With Friends like these... - Blog - The International Sugar Arts Collection by Nicholas Lodge

Tremendously Talented Friends!

Since this is, in fact, Chef Nicholas Lodge’s blog, I spend a lot of time talking about Chef Nicholas. Today I thought we would take a short break from that, and talk about some of Chef Nicholas’s friends: Marina Sousa, Lauren Kitchens, and Alan Dunn! Each of these cake-decorating extraordinaires are near and dear to the entire ISAC team, and I have some interesting tidbits to share about each of them!

First, let’s talk about tools. A while back Chef Nicholas started his own exclusive line of products, and we have been very pleased to hear that our clients, customers, and students are so happy with the tools function and quality. Well, Marina Sousa and Lauren Kitchens are dipping their toes into the exclusive product line as well! Yup, Marina and Lauren have both developed some really wonderful tools that every cake-decorator must have in their bag of tricks.

Marina has designed several sets of elegant frame cutters, each with its own stylish name: Nora, Stella, and Isabella! Each set comes with four cutters of the same shape, ranging from just over an inch in size to about 4 inches. These are absolutely perfect for giving a modern touch to gumpaste, fondant, modeling chocolate, cookies or cupcakes! Marina also has a versatile Quatrefoil Element Cutter set with nine different cutters- 3 different shapes in three different sizes! Wowza! These bad boys are perfect for cutting or embossing gumpaste, fondant, or modeling chocolate. Both the frame sets and the quatrefoil sets are ideal for creating layered, multi-demensional designs, and multi-colored designs. They are perfect for making plaques for monograms, and all the different sizes mean that you have the perfect sized plaque for a big cake down to a mini cupcake! If you are a fan of sleek, fashionable cakes, then Marina’s Frame Sets and Quatrefoil sets are a must have!

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

If you are a cake sculptor, you are just going to LOVE Lauren Kitchen’s new tools! First up is her two-sided Multi-use Veiner. The single point side is wonderful for etching lines, creating texture, cleaning rough edges, and removing excess paste (a bonus- using this tool helps eliminate fingerprints!). Using the three point side is perfect for creating grass or fur-like texture in fondant, gumpaste, or modeling chocolate! Next we have two different sculpting hooks, Cake Sculpting Hook 1 and Cake Sculpting Hook 2. These guys are both two-sided, so each is really two tools in one! These hooks were specifically designed for fondant, modeling chocolate, and cake! If you have ever wondered how Lauren creates her incredibly detailed sculpted cakes- look no further! Lauren’s Sculpting Hooks will allow you to create both fine lines and deep grooves, giving you far more control than using a knife alone! In addition to her sculpting tools, Lauren has a few more cool products to offer! Chevron designs are very hot right now, and we have you covered with Lauren’s Chevron Pattern Texture Mat set (3 mats- small, medium, and large patterning). I love chevron, and honestly the pattern is great for men, women, children, party cakes, wedding cakes, shower cakes, birthday cakes; you name the occasion and chevron works! The last two products that I want to tell you about were developed for Lauren’s Fast Food Cake Class on Craftsy (Click the class name to get it for a sweet deal!): the Hamburger Patty Silicone Mold and the Lettuce Leaf Silicone Mold. Lauren uses these to, surprise surprise, texturize her giant hamburger and to create absolutely perfect lettuce leaves! Lauren is known for her wild and crazy sculpted cakes, and her exclusive tools really reflect her cake artistry!

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

Photo: Sweet Elite Tools

Photo: S. Ewing/ISAC

With ALL of these new tools from Marina and Lauren, you are sure to take you cake-decorating up to another level! These ladies are crazy talented, and their tools make it easy for us to channel our talents too!

Last, but certainly not least of Chef Nicholas’ friends, is Alan Dunn! Alan just released his newest Craftsy class, Sugar Flowers Off the Garden Path. Alan demonstrates how to make three beautiful wildflowers in this class (along with buds and foliage): daisy, nasturtium, and foxglove. Alan has been in the business for over 30 years, and has been teaching for about 25 years. He has written many books, the first being about wildflowers! I think it is so sweet that at the beginning of the class, Alan says he loves making wildflowers because they remind him of his past and childhood! If you would like to try Alan’s new class click here (or on the name of the class above) for a sweet deal!

Thanks for joining me on this friendly blog about some of our best cake-decorating friends! I hope you all enjoyed reading about each of their new products or classes; of course, I hope you are excited to try them out for yourself as well.

Last week I mentioned that we were sad to say goodbye to Gretchen, and this week we have to say another sad goodbye to Molly #2! Molly is heading back up to her ancestral homeland of Connecticut on Friday. That’s right, two sad goodbyes in less than two weeks. Sigh, we will miss you Molly #2, but good luck on your new adventure!! All of you reading this blog should all come by the store to cheer us up and to pick up some of the new cake tools you read about today- then everyone will be happy!

Sweet Wishes,

Stephanie

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