yesterday.

tiffany said...

perfect for 'subtle' bachelorette parties ;]

Unknown said...

"Lone Starr: I still don't understand how I'm going to lift that big statue with this little ring.

Yogurt: Never underestimate the power of the Schwartz!"

D.B. Echo said...

Following up on a suggestion in the comments, I checked my seldom-used Google Reader and found yesterday's removed post. The only "mistake" I can see the baker making was in actually following the customer's instructions. There were twelve symbols supplied, and all twelve (as far as I can see) were represented on the cake. If the customer (or her relatives) chose to be offended by the design specified by the customer, that's their problem.

But you did the right thing in taking this down. Consequences should not be falling on the bakery for this.

Trevor said...

I agree with others that you did the right thing in pulling that post, especially if the baker was getting hate mail and such. That's just not right or called for in any situation.

Bakers beware, and phear the power that is Cakewrecks!

Today's posts, however, are a riot. There must be some hard up decorators.

Fyrebyrd said...

I give the first cake marks on bringing out the inner tragedy of Frankenstein - even if it wasn't on purpose.

The second one's profane nature is a pure fowl. *pathetic comedy drum roll*

Anonymous said...

So maybe you know this already, but the NYT article on Cakewrecks is now at the top of their list of "articles most frequently e-mailed by NYTimes.com readers."

Anonymous said...

I agree - great decision to pull the post. I enjoyed the comments, but sometimes enough is enough. I am disappointed that some people (especially uninvolved third parties) would take the controversy so far as to send hate mail the baker. The baker screwed up with decorating the cake poorly (for me, the symbol wasn't the issue, it was the lack of lace and apricots), but nobody deserves death threats for that. Sheesh - it's a cake people! So, great decision! Shows how much integrity you do have!

C. Beth said...

I agree that yesterday's cake wasn't pretty, and there was clearly a huge misunderstanding. And I don't know if a previous comment, about the baker stealing Flikr photos and passing them off as her own, is true. But I noticed a lot of the cakes on her website were set on the same tablecloth/background so I'm guessing most or all of them came from that bakery.

I was just on their Yelp review site, and there are a bunch of photos of really beautiful cakes and other goodies posted by USERS (not by the bakery), so clearly they can make lovely things. Here's the link: http://www.yelp.com/biz/sugar-butter-flour-sunnyvale

Becca said...

Ok, I actually thought the turkey CCC was cute until I read your comment! Yikes!

john (the hubby of Jen) said...

Hey guys,

I just wanted you all to know how much Jen and I appreciate you. We could not have asked for a more amazing group of people.

From the bottom of my heart, thanks.

john

Unknown said...

Maybe soon you can start posting cookies made with this lovely item:

http://consumerist.com/5378467/ok-someone-should-have-thought-this-veggietales-cookie-cutter-through

BTW I'm with you on taking the post down. Hate mail is not cool. You guys rock.

PS I know your second attempt in Austin didn't get the same numbers that signed up originally...I was one that couldn't come for the second try (wasn't going to blow off my kid's birthday party for you, sorry). I made a cupcake that will never be seen outside of my livejournal (I sent you the link, hope you enjoyed it), but hopefully we still get to see a post about your trip here. And maybe you should come to our super-awesome and geeky cake show in February... http://thattakesthecake.org/ That way everyone who missed you can catch up there!

BlueBerry Pick'n said...

OH NO! the moyle slipped...

Anonymous said...

Congrats on the the NYTimes piece. Well deserved!

Tina and Jason said...

Kudos for pulling yesterday's post. I come to Cake Wrecks as a fun escape on my lunch break (well, maybe um...once or twice during the day) and never think cake should be serious enough to get hate mail and threats. Thanks for continuing to keep this a clean, fun place that is so rare in this day and age. Wreck on, John & Jen!

Mary Kirkland said...

I think it's totally sad that the baker from yesterday started getting hate mail. Some people seem to have way to much time on their hands.

Karen said...

Well, it seems to me there's only one way to resolve this whole scandal - Ninja Cake Bake off!

It would be interesting to see what other bakers would have come up with, given the same instructions. Something better? Something worse??? I think the concept of the cake really has limitless possibilities, and I'd love to see them!

Pilgrim said...

I think the Rudolph one is actually kind of cute. So there.

Lynda said...

