THE DESSERT TABLE

BASIC FOOD STYLING & FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP 4TH FEB 2012

2012-02-07T12:34:00.005+08:00

Salam & Hi,

Our 2nd Basic Food Styling & Food Photography class on the 4th Feb was fabulous! The class was 80% hands-on and the rest are theories done briefly while exploring the functions of the participants DSLRs. I totally liked the format Pak Uda!

Thank you so much to Chef Ali Mohamad Nor (or better known as Pak Uda Ali among his many students) from Food'O'graphy for coming back again to teach this fantastic and informative class to us.

Another shot of the Blueberry Tart while doing the food styling prep

Pak Uda Ali guided the students through understanding their DSLRs. Some never ventured out of the Auto program button. After this no one should touch that button ever again okay!

Yani of Kitchen Guardian. Perfect pose for TDT's next class flyer. Also thanks for helping with the prep a bit Yani! and as usual your macs are fantabulous and dangerous! I had it for breakfast laaaa...

The participants discussing among themselves. I wonder what it could've been :)...

Blueberry Tartlets Shot

Mini Cheesecake Shot! I forgot to put some cream on top, it would've looked ever better !

More photos and reviews on www.alimohamadnor.blogspot.com or google FOOD'O'GRAPHY.

Thanks to all that came for the class - Yani, Chef Amer, Diana, Eshah, Sham, Sheriza, Cikmin who came all the way from Bentong, Elizabeth - the travel photographer, Marliya and her daughter Ainaa - who bought another camera to come for the class. Wonderful and gorgeous people! It was wonderful meeting all of you. Hope you'll come back for more of our classes and workshops in the future ya...

Next class Update 18th FEB 2012 :

Our Chocolate class will be replaced with Commercial Chocolate cakes Class also by Chef Amer. MARK the DATE ok!

PLEASE CHECK THE SMALL BOX ON THE TOP LEFT SIDE OF THIS BLOG FOR MORE INFO ON THIS EXCITING WORKSHOP.

Till then, take care...

Farida Ismail
The Dessert Table

2012-01-30T15:35:00.000+08:00

Assalamulaikum wbt and Hi,

So, while munching on Lyza's delicious biskut udang kering, am staring at the screen, long enough to realize that I've been in 'real' business for 1 1/2 months. Hmmm... sure feels like I've been doing it a looooonggg time. I mean we haven't even launched The Dessert Table properly yet. I'm still juggling up brochure designs, menus and class schedules and orders and some other business prospects that I am now officially a mess. Like today I completely forgotten where I put that newly develop cake photos I picked up from the shop yesterday.

If it weren't for my two gorgeous friends, you'd probably find me under the bed, hiding from the world, in my comfort zone.

But I thought bout what Hubby asked me the other day, well on the 17th to be exact, 'would you rather you had gone traveling around the world or would you still rather do this? This means opening up Dessert Table.' Hmm... I would open up The Dessert Table and then go traveling..hahaha..oopppsss!

Anywhooo...for the past 1 1/2 months, I've met wonderful and soooo very very helpful people with the most gorgeous souls indeed. I love it that my days now are feel with new experiences and new friendships that I hope will develop into a lasting ones. Am so grateful to Allah for sending these beautiful people along my way...they certainly enriched my life with wisdoms and funny bones...hahaha..

Indeed only Allah will repay all your kindness to me. I pray for your happiness and blessings and bounties from Allah for you and your families. Someone get me a tissue...

Cik Mas, my smurfette, looking so serious at what I was showing her :) . She helped with the cactus tree and Vie the traffic light...you rock Girl!!

The hand responsible for Wilson. Thanks Lyzs, *huggsss*

Jher Wey said, mom where's Coco? hahahaha... Sorry kiddo, no space for aunty to put Coco neh..

HAPPY 4TH BIRTHDAY JHER WAY!
Jher Wey's mom had this to say :
Hi Farida. I would like to sincerely thank you for the nice cake you made for Jher Wey. The kids were having lots of fun eating the 'sand and stones', even the 'railway tracks' today. Thanks so much for the great work. The cake tastes very good too. It is fresh and moist. We adults enjoyed it very much.
THANKS NIC!

Wedding Anniversary Cake for Datuk E & Datin N
plus 50 cuppies bearing monograms of their initials, which I didn't get to snap, coz I forgot, duhh!

Updates:

Our next Food styling and Food Photography Workshop will be at the end of this week. Am still thinking of the subject to prepare for the shoot. What would like to see being shot? Yani, who's coming this time around, will be bringing in her famous macs. I've also asked her to make some bigger size meringue, we'll see what we can do with that. In the mean time, I'm still blurrish bout what to prepare. Cakes seems so boring. I'll have to pour deep into those mags and books to find some inspirations.

In the meantime, let me go back to those menus and pricing and so many other things pending.

You have a great week ahead!

Love

Farida

The Dessert Table

DESSERT SERIES CLASS - Blackforest, Strawberry Cream Cake & Pavlovas

2012-01-14T22:45:00.001+08:00

Salam & hi,

When I first started blogging few years back, never had it crossed my mind that one day I would have a reader, a real one that is.. I imagine the numbers that grew on the side bar could just be mine, clicking in & out my own blog..hahaha..

Let alone met up with one, or two.. :)

Today, 2 of my phantom readers, Juliana & Mimi came to life. I can finally say, am not the only one reading my blog..woot woot!

A back to back class ( I had to skip my asam pedas lunch today), Ju came in to learn cakes from The Dessert Series - Blackforest Cake & Strawberry Creamcake.. I hope you had fun and will come back for more classes Ju...

Strawberry Creamcake by Juliana

And then Mimi who came down from Penang yesterday just to learn how to make Pavlova. I hope you'll make lots of pavlovas for the Penangites Mimi..All the best to you..do come again ya..

Mini Strawberry Pavlova by Mimi from Penang

Mini Blueberry Pavlova with Mimi from Penang

Am having the time of my life right now. A dream come true. I hope you'll never stop dreaming till yours come true too. If Allah wills it, it will come true for your too.

Take care
Farida Ismail

BENGKEL ASAS TEROKAI COKLAT BERSAMA CHEF AMER

2012-01-12T11:58:00.000+08:00

Salam & Hi,

You love chocolate? Want to make some for your kids birthdays? Or maybe make that Surprise Love Chocolate for your love ones..:)..well, fret NOT!

InsyaAllah, Chef Amer will be with us to reveal all his secrets to making good delicious chocolate *drool*.

BENGKEL ASAS TEROKAI COKLAT
BERSAMA MASTER CHOCOLATIER CHEF AMER

DATE : 18TH FEBRUARY 2012
TIME : 10am - 4pm (tentatively)
TO BRING : APRONS
PARTICIPANTS : 12 ONLY
TYPE OF CLASS : HANDS -ON
LOCATION OF CLASS : THE DESSERT TABLE
ADDRESS : 12A-1 JALAN PJU 7/16A MUTIARA DAMANSARA (near The Curve)
FEES: RM270 ONLY

So don't wait too long. Call me on 013-3554399 or email me your interest at farida71@yahoo.com TODAY!

Take care,
Farida Ismail

FUN CAKES WORKSHOP @THE DESSERT TABLE

2012-01-10T09:07:00.001+08:00

PAPA SMURF & GANGS HAVING FUN IN THEIR SMALL LIL' VILLAGE

SMURFS @ THE DESSERT TABLE

PAPA SMURF @ THE DESSERT TABLE

Details :
A 2-tier cake with Smurfs having fun in their Village. You will have fun making cute little Smurfs and their Cottage complete with the decorations for a Village surroundings :).

Date : 31st JAN & 1st FEB 2012
Time: 10am - 4 pm
Fees : RM450/person
Required : RM100 to secure your place.

To bring : Gumpaste/fondant modelling tools, small rolling pin, small scissors, aprons, box to bring the cake home.
We will provide the dummies & cake board, colors & other necessary equipments needed for the class.

INTERESTED? REGISTER TODAY BY SMS 013-3554399 OR EMAIL farida71@yahoo.com.

HIGHLIGHTS OF CLASSES & WORKSHOPS IN JAN/FEB 2012

2012-01-06T20:47:00.004+08:00

Salam &Hi,

We have lined up pretty exciting classes& workshops for Jan & Feb 2012 at THE DESSERT TABLE. If you are interested in any of the classes please do not hesitate to call/sms me at 013-355 4399 or email me at farida71@yahoo.com for more details.

BASIC BLOGGING WORKSHOP - 11th Feb 2012

Date : 11th February 2012
Time : 9am - 4pm
Fees : RM380 (lunch not provided)
Requirements : Please bring your own laptop with broadbands in order to build the blogs on-site, guided by our instructor.

Details : Our Instructor will guide the participants through building their own blogs using the Wordpress engine. You'll learn the basics of blogging, graphical designs and a lot of other necessary skills for you to have in order to optimize the usage and traffic into your blogs. More traffic means more business for you. So, why wait? REGISTER TODAY. We need a RM100 deposit to book your place. Only 10 participants for this workshop. Hurry!!

FOOD STYLING & FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP - 4th Feb 2012

Table setting for the food photography

First batch of our Food Styling & Food Photography
Workshop with PAk Uda Ali

Our first workshop was a huge success. Now, due to popular demand, we are bringing this fantastic Workshop to you again. Make sure this time you register early...

Date : 4th Feb 2012
Time : 10am - 2pm
Fees : RM260 (lunch not provided)
Requirement : Please bring your own DSLR so you can manually set your camera setting to get the best shot for your photos.

Details : You'll be walked through the basics of food styling and its composition. Also the kind of props necessary for the shot to look professional. You'll also be taught on how to use your DSLRs especially to beginners who never use anything other than P or Auto. After this class, no more Auto mode okay...

DESSERT BAKING CLASSES

Personal/ private class
We have on-going Dessert Series Classes but if you would like to have a personal one-on-one or two to one with a friend, you are much welcome to enquire. Our Personal Class fee is RM180 per dessert with a minimum of 3 desserts perclass.

Group Classes
For a group of 3-5 pax, our Dessert Series Class will be RM150 per dessert with a minimum of 2 desserts per class.

OFFER
We'll be so happy if you would bring 4 of your friends with you to have classes with us that we are going to give you a DISCOUNT of 40% OFF your class fee! How about that? So apalagi, gather your friends and enjoy huge discounts off your class fees. But of course, this only applies to the ones who introduces okay...

Menus from our Dessert Class
* Pavlovas
* Red Velvet Cakes
* Carrot Cakes
* Fudgy Brownies
* Marbled Cheese & Chocolate Brownie
* Cakey Brownie with Marshmallow fluff toppings
* Hazelnut chocolate cake with Salted Caramel Cream top
* Blackforest Cakes
* Strawberry Cream Cake
* Moist Chocolate Cake
* Vanila Butter Cake with Italian Meringue Icing
* Chocolate Butter Cake with Chocolate toppings
More items will be added soon!

You can also order Desserts from the above menu. Call us for pricing!

We will also be adding Savoury Items like Chicken pies and whatnots to our class & order menu soon!

Enjoy your weekend! Take care,

Farida Ismail

TRIPLE BROWNIES EXPLOSIONS CLASS WITH ZALINA YAHAYA

2012-01-05T17:24:00.000+08:00

Salam and Hi,

Triple Brownie Explosions Class continues with Zalina Yahaya from BZee Bakery Seremban. Havoc! Havoc! Bak kata Cik Mas, kita pi tempat dia kita kena buli, dia mai tempat kita pun, kita kena buli...haiii..nasib badan le...

Apa pun kelas ni memang sangat kecoh tapi hasilnya tengok la sendiri. Dari segi rasanya, Pn Zalina kata Fudgy Brownie memang mengganggu jiwa dan raga dia apabila mengunyahnya perlahan-lahan. Marbled Cheese and Chocolate Brownie pun dah jadi favorite dia tapi yang paling Hubby dia suka is the Marshmallow Fluff Topped Brownie. Lain dari yang lain kata Hubby dia la..

So kalau you all nak jantung you pun berhenti berdegup sekejap macam Zalina, call 013-3554399 atau email farida71@yahoo.com untuk info lanjut. Harga Kelas Persendirian ialah RM540 untuk 3 jenis brownies ni. Sesiapa yang nak bawak kawan, lagi best, bawak 4 kawan dan dapatkan kelas anda at 40% discount. Fees untuk kawan2 anda ialah RM450 seorang. Nak? Jangan tunggu lama2 ya...

Now, we provide photography services if you can hang around for extra 1/2 hour for us to set up our studio..:). We can give you a complementary soft copy of the photoshoot through email.

Take Care,
Farida Ismail

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!!

2012-01-01T07:55:00.003+08:00

Assalamualaikum and a Big HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012 to you!!!

My oh my, how the days past us by. And it's already a brand new year today. 2011 had been good, very sweet for us and we're hoping and praying that 2012 has even more goodies in store for us.

