Hanni Collection » wedding favours

Roses, A la Cath Kidston

Hanni Collection — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:52:30 +0000

Mini Cakes with Roses Inspired From A Cath Kidston Design

My mum and my sisters are all big fans of Cath Kidston. Name it- from diaries to log books, tote, table cloth, tea towel, shopping bag, handbangs, clutch, purse and even holiday bags- they collect them all (the original ones, of course). Now that there are many Cath Kidston imitations products from China, they can collect even the rarest item!

So, with that inspiration in mind, I came out with this mini cake for an engagement gift. I had lots of fun throughout the process. Partially because I’m familiar with the theme and have all the equipment in hands, and mainly because I got to play with the colours that I love!

The roses before make-up session.

I decided to go with the 5 petals roses because they are a lot easier compared to the 9-3-5 version. Basically, I uses 3 different sizes of the 5-petals cutter to achieve the sort-of full bloom roses. The roses weren’t that beautiful before being dusted. I used a few different dusting colours until I was satisfied with the roses. One important tips I learnt about dusting is you have to wait until they have fully dried and harden. It’s a lot easier to mix the colours.

I personally think that it’s best to have the actual flower or picture in front of you when dusting. That way you can refer to the different shades or layers of colour. Initially, this was the final look of the miniature cakes. Somehow, I feel that something is lacking and couldn’t resist piping the dots on the cake. So below is the final look that I came out with.

Stunning aren’t they?

Classic Gold & White Peonies

Hanni Collection — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 15:10:12 +0000

Excuse me for the post title. I couldn’t resist myself. Aren’t they gorgeous? And they are my first too!! My first ever peonies gum paste, and I’m totally rocking it! Hahaha ..

Anyway, this peony, or should I say these gorgeous peonies (vain, I know, but I can’t help it! :*), were made some time ago..can’t exactly remember when. The client requested for a clean and solid cake with only white and gold colour. They didnt specify any type of flower, but I knew instantly that peonies would suit the theme perfectly. And I’m very pleased with the decision made.

I was quite nervous doing them as I had never make one before. Honestly, I get nervous very easily when I’m not familiar with the task. It took me longer than normal flowers or roses to complete the peonies. Not only I had to make sure the peony looked like a normal acceptable sugar peony, I had to come out with a clean and solid one too! Alhamdulilah, I somehow managed my way through it and completed the flowers…Wait for the final cake, I almost cried looking at it. It was, is, sooo cool!

Hydrangeas are a must in all my cakes, and no exception in this one too. To add to the elegant and classical theme, I added the white royal icing stencil. I know there are a lot that I need to work on and improve, but I couldn’t help admiring my own work. Haa! And I’m itching to make another one exactly like this

I’m sssoo loving the hydrangeas. They are live savers! Trust me

Close-up view of the final cake. A few ‘cacat’ stencil, was so nervous applying them.

All in all, it was a really refreshing experience and definitely the beginning of many more peonies to come ..And I’m working hard to improve my stenciling skill too. It may look easy, but it certainly isnt. In case you’re wondering, the petals are there to cover some cracks on the cake

Macarons: First Attempt

Hanni Collection — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 08:04:25 +0000

My first try at macaron~ing. Haa!

Macarons are currently the in-thing in Malaysia. If you step in ANY cafe or bakery around KL, you would definitely find them of the shelf or display rack. The bright and vibrant colours are their major attraction. The taste? I leave it to you to decide. If you have super-sweet tooth, you will like it. If you’re not one, then you would probably want to try it only once, or maybe twice .

Personally, I love macarons on my first bite. But sometimes, the too-sweet taste makes me feel light headed. Having said that, I could have a few in one go if the filling compliments and conceals the too-sweet taste. Not wanting to be left hand, I decided to try making them. Honestly, I’ve tried making them before and was very, truly disappointed. They turned out nothing like macarons, and the tttttoooo sweet taste was a major disaster. So, I decided that the experience didn’t count as a first try!

So, this is my OFFICIAL first try!

Not to bad isn’t it? Despite the ‘pimples’ and ‘crooked leg’, they are passable to be called macarons right?

I decided not to go with bright colours, afraid that people around me won’t feel ’safe’ to consume the macarons. So, pastel it is. As for the filling, normal and less experimental ones like peanut butter, chocolate ganache and vanilla are the best in my opinion. So, I came out with these

Wicked, aren’t they?

Coming soon, my second try!

