Sweet Celebrations: The Art of Decorating Beautiful Cakes (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Kate Manchester (Contributor) "Following are listed items that you will need to get started..." (more)
Key Phrases: basketweave tip, green sugar dough, basic buttercream filling, Parchment Two, Turntable Ruler Pencil, Resource Guide (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Sylvia Weinstock designs beautiful cakes. Sharing that opinion are Oprah Winfrey, Donald Trump, and several Kennedys, among other clients of Weinstock's New York cake business. In Sweet Celebrations, Weinstock and coauthor Kate Manchester show readers how they can produce similar edible fantasies--bedecked beauties for all occasions, from weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries to bon voyages, bar mitzvahs, and baby christenings. Readers wanting to learn or refine cake-decorating skills, or those interested in this ever-evolving craft, will welcome the book.

Beginning with basic cake, filling, icing, and wash (syrupy soak) recipes, Weinstock then presents fundamental and advanced cake-designing techniques, including sugar dough work, flower and ribbon creation, and piping methods of all kinds. She then offers 24 cake projects of her own design, each illustrated in color, with detailed blueprints for their construction. Of these, readers will doubtlessly be most entranced with Weinstock's signature flower- and fruit-wreathed marvels such as her Peach Rose Wedding Cake and Marzipan Fruit Cake, but other Weinstock classics, including the Hatbox Cake, the "lace"-covered Cornelli Heart Cake, or the Clown Cake (perfect for children's parties), will prove equally tempting. Weinstock offers a level of difficulty notation for each cake so readers can choose their projects wisely and advance as their decorating skills develop. Not the least of Weinstock's success is due to her commitment to producing cakes that taste as good as they look, further cause for celebrating with her special creations. --Arthur Boehm

Review

Pepole The rich and famous call Sylvia Weinstock to make their sweet dreams come true. -- Review

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (October 13, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684846756
• ISBN-13: 978-0684846750
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 9.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #356,881 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Nice but only for decorating your table, February 18, 2006

By	Toni "the bookworm" (Chicago, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

I normally have a great affinity for any cake decorating book, but as I have progressed in my knowledge and skills, I have learned what "industry secrets" are needed to truly educate. Unfortunately, Ms. Weinstock only offers information in the guise of wanting to share, but in reality, she gives very little.

Much of what is in the book is very generic information on cake decorating. There is little actual teaching because I feel that in the world of Master Cake Decorating, there is a fierce competition and trade secrets are heavily guarded.

She shows you several complex cakes that many people simply will not be able to replicate, due to the intense detail and need for training/education that it requires. You need tools and recipes and formulas and knowledge, which she has failed to impart. Yes, there are the obligatory simple recipes and basic skills given, but you do not get a true cake decorating education.

This is a nice book for working towards the skills needed to reach those fabulous looking creations, but do not expect much in the way of education. If you wish detailed instruction and education, there are several other wonderful books in which to choose.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good book for serious bakers, March 21, 2000

By	"vaustin" (California) - See all my reviews

The cakes and photos in this book are glorious, but this is not a book for a casual baker. The decorations while beautiful are not simple and require special tools. I liked the book very much. The recipes taste good, and the pictures are very detailed and helpful.

27 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Highly over-rated!, July 30, 2000

By	jen (Lexington, KY United States) - See all my reviews

I am a professional cake artist, and have of course heard of Sylvia Weinstock for some time. I was glad to finally have a chance to see some of her work. For someone with such a big reputation, the cakes were very disappointing. Most of the novelty-type cakes were fairly amateurish, and all the wedding cakes have the same basic design, iced smooth and smothered with gumpaste flowers. Seems like piping is definately not her skill. I expected much better quality in the flowers for someone so well known and who commands such high prices! I know many other cake artists whose flowers are much more realistic. Also, the directions were very vague and sometimes inconsistent. This is definately more of a coffee-table type picture book than a serious cake decorating book.