Good morning all!

I need to do one layer of a baby shower cake as a dummy. I've never done a dummy cake before and am not sure what to use. I'm thinking styrofoam, but are there other things that work better? Any other advice from the "dummy pros" out there?

Thanks a bunch!

Personally, I always use the styrofoam. To prepare the dummy, if you are using fondant to cover, I use my fondant smoother to round the edges a little bit to keep the fondant from tearing. I have used buttercream, royal icing, water and piping gel on the dummy before putting on the fondant, but I prefer water b/c it seems to give me a little more flexibility in case I need to 'move' the fondant around if I don't get it on quite right. I usually use a small amount of tape on the bottom to keep the dummy from moving when I work on it, due to the fact they are so much lighter than cake! (something I learned the first time I decorated one and it went flying off my stand)

Good luck!

Oooh, good idea with the tape - I wouldn't have thought of that! Thanks for your suggestions!

You do need to buy a cake dummy or at least the type of styrofoam that those are made of. There's another styrofoam, more for crafts, that will eat right thru your icing. I've seen it happen, thankfully not with my cakes.

I'll be working on a display cake for the first time soon. Is there anything else I need to do to prepare the styrofoam? I've heard of some covering it in plastic wrap first. And after I put on the fondant can I use bc to decorate? Will the bc harden enough to stay presentable for a while?

I just mist the dummy with water (and i mean mist, don't get if wet) and cover with fondant. Instead of bc, I use Permaice. As the name implies, its pretty much permanent. It will come off with enough hot water, though. Fondant will wash/peel off even years later.