Engagement Mini Cake

Hanni Collection — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 13:17:18 +0000

These miniature cakes are inspired from the garden theme cupcakes and the rolled ribbon roses mini cakes. They were for my cousins engagement. Truth is, he requested for the 3R mini cakes but I couldn’t find the time to roll the roses. The last two weeks (this week included) was the most crazy ever! With my older sister flying to Southampton for a few months, my youngest sister starting her new job, my mom hurting her back, and datelines for the orders queuing side by side, it was indeed very hectic weeks. Alhamdullilah, despite all that, I managed to get all things sorted out and make my clients happy

The theme for the engagement was … emm the wasn’t any theme actually. I was free to come out with any cake, any design that I have in mind. Having only a day and a half to complete the miniature cakes, I decided to do a simple decoration but still has that sweet look. Less is more, right?

Anyway, I couldn’t decide on the background. Does orange with white polka look better?

Or this one with white and small roses?

The mini cakes are fruit cakes with strawberry glaze, wrapped in vanilla flavoured fondant. Here are some close up views of the cakes.

And luckily, I managed to snap some photos of the cakes on the fully decorated ‘hantaran’ tray, seconds before they were transported to my aunt’s house.

…and yup, my favourite picture. The mini cakes with bite size hat cookies!

Double the taste, double the glam-ness! haha

I’ve got some nice and close-up pictures of the hat cookies..will be posting them soon, ya!

Happy viewing!

Rolled Ribbon Rose Miniature Cake

Hanni Collection — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 14:00:03 +0000

I’ve always wanted to have a go at rolled ribbon rose (what a tongue twister! :p) fondant since I have trouble doing a real looking rose without all the petals going places. I’m not a very patient person, especially when it comes to handling crafty stuff. However, when I came across a tutorial by CakeJournal, I thought of how cute the roses would look like on a cake. Even better, on a miniature cake! Cute little roses on cute miniature cake, and they have to be pink!

An opportunity came when my uncle’s client requested for a miniature cake for ‘hantaran’. And guess what, the theme is pink and purple! One lucky fella coz when I got the combination that I like, I don’t mind going the extra miles even at a slightly lower price. Hehe .

The first few ribbon roses that I made were a bit too pastel colour (the one at the top left corner), so I decided to make a few more shades of colours until I got the combination that I wanted. So the result was this.

This was before I added any leaves and dots on the cake.

Honestly, I didn’t have any idea how the end product should look like. And I never settled on one, IF I have one. I just knew I wanted to have rolled ribbon roses as the toppers and that’s all. But as I worked on the roses, flashes of images and ideas (wwaaa, now I sounded like a real artist! hah!) came to mind and I slowly geared my work to suit the different ideas.

So, this is how the cakes looked like at the end. I wish I could come out with better looking and decent ribbon roes. But considering that this was my first time ever doing a ribbon roses, I’ll let it pass. hehe

Have a go at this ribbon roses! They’re easy to make and you don’t need to be too careful or mindful whether you’ve gotten the right size, the right length whatever. As the name suggested, just roll them and you’ll get the roses (“,)

Brown & Ivory Cupcakes

Hanni Collection — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:26:10 +0000

This is probably the quickest cupcakes ever decorated by me. It was for a cousin’s engagement. As my mom couldn’t attend the engagement, she suggested the cupcakes for them. I was reluctant at first because I had an order of 100 baby shower cupcakes and 100 chocolate lollies to finish and deliver on the same morning. Since all the cuppies were freshly baked because they were going to be used two days after the delivery date, it was impossible for us to complete the order the day before. But I said ‘yes’ anyway coz I know there’s no way I could say ‘no’ to her. hahah!

The cuppies and chocs needed to be delivered before 10am and by 12pm I need to get the engagement cuppies to my aunt. And soon after that, we have to do some shopping for my nephew’s birthday party. Some very wise time management I see there!~Alhamdulilah, we managed to complete and deliver the order by 9am, thanks to my sisters and brother. One down, one more to go!

Anyway, this engagement cuppies idea came from my mom and I agreed immediately because

1) I was too tired to think of anything else

2) She’s (my mom) good with frill so I could leave the work to her (hahha!)

3) I wanted to do a diffirent design and something that looked nice but didn’t require much work or energy and

4) My aunt agrees to my mom’s taste most of the time, if not all.

So this is how the engagement cuppies looked like from the top.

I think it took us about 1 hour or so to finish covering the cuppies, doing the frills, cutting the flowers and leaves and decorating the whole cuppies. There were only 11 cuppies anyway, so it wasn’t that much work. If there’s one thing I could take out from the design, it’s definitely the purple little flowers. I would change it to eemmm..I don’t know. Any suggestions?

