Cookie Decorating Party

Every year, at the end of wedding season, I host a very small party for my Monday playgroup moms in Burlingame. We've known each other since our little ones were only two years old and have helped each other through many a long days chasing after the little ones. My shop is filled with laughter and creative energy 'till the wee hours of the night, as we decorate cookies, eat, sip wine and tell funny stories. From left to right: Jennifer, Alex, Angelica, Nancy, Sonya, Kelly, Amy and Kathie.

Party Like an Animal

Some recents cakes we did incorporating animal skin motifs like zebra and leopard. It's modern and cute, with just enough edge.

Little Girl's Garden Party

Give her the world . . .she's turning one years old! A happy, colorful world as seen through the eyes of a little girl -- Edible handsculpted butterflies, ladybugs, caterpillars, flowers and more.

Power Rangers Cake

Every November, as wedding season comes to a close, I get to celebrate big with a birthday party for my son, Ethan. His latest and greatest passion is Power Rangers...this is the cake we came up with. We used his coloring book to scan edible images onto the sides of the cake. The mask is hand-sculpted from cake and fondant. Serves 70.

Sex and the City Cake

The perfect cake for the modern girl who loves handbags and presents (isn't that every girl?) I hope Carrie would have approved.

Mini-Cakes for the 30th Birthday Bash

Celebrate BIG with something very small -- an individual mini-cake created for each guest. These are decorated with pearlized white fondant and a chocolate brown bow, adorned with an edible gift tag.

11 Stunning Weddings: The Knot Magazine

Butterfly Cakes is proud to have created the weddings cakes for two out of the eleven weddings picked for The Knot's spread of "11 Stunning California Weddings." Read on....

Katrina & Pascal, Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco:

Charity & Mark, Asian Art Museum in San Francisco:

Inspiration! Brides Northern California

It is always such a pleasure to be able to contribute to our wonderful local press. After all, it is in these pages that our brides begin to create the wedding of their dreams! Recently, the editor of Brides magazine asked me to recall one of my favorite cakes of the past year, and this one came to mind. . .it is original, colorful & ethnic!


As appeared in the Fall/Winter 2008 Issue:

1st Birthday Giant Cupcake

The smallest birthday girl deserves the BIGGEST birthday cupcake! A very special way to celebrate the 1st birthday.

Superheroes Cake

Train and Coaches Cake

For the little boy in your life. . .an engine and his two coaches, atop a cake decorated like a railroad scene. Serves 30.

Classic Elegance

A stark departure from the current colorful, whimsical cake trend, this cake is timeless, elegant and classic. Adorned in white rolled fondant and decorated with hand-cut lace, topped with a single extra large rose hand-molded from sugar-paste. Photo by Kevin Chin Photography.

Rainforest Animal Cake

Sure to make an impression, this cake welcomes your newest addition to the family with a unique gathering of baby rain forest anmials!

Another Topsy Turvy Cake!

These cakes have been called many things; "Crooked Cakes", "Topsy Turvy", "Mad Hatter", the "Whimsy Cake". . .the list goes on. We know one thing is true - they never cease to delight the youngest to the oldest guest! They challenge our visual balance of things, and make us do a double take! Photo by Joe Ripp.

Topsy Turvy Cake

Trisha helped design this fun and unique wedding cake, which matched the burgundy and purple color theme of her wedding.

More Pink and Brown!

It's elegant, it's whimsical, it's modern....it's Courtney (the bride)!

Let's Go on a Safari!

We created this wild safari cake for a fabulous, over-the-top, 1st birthday party held at the San Francisco Zoo. Each tier features a different animal print: zebra, leopard, tiger and giraffe. The animals are all handsculpted from fondant.

Pink and Brown Polka Dot

This cute-as-a-button cake was created for a bridal shower whose theme was pink and brown. We especially love the multi-colored bow.

Mazel Tov!

We created this splashy cake for Olivia's bat mitzvah. We were told Olivia loves cakes and cake decorating, and we also paid special tribute to her beloved puppy by including a sugar-sculpted version of him on top.

Romantic Fondant Draping

We created this "fondant drape" cake for Jennifer & Nick's wedding held at Bimbo's back in May. The look of the wedding was "old Hollywood glamour", romantic red roses and petals. I love this photo taken by Weeks Photography because it really captures the fun of the cake cutting moment! Jennifer wrote a nice note afterwards:

I just wanted to thank you for a beautiful and delicious wedding cake. Nick pronounced it the best chocolate cake he has ever eaten (don't tell his mom or grandma!) We took the top with us on our honeymoon and ate it over the course of a week, and are already looking forward to the anniversary cake!