How about you? I hope everything went well in 2011. Even if it didn't look too good, like I always tell my friends, someday, sometime from now, you'll be in a better place where you'll be saying the same thing I'm saying today - If the worst didn't happen, I won't be here, enjoying today. So I've learnt that nothing is bad or good, it's how you see it and go through it. So alhamdulillah for Allah's guidance.

Having said that, we've been busy closing the Year 2011 on a sweet note.

An Engagement cake for Hj Harun & Hjh Zah's daughter.

Engagement Cake

We also had our Dessert Class yesterday with Kella Zakaria. Hope you'll be making lots of these, Kella, and who knows where these sweet things might take you... We'll see you next month with other sweet things ok. For those who want to learn all these Dessert Cakes or Pastries, call 013-3554399 for inquiries or booking.

Our favorite Fudgy Brownie

Blueberry Pavlova

The Sexy Velvet

We told you something was going to happen on Wednesday yeah..

Well, we had Karangkraf shooting our pastries for their RASA Magazine ;)). They wanted 15 types of pastries themed Herbs & Spices to be featured for their March 2012 issue. So here are some them photo that I manage to snap before the food vanished into thin air, ahaksss! We made, among others, Rustic Chicken Pie, Rustic Apple Pie, Vegetarian Bruschetta, Sausage Rolls, Onion Buns, Ginger Cake, Prune Cake with Caramel Sauce and lots more. If you want the recipes for our pastries, wait for RASA March 2012. You can try them and enjoy them with your families.

To my dear friends and family who dropped by to show us your support, love you all!!

Karangkraf photographer, taking photos of our pastries for RASA issue March 2012.

Our Rustic Chicken Pie, a delicious hit!

Styling the quiche with props for the magazine shoot.

Lemon & Blackpepper Macs by Yani

Mocha Macs with Cinnamon filling by our fav mac vendor - Yani of Kitchen Guardian

Beef Pie

Black pepper Cheese Sticks

Our rustic Apple Pie

Onion & Cheese Quiche

Sausage Rolls via Instagram

I have loads to do rolling into 2012. Do drop by THE DESSERT TABLE. We are opened everyday except Sundays and Public Holidays.

Here's what's in store for Jan/Feb 2012 :

BAKING & DECORATING CLASSES
* Basic class: Cupcake - Bake and Decorate your very own cuppies!
* Basic Class : How to make Sponge & Genoise cakes from scratch. It's so easy!
*Basic Class : Delicious butter cakes. every baker worth their salt should have good butter cakes recipes up their sleeves.
* Fondant 101 : Learn how to cover your cake with fondant and then style them pretty!

* SPECIAL DESSERT WORKSHOP BY GUEST INSTRUCTOR :
- Hot Desserts Workshop - learn how to make 4 types of hot pastries and style them on plates like the professionals do.
- Cold Dessert Workshop - learn how to make cold desserts and how to serve them on individual platings.

SKILL BUILDING WORKSHOPS :
* Food Styling & Food Photography Workshop - our 1st workshop with Pak Uda Ali was a hit! So we will be having another one for those who had missed our 1st workshop. Make sure you don't miss it this time yeah :)

* Food Blogging for Beginners - you'll learn to set up you own blog using Wordpress platform. Our guest Instructor will help you design your own pretty blogs and how to generate traffic into your blogs. Bakers, beginners or not, you need this tool for marketing your lovely home bakes.

Watch out for the dates of classes and workshops next week!

FOR MORE INFO/ INQUIRIES OR ORDERS PLEASE CALL 013-355 4399 OR EMAIL farida71@yahoo.com.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Love,
Farida Ismail

Brownies & Cake Class with Sue Azmi

2011-12-21T23:06:00.000+08:00

Brownies & Cake Class with Sue Azmi. Thanks Sue!

Chocolate Cake with Marshmallow Fluff

Salam and hi,

It was lovely to finally met up with Sue. Hope she had a great time and would come back to The Dessert Table again.

I have a new team mate who'd joined The Dessert Table since Monday. Welcome on board Miss R. Hope we'll have some awesome time creating desserts and cakes together.

Something is brewing for next week. But I can't let it out yet. Wait till Wednesday and insyaAllah I'll let you in all about it :).

Meantime enjoy this coming holiday weekend. Time to look for those school uniforms and books again!

Cheers and love,
Farida Ismail

Food Styling & Photography with En. Ali Mohamad Nor @ The Dessert Table

2011-12-18T00:44:00.002+08:00

Single serving Blackforest Cake, in the background I made strawberry trifle, also single serving.
I made 4 of these babies especially for our Food Styling & Food Photography Workshop today.

Sweet sweet Macs :) I love passionfruit macs.

Aloy busy tinkering with his DSLR. On his left is the table set up for styling and photography.

Pak Uda Ali explaining about 45 degree angle shot using the tripod

Trying to make it look sweet :)

Another angle to add interest.

A shot I took at the workshop today.

Food Styling & Photography Workshop with Pak Uda Ali @ The Dessert Table 17/12/2011
Thank you all for coming!

Salam and hi,
MasyaAllah, what a great day we had! The workshop was fun and very-very informative and so good!! Just look at my photos today and the ones on the side of this wall..what big difference!!

Now I know more about lighting and how to adjust the camera manual, with actual know-how instead of just guessing :) The hands-on session was really good as everyone get to try taking shots of the desserts from different angles and view.

Hahahaha..it was fun when now and then you hear remarks like 'ooohhh.. that's what viewfinder is' or 'oohhhh...i never knew we could do that....' and many more...lovely..just lovely!!

I hope everyone went back a button wiser than before..LOL!!

Thanks to Pak Uda & his crew, Zalina from Seremban, Azmi from Singapore, Fuziah from Melaka, Linda from Ipoh, Cik Mas, Renu, Sapiyyah, Marlina, Enn, Roza, anak kak Nurul and Rozita (sorry didnt get their names), Aloy, and Hellen from Bali.

For those who had registered and some paid, we will be repeating this Basic Workshop, insyaAllah early next year. We hope to see you @ The Dessert Table, armed with your DSLR, ready to shoot on target LOL!!

Credit where they're due:
Props were prepared and set up by Pak Uda Ali and his crew
Those yummilicious macs were by Yani
The chocolates by Renu
Chocolate Tart by Mastura
& lastly those cute little Blackforest cakes and Strawberry Trifle in those long sexy stem glasses - those I made this morning.

Take care & have a great weekend!

Farida Ismail

THE DESSERT TABLE - Soft Launch @ 10/12/2011

2011-12-13T17:25:00.003+08:00

Alhamdulillah, alhamdulillah, all praise be only to Allahu Subhanahu wata'ala, the All Mighty that only with His Blessings and Mercy, had made this day possible for us.

Finally, THE DESSERT TABLE is HERE!!!!! We are so happy!!!

Last Saturday, 10/12/2011, we had our a small gathering of families and friends to commemorate our Soft Launch of THE DESSERT TABLE :)..

Nothing fancy, just a small majlis as a token of gratitude and to celebrate those who are dear to me, who had been standing behind me, with tremendous love and support, giving me the strength and courage to see this project through. Alhamdulillah.. Thank you all for your love and understanding, for there were times when I was so busy I can't attend to some of your needs, or for the times when I'm just to tired to get up and lend a helping hand when they need me.

A big thank you also goes out to The Dessert Table friends, Mastura of Chomel Cupcakes, Lyza Ghazali of Rollypops, Siti and Phahmy of Tytatreats, Anizah Baharudin of Deliciously Chocolates, Yani of Kitchen Guardian & my newfound temp-maid, Rowena. Love, hugs & kisses to all of you for making it possible for us to have fun filled day with gorgeous and scrumptious desserts on our beautiful and sweet Dessert Table.

Welcome to The Dessert Table!!

Something to remember

THE DESSERT TABLE - CAKE BAKING & DECORATING STUDIO

THE DESSERT TABLE now offers you various classes on Sugarcrafting, Baking, Cake decorating and skill enhancing workshops like Food Styling Workshops, Food Photography Workshops, Food Blogging for Homebakers Workshops and many others.

Sugarcrafting Courses

Introducing our new offering, Scrumptious & Gorgeous & Sweet Dessert Table, a service where you can order a full range of Cakes, Pastries and Desserts for your events. Any types of cakes, cupcakes, pastries and desserts that tickle your fancies, just name it and we will do our best to cater them for you.

We will help you design the dessert table layout and color scheme to suit your events, be they Birthdays, Weddings, Corporate Launches, Annual Corporate Dinners etc.

We will provide the Backdrops, crockeries and framed Logo or Event Theme and fresh flowers/candles and all that are needed make the table gorgeous and beautiful.

We made this dessert table last week.

Dessert Table set-up for our Soft Launch

The Dessert Table

Candies for kids

Pavlova

Happy 15th Birthday to Didi

Family & friends celebrating our Soft Launch

Elegant cake with the events theme framed on the backdrop.

Fudgy Brownie

Macarons

Peaches & Cream Cupcakes

Delicious Eclairs

The Dessert Table
12A-1 Jalan PJU 7/16A
Mutiara Damansara
Petaling Jaya
Selangor

FOR INQUIRIES ON CLASSES & WORKSHOPS AND DESSERT TABLE SERVICE ORDERS, DROP US A MAIL AT farida71@yahoo.com or CALL 013-3554399.

We will be publishing our January 2012 workshops and Dessert Table Menu soon! So watch out for this space!!

In the meantime, our FOOD STYLING & FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP which had been overbooked, will be happening this Saturday, insyaAllah. And for those who had to be KIVs, we'll have another one soon, insyaAllah.

Till then, take care!!

Love,

Farida Ismail

The faces supporting The Dessert Table's soft launch, big thanks from us!!

Mastura of Chomel Cupcakes, Siti & Farita of Tytatreats

Cik Mas, my semangat.

FOOD STYLING & FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP - 17TH DEC 2011

2011-11-29T07:21:00.000+08:00

Assalamulaikum wbth & Hi!!

This workshop is OVERBOOKED! Registration for this workshop is officially CLOSED. If you would like to attend our next Food Styling & Food Photography Workshop which, insyaAllah will be held again early next year, please email me (farida71@yahoo.com) your interest and we'll contact you with details of next workshop.

Thank you to those who had confirmed their seats with us.

See ya!!

Farida Ismail

WE WANT YOU!!

2011-11-16T22:22:00.001+08:00

Image is borrowed from Plumbheavy.ca

THE DESSERT TABLE IS LOOKING FOR A SUITABLE PERSON TO BE PART OF OUR SWEET TEAM!

We are looking for a Dessert-loving person, who would love to grow sweeter with us, to be on our sweet DESSERT TABLE team.

Fresh graduates from local institution with a Culinary or Baking qualification or persons with experience in Baking & Cake Decorating are encourage to apply. Salary will commensurate with qualifications or experience. The Candidate should be between 22-35 years of age. Having own transport will be a plus. Ladies only.

Call/SMS me at 013-3554399 or email me your resume at farida71@yahoo.com and we'll arrange for an interview.

BASIC FOOD STYLING & FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP 17TH DEC 2011

2011-11-13T07:09:00.007+08:00

Chef Ali Mohamad Noor or better known as Pak Uda Ali, at a Canon Pro Talk - Food Styling for Photography workshop

UPDATES: ONLY 3 MORE SEATS AVAILABLE! HURRY! Sign up TODAY!!

A gorgeous composition from Pak Uda Ali

Another example from From Food Styling & Food Photography class by Pak Uda Ali

Assalamualaikum and hi,

I've got good news for you!!! DSLR NEWBIES, DSLRS FANS, YOU CAN'T MISS THIS!!!!

InsyaAllah, during the Workshop, we are going to have DSLRs promotions going on!!! InsyaAllah, CANON will be making their presence @ The Dessert Table AND you'll be able to purchase Canon DSLRs and/or lenses, at student's offer price during our workshop on the 17th Dec, 2011. Discounts, insyaAllah, will be between RM200-RM300 on Canon products, which comes with 1+1 year Warranty on all Canon original products , only on the Workshop day . Alhamdulillah, thank you Pak Uda Ali for making this possible!!

We are bringing the world's best to you @ The Dessert Table and places are limited. We only have a few more places available so don't wait no more! CALL/SMS US TODAY AT 013-3554399 OR EMAIL farida71@yahoo.com to book your place. A non-refundable deposit of RM100 is required to secure your booking with us or you can pay the full amount of RM250. Maybank acc : 5624 7812 9617. Let us know of your payment and Please keep the bank-in/transfer receipts and mail it/MMS it/bring it to us on Workshop Day as proof of payment.

Details of workshop can also be found in previous post.

SEE YOU AT THE DESSERT TABLE!!

Love,

Farida Ismail

BASIC FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP

2011-11-08T14:54:00.003+08:00

A sample of Chef Ali's work.

