Meet Christine Page

Behind the Sugar: Blog Edition

Meet Christine Page of The Cake Studio in Perry, OH.

“I give to and participate in charitable organizations, and as a Cake Decorator and Sugar Artist giving back through Icing Smiles was a natural fit,” Christine said when asked what prompted her to becoming an Icing Smiles Sugar Angel. She is also no stranger to experiencing life changing situations. Her own great nephew (affectionately known as “Super Diesel”) was diagnosed last February with a very serious case of RSV. Christine expressed going through such an intense experience with her family gave her a very personal view of what really sick kids and their families endure.

We contacted Christine to design a cake for 1 year old Andrew. Andrew was born at 25 weeks due to his mom having a severe case of Pre-eclampsia. He was diagnosed with HELLP Syndrome and he was IUGR. Baby Andrew spent 200 days in the NICU and at 21 days old his mother was finally able to hold him for the first time.

Unfortunately, Andrew became very ill a few days later. To their revelation, doctors noticed that his central line was inserted into his artery instead of his vein. In an immediate rush, doctors expected him to have emergency heart surgery, but, by the time they got to Downtown Cleveland, the picc line was removed. Thankfully, surgery was not needed and he was stable. As a result, Andrew developed blood clots and eventually went through 4 surgeries; Broviac Line Placement, Broviac Line Replacement due to a staph infection, ROP Retinopathy of Prematurity laser eye surgery, and a  hernia repair.

Andrew was all set for discharge around 175 days, however, he stopped eating and discharge was postponed for 25 more days. On day 200 it was official he was going home! His mom Kristen said, “He didn’t stop smiling the whole way down to the car! It was amazing!”

An amazing outcome should be celebrated with an amazing cake! Christine gathered her main design for Andrew’s 1st birthday cake from the party-ware Kristen gave her. The cake was 3 tiers of delicious vanilla cake with the top serving as a “smash cake” for Andrew. Construction was pretty standard for a tiered cake and it was assembled and finished on site. The design included fondant accents – polka dots, intricate vertical stripes, fondant lettering, and hand molded fondant turtles. Amazingly, Christine said this was her first time using Swiss Meringue Buttercream!

“As a Decorator/Sugar Artist with over 30 years of experience, I’ve always used American Buttercream (ABC). After seeing so many uses of Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) across the cake spectrum, I had to try it! Because of its butter content (vs. shortening in ABC), Swiss Meringue Buttercream, when chilled, can be cut and even shaved like chocolate. There are lots of recipes and I prefer mine a little less sweet and currently base my recipe on Sylvia Weinstock’s Italian Meringue Buttercream (done Swiss style). SMBC is light and has the feel of whipped cream on your tongue but once chilled stays just how you put it on a cake,” Christine said.

When asked how she was able to achieve such sharp and clean edges on her cakes Christine offered several techniques and advice, “I have lots of favorite mentors but Avalon Yarnes’ tutorial (owner of

Christine also offers these important tips when working with SMBC, “Because egg white meringues will break down if there’s the slightest bit of grease, be sure all your mixing tools are clean! I use lemon juice in a bottle (fresh is fine, too) – squirt some in your mixing bowl and with a paper towel, wipe the inside of the bowl and then wipe ALL the tools (beaters, spatula, thermometer probe, etc.). When you’ve added all the butter, don’t be afraid if it looks like cottage cheese – keep mixing! Sometimes, it’s just too warm in my kitchen and the buttercream won’t come together. If after 15-20 minutes of mixing its still soupy, you can put the bowl in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes or just pack bags of frozen veggies under the mixer bowl and keep mixing! It’s so cool to see it suddenly come together! Most SMBC recipes can hold as much as ½ cup of add-ins like raspberry jam or chocolate ganache. Add-in’s should always go in last – add to taste.”

Christine said she loved creating Andrew’s cake because it gave her the opportunity to pay it forward doing something she truly enjoyed. She adored the smiles she received from Andrew and his parents and how happy and gracious they were. She excitingly said, “…his family was due that icing smile!”

Thank you Christine for bringing a BIG smile to Andrew’s face! We are so excited to have you as a Sugar Angel and look forward to seeing more “smiles” in the future. To view more of her wonderful creations visit her Facebook page.