That's sad about the baker involved in yesterday's post. It's a shame that things get so blown out of proportion. I don't think you've lost your integrity. I think you're just being responsible.

Tari said...

Jen and John--no lost integrity for removing the post, especially given the unforeseen side effects.

Love the early holiday wreckiness. Can't wait to see what our bakers come up with.

Courtney C. said...

John,
You guys did not lose one brown icing pile-of-poo's worth of integrity! I'm glad you took it down and completely agree. No, I was not at all offended by it but there is a point when fun can cross the line. Thank you for having consideration for the baker and for handling it all with kindness.
Wreck on!!!

M M said...

I happened to catch yesterday's post right before it had to be taken down, and you did make the right call, I'm just sorry that it ended up being a case of "bad consumer" that really got all of this going.

Now as for today's post, I couldn't help but laugh.

David B said...

You know, aside from looking somewhat penisy, that Turkey CCC looks pretty good. I never thought I'd see a not-horrible-looking Cupcake Cake here.

Anonymous said...

Why did yesterday's post have to be removed?

bpddjeoomon said...

I think the REAL problem with yesterdays cake was that the piping was terrible and there wasn't a lace pattern to be seen.

Both parties were wrong and both parties were right, and so I applaud you for staying out of the middle of it.

It's nice to find some classy folks online nowadays (and I'm glad I don't have to feel bad about continuing my longtime readership! Woot!)

Suzi said...

It would certainly be interesting to see someone with 3 nuts.

Anonymous said...

What a shame to be able to tell Frankenstein's monster's religion just by looking at his nose...

sendingtheclowns said...

EGADS!! What a bunch of HORNdogs!
All *I* see are NOSES.
Seriously. What kind of gutter-minded folks are y'all, huh??
I mean--an X-rated reindeer? Come on! Those are blue EYES, not blue~~ah, forget it.
And so poor Frank looks a bit dismayed...who's to say it's all because of the nose? Maybe it's the giant GASH on his head that's bothering him.
As for that turkey; it's very cute, okay? He looks proud as a PEACOCK standing up straight like that...and ya POKE fun at him.
Have you no shame?
=^--^=

terri s said...

I thought that maybe someone(s) had made a comment or two about yesterday's post and you took it down. I am not sad to see it go, I AM sad that the baker got death threats over it. I believe they were sadly unaware of that unfortunate part of history, nothing more. I also wonder why the bride or mother didn't just scrape that off and turn the cake around? Or scrape off parts of the sign to make it into something else? Or were there lots and lots of those on the cake? We will never know.

Good on ya, that you took it down to keep this site fun, lighthearted, and clean!! (well, except for the post about misplaced, excited organs--hee hee!)

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry to say that today I had to read the comments in order to see what was so subtly wreck-y about these cakes.

My sincere thanks to those folks whose minds, without the gutter, would be homeless.

Anonymous said...

RE: Yesterday's post

Now that I've seen the actual cake, the baker's response, and the sample it was supposed to be modeled after, that cake was STILL a wreck.

Here's the sample, for the curious: http://www.sugarbutterflour.com/products/enlargednew/wedding/WhiteLace.htm

What happened to the "lace" on the actual cake? I think that's where the miscommunication lies. Even swastikas would not have been so obvious (and offensive) if they had been incorporated into the lace.

And I thought the turkey cake was adorable...until DH pointed out the...uh...yeah. Oops.

kidsinthe said...

You should submit those to www.accidentaldong.blogspot.com
LOL!!

Anonymous said...

I have to wonder if they tried to make a ummm male part cake if it would look like a nose...

I have to share with you the horror that I experienced today. I always hop on over here at 9:30am for my daily laugh, much better than an apple for keeping the doctor away, only to find out that my company had blocked the site! Guess I told to many people in the building about it and everyone was visiting the site. Man I really need to learn to keep the good stuff to myself...

Anonymous said...

The ONE day I don't read CW and I miss out on controversy. Of all the luck... not that I'm into contributing, I just wish I knew what the heck everyone else is talking about. Anyways... can't wait to see everybody get wang chung on their cakes this coming season, eh? eh? bahaha, I crack myself up. I'm sure no one else is laughing though.

Anonymous said...

lmao! I think these are a cry form these decorators' subconscious for some , eh-hem, "attention" !lol Where these cakes made on a Friday, perhaps? lol Love your site!- Frank :)

Anonymous said...