Chef Ali

PHOTO BELONGS TO CHEF ALI MOHAMAD NOOR

YOU WANT YOUR CAKES/DESSERTS/FOOD TO LOOK LIKE THESE PHOTOS?? YES? THEN READ ON...

Good news for all Foodie Bloggers and all the Bakers and Cake Decorators out there!!! Let's do justice to our delicious food/cakes/pastries. No more dull and boring looking photos of our products!

InsyaAllah, The Dessert Table will be having a BASIC FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP with Chef Ali Mohamad Noor at our place!!

Date : 17th December 2011

Time : 10am - 2pm

Fees : RM250 per person

Venue : The Dessert Table

Max no. of persons per workshop : 15

* Refreshments and light snacks will be provided throughout the workshop. In the interest of time, lunch will be provided at the end of the workshop.

Introduction

The workshop will be conducted for 4 hours with elements of theory, demonstration and hands-on approached. Participants will be exposed to basic techniques of food photography using available lighting/natural lighting. The following elements will be focused throughout the workshop:

* Introduction to basic food photography

* Purpose of food photography

* Setting up for food photography

* Basic camera setting for food photography

* Concept, object, props and styling

* Angle of shoot in food photograph

Who should attend this workshop?

Beginner in photography and those who would like to explore the food photography are welcome. Food enthusiast that love to snap pictures of their creation and anyone that feel food can communicate are equally welcome. In short, those who knows and aspires to be like Mowie Kay of Mowielicious Should BE HERE!!

What to bring along?

Bring along your camera preferably a decent DSLR camera (including lenses 18 – 55mm, macro lens, will help to get the most from the workshop), laptop (be sure you have installed your camera software), a tripod (bring extra if you got any),

*EXTRA : IF YOU WANT TO PERSONALIZE YOUR SHOTS PLEASE BRING THESE ITEMS OTHERWISE WE WILL BE PROVIDING THEM AT OUR PLACE : plate (white fancy plate to present your food), food product (dessert, cakes, fruits etc), linen of any color (table cloth, table runner etc), black and white mounting board, and any props that you think appropriate.

Anything else? ---- Off course pen, pencil, notebook and your good self (please come with an open mind and you will be enjoying the session with us)

What are expected from participants?

Understanding of camera is essential, especially on setting up the ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed.

Don't wait too long to make that decision folks! We have only 15 places available. Those without DSLR but only have a normal good compact are also welcome to join our workshop :)

A bit about Chef Ali Mohamad Noor : Chef Ali is a Chef by profession and currently is attach to UiTM's Culinary and Gastronomy Dept as a Senior Lecturer.

SMS me your details at 013-3554399 or leave me your comment or email me farida71@yahoo.com TODAY!

Double pleasures - Brownies with marshmallow toppings

2011-11-05T22:37:00.000+08:00

Fudgy Chocolatey Brownies with Marshmallow spread.

Eid Mubarak to you,
Subhanallah! It's the Day of Arafah today. May the hujjajs be granted with hajj al mabrurah, ameen ya rabbal a'lamen.

Introducing a new item on the class list, Fudgy and Chocolatey Brownies with Marshmallow spread. Come & learn how to make delicious brownies (you'll never want to buy ever again!) and make your own fluffy and light yummy marshmallow ( and halal! most important!). It's delicious as toppings or filling..your choice. InsyaAllah we'll start our classes in December 2011. Book your places now! Call me at 013-3554399 or email me at farida71@yahoo.com for more details.

Have a good holiday!

THE DESSERT TABLE

2011-11-01T00:41:00.000+08:00

Alhamdulillah, I'm happy to bring to you 'THE DESSERT TABLE', our new shop which will, insyaAllah, starts operating in December 2011.

We'll bring you fun & exciting classes on Desserts Cakes, Wedding Cakes, Birthdays Cakes, etc etc plus we'll also have some fun and very useful cake decorating tools. InsyaAllah when we are fully operating by January next year, we'll be taking orders as well.

I'm trying to bring the PME Diploma Courses and tools here as well, insyaAllah, and negotiations are still underway. So, insyaAllah, lots of exciting things will be happening okay..

In the mean time, you can book your place for classes in December now. I'll be having delicious Dessert classes to kick-off the soft launch. Choose 3 desserts that you would like to learn for a one-on-one class, from the list below, and SMS or email me your chosen date. Classes will be open from 5th December 2011.

Meanwhile, I'm thinking of a soft launch before we officially open for business...but, it's still a secret ;)).

Those of you who had email me for classes, take this opportunity okay. It's going to be pretty basic class so no worries if you're a beginner. Book your places TODAY!!

Russian Black & White Cake
Fees : RM180

The Queen of Dessert I call it!
Light & Fluffy and healthy to boot
Berry Pavlova
Fee : RM180

Miss Sexy, the infamous
Red Velvet Cake
Fee : RM180

Chocolate Hazelnut with Salted Caramel
Extremely lethal!!
Fee : RM180

Absolutely delicious Brownie
We only use high quality Chocolate and Cocoa powder for our Brownie
RM180

Perfect for chocolate and cheese lover
Marbled Cheesecake Brownie
RM180

Classic & Delicious
Cherry Pie
RM180

We have these delicious Dessert Classes lined up for you to chose any 3 from. So don't wait! Book your place and be ready to dazzle your loved ones with your baking skills.

Some important points to remember :
1. Book your places at least 3 days earlier than the intended date.
2. Bank-in a deposit of RM100 to secure your place at least 2 days before class.
3. We would appreciate early notification of any cancellation so as not to waste money on products unused.
4. Classes will start from 10am and ends at 5 pm, the latest.
5. We are closed on Sundays only.
6. Just bring yourself and your smile and have a good time!!

THE DESSERT TABLE is located in Mutiara Damansara, about 5-10 minutes walking distance from the Curve and Ikea.

Call me at 013-3554399 or email me at farida71@yahoo.com for more details or to book your places.

TEASER ;))

Next, we will bring MARSHMALLOW(halal) AND WHOOPIE PIES classes to you!!! WAIT FOR IT OKAY!!

PME Royal Icing Module October 2011

2011-10-31T23:05:00.000+08:00

Assalamualaikum and hi,

MasyaAllah... I've been on a hiatus for a loooong time... :) Well, I've been busy. I've just finished a PME Royal Icing class last week with 11 students, 10 of them are instructors from Pusat Giat Mara, from all over Malaysia. Cikgu cikgi, maaf sangat2 kalau saya tak ingat nak sebut nama some of you ya..maklumla, dah berumur ni..hahaha..

I've uploaded some of the photos I took throughout the week. I hope they had enjoyed learning as much as I had enjoyed imparting knowledge to them. Well, as they say, pictures tell a 1000 words, right? Enjoy the photos...

All 12 Final Cakes on display

Nice color. The students were loved bold colors for their cake creations.

Complete with a swan couple okay...

Lovely colors

My demo cake, done together with my faithful assistant, Ida

Hurray!!! All the 24-28 October 2011 PME Royal Icing Graduates!! Congrats y'all!!!

Cikgu Hamzah

My demo cake

Cikgu Azmer

Cikgu Nor Hanifah dari Sabah

First day demo cake

Smiley girls are happy girls

She's got lovely smile

Brush embroidery technique

apa yang kelakar sangat tu?

My assistant Rafidah Yunus

Kak Zu

Tekun

Practice always makes perfect

Cikgu Azmer, always tackled his work seriously. Good job Cikgu!!

I have more photos but I can't seem to upload them. Maybe later when the line is not so jammed.

ANYWAYS, I have goods news!!!! Continue reading please....

Alhamdulillah, I'm now a very happy and proud owner of my own outfit. I've named it "THE DESSERT TABLE". Our shop is in Mutiara Damansara area, bout 5 minutes away from the Curve.

I'm soooo happy!!! Right now we're in the midst of starting a minor renovation to make the place nice and fit for classes. We're hoping to open for soft launch in December and go live in January 2012.

I'm starting some classes in December and you can email or SMS me to book places. I'll give details in my next post okay.

I'm hoping for your support. I've come a long way, and here I am, still going, looking at the long winding road with renewed energy and enthusiasm. Alhamdulillah, I pray for Allah's guidance and make this journey as a mean to get closer to him, ameen.

To family and friends, who've all been very supportive, thank you very very much!!! Please continue to support me, I need all your advice... :))

To Anizah Baharudin, Congrats girl on your new venture. Anizah had recently launched her own outfit called "DELICIOUSLY CHOCOLATE". You can check it out on the net or FB. Her cakes are all delicious, I can vouch for that!! Her gorgeous cakes can be ordered online and you can pick them up at her shop at IMC building next to the Concorde building. And no, she didn't pay me for this advert..:))

Also to Wati Bakar, congrats on the expansion of your SF in Bangi. Wow!! Gorgeous!! I'm happy for you and the girls...

Cik Mas, Lyza Ghazali, Zalina Yahya...you girls are gorgeous!! Love you all!!!

In the mean time, you readers friends, you take care too okay.. I'll update you of the shop's progress status from time to time...

You can reach me at farida71@yahoo.com or sms me at 013-3554399.

Take care. Love,

Farida Ismail

PME Royal Icing and Life like Sugarflowers

2011-07-30T12:00:00.001+08:00

Salam and hi,

It's been a while kan? Maaflah kerana sibuk sikit. Nak cari masa duduk diam diam, edit gambar dan upload. Today am a bit free so here goes. Before that, Selamat menyambut Ramadhan al-Mubarak to all Muslims out there. What's the plan? For sure we're already thinking and planning of maximising our good deeds during the blessed month. May Allah make us among those who strive hard to get His blessings and make us among those who will get to meet the Lailatul Qadr. May Allah also make us among those whom will accompany the Blessed Prophet Mohammad SAW to enter Jannah, with our families. Ameen.

Well, before I continue with Royal Icing and Sugarflowers, I just want to share some gorgeous flower photos that I took during Floria 2011 in Putrajaya, recently.

Sea of flowers at Floria 2011...sangat menggeramkan. This is only the dunya. For sure the flowers in Jannah are more beautiful than this.

Up close and personal pink rose

Mom

Raindrops on flowers everywhere after a short drizzle

anak muda ku :)

posing depan bed of gorgeous flowers di tengahari buta @ Floria 2011 Putrajaya

Gorgeous rose, subhanallah..

PME Royal Icing Class June 2011
For this month's PME class, I had the privilege to teach these 3 awesome girls, royal icing. We had the most fun, that I actually missed them after that..ahaaakkss! It wasn't hard to teach them royal icing, but it was hard to keep a straight face while teaching. Always teasing each other, kelas yg menyakitkan perut kerana terlampau bnyk gelak. Anyways, congrats girls especially Ida and Renu for completing your Royal Icing and other PME courses as well. You girls are now Masters in Cake Decorating.

I was showing Hellen how to pipe the lace design correctly.

While we were so riuh rendah in the class, we managed to get the whole lesson done on time. I'll let the photos speak.

Hellen's gazebo cake, nice

Ida's gazebo

Renu's gazebo cake. Cun!

Embroidery lesson

Basketweave and roses lesson

Sebahagian kek Ida.. cantikkan? You can do it too! Come and join us in PME courses and have fun learning while getting and learning loads from Wati Bakar and me.

Hellen dengan kek graduasinya, tahniah Hellen!

Happy sangat si Ida. She completed all 3 PME Diplomas and now holds a Masters in Cake Decorating. Tahniah Ida!!

Funny and very efficient and hardworking Renu. Congrats on your Masters in Cake Decorating as well!! Proud of you.

Lunch on the last day. We had such a great time during class. OMG! I don't mind having this group all over again. Sweet Hellen from Bali, cheeky Renu and the quiet but wise Ida. I enjoyed the 5 days tremendously gals!!

Private Sugarflower class with Liza from KL
This week I had 2 classes at home. Sugarflowers and cupcakes but I totally forgot to snap pix of the cupcake class as time was so short.

Liza had some background doing sugarflowers which she said she had learnt from teacher youtube. :)). But knowing that she need to have a real person guide her, she approached Wati and was redirected to me. Liza told me she had always followed my blog, so we clicked instantly. Lagipun kita dua orang x-student MRSM. She MRSM Jasin, me MRSM Kuantan. So of course, something else in common.

It was easy to teach her since she had already tried her hands in sugarflowers. All I had to do was refine some of the techniques and here they are, gorgeous!!

Yellow Rose and daun puding in the background

Pink Rose, berries and lily by Liza

Am taking a break from class this Ramadhan. And insyaallah will continue after Raya. If you want to book a class either PME or Sugarflower or anything else, please let me know early so we can schedule them nicely. You can also order just bouquets of Sugarflowers for your cakes. Message me for price.

So, have a good and fruitful Ramadhan. May Allah accept all our deeds and help us improve our ibadah. May He also make us steadfast in our deen, ameen.

