Okay so I'm trying to enter my state fair again! They've just added cupcakes and I want to do the ornament cupcakes. So, I need styrofoam cupcakes and styrofoam half balls.

In addition that that, I wanted to do one of the beer bottle cakes, so I need a way to make or a place to get a styrofoam "beer bucket" shape.

And finally, I want to do the building of the place I work. I'm basically looking for a large styrofoam block, or several styrofoam blocks I could stack to make the shape. The building is the attached picture (also attached the architect's model photo)

The rules state that the cake and cake board cannot exceed 16 inches in diameter, length and/or width including any decoration extending from the cake and about 12 inches in height including ornamentation.

Can anyone help me find one place (or more) that I could get some styrofoam?

I have ordered a bunch of dummies from dallasfoam.com, they have great prices and reasonable shipping and if you call or email them they will do custom pieces, hth.

dallas-foam.com has a bunchof cake dummies.... real cheap too!!

Dallas Foam - the best!!!
They will custom make them too, and very reasonable.

Here's another but not sure if they have half balls or bucket shapes. You can always call:

http://www.guildcraftfurniture.com/cake_dummies.html

i deal with dallas foam on line ever since i met them at a cake convention.. never had any problems.. i would also like to know who has the right to block anything we post.... really!!! i do not know the answer... i see it alot on other subjects that are posted.... could someone tell me ... who is the top person here that makes that decision... i know some decorators complain about a certain business... then .. bam!... that business has a block on it... don,t really know that answers.... i need to be filled in!!! thanks if you'll answer that for me.

Icer01, is it s u g a r c r a f t that you're posting about? If so, there is a thread somewhere here explaining it all in detail. Many have complained about them and then the admins here had a run in with them that brought on the "banning". I, for one, do not blame them after what happened. (I also had my own experience with them - very negative).

I'm not sure where the thread is because I doubt you'd be able to search for it by name if it's blocked.

well i would like to know what web site you guys are talking about.... cuz it might come in handy for me sometime!

Okay I see Dallas Foam showing up - but I'd like to know what that [blocked] one is too. Are you all trying to do a link with it? Maybe if you write it and don't link to it? Not sure.... or could someone PM me and see if that works? Unless it's Dallas Foam - then I got it.

Although I didn't see cupcake shapes on their site.... I find their site kind of hard to navigate and understand. Guess I'm really a picture person.....

I always have to pipe in on Dallas-foam- I had a horrible run in with them a few years ago. I filed a BBB complaint and they never took care of things. Instead they started harassing me with very rude and unprofessional phone calls (and messages) about my complaint.

I have taken my business elsewhere and always want to warn other people too!

Well luvscakes, where did you take your business?

Alright I found another place with LOTS of different types of shapes - not so much cake-focused, although they do have some cake shapes. The company is plasteelcorp .

I'm still having trouble trying to figure out sizes for the building and then also figuring out how to make a "bucket" shape as I want to do one of those beer bucket cakes. I'm not really looking to have to cut the styrofoam a whole lot - my basic tools I have are a knife - and I'm really not sure what I'm doing in that category of cutting styrofoam. I just don't want the whole kitchen to be covered in it.

Can anyone help? Bucket shape and building size?

Again, the constraints for the fair are it can't be more than 16 in. diameter, length, or width and no more than 12 in. height including decorations. Oh and that's with the board it sits on too.

I know I'm not the only person doing state fairs or that has tried to attempt to make a building out of cake.... and I'm sure others have a lot more experience with styrofoam dummies than I do. I would really appreciate any tips or vendors or anything that anyone can recommend.

I have been to dallas foam and they do have some things - but not quite what I'm looking for.

Not sure if this group will have what you're looking for, but the foam I've bought from them has been really reasonable, I think anyway.

Taylorfoam.com

Good luck!

You can also use Great stuff and make your own. You can find great stuff at the hardware store. I'm told you just spray it in your pan and then leave something heavy on it for an hour and you are supposed to have a great cake dummy. Haven't tried it yet though. You also should protect your pans in someway first. For your situation you would just need to find the right shape and have at it.
Jen...

You may find it at fondantsource.

I've used dallas foam..........they sent me the wrong dummies...i emailed to let them know..they quickly sent me the correct ones and told me to keep the wrong ones...bonus!!