I
recently returned from a wonderful trip to New York where I had the
pleasure of working with Elisa Strauss,
who
designed Charlotte York’s second wedding cake for an episode of
Sex and the City.
I
am always looking for new and exciting techniques and loved her sexy
shoe - and - shoebox cake. I emailed Elisa and three weeks later
found myself with my partner Steve, on a plane landing in NY to a
beautiful sunny day.
On
the first day I was to visit Elisa in her studio, I had worked out a
route across Central Park.
I just had to walk a few blocks along and
Bob’s-your-uncle,
I should be there. I wrapped up warm and
prepared for my assault across the cold and windswept park. I
thought
I’d be fine if I kept following the map, but the locals told me
(later) that the maps don’t reflect the true roads
within the park, and I found myself walking alongside a dam, being
passed by joggers, praying I was heading in the right
direction.
Eventually
I popped out on the other side of the park and to my surprise I
wasn’t far from 87th Street. On approaching the
first building looking for number 102, I saw it was 742. Oh my God!
How far was I to walk to get to 102? Anyway I kept going, only much
faster as I was already late. On the next block it read 100 - must
be a mad numbering system. I thought I must be near, another few
paces and Ta-da...… 104! Where had I gone wrong?
But then I spotted Elisa’s famous handbag cake in a basement
window. I went down the steps hoping I hadn’t stumbled on the
wrong side of town and discovered the buzzer for her studio. Phew!
Eliza
and her team were lovely. I spent two blissful days making a
shoe-and-shoebox cake, popping out at lunchtime into a café for a
bowl of soup, feeling very much a New Yorker.
How quickly we become
accustomed to city life.