Love,
Farida Ismail
farida71@yahoo.com

Peony Sugar flower

2011-06-05T13:33:00.000+08:00

Salam and hi,

It's school holiday again!!! Busy time for moms I would gather. I heard friends talking bout stocking up the larder and fridge with plenty of food..hahahaha... nice!! I've been making tray after tray of brownies as I test all sorts of chocolate and cocoa powder I could find. The latest finding was Valrhona cocoa...woohoooo!!! I paired the cocoa up with the Madagascar Lindt choc and made fudgy brownies....my goodness!! Have it with scoops of ice-cream....sent me off to the neverland instantly :)

Few days back, my good friend Zalina ordered a bouquet of sugarflowers and she wanted the Peony flower and it's arrangements. So here they are, presented on a 3 tier dummy. She's making the cake herself and the wedding is in Perlis..woohooo!! Orang Perlis, kalu nak belajaq bunga ni mai tughun Kay El naaa..... jangan dok malu jangan dok segan...

Large Peony : Suitable for 3 - 4 tiers Wedding Cake

Peony arrangements and butterflies ordered by Zalina.
Thanks Na. Jangan lupa update aku noooo....

While doing the flowers ordered by Zalina, on a request by Mastura, I too conducted a private class for her, doing the same flowers. Well, it's a good thing for me coz I wasn't lonely doing them flowers. It was a crazy fun, hilariously therapeutic 3 days for me!! And her, maybe...hahahahaha...

Good job Mas!! Next she wants to learn how to make sugarpaste Roses, hydrangeas and it's arrangement and also a class on Decorating with Royal Icing.

If you, like Mastura, would like a private class, please let me know. Mail me farida71@yahoo.com.

Take care!! To those who followed my blog, thanks a million!!!

Sugarpaste Peony flower and it's arrangement and butterflies.
Made by Mastura in the Peony Class . Nice!!

Mastura posing proudly with her work.
Congrats Mas!!!

PME Royal Icing Module May 2011

2011-05-30T15:58:00.001+08:00

Hi and salam,

3 girls signed up for this PME Royal Icing class and wow!! what a week fun it was. Liyana is a bit shy and asked that her photos not be published. Enjoy the photos!! FYI, next Royal ICing class is scheduled on the fourth week of June. Please call Sugarflours or email me at farida71@yahoo.com for details.

In the meantime, I'm conducting a private class on Peony and its arrangement. Will upload the photos when the class is done. If you're interested in a private class in cake decorating or baking, please email me, we'll make arrangement that suits you.

Add caption

Nadia's Gazebo Cake

Nadia, congrats girl!!

All the techniques learnt were applied on these dummy cakes and the results were amazing!!

Congrats!

Liyana's Gazebo Wedding Cake

Liyana's embroidery cake ( the fondant are not supplied)

Anis' Gazebo

Nadia putting the lace onto her dummy cake

Anis' 2 tier-wedding cake

Anis from Anis Bakeri

Smiling lady

Have a wonderful holidays with your kids!!

Take care!!

Farida Ismail

Singing the notes!

2011-03-04T10:27:00.002+08:00

Hi and peace be unto you,

I first saw the word "Opera Cake' on the Taylor's College part-time course brochure sometime back. And ever since then I've never stop wondering, what on earth is Opera Cake. How would it taste like? Is it nice? Is it worth it? And I've yet to go to their advance course. Then after a while, I let it go coz looking at the recipes makes me wanna weep.

I recently bought some very very good pastry books and my curiosity got fired up again. I looked and I looked and I sized myself up. It's a challenge. It's not the recipe's how to, but to get all fired up over something indefinite, isn't something I want to do alone. But looking at the pictures made me longed for it, even if it's only for slice. I need an accomplice.

So, I braved myself for a class on Opera Cake and Pavlova, something I'm quite familiar with by now. Someone took the bite and went further as to request a Sugee (semolina) cake. I didn't even blink when I clicked YES on the send button. Sugee Cake is an old, old cake recipe, which only, older generations are familiar with. Plus, it's waaayyyy too fattening.

Needless to say, I've not only took up the Opera Challenge, but I've tripled the pressure in one day, by having it as a class plus the intimidating Sugee Cake.

Pavlova! What can I say?

Buttery and nice, the coarse texture of semolina and almond made it taste rather nice. To be taken with precautions!

Singing the to the Opera tune, at last. It's a bit smudgy coz we were impatient and didn't refrigerate before we cut the first two slices. Heavenly slices, yummssss!!!

Good job Cik Mastura!!

We had a slice of each cake we did for tea after class. Those and cups of black, thick piping hot coffee. Mas and I were like kindy kids, giggling and laughing our heads off, high from sugar and caffeine rush.

I must say, eggs and sugar, they do make me happy.

So, now that I've conquered my fear over singing to the Opera tune, I'm opening more classes on these 3 lovelies. Only for those who has done basic bakings please!!!

Sing to me at farida71@yahoo.com

Have a nice weekend!!

p/s : After posting photos on FB, Mas got loads of orders for all three cakes! Wonderful!!!

Flowers and Royal Icing

2011-02-26T23:20:00.003+08:00

Assalamualaikum and hi,

Oh my God!! What a fun, hectic week!!! I've been busy with 2 classes recently, the 1st was a 3-day porcelain flower course which ran from Friday till Sunday. And then I continued teaching the PME Royal Icing Diploma course. I've been asked to come up with a fresh module for the Royal Icing Course, and they were ecstatic with the results. I would definitely want to improve further on the module.

PME Royal Icing is aimed at all levels i.e so Beginners need not be frightened. It's quite a breeze. Come and challenge yourself to do something fantastic!!

Wowww!! What fun! I made some new friends and also got re-acquainted with my students from PME Sugar Flowers Dec 2010 intake.

Enjoy the photos!

Announcement!!!

PME Intensive Royal Icing Class will run from 14-18th March.

Flower Class Roses, hydrangea and foliages (make and arrange)

8-10th March 2011 (Sugarflours Bangi)

23-25th March 2011 (Sugarflours Taman Desa)

Flower Class - Peony, hydrangea and foliages plus a fantasy butterfly ( make and arrange)

29-31st March 2011 (Sugarflours Bangi)

Check out www.sugarflours.com for complete schedule.

Puput, making her extensions, she sometimes stopped breathing :)

Suli, piping her extensions on her Swan Cake

Puput

Suli from Bangkok

Suli adding the lace to the extension

All that were learnt, the girls must apply on the dummies and it came out quite beautifully.

My dummy cake. I made it while showing them how to piping using various nozzles and techniques

Roses in baskets

Puput's Swan Cake

Suli's Swan Cake

The products of 5 days PME Intensive Royal Icing Course with me.

Suli's 2-tier, gorgeous!!

Puput's 2 tier, beautiful ain't it?

Smiles all around on the last day

Shahidatul or Puput was very proud when she finished her PME Diploma in Royal Icing

Suli (from Bangkok) was all smiles when she received her PME Diploma in Royal Icing

The girls with all their cakes deco for PME Royal Icing

Clay Flower Roses, Hydrangea and foliages arrangement 18-20th February Class

Sugar / Clay flower Class - RM850

This class was a havoc!!! It was like a reunion of school girls, what with the chatterbox and giggling and laughing...Oh My God!! Seriously...I can't stop laughing or smiling... the girls are so sporting!! I'd like to have u gals back in my class... missing it, seriously.

Thanks to Roza Ngah, Enn Abdullah, Sue Ixora, Kak Shimah and Zaimah for coming to my class and showing serious determination to give it your best. Well done girls!!

Kak Shima's

Zaimah's

Enn, Zaimah & Sue

Kak Shimah

Roza Ngah

Sue's

Roza's

Sue's Rose

Roza's Rose

InsyaAllah, I'll be having baking classes on the 3rd and 12th March. We'll bake and make Opera Cakes, Sugee Cakes and Pavlovas...emmm emm emmm...yummmssss!!!

In the meantime, have a gorgeous week ahead!!

I can be reached at farida71@yahoo.com.

Take care!!!!

Love,

Farida

Berry berry Pavlova

2011-01-05T09:09:00.001+08:00

Berry berry Pavlova

Salam and hi,

Like the pavlova? I was feeling unusual energetic yesterday, prolly excited bout the prospects of new projects and classes. So I made some pavlovas... And a friend (new-found) who dropped by in the afternoon (with lunch, of course, thank you very much N!!), get to sample the delicious ( if I can say so myself, ekhemm..sorry!!), Berries Pavlova.

I've this peculiar craving for Pavlovas, even before Hajj and I've been satisfying it bit by bit, at a favorite restaurant. But I'm quite disappointed by the downhill quality and taste of their pavlovas. Plus, per slice is not cheap ok, RM14.50.

A good meringue should be a bit crusted on the outside and chewy, marshmallowy like on the inside. And it shouldn't have any grains of sugar felt on your tongue. The meringue and cream should have enough sweetness to balance the tartness of the berries...

Wow, I soooo love pavlova. Plus it's the only way to get Zaim to eat some fruits, coz he just loves the chewy meringue and the oh so lemak whip cream..

I know I said no baking class at home, but I change my mind, ahaksss!!

I'm going to have baking classes at home, but only limited to 2 persons at one time. And, I'm gonna include Pavlova in one of the series. We'll start in February, coz I'm saving January for class planning and doing some samples of cakes and sugar flowers.

So, if you're interested in a private session with me, for baking and cake decorating plus of course, Sugar Flowers, do drop me a note.

In the mean time, my 18th February class now has about 7 participants. Waaayyy over my head! They're all friends and wants to be together in a group. I'm expecting a hurricane like 'gamatness' over that 3 days in Sugarflours...

I've done the Sugarflowers course outline in the NeoOffice but I've trouble converting them into JPEG files. I want to convert them so I can upload them nicely on the blog. Well, maybe I'll convert them from the MS office, I've done it before, and it's waaayyy easy. So, sorry if the class page is still not updated. We'll see how it goes in the next 2-3 days...

In the meantime, overdosing on Pavlova is what I'm gonna do.

P/s: if you notice something funny bout the pages and layout, ignore it, coz I'm trying to re-do the blog :)

Happy Holidays!!

2010-12-26T15:51:00.001+08:00

Salam and hi to all!!!!

Am back!! Alhamdulillah, been away from this page for almost 2 months and I missed it!!!!

Hajj was perfect! Alhamdulillah, everything was absolutely smooth sailing for us. It's quite different from Umrah definitely. I feel the effect of Hajj every single day of my life now. Now, whenever I'm faced with either a challenge or a gift from Allah, I always go back and imagine what I would do if I were given those in Makkah or Madinah. I tell you, it makes a lot of difference in your attitude towards everyday life. Alhamdulillah..

InsyaAllah I'll share some tips that can help those of you who has the intention to perform hajj later. Maybe in another post k.

I've just finish my debut in teaching PME Sugarflower Module from Dec 20-24, 2011. Alhamdulillah, it went rather smoothly...Oh my, this bunch of students, hilarious!!! We had THE most fun, after the initial 'macho moments'...hehehehe....gals, u know what I'm talking about :)

We had Cheah from Kedah, who was here for 3 weeks to complete her Masters Certificate in PME Cake Decorating courses (find out more about it from Sugarflours.com.my). Kak Shima from Terengganu, also like Cheah had completed her 3 Diplomas to earn her Masters Certificate. Congrats you 2.

We also had Azura, who also came all the way from Terengganu to do 2 PME certificates and Noha Abdullah or Ann, from Kelang...Hilarious people, hilarious!!!! I still can't over it.

Enjoy the photos of their handyworks!!

This is a sweet swet garland by Azura - very very nice!!

A pretty garland by Kak Shima

A pretty bouquet arrangement by Azura

A trailing bouquet by Cheah...gorgeous flowers for absolute beginner..

A bouquet arrangement by Kak Shima - nice work Kak Shima!!

Flowers by Cheah and arrangement by Farida

Flowers by Noha and arrangement by Farida

Proud moment for Cheah, Noha, Azura and Kak Shima upon completion of their
PME Sugar Flower Module December 2010.

Announcement!

New classes on Life like flower will start in January 2011! Wait for the updates...

Take care!!

A wedding and 2 funerals

2010-10-14T10:04:00.002+08:00

Sugarcookies for Faisal and Ema's Wedding 10.10.10

Drying up the icing of hundreds of cookies

Sugarcookies packed individually to be given to guests.

Salam,

It's been a while eh? Well, alhamdulillah, the calmer things are, the busier I get. Allah is the Greatest. True to His Words, nothing stays the same, except, of course, He Himself. Heart-aches are replaced with joys and vice versa. It's all part and parcel of life and we have to take it in with redha and syukur.

Innalillah.

Al-Fatihah to my Opah Chu, the youngest sister of my late Opah, who passed away on the 2nd of Syawal, at the age of 87. Also Al-Fatihah to Hubby's Grandmother, who passed away also during the blessed month of Syawal. Alhamdulillah, we managed to go and see them a week before both passed away. We managed to ask for forgiveness from both of them. May both be placed among the solihin. Amin.

