This is an unprecedented time we are in right now. We are all being swept up in the uncertainty, anxiety, fear and unknown that this Covid-19 pandemic has placed upon us. Many countries are in some form of lockdown or being asked to actively practice social distancing. We are experiencing panic-buying and increased price-gouging and even Covid-19 related scams. But we are also experiencing acts of kindness and compassion.
This impacts all of us in immeasurable ways. Each one of us are dealing with it differently but one thing is for sure, there are many that are anxious because this is a time of the COMPLETE unknown.
So to hopefully provide some cheer, distraction and bring a bit of sunshine, I have finally put together a long-intended paid PDF tutorial. But I am sharing it for FREE here on my blog and in an Album on my Facebook page. I also will have it available as a downloadable PDF in my e-Shop for those who would prefer an easy to print and save version, for a minimal fee.
It goes through one of my most popular and well-liked cake designs which also happens to be one that has fun and happy colours. It features my signature V-Petal ruffles which can be used in so many ways. I have shared another mini-tutorial of this technique here on this blog but this tutorial also covers a versatile technique for creating a standing heart topper.
I hope this brings some cheer and joy and maybe hours of distraction.
STAY SAFE my friends, BE KIND and remember to do your part and WASH your hands. Much love to all! And most importantly, HAPPY CAKING Y’ALL!
Tutorial below:
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
WOW! I can’t believe it’s been almost a year and a half since I’ve made a blog post! I have NO idea where all the time went. I have been in quite a prolonged decorating and creative funk lately, not feeling motivated, but I HAVE still been making cakes here and there, just not posting much and I guess blogging NONE, lol!
Some of my latest cakes:
Each time I think I want to post something about a cake I’ve made, I feel overwhelmed or have doubts that anything I post would be worth reading. So I don’t. But then I get a lovely comment on an Instagram or Facebook post and am reminded of the many times people have said I’ve inspired them with what I share – even when it’s about my struggles – and then instantly it seems worthwhile.
I guess I really need to just push through despite my doubts or I fear I may end up losing all interest in sharing my caking journey altogether (insert frowny face emoji here). So today, I’ve chosen to share a quick mini-tutorial on how I made this princess tiara using the new Satin Ice Shimmer Gold fondant and hopefully, it will be helpful to someone out there.
Now to preface, you can make this with any type of fondant. It just so happened that the idea for this tiara came when I was deciding what I could make with the new Shimmer fondant that I was sent to try out (which by the way comes in Gold, Silver and Pearl and can be mixed with their regular colours to make all kinds of shimmer shades). This new line from Satin Ice is such a game-changer and serious time-saver. I can see them being super useful and convenient for making all kinds of birthday cakes, including Carousel, Unicorn, Princess, Mermaid and even Outer Space themes…the list goes on. It adds that extra bit of magic to any design!
I had a hard time narrowing down what idea I wanted to try it out on first. I finally decided that a tiara would be the perfect way to showcase the gold shimmer. It’s hard to see in the daylight pics, but the shimmer in the fondant is amazing and would work equally well for wedding or glamour cakes.
Here are a couple of cell phone pics of the cake under flash setting.
As I was making the tiara, I decided I HAD to take progress pics. Mostly, I do this when I want to remember what I did, for next time, just in case there is a next time – haha! But once in a while I think to myself, I might as well share them with my followers since it might be super helpful. Also it’s been a while since I’ve shared anything, and it really is too cute not to share.
So hope you all enjoy this quickie tutorial and remember, HAPPY CAKING Y’ALL =D
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How to make a Shimmer Fondant Princess Tiara:
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
Treat your paste so it can dry stiff and sturdy enough to hold its shape on its own. To strengthen your fondant (this works for all kinds), add 1/4 tsp Tylose to 4 oz. paste and knead well. Use more if you feel your paste is still too soft.
Roll paste to 2 mm thickness, approximately 11″ long and 3″ wide.
Trim your paste to 10″ long and 2.5″ wide. TIP: it’s helpful to use a crafting mat with grid measurements imprinted.
Mark the halfway point (5″ mark) using your craft knife.
Next, mark the point 3.25″ over to the right of the midway mark (or 1.75″ in from the outer right edge).
Now, mark the mirror point on the opposite side – 3.25″ to the left of the midway point, or 1.75″ in from the outer left side.
Line up a circle cutter (that is approximately 3.5″ or 88 mm wide) so that one side touches the midway mark and the other side touches the mark on the right side, and cut. Do the same with the marks on the left side.