Ms. Coyle Visits Butterfly Cakes

I'm going to date myself, but here goes...Last year, I missed my 20th high school reunion in New Jersey because I had just given birth to my second son. But I had a lot of fun reconnecting via email with everyone and seeing what they're up to. One of the more pleasant surprises was an email from my old home economics teacher, Ms. Coyle, who retired last year. (Well, her name is Marcia, but I can't seem to bring myself to call her anything but "Ms. Coyle"!) I took her class called "Foods" my freshman year and remember loving the baking segment! I should have known then what my calling was. Today, Ms. Coyle happened to be passing through San Francisco on her way to a wedding, and during her 3 hour layover, she paid a visit to Butterfly Cakes! We talked about old high school teachers (Ms. Spiker, Ms. Vitale and Ms. Harlan), cakes and rolled fondant. Now that she's retired, Ms. Coyle is experimenting with making wedding cakes. What a nice surprise and an honor to be tracked down by a teacher from 20 years ago!

Floral Cupcake Fantasy

We created these fun, vibrant cupcakes for Dan and Jasmin's intimate wedding held at King Fish restaurant in San Mateo. The mother of the bride, Doris, was kind enough to forward these beautiful photos to me. Here's what she had to say:

Thank you for helping my daughter and I create a unique cupcake tower with top cake for her wedding. Not only was it visually beautiful but amazingly delicious. The tower looked amazing at the venue (Kingfish restaurant) with it's festive and funky folk art.

Heat Wave!

I hope everyone is keeping cool during this heatwave! My car thermometer read 102 degrees today at 3 pm. My goodness...But, on the bright side, just looking at this cake we created gets me thinking about the beach and cooling off. My wonderful client, Marianne, helped me design this luau/beach theme cake. The sandbucket is banana cake with walnut praline filling; the beach & water are a deep dark chocolate cake filled with raspberry filling. The "sand" is brown sugar. Flip flops, shovel and flowers are all handsculpted from fondant.

Sherbet Colored Wedding Cake

This fun wedding cake was designed for my very good client, Arlette, who had her wedding this past June at the Berkeley City Club. The colors remind me of melted sherbet -- perfect for a summer wedding. Inside are alternating tiers of chocolate cake and lemon cake; outside is smooth fluffy buttercream frosting. Photo by Irja Elisa.

Paintball Cake

For your favorite paintball player. This cake is covered in camouflage rolled fondant, and splattered with paint made from colored melted white chocolate. Getting shot was never so much fun!

Hello Kitty!

What little girl doesn't just love Hello Kitty? The cute graphic designs and adorable little pencil cases and stickers....you're never too old for Hello Kitty.

Topsy Turvy Train Cake

I came across this photo while putting together a collage for my son Ethan's school. This was the cake I made for his 3rd birthday over a year ago. We had a party for around 50 people, but the cake of course served 100. Whenever I see the photo, it still makes me smile. And the smile it brought to Ethan's face that day was priceless.

Psychadelic 60's

Peace, baby! A company celebrates its 40th anniversary with a 1960's themed cake. The bottom tier features a paisley print, the middle tier is "flower power" and the top is peace signs, all dotted with the ubiquitous smiley face.

Hat Box Engagement Cake

This whimsical, yet elegant cake, was inspired by the dress color of the bride-to-be: not quite chartreuse, not quite lime green, a very striking and sophisticated green. Inside was tiramisu (vanilla cake layered with rum espresso syrup and mascarpone cream).

Laundry Detergent Box Cake

This kitschy cake was for a unique bridal shower whose theme was the "1950's housewife." The "bubbles" are handcrafted from white chocolate and painted with edible luster dust. Inside is moist lemon cake with lemon filling. (Serves 40 people)

Chic First Birthday Cake

My good client, Kim, ordered this fabulous cake for her son, Sean. Kim has such a sharp design sense; she helped me to create this striking color combination and design, including the pleated bottom.

Champagne Bottle Cake

Open the bubbly and celebrate life! 70 is a milestone that deserves some of the good stuff. This one is guaranteed to be sweet on the palette.

Graduation Cap Cake

Hats off to Tabitha, who graduated this weekend from San Francisco State with a degree in broadcast television! Inside is our most popular cake: moist chocolate cake with fresh raspberry filling.

Basket of Flowers Cake

To honor someone special in your life -- your wife, your mother, a teacher, a babysitter -- anyone who deserves an extra special treat on their special day. What really makes this basket cake come to life are the edible, handpainted sugar flowers that are our signature.

Princess Shower Cake

We created this sophisticated "princess" cake for a bride whose bridal colors were Tiffany blue and chocolate brown.

Pink & Brown Chic

We created this whimsical, yet chic, cake for a 35th birthday party. It's the perfect balance between youthful and sophisticated.

Courtenay's First Birthday Cupcakes

Cute, girly cupcakes with an edible candle made from white chocolate are perfect for a first birthday celebration.