To my sis-in-law, get well soon dearie. Not to worry, we'll all make du'a for you to get better, in all aspects. If you need anything, just buzz, we'll be there k.

Brother's Wedding.

Well, alhamdulillah too, Faisal, my younger brother, finally met someone to settle down. We were all so happy for him. The whole 3 day event went smoothly, alhamdulillah.

To Ema, welcome to the family. Congratulations to the both of you!! May your life be blessed now that you've fulfilled a sunnah of Rasul Allah. We pray that you'll have a harmonious and fulfilling lives ahead.

I made about 600 pieces of these sugarcookies for their wedding last week. It took me about a week to finish them, with the help of Salina, a good friend who travelled everyday from BJ to my house. I hired her on the 2nd day coz I know I won't get any sleep if I did these all on my own. We took 2 days to prepare the dough and bake the whole 600 plus cookies. 1 day for Sal to tie up all 600 plus tiny ribbons while I decorated the cookies, and the we continued to do it together and wrapped them up in cellophane plastics. Even her kids helped. Thanks Iffah, Iman and Adam. To cute little Hannah, sorry ye auntie kidnap ibu awak...

Some of the guests enquired and wanted to order these babies for their kids weddings but I politely declined. The amount of work involved, ohhh gosh....You need to be prepared to pay me good money.

I know lady who made these and is selling it for RM14 a piece. In the US, it's USD6.50 for a wrapped piece and USD4.50 for a simple unwrapped piece. But hey, I won't charge that much, trust me.

Elaine, a friend said, she'll pay the price, because she appreciates the art in it. Well, I wish everyone feels that way, makes my life easier.

In any case, wish u all a blessed week ahead.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri

2010-09-20T22:49:00.003+08:00

Pix taken by Zaim Razali using Canon EOS

Selamat Hari Raya to all. These puffs I made with beef rendang filling. After the 2nd day, we got tired of eating rendang with lemang and nasi impit, so I made puffs, so that we can still enjoy the rendang. Zaim insisted on taking the pix so I let him. It turned out quite alright...food photography 101.

This Syawal had a mix feel to it. We had happy moments, when everyone got together and enjoyed the celebrations, and we also had some sad moments, when my Opah Chu passed away on the morning of 2nd Syawal. Alhamdulillah we saw her the week before that when she had her stroke. We managed to ask for forgiveness.

And then there's Hubby's granma. She's also going thru some rough time, which is Allah's way of elevating her status and forgiving her, for none of us is without sin. Allah is All Merciful and All Forgiving. Dugaan datang dengan izin Allah dan setiap yang diduga dan dia redha dengannya, Allah akan tambahkan kebaikan baginya, insyaAllah.

Alhamdulillah, setelah sekian lama berdoa, hajat kami telah dimakbulkan Allah. Tidak lama lagi kami akan memulakan satu perjalanan yang diharapkan akan mendapat keredhaan Allah. I'm hoping to write down our experience so that other's can benefit from it, insyaallah.

Busy Period - October thru December.
In the meantime, we are going to be quite busy throughout the month of October and November. I'm very sorry to inform you that there'll be no classes till at least mid December 2010. To those that had sent me emails inquiring about classes, if you can be patient, I will contact you with class updates in December. Thanks for your inquiries k, I value them very much. In the meantime, my friend's Sugarflours does offer various courses in baking and cake decorating as well. Why don't you check them out?

Have a jolly good month. Let's continue what we had done in Ramadhan, hopefully it'll become part of our daily routine.

Take care.

Going Bananas? Not!!

2010-07-29T08:03:00.020+08:00

Wati, Chef Deen, cik adik manis ni, me and Lisa at MIFB 2010.

I'm really happy.

I thank Allah for the all bananas that I had planted in my backyard back in Seremban 2. The over supplies of bananas then, had prompted me to try and bake a banana cake, since we were almost purging from overdose of fresh sweet bananas. Hence my journey into the world of cakes, wonderful wonderful world of cakes and cake decorating begin with smashing bananas...

That banana had taken my world by storm. Cake baking and decorating has taken me everywhere and introduced me to so many people. Some became good friends. Some remained just acquaintances but none in the baking and decorating world ever made me go bananas (pun intended), thank God for that!! They are all as sweet and nice as banana splits :-).

Now, while editing my photos from recents events, I am forever thankful to Allah for bringing this wonderful world cake decorating into my life. I can't believe I'm doing this. Neither can my hubby, my family or my friends who knew me. MasyaAllah. Like Mr. Gump said, life is like a box of chocolate, we never know what we we might get. Right now is like the sweet milk chocolate for me, though I do get the occasional bitter ones, which are also good for me. Makes me appreciate the milk chocolates when I do get them.

Last week I had the chance to participate in the MIFB '10 at PWTC and did some demo work for Sugarflours. I was there to promote my classes as well as Sugarflours' PME courses. And also because Wati is my good, good friend. Datin or Aunty Yon, her mom dropped by, and words of wisdom and encouragement just kept flowing from her....thanks Aunty for your confidence in all of us. I'm sure you're really proud of Wati.

Wiz was there on the 3rd day as well. She did her demo and came up with this cute design of family trees using the bears molds..this girl, she got loads of talent and creativity.

Chef Ismail graced our booth with his brief appearance as well. He was so happy to see all the beautiful cakes and sugar flowers and insisted that we enroll him for classes, especially sugarflowers. He gave us his number and we are to call him for classes in the near future. Wow!! Cant wait to have Chef Ismail in my class..sure gamat!!!

All in all the crowd was overwhelming, especially on Saturday as the event opened for public. We got people from all over, and some even took leave from work just to come to our booth. Wow!! A few even came 3 days in a row, to watch demos, sign up for classes and to make purchases. Thank you to all that made that day special for us...you know who you are.

Some were even readers of my blog..it made my day to have met all of you. Thank you very much for following my journey.

Sugar roses and hydrangeas I made during the 2 days demo at MIFB 2010. My arrangement now is very much influenced by Alan Dunn, though its no where near as perfect as his.

Life like Sugarflower Workshop @ Sugarflours Taman Desa 26-28 July 2010.

Pn Noraliza's sugarflower arrangement

Ms April Low's

After a day's rest, we immediately had the Life-like sugarflower class at Sugarflours Taman Desa outlet. It was days of fun and laughter and I appreciate Pn Noraliza and Ms April's dedication and patience in doing the flowers, bit by bit. I enjoyed the class very much..and I hope you both did too. Thanks for coming and hope to see you gals again. Good job!!

I got my inspiration for the sugarflowers arrangement from my teacher, Alan Dunn. I hope to make him proud.

Thanks girls for joining my workshop. You gals did a great job despite being total beginners!!

Next Life like Sugar flowers workshop will be :

1. Sugarflours Bangi - 18 & 19 August 2010

2. Sugarflours Taman Desa - 25 & 26 August 2010

p/s : You need to have basic skills in sugarflower to attend this workshop. Necessary skills include manipulating gumpaste, wiring, dusting etc.

Call Ms Lisa Joehari of Sugarflours for more details.

In the meantime, Selamat menyambut Ramadhan AlMubarak to all you muslim readers.

Sugar Flower with Alan Dunn

2010-06-03T23:57:00.021+08:00

Final product of private class with Alan.

Am so glad am at home now. And the best thing was, I came home to a very-very clean house. Hubby either missed me that much or he was bored out of his skull!! Either way, I'm happy coz the house is squeeky clean. I'm still going thru some mild jetlag, which I hope will clear up soon.

Anyways...

Whilst I was there, I managed to find the ever elusive Primrose Bakery near Covent Garden, I couldn't find it the first time I was looking for it with Shida. We'll have to thank iPhone for it's innovative maps. I was so happy when we found it. It was like, mission accomplished! I mean this place is where dreams have come true for 2 women. They started their baking at home, for their kids, and then they managed to get orders from the likes of Fortnum&Mason, Harrods, Knightbridge, and then for Anya Hindmach, Elton John, etc... and the best thing is, their cupcakes and cakes, they look real and so simple. No fancy schmancy thingy popping out of their cuppies.

Till now, they stick to what sells, flavor in all its simplicity.

And the setting of their little shop (I mean really!! It is a small little shop, with only 3 little tables where we had to share with 6 other people), it's so simple and homey..gosh!! I want to just sit there forever.....

And the kitchen/counter, it's not gleaming with modern gadgets whatsoever. It's just like my kitchen. Messy a bit and very down-to-earth. Typical shabby chic look (ok, my kitchen not shabby chic, it's not done but who cares). I loike!!

I had their choc cupcake with choc topping and carrot cake with creamcheese. Nice, not too sweet despite them being the butter icing type. Love!! Sis-in-law had their lemon cuppy, also nice!! And, I bought their recipe book and their bags!! Ahaks!! Too bad they ran out of aprons...

Let you share some of the pix..

this is Iman, my anak sedara from Manchester.

sempat lagi posing ngan sis ni who works at the bakery.

Had simple delicious cuppies and recipe book to boot.

Simple logo for simple cupcake shop

The yellow shop at the corner is the Primrose Bakery

So not!! I'm so not wearing this baju anymore..it made me looked big, which am not!!

On Friday and Saturday before the Primrose journey, I had a private class (or one to one) with Alan Dunn. Yep!! The one and only Alan Dunn. He was nice enough to accept a last minute request from me to have a 2 day private class with him. He charges about BP300/day, which worked out to be RM1500 perday. So, 2 days class was RM3000..thank God the exchange rate is a bit low right now. Imagine if it had been RM6.8 to BP1.. Pengsan!!

But then again, he took the trouble to come down to London, instead of having me go up to his place in Newcastle, which is about 3 hours ride on the train from London and would have set me back about another BP150 for train ticket and probably BP80-90 for one night stay at local b&b.

We had our little class at his friend, Sathya's, house in Croydon. A little place in south west of London. Thanks Sathya for letting me have the class at your place. And thanks a million for your hospitality. You were great!! BTW, Sathya is at least 3 times (correct me if I'm wrong, Sathya!!) gold medalist in cake decorating or sugar flower competition. And she's not a baker or teacher. She doesn't want to be. So dia memang terer habis!!

And Alan, hmmmm...what can I say. He's the nicest guy in cake decorating business that I've ever met. He's very very humble. He's soft spoken and very funny. He loved to joke around. I still have the "gooday Sheila" thingy going on in my mind. It's something that he and his friend (dang! I forgot her name) share when they talk to one another..anyways..

He's always trying to make things easier for people around him, and he's very easy to be with. I mean, I don't feel all that difficult to have conversations with him. And boy, did we talked! A lot. Him, Sathya and me. Our conversations, well, some revolved around flowers and his cats and music (hahaha) but mostly around social issues, including, the sensitive issues of religion and prejudices. I found him to be very open minded...which is quite refreshing really.

I'm very happy to have had the chance to sit in his class, not once, but twice. He's got plan to come down to Malaysia, maybe next year. But it's still not firmed yet. So...be ready, if you're his fan!!

I told Alan that I'm wanna have another class with him next year, and am trying to arrange a class with one of the master in royal icing there, also in spring next year..insyaallah. This time I'm bringing hubby and son with me.

With Alan and Sathya.

We joked about this sofa...

Alan's new book which is coming out in June 2010. I asked him for a copy, an I was so happy that he took the trouble of getting one for me... Thank you Alan!!

He even auto'ed it for me..owwwhhhh...(psst !! am not suppose to tell you bout this..but hey!! it's already June, so just a couple more days..)

I have in my collection now, a lot of Alan's books. He's got one coming out for Christmas, and he's already on a project of another book for next year. Good luck Alan! Have fun with the project. Can't wait for it!

I'm hoping to be able to sit down quietly and plan classes for this coming July an August. Those of you interested please let me know, coz I'm just gonna have small classes.

Off days

2010-05-25T15:48:00.021+08:00

Bonda Cafe's Menu - quite impressive. Tapi kena cakap Chef Det - kurang masin kit ye.

The cosy insides of Bonda Cafe.

Si Hizz, part-timer kat Bonda giving me the fingers (heheh..kidding). You can only find him during weekends coz on other days, he's still doing his Master's Degree in Actuarial Science (betul ke eja ni Hizz?)

I snapped this before I caught the bus to Oxford Street

A park near our apartment.

Gorgeous colors

My take on London so far

The weather :

It's a really cold summer. Which is a bit odd, coz it is summer, and summer is suppose to scorching hot. But I'm glad it's cold. I like it cold than hot. It's a welcome change from the weather at home and the electricity bills we have to pay to stay cool. Anyways, I still hear people complain about the weather, everyday. They complain it's cold when it's 15C and they complain that it's hot when it's 23C. Please stop complaining. Just be grateful.

Took a walk to enjoy the weather.

The road from where I'm staying.
Restoran Bonda. Food is nice. Staff is great. Atmosphere fantastic.
But it ain't cheap. Thanks for the discounts though. (ooppsss..this pix should be up there but I cant move it, so biar je la kat sini)

Kak Yok or Mariani.

