LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — They say during times of stress or trouble to look on the bright side of things, but what about the sweet side? A Kentucky sugar artist is trying to put a creative spin on cakes during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Brandi Romines loves to get creative with cakes, but she wanted to stand out even more from other bakers during this time.
“I think the toilet paper cakes are cute, but they’ve been done a hundred times. You can walk into Kroger and buy one,” she said.
So, she made a coronavirus cake for a customer when she asked for something different for her husband’s birthday.
”I said, ‘have you thought about making a cake that looks like the virus?’ And she was like, ‘what?’ So, when I sent her the picture of it under the microscope, I said, ‘I think that would be really cool,’” said Romines.
She took it even one step further with her next pandemic pastry; cake pops, or ‘face pops’ as she calls them, of Governor Andy Beshear and ASL translator Virginia Moore.
”I would look at him and think, ‘that would be so cute as a cake pop,” said Romines. “I think I could do it. I’m just going to try it.”
Romines says the cake pops are at her home and has no plans to gift them during the pandemic for health and safety reasons.
Her coronavirus creations have gotten attention on her social media accounts. She’s already working on her next creation.
”It’s related to our daily press conferences and a way for families to participate with a sweet treat,” said Romines.
Romines says her small business was affected by customer cancellations due to the pandemic. To help drive up business, she’s sold Easter cake decorating kits and offered an online class. She is thinking of continuing to offer those after the holiday.
"It certainly hasn't replaced what I lost, but it has gotten me through and helped and is such a blessing," she said.
You can see Romines' work on Instagram, Facebook, and on her website.