Askkk abouttttt myyyyy weenerrrrrrr

AnnaK said...

The wreckerators knew what they were doing - it was a 'private' joke.

Jen and John, cheers for showing your truly classy nature by taking down the problematic post.

And extra cheers for a post that allows us all to make juvenile phallic jokes, then turn around and tell you how classy and tasteful we think you are! :) "Congradulalations" (in red)

Jen said...

Oh my goodness those are so funny!!

Jessica H said...

I *had* to send the link for today's post to my best friend. We are professional adults who have the sense of humor of 14-year olds. I mean, really, sometimes penises are just funny.

Most of the time, actually. :P

Anonymous said...

Oh my god do I ever love cake wrecks! Ha ha wouldn't you just love to see one of these cakes on your table? The turkey actually looks kinda cute until you look closer...

Anonymous said...

I had to eat the "Speedo" on a birthday cake for a retired bodybuilder once.

Bree said...

I see the artist who drew Disney's Little Mermaid poster now works as a cake decorator ;-)

Unknown said...

The bride should have scribbled out the ninja throwing star that looked like a swastika when she gave the baker the example images.

But that doesn't let the bakery off the hook. The piping work was amateurish and it looked nothing like the sample lace cake. I would have considered it a minor wreck (considering it was done by a professional bakery) even without the swastikas. I decorate cakes for my niece's birthday every year and I think I'm terrible at it, and that looked like something I could've done.

Unknown said...

Odd thing is that I just came from the "It's a Cock" blog, and thought that I was back at that site. I had to double check the address.

Diagnose Rachel said...

Oh, that turkey cake is the cutest cupcake cake I ever did see! Great use of color and the circle shape, why is it ...

oh.

OH! OH MY!

Well, it's just like the little mermaid movie scandel.
Remember those lovely castle spires? Or the wedding priest who had an obvious hard on during the ceremony. Oh, good time. Obviously REALLY good times.

Love the comments about yesterday's post. It really helps me understand why I didn't get cake yesterday. I NEED MY CAKE!

Unknown said...

I am glad you took the post down. While the cake itself fit the site, I was very disappointed that CW made this woman's contact information readily available (via the link to the mom's blog) so that other's were free to torment and harass her. It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye (or their job).

Fortunately that baker owns her own business, but had this been my mistake, the publicity would likely have lost me my job.

I would laugh if one of my cakes landed here, but not so much if you provided my name and employer information. I hope in the future you won't be doing that.

Tara Jackson said...

John & Jen,

Though I didn't get an opportunity to see yesterday's original post, based on your description of it all, you did the right thing. And don't ever feel like you will lose integrity by doing the right thing. If people lose respect for you for standing up for what you believe is the right thing to do, that's their own issue. Bravo & Brava to you both!

john (the hubby of Jen) said...

Kirsti,

It's actually kind of tough. Include the link so that people know the story is real, and you risk getting the baker in trouble. Don't include the link and everyone complains it's fake all day. Ahh well.

We really didn't think it would get as bad as it did. And I hope you know that we never intentionally link to a a baker unless it's Sunday Sweets.

john

Unknown said...

For everyone who (like me) missed the cake controversy yesterday there's a picture here: http://community.eharlequin.com/content/cake-wrecks-really

Others have posted the yelp link to the baker's side.

I think that taking it down was the right thing to do. The baker clearly just followed directions and meant no offense, although I think that in any profession we have set limits on what we'll do for a customer. The bride is clearly also to blame for sending the sheet with the symbols. Obviously nobody meant any harm or offense and anyone who writes hate mail to a baker over something like this needs to watch the news for more deserving targets.

Keep the wrecks coming!

Anonymous said...

Love, love, love you. Love your blog. Prayed for you through your recent trials. Having said all that... the phallic symbol posts are getting really, really old. Please raise the level of class on this otherwise amazing (my favorite) family-friendly blog. I really hate to criticize and do love Cake Wrecks dearly. But please consider putting this category to rest for a while.

Anonymous said...

About yesterday...

I feel you did the right thing regarding yesterday's post. After reading all that I did, it seemed to me like an unfortunate and embarrassing misunderstanding - certainly not some diabolical plan.