And her friend K. Ton. Nice ladies. They even treated me to breakfast and we chatted away. Few of the nice Msians I met here. There are a lot worse out there. Stucked up Msians who wouldn't even smile back at you or pass a kind look at you.
I love the flowers here.

If you ever need to stay here. Ehh..Salahudin Sir, commission please ye. Free advert ni!

Alan Dunn's previous work.

I like it here this time of year. The last time I was here wih Hubbs, was also during spring time. It's wonderful...the weather..I loike!! Alhamdulillah...

Apa2 pun, Malaysia still the best. There's nothing like home.

The phone call:

I'm missing my family like mad. I like Lycamobile. I call Hubbs n son everyday, many times for 1/2 hour at least. It only cost me the most 1 pound/call for about 40 mins. It's cheap!!

So far I've only used about 9 pounds kot. Call 3 times a day, !/2 hour. Kalau tengah boring lagi bnyk kali call. Next time you come here, use Lycamobile prepaid card. Highly recommended. And for local calls, it's free. They give you like 200 minutes free calls for every 5 pounds prepaid.

The people : Msians' abroad

I have to say, from personal experience that is, maybe 30% are nice and friendly, the rest is way below par where friendliness is concerned. I can't really understand why. I guess it's what London Malays are all about. I mean it's not like if you ever return my smile or my salam, you'd immediately have a lodger following you home. Puhleeez la...We're not that hard up for a conversation with you, just a smile back would be rather nice. They normally just shot a look back at you before turning away, or they just look thru you, as if you're never there. My smile usually hang about halfway, because of the speed that they turn they head around.

Had that bit of experience at Malaysian Hall and on the streets sometimes. I never return to Msian Hall again, and the food there is horrible.

But I'm staying positive. So far, the ones that I've met here at Paddington, they are quite nice people.

The people : Londoners

Well, I first half expected them to be a bit racist, especially after 9-11. And also I had this rather bad experience when we were in Gold Coast last year. They tend to look at you rather menacingly, they don't really serve you well at counters especially if they're kind is waiting behind us. So, I was rather afraid the same kind of treatment would be waiting for me here. I did enquire bout that from those who've lived here, but their answers seemed positive.

And so far, well they are as polite as they need to be. I'm not complaining though. It's totally not my lost if you decide to be indifferent to other races. But I had some wonderful experience though. I met this guy on the train to Farnham and it turned out he could speak Malay. So we chatted a bit on the bus and he was saying nice things about Msia and of course we talked about the weather...that's what they do quite often here apparently, talked about the weather.

My PME course mates were nice. One lady from Holland, she kept staring at me, and I could see she'd wanted to say something. So being me (I cant shut up!)..I asked her" Do you have anything you want to ask me?" Yes, she said. Is it about this? I pointed to my headscarf. Yes, she said...so we got on to talking about my headscarf and swimming suits while we waiting for our turns in the toilet. How is that?

And there was this English guy who said salam to me and went to say that his wife is a Turkish Muslim. So, of course, again being me, I asked him. You said your wife is a muslim, so you're not a muslim? Nope, I'm a strict Chatholic he said. So I went on asking all sorts of questions, till I felt it was getting personal and I stopped. (My husband always compares me to Susan of Desperate Housewives, you know, always gets into troubles with curiosity).

What I meant to say is that, if the non-muslim can be rather nice and friendly to me, why can't the Muslims be nicer to me. I mean, even the other muslims like Arabs or whatever, they cant be bother to answer my salam or smile back. Sheeessh..how are we suppose to be strong when we can't even do the simplest thing to our fellow muslims.. it's not a wonder why we are being pushed over.

But am not letting the few bad apples to dampen my positive views on the world. Perhaps, there's still hope. I'm hoping that when you read this, and you meet other people out there, regardless of races and religion, just be kind and smile first, or back. Let's make this world, which we only have one, a kinder gentler place to live in.

I agree with Maxi Priest - it's hard to get by just on smile now.

The transport : Tubes and buses

Well, what can I say? This is London and they're waaayy famous and proud of their underground trains and buses. But there's a lot of engineering works going on right now and on weekends especially, most of the lines are shut down and you'd have to take the buses to get to where you want to go. I have no complains, except maybe 1, but in general, the transport systems here is excellent, albeit a bit expensive.

I'm using the Oyster Card, where you load prepaid into. It can be used up to Zone 5 and you can use for tubes and buses. I usually take the weekly prepaids that covers zone 1-2 and it's cheaper than buying daily tickets. You can use it any time of day, unlimited for a week. It cost you bout BP28 i I think. I forgot. Anyways, it's cheaper and easier for me.

Food:

Well, you can find Msian food anywhere now, especially near the Paddington Area. There's Bonda Cafe, Delima Restaurant, Tok Din, Satay House etc. And about 3/4 km away to Edgware Road, there's plenty of halal middle eastern restaurant. There's also a halal Subway restaurant near Paddington (Bakerloo line) Station. It's quite easy nowadays. Per person's simple lunch with drinks will set you back about BP7-10. So be ready with loads of cash if you come with your family.

The weather : It's really nice and cool (sometimes very cold) summer which I thought is a bit odd. Summer days should be hot but it's not. So, if you have arthritis, I would say it's not a good time to be here during this time of year then....

But no matter how nice it is herSave Nowe, it's nothing like home. Hot and sticky home. I'm missing my family and my comforts..and my car and convenients...

Sugar Flower with Alan Dunn

2010-05-24T14:29:00.014+08:00

I have a collection of Alan Dunn's books. I've often flipped thru the pages, dreaming that one day I'll be able to attempt some of the flowers in there. I've even dared myself to dream, that one day, I'll meet him. Maybe just sit down in a corner somewhere, looking at him demonstrating his skills at sugar flowers.

Never did I dare to dream, that I'll be in a class with him, learning from the master himself,sharing jokes, let alone, share a train ride back to London (twice). Oh my God!!!

Imagine, we race up the stairs, huffing and puffing, for fear of missing the train. We chatted till he got off at Croydon. Bliss!! That's all I can say...I can't stop smiling. I just can't...If I could, I would be jumping up and down, doing the dance. But I don't want to be thrown off the train, for London is still far away, and I wouldn't know which bus to catch. So, I just sat quietly, smiling and grinning at the same time, non-stop.

Before he got off, I dared myself to ask him, the same question that I asked Tony Warren. Alan, do you do one-on-one class? Yes, he said. Do you think that you'll be able to take me in for a class this week? Ermmmmm.... Tony didn't have errmmm. But Alan said errmmm. I'm hoping it's a good ermmm. Tony just said sorry. I'm booked till next year.

It was a short errmmm. And I'm positive. I think it shouldn't be a problem, Alan said. I'm quite free next week.

I almost dropped off my cushy chair. It's a good thing the train's chair was a 3 seater cushion. Oh my God!!! He's free and able to teach me. Oh my God!!! We''ll talk about it tomorrow he said and got off at his station.

Are you able to imagine, how I was at that point in time? (Well only if you are familiar with who Alan Dunn is. I'm star strucked).

By the time I finished dinner at Bonda and ready to settle down and while I turned on my computer, I casually flipped thru the new Wedding cake magazine that I just bought at Squires Kitchen. I didn't have time to check it out when I took it from the counter.

After a a few pages from the back, a picture caught my eyes. Oh my God!!!

It's my dummy cake! From the Squires Kitchen Wedding Cake Course with Rosalind, last year. It even got my name underneath it. Can someone please pinch me!!!!

It's a big picture. Huge. I was so happy!! I can't describe how happy I was. It's truly a happy moment. And I'm alone.

I quickly went online to find my good friends there. I wanted to share the news. Shahieda was the first to respond. Thank you for being there darling!! We need our

riends, thru good and bad times.....

I tried to call hubby but there were no answer. He must be sleeping. It's dawn over in Malaysia....Oh man. It's too much. I kept repeating "Alhamdulillah" so many times...over and over...

The next day, we continued discussing the private class, and it's gonna happen. InsyaAllah this Friday and Saturday. Don't ask me how much it cost..coz it's not the money that important. It's Alan's willingness to accommodate me at such a short notice, and all the knowledge that he'll pass on to me...priceless...

To Alan Dunn, thank you. I'm truly honoured.

This is Alan's.

again I look pretty big because of the camera trick. Isshhh..I should change my camera...

Alan, at work.

This is Alan's.
This mine.
My cake picture. In the magazine. Thank you Rosalind for sending our pix to SK. Not everyone's pix was chosen though. I'm glad they chose mine.
The magazine no 35.

All the troubles with the trains this morning seems so small. Though the night ended with a huge migraine, I didn't mind.

It was so worth it!!!

PME Seminar

2010-05-22T05:51:00.010+08:00

Julie Askew, the Editor of Cakes - Craft & Decorations drop by our class and she brought goodies!! We each got a copy of back issues of Cakes - Craft & Decoration Magazines and Wedding - Cakes & Sugar Flowers Magazine..yeay!!! Thanks Julie..you're a doll.

Class

Pat and Mel

Every morning, for the next four days, was to be a case of who gets there first. I meant the tube trains or me. If I was a bit late, I risk tipping the balance that is set at 8.45am Brimsdown Station. And so, for that I learnt to walk very very fast. I've never walked very fast back home, even if I was jogging, I just wasn't fast.

The first few days I was here, I often thought to myself, these Londoners, they always seemed hurried. Scattering around, often with coffee in one hand and I-phone or the Metro paper in the other, they walked very very fast, almost running at times. They seemed to always have somewhere to be, fast. And now, I know.

PME just moved their office from Harrow Road to Brimsdown Industrial Park in Enfield. It's a journey worth 1 hour and 15 minutes of my time, every morning, on the H&C line and the East Anglia Rail Trains.

On the first day I reached Brimsdown Station, I had no idea where I was supposed to go. Armed with an address and a hand luggage full of stuff, I made my way to the main road, vaguely remembering the map someone sent me earlier. I know I was supposed to go to the right. But then what?

The road was really quiet. I was early coz it was only 8 am. There was a black dude looking at me suspiciously, as I shot a look back at him, also with suspicion. I walked on, very fast. I saw a guy somewhere near a factory and asked him how to get to no 23, Jeffreys Road. He had no idea. Oh gosh!

Well, it's a good thing the Brits can't live without their maps. He took out his thick map book, and flipped through, and there it was. Jeffreys Road. I thank the gentleman and dragging my luggage in one hand, and a Nero Coffee in another, I continue my early morning adventure, finding PME.

After what seemed like the longest walk, I saw the sign, Jeffreys Road. I looked at the address, no 23. Man!! Why can't they settle for no 2 or 3? Why 23? I was sweating on that cold summer morning.

Dragging the bag on the tarred road made the loudest noise on a quiet morning. I think I could be heard all through Brimsdown. I passed no 1, and 2 and so on and so forth. These are factories mind you. So no 1 or 2 or next covered quite a large area of their own, including parking spaces..imagine how far away no 23 is....

As I appproached no 23, a car passed by me and made a turn. A lady came down and smiled at me. Hmmmm...I thought this must be someone from PME so I said " Are you Pat?" Yes she said, are you here for the seminar? Yep!! Did you walk from the station she chirped... Yes maam, I must've loose a few kilos there, I was trying to cover up my huffs and puffs nicely...after walking for almost 40 mins, I guess didn't quite do a good job.

I was the first one there. I settled down quickly, choosing a seat right in the center. Soon after, the other students began to walk thru the door. We introduced ourselves and sat our places while Pat got busy gathering her staff.

While settling down earlier I saw a guy that looked familiar. I've seen that shy face somewhere. So when Pat introduced Lisa Slatter and Tony, I quickly gathered it was Tony Warren. Oh my oh my!! Tony Warren! He's like, one of the leading master in sugar flower. I have one or 2 of his books, particularly the one he worked on with Tombi Pecks and Alan Dunn. Wow!! Just my luck that he was recruited on board to teach PME together with Lisa, taking over from Pat, who was, of course promoted to a busier position.

I went through the rest of the day, of course dreamily. Not because I was sleepy, but because here I was, taking in all I can, from the experts, in Cake Decorating industry. It's something that I've only dreamt of, until now. I mean, who am I really?. I'm still green in the industry compared to my colleagues here who attended the seminar.

Chineze (pronounced Che Ne Ze and not chinese) from Nigeria, she had been doing Cake decorating for more than 10 years, and has one of the largest school of cake deco in Nigeria. Efua, from Ghana, she has 100s of students graduating from her school every 6 months, especially from the Wilton course.

Jens from Germany, he had been doing this seriously (and he is a serious guy) for all his life. He's starting a Cake Deco Club back home with almost 6000 club members already available to sign up..

And the rest carried more or less the same kind of resume. We have a team from Ireland who owned a bakery and school, Indonesian team and one of them, Fatma also teaches in Malaysia and has already 2 books in her belt...and the list went on. All very impressive.