Now that they’re all ready to be delivered, it’s time for some shopping, and Chilis of course. Molten cake coming through right behind you!

New Official Website is now Up and Running!

Hanni Collection — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 01:31:32 +0000

Dear all,

Our new offical website for Hanni Collection is now up and running. There are 7 main categories;

Hanni Brooch – lists all brooch products from Korea
Hanni Accessories – lists all accessories products such as bracelets, necklaces, fashion bags, handbag hangers, belts and buckles etc.
Hanni Boutique – lists all fabric and apparel products such as ready-made costume, english and japanes cotton, chiffon etc
Hanni Home Decor – lists all home decor products such as exclusive tableware from Royal Albert and Portmeirion, printed fabric, vintage / collectibles etc.
Hanni Wedding, Gifts and Hampers – lists all wedding favors and gifts, seasonal hampers etc
Hanni Gourmet – lists all home-made gourmet products such as Haari Raya Cookies, wedding cupcakes and cakes, molded chocolate and lollipop etc
Hanni Blog – lists all updates and news

Each category will link to their own photoblog. We’ll try to update / upload new items regularly. So, have fun browsing our products and dont forget to shop till you drop!!

website: www.hannicollection.com

English Country Theme

Hanni Collection — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 08:09:32 +0000

Alhamdulilah! As promised, the english country theme flower pot! Complete with pink polka dot ribbon! . This is the last order I receive for the year 2009 and I’m really glad I’ve made it this far. With only tutorials from my mother, the books and the internet, I’m learning one step at a time and have completed more than 10oo pieces of wedding favours (cakes, cupcakes, fancy cookies) for the past few months.

And to wrap the year 2009. I’ve done this pink flower pot exclusively for my mother’s old friend. Not for her, but for her only daughter’s wedding. I personally chose the colour and concept of the cakes to suit her wedding theme. Since I’ve done a version of this before (refer to It’s a flower pot! It’s a cake! post), I managed to do it quicker than before. The only problem I had was sticking the ribbon to its place.

Front view of the pots.

Top view of the pots.

Side view of the pots.

Close-up view.

Only the mini flower pot is edible. Not the big one or the spoon!

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my family and friends for their support. My clients for their trust. And most importantly, I would to thanks God for making this happen! May the year 2010 bring more and more good health and wealth *wink* for me! Insyalllah. Amin.

Good bye 2009..

Welcome 2010!!!!

My first!..

Hanni Collection — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:57:17 +0000

Yup, my first 3-tier wedding cake! Alhamdulilah!! yeay! Covering large cake is a lot easier than covering mini cake. Smoothing large cakes is also a lot easier than I thought. The hampir-juling youtube and online ‘tutoring’ for covering large cakes has finally paid off! Since this is my first time, I didnt succeed in coming out with nice sharp edges around the cake like professionals do. During my second time, perhaps. heheh . Whatever it is, I’m glad I manage to do this and make my own large flowers too! No more first time after this! For large cakes that is. I still need to try stacking the cakes. Insyallah, a ‘real’ 3 tier-stacked- cake coming soon.

The top tier.

The 2nd tier.

The bottom tier.

The overall look.

I need to work harder!!! Hait!

p/s: in case you are wondering, my post does not get shorter and shorter. I’m just short of time.

Bunga bukan sekuntum, kumbang??

Hanni Collection — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 12:51:40 +0000

Waaahh…tajuk tak boleh tahan! hahah..anyway, this order came from the groom’s family for the bride’s family and the VIPs. One of the hardest to date. Not the client, but the design! The clients are super friendly and one of the most pleasant to work with. The groom’s mother is a Dato’ but she is very humble and motherly.. It was the design that I had problem with.. I had reallly hard time deciding the design and was still unsure of the design even after I was half way completing the order. The clients requested for something simple and easy on the eyes. The theme colours were cream, brown and gold. And no pink if possible, they added. Which is very difficult for me, not to add pink that is, and to come out with a simple design. Being the stubborn girl I am, I added pink nevertheless..hahaha..although it was only that tinny weeny butterfly.. with the simplest design so far..

I couldnt decide whether I should add the pink butterfly or not.

Side view, still deciding about adding more colour to the cupcakes.

OOppss, I did it again!!

I couldnt help it! I need my intake of pink dosee!!

Even the teddy agrees with the addition of pink!! yeay!

Thank you Dato Safiah for the order and kind words!

p/s: this entry was quite short because i didnt not have much problem completing the order. i completed everything in just one night! alhamdulilah!