Shoreditch Clandestine Cake Club - Meeting 3
"Monarchy Anarchy": Royalty Past and Present

My jubilee-themed May CCC meeting was a celebration of all things British, so it was apt that in typically British fashion the weather went all unpredictably bi-polar on us... A month ago I had chosen the perfect indoor venue, draped in regal velvets and silks; cluttered and cosy with gilded mirrors, thrones and velour galore. Then, of course, we had a heatwave (pretty unexpected after the wettest 'drought' we've ever had and yes, that is an oxymoron...) 
So on a sweltering May evening the surroundings and heat could easily have been a total disaster. Thankfully with a typically British stiff upper-lip the members of the Shoreditch CCC 'kept cool and carried on' despite the heat, and we had one of the largest funniest gatherings yet.

The Bridge Cafe and Bar, Kingsland Road

There was a little disaster in the form of my edible marzipan Imperial crown covered in gold leaf just dying and becoming a molten blob. And we certainly had to work quickly to take all the pics of our cake porn as the butter-cream and chocolate seemed to be melting before our very eyes like the Wicked Witch of the West. So, as soon as pics were done we dived in and OH MY GOD there were so many cakes and they were all gorgeous:

Victoria Sponge

Citrus and berry cake

Prince Regent, Pimms Cake and Battenburg

Earl Grey cake and Patriotic M&M's!

Not only were the cakes amazing (I literally can't put all the pics in) but the effort everyone went to for their attire was fantastic! We had tiaras, Union Jack bows, regal jewellery and a home-made crown which made us all look pretty silly amongst the regular (by which I mean normal) clientele of The Bridge. But we didn't care :) We were busy playing our Guess The Royal game and drinking our rather appropriate Corona's:

*weirdest pic I've ever taken at CCC... What u up to Maarf??

And I had to lay down strict rules that when you wrote on your neighbour's Post-It must be a real Royal and not Princess Leia or King Kong....! Anyway, Helen was the winner and she bagged herself a cute set of Avon Union Jack earrings worth £6 (courtesy of me and my other life as an Avon Lady). Can't complain!

I think I speak for everyone when I say a jolly good time was had by all and I'm looking forward to the real Jubilee if our Corona/Cake-fest was anything to go by! God save The Queen and all that - until next time..xox

Shoreditch 'Clandestine Cake Club' - Meeting 2:
"Film Fatale"...a film noir theme
"I stumble down a dimly lit street, swirling tendrils of fog caressing my stocking-clad gams. I've been searching for a joint to re-touch my lipstick, kick off my high heels and grab a rum-cola. Ahead of me, through the smog I see the dimly lit windows of Shoreditch Grind  - the welcoming glow beckoning me in. It seems as good a place as any to shake Big Johnny off my tail, and it's full of dames like me - dames in heels eating cake and getting tight.... I enter and the music of Nat King Cole envelopes me like an embrace. I walk, relieved, towards the bar..."

Ok so that didn't happen, but we did have our 2nd CCC in Shoreditch at the Grind, a fabulous cinema style cafe that stays open late during the weekend to serve alcohol. It was the perfect setting for my Film-Noir inspired theme and I was so pleased with the effort everyone made, not only with their cakes but with their outfits:

We had really fantastic staff on duty who were willing to humour us, playing my Noir playlist over the speakers and even helping out when I assembled everyone for a film noir quiz. the prize was a tiny bottle of Jack Daniels that was meant to be a homage to all the Scotch drinking that was done back then, but I couldn't find a more authentic brand...
The stars of the show were the cakes though - they were so creative!! Here's just a few:

The Black Dahlia - Mugshot Number!

D.O.A Inspired

There was also my Neo-Noir 'Blue Velvet' cake and a couple we never took pictures of as we'd had some wine by then and just totally forgot! It was a fantastic evening and I really can't wait to see what everyone does for the 'Royalty:Past and Present' theme on May 24th. Of course there'll be more games and prizes and if anyone wants to recommend some songs for a Royal soundtrack that doesn't just include Prince and Queen then let me know! xox