So I was feeling rather small. I should just take my seat and sit somewhere in the back, at a corner...but the group was great. They are great people. Humble and always helpful, and cheerful, (goshhh, we did laugh quite a bit there now, didn't we?) they made me felt like I was one of them. When I grow up, I want to be just like them..:-)

Jens (pronounced Yens)

Madam Chineze from Nigeria

the lovely and sleepy Madam Efua..hehehe sorry.

Group pix..(I know I looked rather large, but that's just camera trick)

PME International Teacher's Training Seminar -2

2010-05-22T03:01:00.014+08:00

PME Seminar

One of the stations before Brimsdown. Looked like the KTMB one in Labu.

A view from the train.
Tony Warren at work, with Lisa Slatter. They took turns doing the demo before we had to go and do it ourselves.

Chineze, posing for the camera, while Jens looked on.

Our entrance to the hotel for dinner.
A view from another angle.

The hotel's entrance.

2 members of the Irish team.

We were all smiles and laughs that night.

I was sitting at the table with the Irish team and Lisa when I started taking pictures of everyone at our table, soon everyone at the bar and sofas joined us with their cameras and it was quite a long photo shoot after that..hahaha...we really had a good time...laughing all the time. The Irish team, Myra, Theresa, Kathleen, OMG, I cant remember the other 3, were all so funny and were constantly cracking up something wise. I think they were the funniest group at the seminar.

Pat & her team organised a dinner for us at the De Vere Hotel in Herfordshire. I thoroughly enjoyed the night. It gave us a chance to loosen up a bit and get to know more about each other. Jens was telling me about the baking industry in Germany and about the many ICES that he had attended. He's a really dedicated person and he's really neat too. He didn't just clean up his table, but he helped us (voluntarily that is) to clean our messy tables too, especially Efua's. Her's is the messiest. Sorry Efua..hehehe...

Tony Warren at work

We were snaping pix of his flowers and he quipped to Lisa "no ones taking my picture". I heard that and I said let me. So here he was laughing saying, hey I was just kidding...hehehe..I snapped u anyways Tony.

Lisa Slatter Deputy Head of Cake Deco School and very famous Sugarcrafter (you can find her works in the Cakes Magazine and also Wedding Cakes, A Design Source Magazines), Pat Trunkfield (Head of Cake Deco School and one of PME's Director - congratulations Pat), Mr. Salish (I'm so sorry if I get this wrong, please correct me) - MD of PME School of Cake Deco, and Tony Warren - a master in Sugar Craft and Sugar Flower.

Flanked by Tony Warren and and Lisa Slatter during my proud moment. Try beating that!!

Everyone was so proud of their achievements. Congratulations all!!

We are now officially trained by PME. We'll just have to wait for Pat to approve us and make us their Certified PME trainers (but I already knew that I am...) yeayyy!!!

Am not posting what we did in the PME Seminar coz you'll just have to sign up with me to find out!! Check out the Schedules with Sugarflours.

Lazy Sunday

2010-05-21T13:24:00.015+08:00

I didn't want to be lost on Monday for my class so I asked Fauziah to show me how to get to Brimsdown from Paddington Station. After that we went to Oxford Street and Regent Street for some retail theraphy. I find that some of the things are really cheap even if I'd converted them into Ringgit. 6 pairs of men's socks cost only BP2. A boy's World Cup t-shirt is only BP1. No wonder everyone's carrying a Primark's paper bag. BHS's also not bad. I like M&S's pants for ladies and they're really cheap here. No, seriously, a pair of a M&S linen pants for BP9.90, which is just about RM50. (M&S is Mark & Spencer). Would you get this price in M&S KLCC? I don't think so. I'm gonna get some shirts for Hubby from M&S. So worth it!!

It's a bit chilly, so I got myself a jacket for BP24, which I think is a steal. A t-shirt in Munawarah is RM180, now that is ridiculous!!

Anyways, I spent the rest of the day hanging out with Sidah and settled down early for my first day at class 2moro.

This gorgeous flowers lined most of the streets everywhere I go. It's spring and flowers are everywhere. The best thing is that you get to enjoy the sight of them for free. And the colors, oh my, I've never seen so many colors of pansy flowers in my life...they're so bright and vibant and fresh!! The ones here are roses and gerberas and some violets colored flowers.. It's hard to be depressed in spring!!

The road leading to 2 Paddington Stations - 1 serving H&C and Circle Lines, and the other one - Bakerloo line.

Paddington Station - I took my train to Liverpool Street every morning and from there took the East Anglia Express to Brimsdown Station.

My loyal travel companion, the maps of tubes and bus services in and around London. I'm getting quite used to it already by now. The last time I came was with hubby so I never really paid attention to any of the services. Now, I have no choice, otherwise I'd get lost.

The view from my window...it's a busy stretch, Sussex Gardens Road. The road leading to the left goes to Egdware Road and the to the right, I think it's Wembley, Nottinghill and etc..

A new friend I just met while in London. Her mom did what most Msian moms would do whenever they heard someone's going to London, kirim serunding!! (She couriered in from Kelantan, no less) Fauziah Bijaksana (her avatar in FB) was nice enuf to take me around on Sunday. We went and do a bit of shopping at Oxford Road. Earlier in the morning, I made her trace the route to Brimsdown Station, where I was supposed to go on Monday. I didn't want to get lost.

I found this cake shop Caffe Concerto in Regent's Street. Was admiring the beautiful cakes from outside.

This Caffe also serves breakfast and lunch. Not sure about dinner though, but I think they do to, judging from the lines of alcohol bottles in the shop.

Portobello Market

2010-05-16T11:15:00.013+08:00

London - 2nd day

The shop behind me is AllSaints. This amazing shop put on display, thousands and thousands of Singer sewing machines. I've never seen so many old school sewing machine in my life. Makes you wanna just go in, buy one and go straight home and sew pretty dresses and tableclothes... (like, really??!!)

Window Display of the infamous Hummingbird bakery in Portobello Road. Wow!! So many people inside lining up to get their hands on the gorgeous little cupcakes. I bought myself a carrot cupcake with creamcheese topping...oh my!! absolutely delicious! so moist and yummy and not too sweet at all. I'm going back there next week for seconds...and thirds...

Cake display in the Hummingbird bakery.
Portobello Street Market. Wow!
The colors in Portobello

Even the cafe' upstairs was adorned with beautiful colors of spring...I'm going crazy looking at all the gorgeous flowers blooming and bursting with colors...

Nothing like starting the day with a good breakfast - nasi lemak and Nescafe tarik kurang manis. I know it's bad for the waist line and health, but I 'm quite sure I'll burn some of it off later going up and down the buses and also walking down the Portobello Street Market. Plus I need the fat to fight the cold up here.

As I get off the bus, I was half expecting Hugh Grant to walk pass me, stop, and staring me deeply with his droopy eyes, and open up into his silly uncertain trademark smile. Instead, I ran ran into a bunch of blokes, running in a straight line through the cold spring morning, clad in only flourescent colored undies, through the Portobello market...I was screaming to Sidah, who was already on the other side of the road "Sidah, where's the camera?" but she just stood there, frozen and unable to response. I ask her "What happen to you". She said sheepishly "I got shocked when something almost said hi to me behind those small flourescent thingy"....hahahaha...dang!! Well...there goes Hugh and his Grant thing...hahahaha....(kids -please skip these para) hahahaha....

Walking ahead, we were met by thousands of people, thronging to the market, in search of something that could probably change their life, just like it did Hugh...it was really a slow walk. I can only see hairs, and lots of it, in front of me. Blond, black, green, red, short, long, spiky, varying in shades and designs, just like the blooming flowers responding to the spring season...

Then, there it was....Hummingbird Bakery. The smell of vanilla and butter wasp through the air, beckoning me to go inside. The line was long so I took pictures, risking eviction from the staff. But I didn't care. I ask for a copy of their cookbook and bought a carrot cupcake. Oh man....it was delicious. Truly! There has a hint of ginger and reminded me of a friend's carrot cake. The cake was moist, flavourful, not too sweet and not enough!! Sheeshh..I should've bought 2. Gave me a reason to go there again...

We made our way through the market quickly after that, as I had really nothing to buy, neither has Sidah. Then there was another smell, something is roasting together with onions...Hhhmmmm...Sidah what's this nice smell? I forgot!! Ya la tu..cium lah sampai konyang..said Sidah laughing. Turn to your left...Yikes!! Succulent and all, roasting away at a nearby shop...hahahah...tutup hidung!!! Tak guna betul!!

After that we took buses to Covent Garden coz I wanted to find the Primrose Cafe. It was then that this scary incident happened. As I was boarding another bus somewhere near Oxford Street, I saw the hand of a black dude reaching into the handbag of a classy old lady in front of me. Oh gosh! I looked up and the red eyes that belonged to that dude, stared back at me. Deeply, and threateningly. I walked pass him and followed the lady to the back of the bus. We sat on the same row, and I was hoping to alert the woman of the incident. As I sat down, our eyes met again. Oh no!! I thought he got scared and got off the bus. He didn't. His friend, sat beside me, with both hands covered by his jacket.

This is scary. He could have a knife or a gun under that jacket. I was shifting uncomfortably while the dude kept staring at me. I got up and changed seat, my back facing him but my face facing his friend. I cant tell Sidah yet coz then she'll be looking at these guys and they'll know I spill.

The bus stopped. And as the friend got up, I felt relieved. Now for sure they're getting off. I asked Sidah whether the guys are off the bus. No, she said. What? Where are they now? Ohh they're sitting behind you, why?. I had to tell her. We spoke in Bahasa and then contemplating to get off the bus ourselves. But, what if they then follow us, she asked. Ha'ah kan...alamak!! Camana ni Sidah? Makcik yg kena tu rileks je borak, kita yang saspen ni...

The bus made a few more stops and the dudes just got up, and changed seats a few more times. I prayed really hard that the dudes was convinced that I'm never gonna talk and just leave us alone. And then, at the next stop, Haa..diorang dah turun dah, said Sidah, as I can't see coz I had my back towards them.

Pheww!! That was the longest bus ride in my life. After 2 stops, I asked the lady to check her bag for missing items and told her what happened. Luckily, nothing was missing. The dude must've seen me almost immediately as he put his hands into the bag.

I was in no mood to look for Primrose Cafe anymore. Though we did make it to Covent Garden, I can't seem to be excited. I just want to go back to my place. And we did.

I miss my family.

Spring in my step

2010-05-15T04:59:00.020+08:00

1st day in London

My home away from home for the next almost 3 weeks. And no, that's not my merc...

Hilton Paddington (want to but can't afford to)
the very friendly En. Salahudin Yaakob, director of Station Hotel Scotland and I think also the owner of the company that runs MARA house.
taking a breather from carrying these awfully heavy luggage, on Sussex Gardens Road leading towards the MARA house.

my long lost friend who now stays in London (lucky me!!)

Heathrow arrival Terminal 4

Whoooaaaaa......after 13 hours of flying, 3 on-board movies, 2 very ordinary meals, and a few bouts of ass-numbing from sitting too long cramps and tube hauling luggage experience later, here I am, nice and cosy in one of MARA house's room.

It's 11 pm local time. Isya' here is at around 10.40ish pm and Subuh tomorrow will at three-ish am. Sunrise is at 5 am. Yeah I know, it's very early. But that means more daylight and I love it!! The weather earlier was gorgeous, totally disregards forecast about it being rainy and cloudy today. I don't know the temperature but I would say it was around 16C and the soft wind blowing, adds to the coolness of the spring weather. Totally loved it.

Am sitting in my small room, which is not like the normal hotel rooms that you're used to, but it's like what Yusuf of Mara House described to me in his email - a quiet comfort, and my butt is not kissing the walls. The room is facing another small hotel across the road, from which you can hear the occasional sounds of cars, ambulance and people laughing from the street down below.

Staying in this dorm-like facility brings back the memory of staying in UPM, the room is basic and we have to share the common bathroom outside. Yes, you read right. common but Co-ed bathroom. I have to wear tudung all the time to go to the loo, which is quite often coz my bladder is still adjusting to the cold weather here.

The place is really charming, it's like one of those old rest house back home. The elevator can fit about 3 people, which according to Yusof, is very big. You have to swing open the heavy door, then you push aside the pre-war like door grill, in order to use it. But I love it. It's so different from the modern stuff that I'm used to. And of course, it's cheap. Don't think Hubbs will like it here, but hey, am alone and don't need all those extras.

This is why I love London. I know it's over-rated, like my plane seat mate said. Totally overrated but I still love it. The old buildings still preserved, gives London a character, is what I often said to my Hubbs. He likes the convenience of a modern life in the US better.

