Lots of Layers Cake

"A party without cake is just a meeting."

- Julia Child

Yesterday was one of those magical Art Camp days. The kids walked into class bright-eyed and ready to create. I told them that we were going to be making "lots of layers" cakes and they squealed with delight and started to tell me about their favorite cake and their grandpa's favorite cake, and the last time they baked a cake... The excitement was contagious so the room started to hum with joy. I wasn't running around like a spinning top because I did extra prep the night before and pre-mixed the frosting paint colors. The music was going. Paint brushes were being pushed across cake shapes. The kids were complimenting each other's work. The light in the room was just right... magical.

The cake seed was planted a couple of weeks ago when one of my sweet students mentioned to me that she would be turning 10 in our art class on the 22nd. Like she had calculated it down to the minute she was born and the clock was going to "strike 10" while she was in my class. Kind of a big deal. So I knew I had to do something special. I have done a bunch of cake and cupcake projects over the years but lately I have been really hesitant to dust off my old faithfuls. When I first started to teach I would imagine the day when I would amass a huge library of tried and true art projects. Life would be so easy! I would walk into my study, (the one with the giant bookcase that is actually a slide-away door). Behind the secret door, my vault of art lessons. I would just walk in, spin around, and just see where my fingers landed and voila! a perfect project every single time!

Only tried and true can get boring and if I am not excited about what I am introducing, how can I expect my students to be excited? So I day dream, and I play, and I think up new twists... like tall, overly frosted layered cakes with bright berries. Then I introduce the idea and my students make it soar. I am so in love with these sweet cakes.