Next, using the grids on the mat as a guide, mark the point that is 2.25″ to the left of the midway point. Do the same on the other side (2.25″ to the right of the midway point).
Using a ruler to confirm, mark the point that is 1″ up from the bottom edge and 1″ in from the right edge.
Do the same on the left side.
Line up an edge of the cutter with each of the marks and cut, as shown.
Mark the point that is 1/2″ up from the bottom edge as shown and line up the edges of the cutter with that mark and the one marked previously (the one that was 1″ up and 1″ in), and cut.
Cut an angle that connects the point that is 1/2″ up on the left edge with the point that is 1/2″ in from the left on the bottom edge. Do the same on the right side.
Using a small leaf cutter, make cut outs under the three middle points as shown.
With a small heart cutter, make a cut out as shown.
Using a number 8 piping tip, make a few marks as shown to dress up the design.
Wrap the paste around a 4″ dummy or similar size tub and allow to dry overnight or until completely stiff.
Add some small blossom cut outs to further dress up the tiara.
Finished tiara embellished with blossoms.
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
Recently, I created a tutorial for my Industrial Steampunk Chic cake (a cake designed originally for the Steam Cakes Collaboration) that appeared in the October issue of Cake Masters Magazine, UK.
The original cake featured an orchid coloured anemone flower in the design, sitting between the two tiers, but the flower was not included in the print tutorial since it would have added at least 28 more steps to an already lengthy tutorial. This was communicated to my contact at Cake Masters and passed along to the editors when the tutorial was submitted.
Unfortunately, there was a miscommunication or misunderstanding somewhere along the line when the magazine went to print, so although the printed tutorial did not have those steps included, there was promotional material created and posted that indicated the flower was part of that tutorial in the print issue. Of course, a few people were a bit disappointed to find out it was not in the magazine.
As a happy solution, I created a free tutorial for the anemone flower that I posted on my Facebook page, to share with Cake Masters, their readers, and anyone else that was hoping it was part of the tutorial. I am also adding it permanently here to my blog so it will be easier to find later on for those looking! See below for the step-by-steps details and pics…but first…
GREAT NEWS: A few people sent me messages when the magazine first came out, asking if the full Steampunk Chic Cake tutorial would be available to download in PDF file format and I’m happy to say that it is finally now available for sale in my Facebook SHOP. It’s on for an introductory price of 50% OFF, for a limited time. So that’s just $11 CAD for over 135 high quality pics and 85 pages of step-by-step instructions, tips and best practices, which works out to less than $9 USD (reg. $22 CAD or $17 USD). It also includes a printable version of this Gumpaste Anemone tutorial as a BONUS.
Here is what the tutorial covers…
I’m also putting ALL my other tutorials on SALE for 40% OFF in celebration of the release of this latest tutorial.
So now on to the good stuff, the free stuff…😉
The Violet Cake Shop™’s FREE GUMPASTE ANEMONE TUTORIAL:
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
Tools and supplies you will need: – 3 petal flower cutter (alternatively, you can use an oval cutter – pictured) – floral tape – #2 piping tip and #12 piping tip – 5 petal flower cutter – small silicone rolling pin – dresden tool – ball tool – craft or exacto knife – needle nose pliers/wire cutter – wide mouth Japanese soup spoon – 1 oz (large gumball size) gumpaste coloured black – 2 oz (golf ball size) gumpaste coloured orchid/magenta (2.5 parts deep pink to 1 part purple) – thin foam pad – flower veiner – 20 or 24 gauge floral wire cut to 3″ length – lily stamen (if cannot find long black stamen) – black gel colour for dyeing stamen – aluminum foil – paper towels (not pictured) **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 1 – If you cannot find black stamen (which I could not find readily), you will have to dye stamen of similar size and length as those found on anemones, which I find lily stamen work well. You can dilute the black gel colour with some vodka before dipping your stamen, or you can paint the colour on with a standard brush dipped in the colouring.… Let your stamen dry on some paper towel. Wipe off excess colour if necessary. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 2 – Spread out the stamen with your fingers, into a line, so they are not so bunched together. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 3 – Roll out a small ball of black gumpaste approximately 2/3″ or 1.5 cm wide, to create the centre. Flatten the top slightly against your work surface. Use the needle nose pliers to make a hook at the end of the 20 or 24 gauge floral wire.… Insert the hook end of the wire into the gumpaste ball, approximately halfway up. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 4 – Use the small end of a #2 piping tip to mark small circle details on the top surface of your centre. TIP: hold the wire just under the gumpaste ball, to prevent the ball from slipping down the wire as you mark the top. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 5 – Insert into a styrofoam dummy to dry a few hours, until the gumpaste ball is set fairly firmly onto the wire. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 6 – After a few hours, your centre should have set a bit and your dyed stamen should be fully dried. Add your stamen bunches to your centre, one or two at a time, wrapping well with floral tape before adding the next bunches.… You will need approximately 6 to 7 bunches to go around your centre nicely. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 7 – Once all the stamen are added, wrap the stem of your centre all the way down. Set aside to dry fully, overnight. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 8 – To create your petals, use a 3 petal cutter OR use a small oval cutter, 1.75″ long (refer to alternative steps 20 and 21). First, colour your gumpaste with 2.5 parts deep pink to 1 part purple colouring. Next, roll out the gumpaste to 1/32″ or 1 mm thickness. … Next, cut out two cut outs using the three petal cutter. You will need four cut outs overall but work with two first, to prevent the petals drying out. If using oval cutters, you will need two sets of 6 cut outs for a total of 12. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 9 – Using the large end of the ball tool and pressing gently, thin out the sides of the petals slightly, with the ball half on the paste and half on the foam pad. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 10 – Use the veiner to imprint vein detail onto each of the 3 petals. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 11 – Frill the edges of your petals with the large end of your ball tool and mark two lines down the centre with the thin end of your dresden tool. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 12 – Use a Japanese soup spoon as a flower former. It is deep enough to create a lovely cupped shape and is the perfect size for the anemone flower. Dust the cavity of your Japanese soup spoon with some cornstarch to prevent the gumpaste from sticking to the spoon as the petals dry. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 13 – Lay the first frilled and veined 3 petal cut out into the cavity of the spoon. Using a brush, dab some water onto the very centre. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 14 – Place the second prepared 3 petal cut out on top of the first one, with the petals of the second set, in between those of the first set. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 15 – Repeat STEPS 8 to 11, to prepare a second set of petals. But for this set, you will need to cut the petals as shown so they are small enough that they can lay inside the petals of the first two sets. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 16 – Add the petals individually. First, dab some water with a brush onto the centre, brushing slightly towards the petals, approximately 1/3 of the way up. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 17 – Position the first set of three petals evenly, in a trillium shape, in between two petals of those from the first set. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 18 – Position the second set of three petals evenly on top of the first set. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 19 – Add some small pieces of paper towel in between the petals to add some movement and shape to the petals. Using a #12 piping tip, cut out a small circle in the very centre of all the petals and set aside to set for about half an hour. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
(ALTERNATIVE) STEP 20 – If you do not have a 3 petal cutter as shown, use STEPS 20 and 21 instead to create petals. Use a 1.75″ long oval cutter to cut out 12 petals total. Work with 6 at time, to vein and frill the petals. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
(ALTERNATIVE) STEP 21 – If you do not have a 3 petal cutter as shown, use STEPS 20 and 21 instead to create petals. Frill and vein the petals as shown. The first petal is untouched. Thin the sides with the ball tool, vein with the veiner, mark the centre details and frill the edges. Cut out a small circle of gumpaste to sit under the petals. Add each petal on top of the circle gumpaste in a similar position as that shown in STEPS 13, 14, 17 and 18. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 22 – After the flower petals have had a chance to set, start making your calyx. Create the calyx using a 5 petal cutter.… Roll out some green gumpaste to 1/32″ or 1 mm thickness. Use the 5 petal cutter to cut out one shape. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 23 – Using your craft or exacto knife, cut out slits in the petals as shown. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 24 – Use the #12 piping tip to cut out a hole in the centre. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 25 – Shape some folded aluminum foil into the same cupped shape as a Japanese soup spoon and place on top of a cup. Poke a hole in the centre with something pointed, like a skewer. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 26 – Dab some water around the centre of the prepared calyx cut out, brushing outwards. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 27 – Place the calyx in the foil cavity. Gently remove your flower petals from the Japanese spoon former. The petals may still be a bit soft but that’s ok so long as you are gentle. Place the flower petals on top of the calyx where the water was dabbed and ensure the petals adhere to the calyx. … Add some water to the centre of the semi-set petals and insert your prepared flower centre. You may need to add some fresh fondant if the petals are too dry. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
STEP 28 – Reposition the paper towel bits between the petals and leave to dry overnight. Once fully dried, dust as desired to bring more life to your flower. **All Images, Content and Technique Ideas Property of The Violet Cake Shop™ – All Rights Reserved – 10/25/17**
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
I hope this will come in handy for those of you out there that are new to decorating and sugar flowers! Please keep in mind that I tend to try things out on my own so these techniques are ones I’ve come up with and are not the only way to create this flower, nor are they necessarily the best. But they are shared for those who might not have other resources or who just want to use what is easily available.
