Stephen Benison is coming to ISAC!

All the way from the Wiltshire, England- Stephen Benison is coming to ISAC in July 2017! The best part is that he is teaching not one, not two, but THREE classes in Studio B. It is always very exciting when we host instructors visiting from abroad because our students get the rare opportunity to learn from incredible international cake artists that they may not learn from otherwise. In this case, Stephen has never taught as ISAC before, and he and Chef Nicholas have known each other for 30 years! We are even luckier because Stephen is teaching so many classes with us, and that means more students will get the chance to benefit.

So, what is Stephen going to be teaching?

 On Sunday, July 16, we are kicking things off with Fabulous Shoes, Hats, and Handbags! Students will be shown how to structure different styles of hats, including Ascot races style, Audrey Hepburn and the influences of Downton Abbey. Stephen will show how to apply different texture to create a personalized handbag to match, along with a pair of stiletto heels. All three designs can be color coordinated, and are proportioned carefully to be displayed on 10-inch cake.

Each student will take home a fabulous shoe kit with cutters, formers, and step by step color instructions; a fabulous hat kit with cutters for the different brim styles, and an eight page booklet showing the construction and different styles; and a fabulous handbag cutter classic style kit, and a mini flower texture stencil. That’s right, all these cutters are included in the class for each student to have forever! Yay!

The second class Stephen will be teaching, is Vintage Fabric Flowers and Naked Leaves Wedding Cake (on July 17). In this class students will create a two-tier vintage style antique silk wedding cake that features Stephen’s original creation-fabric flowers. Different types of flowers will be created using stencils and embossed designs. You will be amazed by the creative use of Stephen’s fabric flowers, and how they can be arranged directly onto cakes without any wires- making them totally edible. They can even be used on buttercream cakes! 

Students in this class will be taking home the fabric flowers stencil kit with 12 formers, one each of the swirls and sequins mini stencil textures, decorative leaves stencils, a set of “S” scroll cutters, a high grade scalpel with five blades, double leaf scroll cutter, a  six inch mini turntable, and the naked leaves cutters! 

For his final class, Stephen is teaching Wedding Cake Styles and Techniques on July 18. Stephen will take you through his design concepts to create a three-tier wedding cake which will feature a variety of different techniques including the Macintosh rose, feature designs, and his unique silhouette applique technique. Students will be able to create their own color scheme to reflect their own personal style. This a specially designed class for those who want to create something innovative and different.

Just as in his first two classes, Stephen is including quite a few tools for students to take home with them: Macintosh rose art-deco stencil, silhouette cutters, feature design cutters, triple leaf scroll, trailing leaves cutter, and stripes stencil. 

I want to take a quick minute and point out how great it is that students will be taking home so many tools! If a student takes all three of Stephen’s classes, they will go home with nearly $300 in cake decorating tools!!! That is an absolutely incredible bonus to these fantastic classes!

The green cake at the top of this post is also features some of the design techniques in this class. 

You can click any of the class titles above to register online! Each of Stephen’s classes are just one day; so it should be no trouble to fit into your schedule. And as I said, this is the VERY FIRST TIME that Stephen has taught with us at ISAC, so this is a fantastic opportunity to learn from an international instructor. With the class being held in the middle of July, it will also be a great time to take a break from the summer heat! We hope to see you all in class with Stephen in Studio B!

Oh, and Michele Sweeney’s classes are now available for online registration as well. You can sign up for her Sew Easy Cake and Craft Cookie class here and her Shabby Chic Wedding Cake Class here. 

Sweetly yours, 

Stephanie

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Winner of the 2015 Craftsy Blogger Award for Best Craftsy Cake Decorating Instructor Blog

Chef Nicholas Lodge: 2015 Finalist for the Cake Masters Cake Hero Award.