Incredible Cake Decorations by Karen Portaleo

These cakes are the work of Highland Bakery, based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team of bakers is headed by Karen Portaleo, who was once a clay sculptor. Yeah, I can tell that.

The cakes are baked in standard rectangular and round tins. Afterwards, they are frozen, which helps the artists carve them up and they are then decorated using fondant, modeling chocolate, gum paste, edible glitter, edible paint and luster dust, which gives the cake a shimmer

Karen said:

When a client comes in I try and get a feel for their event and what they want - normally they are trying to tell a story about themselves. I try not to take much longer than two days because the cake has to be tasty and fresh. If it's a really complex cake then we will work through the night to keep it moist. When people first cut into the cake there's normally a lot of protests from people at the party, but not from me; for some reason I love seeing people tear into them. At first people are surprised it's a cake, but we put a lot of effort into making sure it tastes delicious, and so they are also surprised at how good it tastes.

The most expensive cake they've created cost a whopping £4,200 and was modeled on a Louis Vuitton trunk. It fed 200 people at a 40th birthday party and before it was cut guests asked why luggage had been left on the table.

The Birkin handbag was a present from American actor and comedian Steve Harvey to his wife on her birthday after the real bag he ordered was delayed. At her party his wife screamed with excitement when she saw the cake, believing it to be real. And why not? Look at the leather texture. Unbelievable!

Ms Portaleo was also commissioned to produce a cake for Elton John's 62nd birthday last year. The cake featured his black and white Cocker Spaniel wearing a pair of his glasses.

Now this is gross. Recently the bakers created an octopus complete with tentacles and suckers for a charity event held for a local aquarium. The cake, which weighed more than 3,000 ounces, was donated to the cause.

This is just a small sample. You can see more cakes at Karen’s Flickr page. If you want to order one you can do so at their site. It will cost you a small fortune though.