Cake Ideas and Inspiration

My good friend, Jen, recently asked me for some birthday cake ideas/websites/general inspiration that I use when I am in "cake mode". Hope this isn't too late for you to use, Jen, and I want to see some pictures when you have your final product!

The Toy Story cake was a cake of my own creation, but I first went to the wonderful cake site www.coolest-birthday-cakes.com for my inspiration. I looked at all of the Toy Story themed cakes, combined little bits of several different cakes, and added some of my own touches. I think that's the best way to make a cake: see someone's idea and then make it your own. Check out the site for your theme of cake that you want to do and see where it takes you!

If you find a cake that you absolutely love, then just plain ol' copy it! This cake I copied almost completely from the same website listed above.

Another resource I use is Wilton yearbooks. The Wilton company comes out with a new cake decorating book each year. I buy one at Michael's each year and it is full of great cake decorating ideas, updated with the latest techniques and characters that kids love. It has recipes, all the tools you could ever need or want, and more great cakes than I could ever make in a lifetime.

This cute little dino was made after spying a cute green dragon in the 2007 yearbook. His body and head are two heart shaped cakes. His legs, arms, and tail are frosted sugar cookies.

And there is always the good ol' cake pan. Buy them at any craft/cake store, bake, and follow the frosting directions that come with purchase. Simple and easy. This Lightning McQueen cake was nice because it isn't very big and since it was just a family party, we didn't have a ton of leftover cake sitting around to tempt me.

I wish I lived closer to you, Jen, so we could work on it together! Does anyone else have any good cake inspiration stores/books/sites they can share?