I load up on a weekly oyster top-up for zones 1-5. It cost me a whopping 44 pound!! But I think it's quite fair coz i can use it for tube travel and bus rides for a week. Sidah took me around Church Street, which is something like our pasar malam in Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman. Then we took to Oxford Street and went straight into Primark. I bought a nice sweater for 5 pound. Dang!! That was cheap. You can't even get that price at FOS Malaysia.

My dinner was at Bonda Cafe downstairs. Quaint little place, but was pretty full. They have some cakes, a selection of Malay kuihs like serimuka, bengkang ubi, maybe cucur udang and the likes. The menu, pretty extensive, with dishes like nasi goreng kampung, noodles, etc. Price for main dish starts from BP2.50. Hmmm, not bad.

I had nasi goreng Daging which cost BP5.50 (almost RM27). U don't want to convert everything, otherwise you'll have high blood pressure everytime you want to pay for something. I met this bloke (who, for the life of me I wanted to knock his head a bit, just can't be bothered to get his butt off to help us hauled the luggage up a flight of stairs) from Malaysia who is attending a training in Glasgow, he compared everything to Euro and ringgit. Of course, it's more expensive. This is a metropolitan and it has one of the highest cost of living rate in the world. Duhh!! You want cheap you go to Teluk Intan la...

Before I retired into my cosy retreat, I had a nice chat with the guys here at MARA house. Salahudin, Yusuf and another guy who used to work here before. The staff here are fantastic.

This is not my first time here in London. I've been here twice, with hubby, maybe 12 years ago. But today is my 1st day in London, alone, and I'm loving it. I can't stop giggling like a kid with candies...

Dear Hubbs, if you're reading this, I do miss you and Zaim, a lot. Perhaps even more tomorrow and after that. But like what they say, absence makes the hearts grow fonder, right? But I think our phone bills will be hefty this month.

Tomorrow is another day of adventure for me.

Packing the Bags

2010-05-10T22:44:00.017+08:00

My version of fake Gucci handbag.

The class acts.

Trying to figure out what goes where and how...

The finished product.

3 more days to go. InsyaAllah by Friday, I'll be in London. Am still here and Shidah, my friend in London is already coaxing me into extending my stay there...and to tell you the truth, I'm tempted. We'll see how it goes, plus need to get permission from Mr. Hubby.

Sitting amidst open suitcases and a pile of clothes, I'm stealing time to post this entry.

Since morning I've been running around doing the necessary things that I should have done from last week. Now all is left for me to do is get the dirty clothes to the laundrette, pack my stuff and pack my two other halves stuff.

Apparently, Mr. Hubby needs to take Friday off, plus weekends to go to his mom's and figure out how to deal with my 3 weeks' absence. I think he'll start missing me on the second day, or perhaps a wee bit earlier, maybe at breakfast the next morning...hahaha... Anyway, dear, you're on your own. I'll put aside weekly clothes sets for you and Zaim, but that's about it.

I'm so looking forward to spend my next 3 weeks there. Away from daily chores and responsibility. Not that I mind those but I think it's nice to reclaim a little bit of your space amidst the chaotic daily routine... I think women, after marriage, seem to lose themselves and their identity to their family. Especially homemakers. They ended up being so and so's mother, or Mrs so and so... and doing this and that.

So, my trip, apart from attending classes, which is excellent, will sort of give me a breathing space I need to do exactly that. Breath.

I need to bury the past. I need to dump all the extra baggage that I have been collecting all my life.

I need fresh ideas for my future. I need to reconnect with myself. I need a new perspective on my life.

When we went for umrah, I prayed hard to Allah, to let the trip to Mecca & Madina be the starting point for the better for everyone involved. And Allah has answered my prayers. All praise be to you dear Allah Al-mighty. And I pray that this short trip will another starting point for a positive outcome for me. Allah has made it possible for me to go on this trip, when earlier it was cancelled and I had very little means myself. Now all is in it's place.

So, in a while, I'll start packing some of the things I need for my trip. It's a short journey, I know, but it's a journey that I pray will help me flourish. I want to return fresh, vibrant, full of energy and have loads of ideas for the future. Who knows?

p/s

I hope you like the Gucci Handbag Cake. Thanks to Miss Man Kwan for the class ( though I only did half way with you). Ladies, Chomel of ChomelCupcakes, Liyana of Loveliana, Ms Ila from Perak, and Angeline of Heavenly Cakes, it was a fun Saturday Nite Live session, though I didn't stay till 2 am to finish the cake. I salute you for your dedications. May we meet again sometimes.

Dirgahayu Tuanku

2010-01-19T12:56:00.009+08:00

(Sorry I tried to rotate, but failed..:))

(In front of the Banquet Hall building)

Salam and hi all,

This was my latest project. It was a collaboration between Pn Anizah of Scrumptuous Cakes and myself . The 9-tier cake was ordered for the 62nd birthday of Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negri Sembilan, Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir , on the 14th January 2010, a day ahead of my birthday. The cake cutting ceremony was featured in the local newspaper but I can't seem to upload it at the moment. I'll try to get the picture later and upload it.

It was an honor for me to have been invited by Pn Anizah to co-decorate the cake and making it together with her and her team was really joyous. To have seen it in the newspaper the next day was indeed the best birthday present for me.

Thousand apologies for the long silence. Transition to new place and neighborhood had not been easy. For me to start anew was very hard. I'm still adjusting and re-arranging my life around new schedule and routines, and still looking for new friends to hang out with...

In the midst of the chaos, we had the chance to fly down to Gold Coast for a week of holiday, to wind down. I've plenty of pictures but unfortunately my computer was infected by virus and had to re-format the whole thing. I couldnt find any of those pix...sheesshhh... anyways, i shall try to upload what little i have later...

Insyaallah i'll be going for umrah from 1-14th Feb, and am hoping for your prayers for the journey and ibadah to be accepted by Allah SWT.

I'll be back after that and looking forward to start something new at a dear friend's place...will keep you posted on the news. And oh, btw, my beloved Chef Fatima will be here in Feb and am looking forward to meet up with her...lots to ask and tell...

Take care for now. Love,

Farida Ismail

SK Wedding Cake Diploma Course

2009-05-10T06:56:00.023+08:00

Salam and hi friends,

It's was a 3 days' of adrenaline rush, of hot mama's hands, symptoms of diarrhea and a whole lot of fun and learning.

I'm talking about the Squire's Kitchen first ever Diploma course in Asia which were held from 6-8th May 2009 at the ICCA Kota Damansara. Our Instructor is non other than the wonderful Rosalind Chan, an International Sugar Artist Instructor and owner of the ICCA chains.

The Squire's Kitchen 3 day Professional Wedding Cake Diploma Course.

I had signed up for this class much soon as I heard about it, but was a bit weary and not expecting anything new, other than learning how to make use of some new tools etc. I had also just completed my Wilton 3 earlier in the week, so the lag from that was also still there. So I drag myself to the class, wondering whether I'd made the right decision. Little did I know it was going to be a 3 days full of fun, friendships, laughter, and surprise and plenty of nervousness and stress...

During the introduction process, I'd already feel scared. Why not? Apparently, everyone's an expert. Among them were Chef Yom (quite famous especially at Bagus and she's a WMI), Calvin of Blackforest Tavern (also another expert, that he said that he doesn't need to introduce himself. Sorry Calvin, i know only your work, not your face, so u still need to do a bit of intro.hahaha)

There's also Norizan, Azie, Kanaga, Lai Peng, Angeline (all WMIs), Aniza of TrulyScrumptioustreats (Niza, I cant open your site!), Renuka, and these that the names (for the life of me I cant remember) Chef Yom's friend, Azie's friend (from Johor), Norizan's friend (from Penang) and Angeline's friends (if you gals are reading this post, please tell me their names!!)

I'm honored to have been in you gals and guy's company...

We were provided with a box of tools, and Rosalind taught us how to use them creatively, also we learnt some dusting and how to better decorate our cakes (Rosalind, if you ever conduct a class on Acquiring Creativity, let me know please!!)

Here's our famous instructor, Rosalind.

1st day she was Canadian slang and all, but by the 3rd day, we managed to turn back to her Malaysian roots, with the lahs and mahs..hehehe..sorry Rosalind! The girls were so naughty and cheeky that at one point I heard Rosalind said " I give up lah with u people" and it's was only the 2nd half of 1st day!!

Rosalind saying something funny (which I cant remember coz i was operating on a zombie mode, from lack of sleep and whole lotta of other things)

We learnt a new rose specie. it's the climber's rose. Not the usual 5 petals rose.

Even had the time to peek at this pakcik on a scooter. It was a birthday cake ordered for the YAB DPM for his birthday. Cute!! Happy birthday Datuk Muhyiddin Yasin !! (apology if I had this spelled wrongly). Hope you'll lead our beloved country into greatness!!

I've already had 2 sleepless nights coz I was still thinking of how I want to decorate my cake. Rosalind had advised us to bring about a picture so that we can at least follow that. But I was determined to use my own imagination (which I'm pretty sure now I lack) and thus the sleepless nights. I still cant imagine how my cake will turn out. I'm a pretty simple person. I like my cakes to be simple but looks delicious. I like it sophisticated yet stunning. Simple but gorgeous!! How ahhh??

So, on the 3rd day, while I was busy eating my nasi lemak (so glad I had that coz I didnt have anything else after that!! My next meal was to be at 10 pm) Rosalind wrote down the timetable for the day, where we had to finish by 4.30pm and the cakes will be put on display etc.

"I also have a surprise for you..." she announced sweetly. I thought she's going to give us presents of something. "It's going to be a Competition. Your cakes will be judged by the end of the day, not onl by me, but also by 2 other external judges. Madam Amy Beh and Mr Michael, an x Malaysian Institute of Baking Chef. Be ready!! And that my dears, is your surprise..."

My nasi lemak nearly dropped to the floor!! What?? Competition?? What competition? I signed up for a class, where we lazily do our work and assembly our cakes messily and the end. I didnt sign up for no competition.

Ohh...gosh!! I'm in trouble for sure. Everyone else's cake looks pretty set to me. They know what they're doing. Seemed like I'm the only lost soul here.

My hands and knees were shaking that I cant hardly hold anything or stand-up straight. I feel like peeing but I cant't coz i'll lose 5 minutes. I dont even know where to start.

By 11 am, I had to take that 5 minute break coz my palms were sweating and I cant hold the fondant properly. It got wet and sticky!!! ARGGGHHHH...

So, while sitting in the small confined area, I was contemplating a quit plan. Should I say I'm having diarrhea or period pain (the famous school time excuse)...but my posItive side is saying, don't quit. just do what u can. Try!!...Ayoyoyoyo....stress level very high at this point.

The whole class was very quiet, we could shatter glass with the silence. Nobody paid any attention to Rosalind anymore, even though she tried to crack jokes. The silence made me more nervous...

But in the end, I managed to finish my cake. I did it!! Though it was a bit plain and pale in comparison to others, I proud to say it's 100% mine. Didnt get any help from nobody.

Everyone else's cake was stunning and very complicated. I must say salute to you people for managing to do a very difficult looking cake.

Here. the judges were busy judging our cakes.

We managed to finish before midnite...that's an accomplishment!!

We sat down waiting for the judges verdicts on our creations. We were to be judged on the following criteria : Creativity, Degree of Difficulty, Color coordination, Sugar Flowers, Interpretation of the Theme (which is wedding cake), and Overall Appearance and Presentation.

The passing categories would be Novice, Meet Requirements, or Competition Level ( highest mark).

I prayed hard I wouldn't be in the novice category. If I did, I would probably be the only one..Malunyaaaaa!!!!

The judges had plenty to say about each cake, but all in all, we all fell in the Meet the Requirement Standards. The experts must have felt a blow. They didnt look very happy (Geng..you cakes all look outstanding to me, I would never, in the near future, be able to one like yours).

But me? I'm pretty happy to meet the requirements...hahahaha...At least I'm not embarrassing myself...

Chef Yom, I didnt get your cake pix. Missed it in the midst of chaos!!

Here's looking at the finished products. Congrats everyone!!

Rosalind said that ICCA is going to hold a Cake Decorating Competition next year. I'm going to enter that!! In the meantime, anyone knows where I can take a creativity class?

It had been a lovely course. I learnt a lot from Rosalind and others. I'm hoping to go another class of hers, but this time I'm gonna be ready!! No more easy peasy pace for me.

Here's a BIG THANK YOU TO ROSALIND AND THE REST OF ICCA STAFF, EDLINA, VIVIAN, DORIS, SHIKIN, MOK, AND OTHERS (sorry didnt get your names)

TO MY NEW FRIENDS, WAS NICE TO BE IN YOUR COMPANIES. PLEASE DO KEEP IN TOUCH!! WE'LL MEET AGAIN SOMEDAY, InsyaAllah.

To myself, I'M CHALLENGING ME TO ENTER A COMPETITION NEXT YEAR...

Proudly mine!!

Have nice and wonderfuls days ahead...HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL YOU LOVELY MOMS OUT THERE!!

Cheers and wasalam

Farida Ismail.