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Spice Up Your Life!

Summer is heating up with a too hot to handle edition of Chef Nicholas' Flavors of the World! This week our dear chef shares his thoughts on all kinds of different spices and peppers! And now, I'll turn things over to Chef Nicholas:

It's never too soon to start!

Last fall I wrote a blog about Chef Nicholas judging the annual National Gingerbread House Competition, hosted by the Omni Grove Park Inn. Well, now it's late summer a year later, and at ISAC this week Chef Nicholas received a letter asking him to judge the competition again this year! While we are excited to once again be part of this amazing event, I thought I would talk a bit about being a competitor in the National Gingerbread House Competition.

Here at the International Sugar Art Collection we are known for offering very high quality instruction on all manner of sugar arts.  Well, this month is no different. In fact, we are busy, busy, busy this August!! The best part is that we have loads of fun classes for you all to take, and it's not too late!

August for ISAC started off big- the 40th annual International Cake Exploration Societe Convention and Show. Chef Nicholas and Scott have been attending the convention for a long time with demos by Chef Nicholas and an ISAC vendor booth. This year was very exciting because we were able to share the Renshaw line of Ready to Roll Fondant and Gumpaste with all the convention attendees!  Yay! Chef Nicholas and Scott drove home from Omaha early this week to prepare for our first guest instructor of the month: Greg Cleary.

Greg is visiting Studio B all the way from Australia! He will be teaching White Wedding Favorites class, an all-white demo cake topped with gorgeous flowers. He will be instructing students on how to make peonies, roses, morning glories, and filler flowers. Tips and tricks on how to assemble and arrange the flowers and foliage will also be covered. It's not too late to sign up for this class, there are only THREE seats left! Since it is not every day that we get an instructor from the other side of the planet teaching in Studio B, we have kept registration open. If you want to sign up you MUST CALL (1-800-662-8925) by 2:00pm EST on Friday August 7, 2015. 

Next up in August is Cake Camp out in Las Vegas, NV. From August 13-16, you will be able to find Chef Nicholas at the Green Valley Ranch! Chef Nicholas is going to be teaching three different gum paste flower classes; overall his three classes will include the tuberose, Love-in-a-Mist, oriental peony, avalanche rose, bride protea, calla lily, bells of Ireland, and bouvardia. These flowers are divided up between each of the three, one-day classes. You can sign up for Chef Nicholas' classes at Cake Camp by clicking here. The course numbers for his classes are NL100, NL101, and NL102.  Who doesn't want to visit Vegas? What makes Vegas even better?! CAKE! Go, sign up now. I'll wait right here. 

The weekend after Chef Nicholas and Scott return from Cake Camp we welcome our second visiting instructor to Studio B- Chef Joe Cumm. This class sounds pretty spectacular to me, plus I think it's a two for one: oriental string work AND modeling chocolate! That's right folks, you heard me, Chef Joe will not only be teaching his students how to create gravity defying oriental string work designs, he will also be teaching them how to make modeling chocolate flowers! I mean, come on... this is a great class to take to learn and build your techniques. You always want to be able to offer the very best to your clients, and if you haven't ever tried modeling chocolate, or the stunning elegance of oriental string work, I want to see you in this class! Oh, and it's just a one day class, so it should fit nicely into your weekend on August 22! 

If you are looking for an activity to do the day after you take Chef Joe's class, then head on down to Pastry Live with the ISAC team on August 23! For three days (8/23-8/25) Pastry Live will be hosting seminars, competitions, and vendors! Chef Nicholas' seminar, New Trends in Wedding Cakes (hosted by Nielsen-Massey), is on Sunday, August 23 at 3:00pm. Last year a pastry chef in attendance told me that Chef Nicholas' seminar was by far the best of the entire weekend. So, I think you should come and watch! Plus, it's a lot of fun to walk around, check out all the different competitions, and chat with pastry chefs and students from around the world. Oh, and Chef Nicholas will again be one of the judges for the Art of Cake competitions! Last year there was a Sharknado cake... I just can't wait to see what the competitors come up with this year! If you would like more information, click here for schedules and tickets.

The judges of the 2014 Art of Cake competition; everyone has fun at Pastry Live!