So please use for your own pleasure and I hope you ENJOY! Remember, you can always share your creations with me on my Facebook page. I love seeing what you create using one of my tutorials!
It’s almost Hallowe’en and we just revealed a new cake collaboration. My newest creation has been getting lots of love on Facebook and Instagram and I’ve gotten a few questions and lots of amazing comments, so I thought I’d introduce him here and answer a few of those questions at the same time…
Meet Sir Jacques Steampunkin! 🎃🎃🎃
He is my contribution to the 5th installment of our Sugar Spooks collaboration. 😈👿👹👺💀☠👻👽👾🤡
He is a culmination of my love of the Steampunk genre and what I imagined a creepy old jack o’lantern would look like. I wanted to do something not seen before. As I was creating him, he started to take on a stately look so I decided to make him a ‘Sir’ lol… I hope people like him as much as I do.
I’ve been asked what moulds I used and they are a variety of moulds that I’ve found throughout the years, some for cake decorating and others, not. The cogs, frame and fleur-de-lis are from Mod Podge which are food safe silicone moulds made for use in polymer clay crafting but can be used for creating cake décor as well – just make sure you use them only for food and if you do crafting with clay as well as cake, make sure to get a separate set for use in each.
The other moulds I used (for the gold vest texture, and to detail the cakeboard – see closeup below) are from Marvelous Molds who make products that I love using in my decorating. I have used their products for FORever (!!!) and use them in SO many different ways!
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For example, to add detail to Sir Jacques’ vest, I decided to use their new Symmetrical Sequin Simpress Panel. It’s meant to be used to texture a tier with sequins, easily and quickly. But I used it here to give a luxe look to his vest which is a characteristic of the clothing often seen in Steampunk.
Sir Jacques’ pumpkin head is made from rice krispie treats (RKT) that I shaped into a flattened pumpkin shape, only so it wouldn’t be as heavy and round, and would sit better on the cake tier. I then covered the RKT with a very thick panel of fondant, making sure the seam was at the bottom. I used my Dresden tool (the flatter end) to mark the grooves and used the length of my right pinky to impress the grooves more until I was happy with the ‘pumpkiness’ of my creation. Again, unfortunately, I did not take photos and now I wish I had, lol.
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I then coloured him with a variety of orange petal dust and shortening (which I know many claim as their own but is a technique I have used since I first started decorating, mostly when using lustre dust). I then added dark brown in the grooves to create depth.
Since this was for a collaboration and I wanted to save him to use as a Hallowe’en prop at home, I used styro dummies for the cake tiers. But this can just as easily be made from real cake, with the proper support for his head of course!
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His single goggle is handmade and detailed…using circle cutters, a piping tip to add the outlines for the screws, and an exacto knife to add the slit in the screws.
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His hat is also made from RKT which I shaped into a tapered tier, then iced with ganache and covered with fondant (same as I would if made from cake).
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His mouth was handcut and painted. I then added metal ‘staples’ which were cut from fondant and painted with silver lustre mixed with lemon extract (much better than vodka people! I swear by it…and smells great too lol).
Hope you enjoyed meeting Sir Jacques Steampunkin! I certainly enjoyed creating him.
It’s an honour to be part of this group again. Big thanks to Avalon Yarnes of Avalon Cakes for spearheading such a talented group and including me in the mix.
I don’t normally do scary or creepy so it was so much fun to be able to stretch my creative wings!!
It’s SO bittersweet as she is now no longer a baby and she is my last so I’m gonna miss that aspect, but by the same token she is now onto a bigger, better and more adventurous phase of her life! She has always had such a big personality though with SO many interests so it’s hard sometimes to come up with one theme for her cakes.
The last three cakes were completely up to me, so I have been lucky that I got to do what I wanted to with the designs haha. Of course I always tried to include things I know she loves like characters from her comforter for her 1st birthday, Mickey Mouse and the gang on her 2nd birthday cake and purple and yellow, two of her favourite colours, on her last cake.
