Beach Themed Birthday Cake

Finished cake and cupcakes

I had lunch with a friend who said she was having a birthday party (pool party) for her daughter, who was turning 10 yrs old.  "Do you need a cake?" came spilling out of my mouth before she could finish her sentence and to my great pleasure she said that she did.  The birthday girl knew exactly what she wanted.

Beach themed red velvet cake with buttercream frosting (I convinced them to go with cream cheese frosting), complete with blanket, sand-pail, umbrella, sand and water.  You've gotta love a girl who knows what she wants!
I am STILL enjoying Debbie Brown's Gorgeous and Gruesome Cakes for kids book, and in there she has an underwater palace cake with fabulous sea creatures that I wanted to try my hand at...So, here's the idea.  13x9" Red Velvet cake, part beach - part ocean.

Deep Red Velvet cake frosted with sand colored frosting

I put sea creatures around the base of the ocean side as if you had sliced into the ocean and could get a glimpse of what lie beneath.  I ground up Nilla Wafers for the sand, tinted the cream cheese frosting a royal blue ocean and a little brown for the sand.  Covered the cake board in sand fondant and attached a ribbon around the edge for that finished look.  And it really did make it look great.  I always feel a little guilt putting fondant on a cake board since it's food that will never get eaten but it really ties the whole thing together and give it a professional look.

close up of the beach

I used white and chocolate marshmallow fondant to make sea shells.  I tinted the white MMF various bright colors and using Debbie's book as I guide made a number of different ocean inhabitants, including coral, fish, starfish and a dolphin jumping out of the water.  If I were to do it again, I think I would have made more prominent waves.  Live and learn I guess.

Close up of the dolphin and underwater sea creatures

I also made a dozen cupcakes and decorated half as beach with shells and umbrellas and the other half ocean with coral and fish.

Close up of beach and ocean cup cakes.

I liked how it turned out.  Let me know what you think.