2014 Art of Cake Winner

The day after Pastry Live, August 26, our third guest instructor will be teaching in Studio B! The wonderful Peggy Tucker is bringing her isomalt skills to her students in two different one-day classes! The first class is Basket and Bow, and students will be creating an adorable basket and multicolor bow, and on August 27, Peggy will be teaching students how to make a little garden fairy. While both of these classes use isomalt, each class teaches different techniques that can be used with this medium. Isomalt classes are not offered regularly at ISAC, so if you have been wanting to try a class now is the time to sign up! If you are interested in both classes, we are offering a special discounted price on the two classes together! 

There you have it friends; our August is chock full of fun visiting instructors, ICES, Cake Camp, and Pastry Live. Chef Nicholas, and all of us in the ISAC family, hope to see you this month!

Sweetly yours, 

Stephanie

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

ICES Fun Facts

Today is the first day of the 40th annual ICES convention! I thought in honor of this big event, I would share some fun facts about the ICES organization today! 

I'm a big fan of sparkly cakes. Wait, let me start over. I'm a big fan of sparkly everything! When Molly (ISAC's most famous customer service specialist) suggestion writing a blog on edible sequins, I was totally on board! I started by talking to Chef Nicholas about the methods he shares with his students, searched Craftsy classes, and finally researched methods online. I have quite a bit to share with you, so let's get started!!

This year we have been very lucky to host some amazing guest instructors. Next month, in August, we are offering three amazing classes: Oriental Stringworkand Modeling Chocolate with Chef Joe Cumm, Basket and Bow: and Isomalt Class and Garden Fairy: an Isomalt class with Peggy Tucker. The best part of these classes is the timing. All three classes will be held around the annual Pastry Live event in Atlanta! You can easily plan your week to accommodate all three classes and the entire Pastry Live event! Hooray! I'll tell you about all three classes and a bit about Pastry Live.

I have to apologize profusely!!! I was supposed to post the winners of the TruColor blog from last week yesterday. Unfortunately, I was writing up this week's upcoming blog yesterday, and it totally slipped my mind! Sorry, sorry, sorry! Please oh please forgive me! :( Now, would everyone like to know the winners of the three TruColor prizes?!

Just last month ISAC starting carrying a new product. A pretty spectacular product actually- TruColor Natural Food Color! These food colors come in gel paste powder, paint powder and airbrush powder, and airbrush shine powder. They are also made from natural materials such as fruits, vegetables, seeds, roots, and minerals. It gets better! Trucolor Natural Food Color is free of synthetic dyes, artificial preservatives, eggs, milk, fish and shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, soy and wheat. Oh, and it's gluten and GMO free too! That is pretty impressive! I'm sure you are all dying to hear more... and maybe win a little something. :)

Gary Chapman's NEW Book!

Back in the late 1980s/early 1990s Chef Nicholas' books were being published by Merehurst Publishing. The Marketing Director was Gary Chapman, and he was responsible for introducing the company, and its list of cake decorating books, to the USA. Gary and Chef Nicholas attended their first American cake show, an ICES convention in Tulsa, Oklahoma, together. The next show was in Atlanta, and they had a proper booth with reception and demos by Chef Nicholas and others. The rest, as they say, is history! Well, for Chef Nicholas it was history! Gary the Marketing Director discovered his own interest in cake decorating, and thus began his own career as a cake artist!

Thank you to ALL of our Craftsy students!

Before Chef Nicholas became a Craftsy instructor, the only way to take a class with him was to travel to our location in Georgia for a class, at a cake decorating convention (like ICES or Cake Camp, or get lucky enough to live where he was a guest instructor. When Chef Nicholas started his relationship with Craftsy, he was able to connect with students around the globe, students who may not have been able to afford an in-house class, or those who were nervous about taking their very first class in person. Craftsy has allowed Chef Nicholas to teach, inspire, and encourage students from every walk of life. The entire ISAC family is grateful for this.

