Bonn Boni Creative Space

Every time I mention it I always change the name. I like calling it a pastry studio rather than cake studio. I also like calling it the cake space but these days I'm also leaning towards the lab. I will not be focusing on sweets only. My goal with this renovation is to be inspired in a creative space where there are no crayons on the walls or in my case chewed up gum, no toys on the floor (impossible I know) and everything is in its place, you know like my version of Fantasy Island. 

Now that 90% of the contractor work is finished it is my turn to put my personal touch. Just like a well executed cake, it's the details in a space that mater. This lead me down the DIY path for the beautification process. It really is quite nice to just take charge and handle things yourself even if it takes hours, days, weeks or months to complete. So just as I have been documenting my world of cakes I will also be including my projects & progression in the DIY world. I feel if you can handle the technicality's of a cake then it should translate into being a good DIY'er. Let's see if my hypothesis is right :) 

First project Custom Stair Risers

I saw this design over 5 years ago from Peacock Pavilions, it was instant LOVE. You should check out the other stenciling jobs done there, it is absolutely incredible. This one is another fav. 

I knew when I had the chance I would do it. That when is now. Some people do not have the luxury of painting the stencils before the risers are installed. I do not think I would have the patience to do it on the stair itself. 

I noticed in the photo that these ladies are painting on a thin veneer. That could be a good option to update your risers. All you would need to do is glue them on. 

So here is what I completed so far. I am really learning as I go along, reading online if I have any questions. The stair stencils were purchased from creative cutters. It has taken anywhere from 2-4hrs to complete a riser. It really depends if I am focused or getting busy in between.

Trial Run

Pattern #1; Fish Scales

Pattern #2. If the stencil has small details,
skip the roller brush. It will need 5-6 coats using a stencil brush.

13 steps, this pattern will start and end the stairs.

I love it!

I hope you guys enjoy. When all is said and done I will post more specific details such as sealing the acyclic paint, brushes used & fun stuff like that.

Bonn Boni Introduces Manooshe to Fredericksburg

October 5th was the last Farmers Market of the season for Bonn Boni and I wanted to make it special. Not only did we bake up our normal customer favorites such as our marble loaves, baklava, scones, & paleo bars we also included some new creations such as our nutella stuffed chocolate chip cookies, tomato tartletts and red velvet trifle. We baked up a storm and also introduced a brand new food item to the region. Manooshe was made fresh to order on an oven called a Saj. Mariam, the expert on manooshe rolled out the dough like a pro and added Zatar (wild thyme, sesame, sumac, olive oil mixture) mozzarella or both.

Manooshe is a Lebanese flatbread that is made on a Saj, an oven that dates back thousands of years and is common in the area of the Levant (Eastern turkey down to Israel). You can call it Lebanese fast food as people eat this every day for breakfast, lunch or really anytime. This is a very versatile and healthy meal or snack.

Here is a preview of how it is made.

This was such great fun as always. I loved seeing my usual customers as well as new faces. The use of the Saj with the Manooshe being made fresh to order really generated a buzz throughout the market!

    

Jabba the Hutt 3D Cake

I a such a poor blogger but I thought I would share some work in progress photos I took during my creation of Jabba. There is no reason to be intimidated from 3D Cakes as long as you understand the process and ensure that the cake support is adequate. Luckily this cake served about 12 so I did not have to devise any crazy supports. It was pretty straight forward so I used bubble tea straws. 

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Strawberry Cake ready for action 4 layers of a 6" square and 2 layers of a 4" square.

Stacked and Carved. I just go with the flow. I had some Jabba images next to me on my computer for reference. Rice crispy treats molded for the head.

I crumb coat with swiss merengue. Make sure you chill the cake before adding fondant.

Forgot to take pics before this step. Before I added the fondant I added peices of fondant in places of the head there is movement. Like eyebrows, nose, chin and eyes. After draping the fondant I cover with saran wrap as I work on the head details. This prevents the fondant from drying out.

This guy is ready to be painted. I used a combination of petal dust and liquid food paint for this guy.

Being July fourth and all, I thought this was most appropriate :) 

The New Old Me

First ever of it's kind; French Macaron with Torrone filling

Well I am amazed that I have not posted anything since October 2012. I would not call it laziness but there are occasions when I like to do absolutely nothing :) After commuting most of my working life, while attempting to be a halfway decent mother and wife; in addition baking and designing custom cakes for my clients I have made the decision to stop commuting (Big run on sentence but you get the point). Magically, 12 hours of my day has freed up and I can decide what I want to do ! I do consider this a great blessing as I have a extremely supportive husband and family. Every second has not been dedicated to decorating cakes and I am not accomplishing as much as I thought I would or had planned to. I still find my days busy and fulfilling most important I am a present parent in my kids lives. I envisioned staying home I would find myself sipping tea and watching some morning talk show..NOT and no time for that (and they are really bad). I have become selfish and am hitting the gym with my little tike. I have made fitness part of my life and discovered a whole new world of Paleo, which I love. I take a minimum amount of orders a month working on projects that I enjoy doing. So really nothing has changed because I still am who I am, just this whole 9-5 which in my case was 7-7 is now done with and I can really explore endless creative and personal possibilities. Has anyone else made a major positive change in 2013, please share! With that said, here are some of my recent projects.

Lego is in this Spring

Vintage Barbie