At last - the Masters!!!

Day 1 and 2:


GUESS WHAT??? It's the MASTERS time!!! Yep, those wonky funny looking cakes that we luuuurve so much! Good thing: no ganache. Bad thing: polystyrene. Great thing: LUIGI is our teacher for this class! Woohoo!!!! This is my first and last class with Luigi, our Mario Brother, lol! Bless him, he's such a great teacher and a lovely guy. Although I think that he's having difficulties adjusting to being surrounded by a horde of women, who have the tendency to slag off their husbands and kids (and males in general!) every other five minutes, lol! But he's doing great - we think!

In this workshop, the students get to choose between those sexy corset cakes and the topsy-turvy cakes. Only Ellie and I have decided to do the Topsy-Turvy in the class. So there I was thinking that I would "take it easy" and all, but that was before Luigi asked us to design our own cakes. For a good 30 minutes, my brain went blank. I couldn't think of good design and couldn't make up my mind about the colours. The funny thing was that within about 5 minutes, I went from "taking it easy" to "ARE YOU FLIPPING INSANE????" cake. The original blank canvas has miraculously turned into a 4-tiered topsy-turvy cake, extra large, with individual designs on each tier, and about 100+ flowers! Could this possibly be any more insane? Yep. Ellie and I have decided to make the flowers together because she hates making roses and I hate suffering on my own, so we now have to make 140 roses together! I wish I could say that this was fun…

Nothing, except from the set-up of the cake, seems overly complicated so far. We're pretty much left to do things at our own pace and the way we like, which is an interesting experience. By the end of the second day, all our cakes and spacers have successfully been iced and flower buds prepared. In a way, I am quite nervous about how my cake will turn out because it's like a proper wedding cake, which I've never really done before. I guess that we'll just have to wait and see!

Day 3:

Sometimes, I feel really bad for poor Luigi. All the women in the room seem to enjoy teasing him a little bit too much and he's now become a common joke, lol! But despite being traumatised by us students, the man ploughed on and continued to give all he's got - always ready to give careful guidance and important advice. He's definitely one of our most favourite teachers!

So Ellie and I have finally finished making our roses! While Ellie carries on making MORE flowers, it was time for me to decorate the cake. As things were starting to take shape, I noticed that my topsy-turvy is looking quite pretty and elegant, which is not my usual style. We were definitely feeling the pressure today - three days have gone by so quickly, it's almost impossible to imagine our cakes being finished! But the show must go on - there's no stopping now. Tomorrow, four of us will be graduating from the Planet Cake Basics Series so we're all really excited! Anyway, I’d better get some rest before the big day. Night night! xx

The Graduation:

The day has finally come. Here we are standing at the end of the road, about to begin our own adventures, left to our own devices. Two months earlier, I would never have imagined myself as an "advanced" cake decorator. The truth is that I feel less than confident to be leaving this safe learning environment and embarking on a new journey - on my own. Will I be able to make it out there? Have I got what it takes? Will people like my products? Will I be able to overcome unforeseen obstacles? I am absolutely terrified!!!

But! If I've learnt anything in the past couple of months, it's that you must believe in yourself and never give up.

Planet Cake has given me SO MUCH - more than I could ever have imagined. To have had the opportunity to learn from some of the best decorators in the world is like a dream comes true. Not only did they offer me a vast amount of knowledge and skills, they also made me feel like part of the family - somewhere where I belonged. When I first came to Australia, I was homesick, lonely and scared. Now, I'm going home with a tonne of life-long friends and family, many of whom I'll never forget.

Thank you, Anna-Maria, CC, Jess, Luigi, Margie, Ritzy, Marianne and Neoko for sharing your valuable experience with me and for making me a decent decorator that I am today. I will never forget all that you've done - your patience, support, encouragement, friendship, guidance. I will try my best to remember all that you've taught me and make you proud some day. You were such wonderful teachers and I am so glad to have had the honour to learn from you - my mentors! So thank you, thank you, thank you a million times for everything! You will all be dearly missed. I hope that we will keep in touch xxx

Thank you, Michelle, Lori, Marisa, Kylie and Debbi for being so awesome and helpful all this time! You've all worked so hard to help me get through those rough and miserable days and you guys made the good days fun! You are truly wonderful in your own ways and I wish you all the best in whatever you do! Keep in touch, k? xxx

Thank you, Lesley, Emma, Thea, Cat, Antony for your big bright smiles and never-ending support. A special thanks to you, Lesley, for organising my lessons and looking after me throughout the duration of my stay! You have all been incredibly helpful and welcoming - it was so great to have met you all!

Thank you, Paris, for allowing me to come into your kitchen and learn from your talented cake artists! Also, thank you so much for all your time, encouragement and assistance - I will try my best to make you proud of me some day! I've had the most amazing experience and will always owe my success to Planet Cake!

Thank you, my classmates, you've my time here really fun and interesting! It was so lovely meeting you all and I wish you all the best for the future! xx

Thank you, Ellie, my sister from another mother! We've had such a fantastic time together and I'll always think of you when I sit alone at home making cakes! You're a truly wonderful friend, rose-making partner, moaning/whining/gossiping/having a banter buddy - I really hope that we'll keep in touch and be friends forever and ever... MWAHAHAHAHAH!!! Love you to bits xxx

Finally, thank you so much my gorgeous readers/fans/audience. You guys inspire me to be better at what I do and helped me to get through tough times. I appreciate all your time and support - I hope that you've enjoyed reading my blogs!

So I guess that this is it for me - the Blog. Although I'm shaking with excitement at the thought of returning home to my beloved family (and dog!), my heart is sinking at the thought of leaving such a fantastic place and its people behind. I'm terrible when it comes to saying goodbyes...

Anyway, before I go, I just wanted to let you know about my new Facebook page! I know that it's still relatively empty, but I am working on building up my portfolios and I'll sure keep you guys updated on the progress of my work. It would mean the world to me if you could all help me out by 'liking' my page. Please visit: http://www.facebook.com/sweetobsessionbkk Thank you so much again in advance!

*SIGH* Is it time to say good bye already?? Well, farewell, Planet Cake. Farewell, Sydney. Farewell, everyone. Thank you so much for everything - you'll all be dearly missed! I hope to be back here again some day! Until next time!

Pam xxx