Aside from the obvious, I felt it was the mother of the bride who was truly offensive and not the baker. She has every right to be upset that she and her daughter didn't get the cake they wanted and paid for, but her slandering of the baker and comments in her blog insinuating that "goth, alternative, or whatever else holds for wacky these days" couples would be happy with nazi swastikas on their wedding cakes were ignorant and upsetting.

I realize this was her personal blog, but every one of us needs to realize that ANYTHING we post online is PUBLIC, and we should think twice about what we type.

So, bravo Cake Wrecks for caring about integrity while still being hilarious!

Haiku Joy said...

Wrecks that say "eat me!"
Here are more stick jokes than you can shake a dick at.

wv: fessit

I'm going to have to fessit this cocky haiku in a fessit box.

mandi said...

OK, the cake drama is over... John, how are you feeling?

Kristen said...

I'm just going to say, in Lorelai Gilmore fashion, "Dirty!" : )

john (the hubby of Jen) said...

Mandi,

Actually I got back to Orlando from Dallas and went right back into the hospital with an infected lung. Bummer. I'm out now and feeling much better. Looking forward to finishing the tour. The cough should go away withing a few years;}

Thanks for asking!

john

Amanda said...

That monster looks like Thomas the Train with a bad case of the stomach flu!

Reelyne said...

I randomly ran in to an article about this site and tried to quietly cry (from laughing so hard) at work. Thanks for adding a little humor to my day,

Shannon Chamberlain said...

Re: the swastika cake, it's a shame that everyone fixated on the swastika, because the real crime was just the cake. I'm not the first person to say this, but WHAT LACE PATTERN? A 10-year-old with a frosting kit from the grocery store could have done the decorating job on that thing, and it sounds like the bakers are pulling things from photostreams to make it seem like they've done work that they haven't. Okay, maybe the customer inadvertently provided the swastika. That doesn't excuse the rest of it, which was a hot mess. And if you look at the other Yelp reviews, it sounds like this bakery has a real problem with consistency and customer service (not writing on the cake correctly, and other vaguely wrecktastic categories of offense) and then claiming that it was all the customer's fault. So I have to say, I'd take that little Yelp explanation they posted with the proverbial grain of salt. I don't know. Hate mail is obviously inappropriate and lame, but maybe these people need to learn to take the heat if they're going to decorate a really bad cake in their kitchen and then charge someone money for it.

Personally, I just ordered a bunch of different kinds of dessert, undecorated, from Finale in Cambridge. The photo op wasn't as good, but the cakes were better, and I think that it's probably one of my top ten pieces of advice to the newly engaged.

Meghan said...

Oh my gosh! I laughed so hard I almost peed.

AlisonH said...

Thank you Mandi for asking out loud, and thank you John for answering, and there is nothing Wreckier than hospital food. (Warm, diabetic no-sugar Superball-strong jello. Shiver.) Stay well, and thank you for all the laughs here!

Wolverine Girl said...

I can see that turkey's giblets. Tehehehe!

XJ said...

Oh WOW. These are freaking HILARIOUS. Either the bakers have no clue whatsoever, or these are partly intentional. *snerk*

Anonymous said...

Re: yesterday's post, it wasn't cool for people to send hate mail, but like many have said, that was a WRECK! They should've called it the Zapf Dingbats cake. All that was missing was the Euro symbol. There was no subtle ninja stars or even blatant ninja stars for that matter. One would think if they weren't sure what a ninja star looks like and the sample the customer gave was questionable, either do as they say and just make it lace (which there was none) or look it up on Google. And putting plastic ninjas on the cake didn't help.

Unknown said...

Eeeeew! The images are bad enough, but combined with the colours! Pass the sick bag.

Anonymous said...

To the uplifting cakes in today's posts: hehehehe... phallic nose.

Having read both sides, and seen the cake, I'm going to say that the ninja star cake was unfortunate judgment on both sides.

Obviously the jewish decorator did not intentional or maliciously sneak swastikas onto the cake. Obviously the bride did not intend her fun ninja star cake to have an offensive symbol on it.

The mother in this case probably needs to take a deep breath and calm down. The bakery gave them a refund, apologized... why the need to smear someones business over a miss communication and poor judgment?

Katy said...

sweet heavens... I looked at this post 3 times before I realised there was anything sinister about those cakes!! i just thought they were a bit rubbish.

does this mean I'm too sweet and innocent to notice?

Anonymous said...

Censorship sucks. Oh well. Back to the uncensored web, where net nannies don't get all flustered.

