The gangplank grumbles, creaks, and is slowly lowered. Vacation-hungry America is going places again. Bon voyage! Happy landing!
Basket departments take on new meaning now that baskets are packed for traveling the seas. Hampers, hat boxes, trays, bowed in satin, serve as carriers for sweet stuffs and snacks. Look, here's one different. A mammoth ring loaf of crusty Spanish bread is tie to a bread board and see what it carries: Camembert cheese, pears, grapes, a bottle of sherry, or make it champagne. Top-off is a bouquet of spring flowers. A corkscrew accompanies the bottle. A plastic knife is on hand for bread and cheese slicing.
Ann Hagan, florist unique, of 141 East 40th Street, New York City, introduces this newest bon voyage gift to replace the usual, all too usual, bounty basket. That loaf of bread measures two feet across, a loaf turned out on order by a Spanish baker. The bread board acts as serving tray, as work table in preparing the feast.
Some time take time to visit Ann Hagan's place. Open the black doors that close it off from the street, walk through the brick-paved court, open to the sky, march up the steps into one of New York's old stables. Here's a florist shop like no other you've seen. Nothing is done in the always-has-been style. Pink, yellow, green berry baskets carry bouquets, bedded in colored excelsior. At Christmas, white plastic hands clasp holly to hang on the door. At Easter, blossoming shrubs wear pink satin bows, almost one to a blossom. Food and drink gifts are dressed up with flowers—but go see for yourself. You can't believe all the things we tell you about them until you do.
Back comes the musical cake, ready at the cut of the knife to tinkle out its little tune. Choose music to suit the occasion: “Happy Birthday,” “Auld Lang Syne,” a wedding march, or “Let Me Call You Sweetheart.”
Music boxes are from Switzerland, fastened to a cardboard base; then the cake is placed on, but first a piece is whittled out to accommodate the tune box. Cake in position, it is frosted an decorated. A red jelly arrow points the knife-line for the cake's first slice. A firm cut touches off the music which plays seven minutes.
Cakes are decorated with cartoon drawings, each individually made to surprise the honored one. If he is a great fellow for fishing and telling tall tales, he might see himself caricature standing in a wobbly boat hauling in a fish the size of Jonah's whale.
The medium in which the artist works is a radiant jelly, easy-flowing, quick-drying, which makes it possible to exercise a freehand drawing technique. Cartoon cakes are designed for stork parties, announcement parties, going-away parties. You name the event and the Laurette Bakery at 180-09 Jamaica Avenue, telephone Jamaica 3-4551, will turn out a cake good for a big laugh. Cakes are priced according to size, ＄3 for the eight-inch up to ＄12 for the sixteen-inch width. There is a ＄3 deposit on each music box. Return the box and you get back ＄2.75. It costs only a quarter to cut your cake to a tune.
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