I’ll never forget the chaos surrounding this floss bun tower. This was my first official shoot for this client with my new team. There couldn't have been a more challenging time to confront one of my most demanding food styling assignments to date. It made my initial nerves around fashioning the yellow curtain backdrop amusing in hindsight.
I faced two main obstacles: getting the floss to adhere and managing the buns' softness. Any handling would cause inevitable shedding and patches. Hence, a bag of excess floss is always included in our logistics for such needed touch ups.
However, the disfigurement from stacking the buns was a more complex issue. There was absolutely no structural integrity for even one bun to stack onto another, much less three.
With the buns being displayed on their long side, I carved a crater into the bottom bun’s back that was out of camera view. I placed a block for weight support but quickly realised this would only remedy a situation with a single tier. Eventually, I had to carve a deeper crater with each bun to lighten the weight and delicately install cut skewers for balance.
Arduous as the journey was, we ultimately managed to produce the set standard of quality. More importantly, it served as a turning point for me and my team. From that day onward, morale, teamwork and communication flowed smoothly.