BEHIND THE SCENES: WITCH'S POTION CAKE

This cake was featured in Cake Masters magazine and is definitely one of the designs I get asked about the most. So, I thought instead of answering individual questions, I’d share some behind-the-scenes photos so you can see how it all came together — from potion bottles and curse scrolls to giant spiders and creepy beetles. This design has everything I love about Halloween… (Ok, maybe not the spiders).

This post isn’t a full tutorial (because that might be the longest blog post in history), but I thought it might be nice to share the process – rather than just the usual final shot of the cake. And hopefully, it’ll give you some ideas and inspiration for your own spooky creations.

A few notes before we kick off:

I’ve had people ask about the bird skull, which appeared on some of the cupcakes that went with the cake. So, I’ve uploaded a very quick demo showing how to create the skull shape and apply dusts to give it an aged, sinister look – you can find it here.

Others have asked about the old and scarred wood effect on the cake board. I’ll be filming a demo for that soon – so keep an eye out!

The design for this cake had been floating around in my head for some time. If you already follow me, you’ll know that Halloween is my favourite baking season – I love making spooky cakes.

It made sense to get started on the bottles first, as they needed time to dry. I think there were around 35 of them on the final cake. I began with a few different colours of paste and made five or six bottles from each one, making sure they were all different shapes and sizes. I made the corks at this stage too, as they needed time to firm up before dusting.

Things look pretty uninspiring at this stage... but trust the process

Once the bottles were firm enough to handle, I started adding colour. As you can see from the image below, using edible dusts and highlighters helps create the illusion of depth and reflection.

By layering up different shades of dust, each bottle takes on a slightly different look – even though they are all made from the same base colour of paste.

Purple, potent... and probably poisonous

Once the bottles and corks were all dusted, I began adding the labels. Some were attached with “cord” around the necks; others were stuck directly onto the front of the bottle, like this:

Freshly squeezed. Probably.

Some time later...

All corks, cords, stoppers, and labels added... time for a cuppa... and a lie down.

For the base board, I wanted a very aged (and rather neglected) wood effect. I can't imagine witches are particularly gentle with their furniture. This technique is super-easy but really effective. I find myself using variations of it often – definitely a must-know.

Demo coming soon!

This witch does not use coasters

Once the board was ready and the bottles were drying nicely, it was time to get the cake into position and add some mystical spillages.

As before, I used plenty of shading and lustre dusts to bring the flat colours to life – I was really pleased with how the purple turned out. I think it looked great against the black.

So pretty... but probably not safe to drink

May cause nausea, invisibility, or spontaneous frog transformation.

When using black sugar paste, it can sometimes start to look a little dull and greyish — especially if you’ve used cornflour when rolling it out. For a fast fix, give it a quick steam once you’ve finished covering your cake.

With the big jobs out of the way, it was time to start working on the details - which is usually my favourite part of cake-creation... Bring on the bugs! Full disclosure: I’m terrified of spiders and generally not a fan of creepy crawlies. I blame that scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, (which I saw when I was very young and has obviously scarred me for life). It's the scene with the two doorways. Know the one I mean? Making these little critters genuinely freaked me out... 😱

These were 'crawling' all over my worktop. I was not OK

Once the bugs were finished, painted, and placed on drying foam (safely out of my line of sight), it was time to add some final touches: curse scrolls, bones, skulls, and a few eyeballs for good measure.

Nothing says "party" like scattered body parts

Want to make a bird skull? Watch my quick demo! These look fantastic on cakes, or you can serve them up, as I did, with a few spindly bones and use them for cupcake toppers.

Finally, it was time to fix everything in place. I wanted the cake to have quite a chaotic feel – as I have it on good authority that wicked witches do not spend much time on housework or tidying up.

One drop of this will curdle your soul.

Crunchy, with a shocking aftertaste

Genie Wishes or Lizard’s Gizzards? Tough Call

The most important potions of all

Add some candles... and we're done!

Chaotic, spooky, and just a tad questionable. Just how I like it

Hope you enjoyed this look at how the Witch's Potion Cake came together – eyeballs, spills, spiders and all. I'll be sharing more Halloween creations soon, so stay tuned – and if you're planning something delicious for spooky season, I hope this gave you a few ideas.

If you'd like to see more "behind the scenes" posts, let me know.

It gives me a motivational nudge to take more photos the next time I'm making something new, (instead of forgetting entirely, as I do 99% of the time 🙄).