An curved arrow pointing right. Lani Halliday of Brooklyn's Brutus Bakeshop uses stencils to create the patterns that end up on her unique cakes. The finished product is a tasty work of art.

Another trend is cake stencils. Just lay the stencil on top of your cake, sprinkle some confectioners' sugar or cocoa over the top, remove, and voila! You can have a design as simple or as ...