Chef Nicholas' India Adventure

This week has been very busy at ISAC. Not only have we been preparing for Saturday, when Chef Nicholas will begin teaching his three day Rolled Fondant Techniques class (with PME certification), the ISAC family has also been helping to prepare Chef Nicholas for his big trip to India!! The Rolled Fondant class ends on Monday evening and the very next day Chef Nicholas will be flying to India! Why? Cake decorating of course! Chef Nicholas will be instructing a four-day class at the Academy of Pastry Arts India, June 26-29, 2015! Honestly, I'm not sure if Chef is more excited to teach in India or eat loads of deliciously spicy Indian cuisine! ;)

Sidney Galpern AND Joshua John Russell at ISAC!

Is it too early to start talking about our Grand Holiday Open House this coming November? Nope, didn't think so. Well, this year our Open House will be a bit different. We will have two guest instructors! That's right, TWO!! Sidney Galpern and Joshua John Russell will be lighting up ISAC with their cake decorating super powers. So, if you haven't yet signed up for our Grand Holiday Open House it's never too early, especially  since you are getting instruction from two highly skilled guest instructors andour very own Chef Nicholas Lodge! But wait, there's more...

Greg Cleary comes to ISAC

G'day mates: mark your cake decorating calendars! In August, Greg Cleary will be coming all the way from Brisbane, Australia to teach in Studio B! Yay!

As promised here are the winners of the Birthday Blog prizes! Thank you to everyone who commented on last week's blog! I do hope that all the winners listed below enjoy their prizes, whatever they may be!

Today is an exciting day! Why, you ask? Today we celebrate the one year anniversary of the Nicholas Lodge Blog! Hooray!!! Writing this blog each week for all of you has been a lot of fun, and I have learned so much more about cake decorating and baking in the process! I have enjoyed researching each topic, consulting with Chef Nicholas on what you all would like to read about each week, and reading all the positive comments and emails we receive from our pleased readers (that's you!). So, how should we celebrate this momentous occasion? What's a birthday party without presents- let's giveaway some prizes!

Fantastic Floral Favorites!

Happy Thursday dear readers!! Today my humble offering is another Flavors of the World segment by Chef Nicholas! Chef Nicholas has a very refined, sophisticated palette, and he just loves floral flavors. I'll also be sharing two delicious recipes developed by the man himself- Vanilla Lavender Shortbread Cookies and Rose and Pink Champagne cupcakes! But enough about me; I'll let Chef Nicholas share his floral story with you.

Chef Nicholas has TWO NEW CLASSES this summer! HOORAY! These two classes are being offered for the first time; some of the flowers have been taught by Chef Nicholas years ago in discontinued classes, and are back by popular demand by our wonderful students, and some flowers are being taught for the first time ever! Let's not stand on pretense, I'll tell you all about them right now!

2015 ICES Convention

The 2015 ICES Convention is less than two months away, and this year we celebrate its 40th anniversary! If you have never attended an ICES Convention, why not start this year? There is a long list of classes, competitions, demos, and shopping to enjoy

Summer Camp is Better with Cake!

Who didn't love summer camp as a kid? Well, ok, probably a lot of kids, but only because they were too young to go to CAKE CAMP!! Every other year the California Cake Club hosts the weekend-long Cake Camp, and guess what? The 15th Cake Camp is this year: August 13-16, 2015, in Las Vegas, Nevada! There are demos, classes, and a vendor area (code for shopping!). There will be about 18 different retail booths in the vendor area, including our ever popular International Sugar Art Collection booth! There will be 29 wonderful instructors this year teaching a variety of techniques; all skill level classes will be offered, so there are classes for beginningers, experts, and everyone in between! Oh, and guess who will be teaching three 1-day flower classes at Cake Camp? That would be Chef Nicholas Lodge!

A while back I shared a post on Chef Nicholas teaching at the French Pastry School (FPS) in Chicago. If you are a fan of Chef Nicholas' Facebook page, you'll know that his students finished up their Wedding Cake projects on Tuesday, and they are all spectacular! These students get wonderful instruction from Chef Nicholas (as anyone who has taken a class with him would agree), but they also have basic tool kits that provide all the essentials needed to make their Sweet 16 and Wedding Cake class projects. We sell these kits at ISAC specifically for the students at the French Pastry School, but I thought I would share all the included tools. Everyone needs to know the essentials to have in your cake decorating arsenal! Oh, and hey, maybe I'll give some stuff away too. Who doesn't love that?!