This year though, I was really stumped… She loves alphabets and numbers but I felt that might be a tad boring for a cake. She loves Legos and Minecraft but I really didn’t want to do either of those because of all the potential dots or piddly squares which in either case, would entail a case of total “tedium-boredom” with the addition of crossed-eyes for weeks haha. She loves all kinds of shows but there isn’t one clear cut favourite. She does love Mickey still and always has, but again for selfish reasons I wasn’t inclined to do another Mickey cake either.
So I decided to just let her design her own cake this year by telling me what she wanted it to have. Well she had very clear and specific ideas and was very thorough too!! Score! All I had to do was come up with something that would tie in a blue coloured cake, a rainbow or rainbow colours, a number 4, green flowers and (dun dun dun…) Mickey on top…sigh, lol. Ok, well I had to concede on that last request as it WAS her cake and I WAS letting her design it this year, after all. It was not going to be easy but I was determined to come up with a design that would tie it all in while still being cohesive and girly!
And Fate intervened on her cake too, kind of sort of… We were out shopping a few weeks before her birthday and her brother (Mr. 11) saw a Tsum Tsum Mickey plush toy at the Disney Store and knowing how she loved the Tsum Tsum short videos on TV, suggested that he get it for her as her early birthday present (awww so sweet, I KNOW!) Well, she has not really put down her Tsum Tsum Mickey since and EUREKA! I had a replacement for the 3D Mickey I was going to have top her cake (YAY!!)
There was a tiny mishap with the topper though, not because of the last minute change but more because of my bad habit of procrastination…
The topper did not have ample time to dry completely, so it was still a tad soft when I assembled it and stood him up. It would have been fine had I just left him to air dry the rest of the time before the party, but I thought I’d be smart and do one extra step to avoid having the purples on the cake fade, by covering it with a black bag even though it wasn’t necessary given my trick for adding extra deep pink (see this previous blog post on preventing your purples from fading). Well, I did NOT account for the build up of humidity inside the bag which in turn, softened the topper further so that the ears drooped forward and eventually cracked and fell off. Luckily it was a personal cake so a lousy patch job was all that was needed and voila! the topper stood again. Lesson learned for next time though.
To incorporate the rainbow aspect of her request, I decided to use my V-Petal ruffles (see previous post for the mini-tutorial). After I came up with those, I immediately wanted to try it with rainbow colours so it was a win-win to use them on my daughter’s cake…well, she didn’t say it HAD to be an actual rainbow lol! The colours are tedious to mix but it was much easier than mixing from white with gel colours because I used the Satin Ice pre-coloured fondant. I wanted slightly less intense colours so most of them I had to remix with either white to tone down the intensity, or with other colours to get the tone I wanted.
Here is another angle of her cake. It just shows the topper a bit better because the number 4 plaque on the first pic kind of makes the Tsum Tsum Mickey topper look like his mouth is wide open in surprise haha!
And here is my baby with her Tsum Tsum and her cake…
It’s been about two years now since I first introduced this tutorial on my Facebook page after getting awesome feedback on a wedding cake I’d made for some good friends of ours the previous November. There were lots of positive comments on the bow asking me how I made it.
I have always maintained and must say again here that although I’ve used this two-toned bow idea many times in designs of mine, it is not my original idea. I can’t say for sure whose original idea it was but I first saw a similar bow used on a cake by Sweet Picasso Cake Creations on Facebook. It was a STUNNING mustard yellow tiered cake that was simple, yet so dramatic because of that black and white two-toned bow.
The first time I used it, was on a geometric cake design back in July of 2013 after a long hiatus away from caking after having my daughter. The method I used here was the initial one I attempted which was not as easy nor as neat as the one I eventually developed and use in the tutorial. For this bow, I used two full layers of fondant for the bow pieces, laying one on top of the other, to create the two-toned effect. Needless to say, this first method is harder to get clean and neat and takes longer so that you have to fight the clock or risk it drying up too quick on you and ending with a huge mess and lots of time wasted. I had to re-make the bow for this cake three times before I was happy.
The next time I used this bow was on the wedding cake for friends that I mentioned above. Between the first bow and this bow, I attempted and tested two other methods before settling on this one as being the best way to go.
I have since used it on a few other cakes which you can see at the end of this article. Here are the steps for making my version of this two-toned bow with detailed instructions. This tutorial can also be used to make basic bows, just omit the steps where you add the coloured strips (of course…duh…but just have to say it! LOL):
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
** Please note I had forgotten to take photos for adding the coloured strips to the front middle piece of the bow (the 2″ strip) so those steps are missing but you get the idea 😉 Those steps should be done before the following slide…
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
I feel like Minecraft SHOULD be part of a caker’s swearword vocabulary. No, I’m serious. Because every time we cakers hear (or read) this word in context with an order request, we inevitably want to swear.
