At two in the afternoon last week, Peggy Kovensky had already been baking for 10 hours. But she still had much more to accomplish before heading home around 6 pm. At the top of her to-do list that afternoon: Creating the exquisite gum paste flowers for the four cakes that were oohed and ahed over at weddings this past weekend.

Born in Nigeria, where she earned a degree in public administration before returning to school to study culinary arts and launch a successful wedding cake business, Kovensky later moved to London to learn European cake decorating. There she met her husband, Stan, and followed him home to Maine. In 2005, she started New England Couture Cakes and quickly got noticed by such national publications as the exclusive “Grace Ormonde Wedding Style” and “People Weddings.”

At the beginning of the month she further expanded her sweet world by opening a bakery at 740 Broadway in South Portland.

Kovensky, who had been baking in her home, says “We thought if we were going to get a bigger space, we should have something to support the lease.”

The bakery offers a changing selection of pastries Monday through Saturday. Most have a French or Scandinavian provenance, with the exception of her cannoli. Some finger-licking treats to look for in the rotation, include lemon chiffon mousse cake, puff pastry diamonds, pinwheels, custard pockets, cream buns, croissants, sticky buns, muffins, bear claws, orange truffle cuts and Parisian macarons (which differ from the coconut macaroons). Prices range from $1.85-$2.49.

Since she arrived in Maine, Kovensky, 29, has quickly become one of the state’s most sought-after wedding cake designers. Note the word designer rather than baker. Sure she’s got mad skills in the kitchen, but her acclaim stems from her artistry.

Each of her cakes is a one-of-a-kind work of art. The idea of duplicating a cake she’s already created is absurd to Kovensky. “Why would you want a cake someone else has had before?” she asks.

As has become the fashion among high-end cake makers, most of Kovensky’s cakes are covered in rolled fondant. However, it’s her gum paste flowers and decorations that distinguish her cakes. These hand cut and hand painted creations look like expensive silk flowers, but each one is edible.

When she crafts flowers she’s never created before, she buys a sample of the real deal so she can study and dissect it. Then she duplicates it flawlessly. All this work means each cake takes between 35 and 60 hours to complete. She estimates she makes about 50 celebration cakes each year.

Does she have any particular favorites among her hundreds of works of edible art?

“At the time I make a cake, it’s my favorite,” Kovensky says. “Until I make another one.”