Cake Decoraters Advice Needed!! Also a thread for Chat, Hints & Tips

[PlumBumMum]

I know we had a thread a while back, and I'm always hijacking other peoples these days so SOME ADVICE NEEDED

Need to invest in some more cake tins, I have currently been working with a friends tins, but she is talking about starting up again so I will have to give them back

So at the minute I am looking at buying square tins, should I go for seperate sizes of Invicta OR the multi size cake tin

Has anyone got one? what do you think, Is it anygood?

I think my pin is about 16" long, Bella .

I find kneading a really hard thing to judge, still. I think it's easier to under-knead than over though. I find if the icing feels cool then I need to keep going - if I do it straight after I've coloured it when it's really warm and pliable then I get a much smoother, crack free result.

kneeding? kneading..

Nope, in fact I think mine is about 20" because I can roll out sugarpaste to cover a 12" cake, so that's at least 18" isn't it?

It's one of those 'non stick' jobs too, that the icing sticks to really badly unless you cover the darn thing with icing sugar .

Thanks for the tip Olihan on the fondant feeling "cool".

I think I might need to invest in a slightly larger rolling pin (have just been using my old wooden one).

Yeap mine is a big 20 odd inches although I don't have any probs with icing sticking, but then I use cooken and probably run my hand down rolling pin and don't realise

Think I've looked at craft company, there is one called extraicing seems to be quite cheap have you ever used it?
I am determined to get started on my top table this week, so I better get off here and get dhs VAT return done

olihan - I like that link - even the cupcake wrappers are at a price where I might consider getting some. It's on my favourites (but just too late for my birthday wish list - which I have also realised I meant to put a new, proper, non-bashed rolling pin on to - bother)

Never used extraicing I have to say, but I've also never had a bad experience using online cake suppliers.

Can you give me some constructive criticism on the 2 wedding cakes I've just done?

The purple one here, do you think it needs some piping detail on the top and bottom tiers or is the sparkly detail enough? I can't decide whether it will be OTT to have piping as well as the bow and sparkles. The close up is of the top tier -the flowers have diamante bits in too, I couldn't get them to come out properly though!

The blue/brown one is more of a could be wedding/could be birthday as it's for my stall at the village show. Do you think it covers both those or is it more one way or the other?

Olihan, your cakes are to die for! They are just beautiful. The purple one is perfect as it is.

I think the blue/brown one could be either.

The purple one I think could use some piping detail on top and bottom tiers - it is gorgeous but maybe a little too understated (although it showcases the skill in getting beautiful smooth cakes ) - is it a dummy, or for a customer (if the latter, I might be tempted to ask them)?

The brown and blue one I would say is birthday/general celebration in that particular colour scheme, but could easily be a wedding cake in a different colour scheme.

It's a dummy, so no customer. I like it plain but also think I could showcase some piping skills on it....... I'm also scared of fluffing the piping and wrecking the finish of the icing .

answered on your other thread,

Mean't to ask you all have you been watching THE GREAT CAKE BAKE on Wedding TV, sky 266, its very good a bride describes what kind of cake she would like and they tell 3 cake makers and then she picks which cake she likes, its amazing the different cakes

I didn't even know there was such a channel!

Talking of cake porn TV, have you seen cake boss (it's on discovery channel, details here)

Stealth had seen it sdvertised but hadn't seen it on yet

Hi everyone!

It's my wonderful Mum's birthday in a month, and I was thinking of making a cake for her as a sort of present iyswim, alongside her actual present.

I want to do a plain round sponge cake, maybe do one with jam and cream, not sure.

I've done plain round cakes before, but I'd like to decorate this one.

I like the idea of pre-rolled fondant, I've used pre-rolled pastry before and it was a dream (I'm 20 and live at home so excuse the ignorance about cooking!). Anyway, I want to do some writing and decorative pretty stuff. Maybe a white cake, with pink decorative stuff and Happy Birthday T (mum's name there obviously) in writing.

What do I need, where can I get it and can you give me ideas for a nice easy design that I won't completely mess up? Also how easy is writing onto cakes?

Sorry to ramble, I'm in the first stages of the idea so sort of don't know really what I want to do.

Ladies, I am in awe!

Thanks for all the great tips, we are going to have another practse before we do the final one. Going to also downscale a little and create some lovely cupcakes to complement big cake - they will have butter icing on top which I have done before. Will use fondant for our little bricks. What would you advise for brick lettering?

olian I love both of those cakes, (and I have "liked" your company if thats ok )

Boxes could bve either as someone else said.

So I would like to know please, I have been asked to make a helicopter and am wondering how to get the original shape, am inclined to do a large rugby ball and shape it. What do we think?

Has to be completely covered with chocolate and that's my next question, it's gonna melt quickly isn't it? If I refridgerate it as soon as it's decorated, will it be ok fior the afternoon? I wouldn't normally refridgerate cake but as it'll be completely covered i think it should be ok?

Olihan your cakes are amazing. You've obviously got the same book as me.
I agree that the purple one would be nice with something else on it but not sure what. Also (and I don't want to sound critical here, sorry if I sound rude) it's not very easy to see the top bit clearly as the background is so dark.

Oh I had wrote a post for lolli and liaghen but its not here, will repost after lunch

Debi what book is that ? I am needing to improve on my cake making as I am getting requests but until I get to the Uk and browse I am stuck Thanks

Rosa think it is the 50 easy party cakes book, here I have it, it is very good

I also ordered celebrate with a cake form library it is vvv good

Thanks for that I might just order it !

Rosa, anything by Carol Deacon is good for novices, this one is good for all types of cakes, not just children and this one is just kids . Debbie Brown's book that Plum linked to is also a good one to start with but some of her other books require a bit of experience.

Debi, most of the ones from that book are either my dcs (both dses have birthdays at the end of Dec so I don't have time to do anything hugely fancy) or last minute orders because I know I can do them in an evening . They are good though.

I've got a couple more to add in the morning that I finished today.

Thanks very much .. I am not a complete novice but due to the difficulty in getting the ingredients mine tend to be based on butter icing cakes but when I am in the UK I tend to stock up on icing and glucose and I have had couple of requests .....I would like to try and improve with the fondant side of things....... I will take alook at those and might just add to the wish list !

Hello!

Im making my lovely mum a handbag cake for her birthday and putting zebra stripes on it, has anyone any advice?

I was thinking white icing on first then very, very thinly rolled out black icing and just try cutting random patterns to look like zebra sripes!

Any help much appreciated