It is not an easy theme to execute however easy it MAY look. Sure it’s just squares…but it’s LOTs of squares…LOTS AND LOTS! I always refer to them as piddly little things because they are SO annoying to work with. They must be straight, they must be cleanly cut, otherwise they will warp and not fit together perfectly to create a clean, precise final product. You have to use the right consistency of paste (to prevent distortion after cutting) or you have to let it dry just the right amount so that it is not too dry that you can’t fudge the fit or too soft still that the shape warps on you.
Well, I’ve only made one such themed cake, thankfully (so far). So I don’t have much in the way of advice on how to best achieve the clean, straight lines and edges and get a perfect fit etc., other than the usual “make sure you have a perfectly straight and evenly ganached tier to start with, before you start adding on squares”. You might notice mine is NOT perfectly clean but it is a good go. This design actually has become quite popular on my Pinterest and has been repinned over 4000 times and and liked/saved over 400 times (!!! yeah, I know!!!) and has been remade countless number of times (you can see the pin here). I get asked over and over by other decorators if they can recreate the design and I always say “of course!”
And I also get asked A LOT about how I was able to create the sword topper that sits atop my cake and for that, I can give some advice because it follows the same principles that I use for other 2D embellished toppers that I make.
Back in May 2015, I was getting asked this question more than once a week and I had been answering each person’s individual questions each time. Well, it got to be repetitive AND time-consuming since it was a lot to type each time. So rather than continue to type this all out over and over, I put together this list of what I do and shared it on Facebook. It is pieced together from a few of my previous detailed PMs and may not be complete but will give you all an idea of my steps. Unfortunately, I never took photos of the progress but dang now I wish I had haha! Hope this at least helps a bit so that others can create their own!
Steps to Make Your own 2D Minecraft Sword Topper:
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
– the sword was made with gumpaste and fondant and allowed to dry for several days
– the topper is only as big as the part that is visible; none of it sticks INTO the cake except the skewers used for support
– the squares (for the topper) were cut with 1/2″ square cutter from appropriately coloured marshmallow fondant (MMF); you can also use straight gumpaste, straight fondant or a 50/50 mix of fondant/gumpaste depending on how soft your fondant is; ideally, you want to use a paste consistency that is firm enough to keep the perfect square shape when you cut it, so it should not be too soft; these were allowed to set for about an hour before applying to the backing
– I used straight white gumpaste as the backing for the squares, rolled to about 3 mm thickness (the purple bands if using the small Wilton roller)
– after rolling out the white gumpaste (make sure it’s wide and long enough to fit all the squares), I added the appropriately coloured squares following a pic I found online WITHOUT any water or glue at first, to make sure they are all lined up and straight
– after making sure everything is aligned and I was happy with the look, I then glued down each square with water; or use whatever method you prefer to adhere the pieces
– I then cut away the excess white gumpaste backing; I like leaving a small border (approx. 3mm) but this is not necessary for the stability of the piece, it’s an aesthetics thing with me
– I waited at least two days for it to dry after applying the squares before flipping over and attaching two skewers vertically along the length of the sword, about a fingers width apart; the drying time is important to ensure the piece dries perfectly flat and will be strong enough to hold up vertically once attached to the cake
– the skewers are attached with a piece of fresh fondant running the length of the skewers like a bandaid, only along the part that will not be inserted into the cake
– make sure to gently press down on the fondant so the skewers are snugly covered by the fondant (stronger this way)
– allow this to dry another half day or at least a few hours before inserting into your cake
– the skewers should stick out long enough on the piece to go through your cake and touch the bottom cake board it is sitting on; so if its a 4″ tall tier, there should be 4″ of each skewer sticking out the bottom of the sword
– I make sure the bottom of the sword rests on and touches the cake and then add a piece of fresh fondant as well around it just to be safe (notice the small band of green half squares)
ENJOY!
(Note: these are my own techniques developed independently with my own ideas and shared for personal use ONLY. They are not to be used for monetary gain or to develop products, books, DVDs, downloads or lessons for sale or to be taught in classes or tutorials, whether hands-on, on-line, in video format or in print without express written consent.)
The Violet Cake Shop™ 
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