Katie said...

I think I almost spit out my drink when I scrolled to the turkey cake...holy moly!

Unknown said...

Actually, it's not censorship. Censorship is generally done by an authority figure onto someone else. I suppose you could say they self-censored, but more accurately what they did was self-edited.

Censorship is bad indeed because it is someone telling someone else what they can say. It is a limitation.

Editing is a series of professional choices designed to put out the best product possible.

Cake Wrecks edited, they did not censor. They made an educated, weighed, and professional decision based on the situation at hand. That is a very good thing and something more blogs should consider doing more often.

john (the hubby of Jen) said...

Thanks Kimberly,

I honestly didn't get the connection between taking down yesterday's post and censorship. I thought he was talking about the disclaimer above the comment section.

Ah well. Thanks again.

john

MelindaB65 said...

No wonder Frankie's sad--just consider where his nose ended up.

Gary said...

"... anyone who writes hate mail to a baker over something like this needs to watch the news for more deserving targets."

I like this comment.
I'm tempted to suggest some more deserving targets, but since this isn't a politics blog, I won't.

Ali A said...

I think it's perfectly fine that the post was taken down.

The cake was badly decorated and the baker made a really bad decision. But, if she is Jewish herself, for her to get racist responses it's quite disgusting. It was a stupid mistake (from both parties) and that was that. Didn't need to take it any further.

As for this post.. I literally LOL when the reindeer(?) popped up.

Anonymous said...

You sure could leave the crude comments UN-POSTED. There's enough garbage on the Internet already, why add to it?

Anonymous said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE these phallic cakes. To me, they are among the most hilarious. Ya know, it's part of life that people have bodies, instinctive urges, desires, and best of all, a powerful unconscious component guaranteed to bring this stuff out now and then.

Thumbs up to your healthy approach and ability to acknowledge and appreciate the humor in being human. :-D Yall are the greatest (Jen & John) and these cakes are among the most hilarious. Ginger

Woodys life said...

Thank goodness my son is still alittle naive he thought frank was the hulk, and all he saw were cupcakes!! I on the other hand say way too much!! LOL

Anonymous said...

The previous day's post surprised me - I saw that it had been taken down, which was disappointing, but didn't see that there was an explanation here until today. Anyway, it's not the post that surprised me, it's the reaction. I thought it looked pretty clear that the baker had just put various shapes on the cake that looked vaguely star-ish, and one just happened to be the same as a symbol of a very bad group of people. It's kind of like Frank's nose in this post - it wasn't intended to look like a particular thing, but it did. And it's funny for that.

As for the hate mail, that just sickened me. We live in a culture of offense - which means that if someone decides they're offended by something, our society informs them that they're absolutely right and should act on that immediately. Don't bother checking out the facts. If you were offended, you must be right. The other person must have deliberately offended you. So you have every right to extract whatever vengeance you so desire. A mistake on a cake is totally worth hate mail. Send death threats, too. That way they'll know that your way of seeing the world is the only right way. Ever.

Seriously. How immature do people get???

Nikki_in_Cali said...

I think I peed a little. I'm typing this from the floor. Oh my hell, those are hilarious.

peewee said...

I actually think that as far as ccc's go...that turkey was good! But oh, poor anxiety ridden franstein...widdle monster needs zanax!

Amber said...

That looks like "The Passion of the Frankenstein."

Pandora said...

I actually like the turkey one. It's pretty darn cute!

LoriAnn said...

Those are greatly gross and weird! I love this site (my friend sent it to me via facebook). I try my best when making a cake to "see" it in my head BEFORE I make the cake!

Anonymous said...

The green Frankenstein looks like something from an English show called The Mighty Boosh.
There's a character called Old Greg that looks like that green monster.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/530183/old_greg/

miss leigh said...

the one thing no one said is that regardless of the symbols, the ninja cake looked horrible and the design in no way resembled lace of any kind... whoever decorated it didn't know what lace is

myusikah said...

Lovely, because family-time cakes made for Thanksgiving and Christmas are meant to have strange-looking male append--

You know what? That's just wrong...

It's so effing hilarious, though. xDDD

Bre said...

I think people aren't getting laid enough and it's on their mind too much while their working

Anonymous said...

I hate to start mass panic.... but I beleive the uh turkey (slap) is *dum dum duhm!* a cupcake cake