Hi everyone. I have been practicing making and decorating faux desserts (cupcakes, cookies, and one cake so far) using lightweight spackle and in some cases caulk for piping applications. However, what worries me is just how toxic these materials can be if used frequently over a long period of time. I'm looking at starting my own faux dessert business, so I would be using these materials daily. Those "known to cause cancer in the state of California" warnings on the backs of the containers are just about all I think about when I'm working with them!
I'm looking into Permaice to use instead. I know it is much more expensive but I really don't want to have to worry longterm side effects. I have a couple of questions:
Does anyone know if Permaice is nontoxic and if you can use the same tools (decorating tips, spatulas, etc.) for regular "real" cake jobs? Or would you need a whole separate set?
Also, I'm reading everywhere that you use non-fading colors like acrylic paint to tint Permaice, but would it be okay to just use regular icing color gels? Would these fade over time? I've always just used food color gel with my practice pieces and it seems to work just fine.
Any and all information you can provide about permaice would be greatly appreciated - including the most inexpensive place to purchase it!
Thanks!
Also, for those of you who are interested in seeing how my spackled and caulked practice cupcakes and one cake turned out, I have my photos on flickr here and here . My hope is to produce similar results with permaice if possible.
Your cupcakes are so cute. WHat do you use for the actual cupcake? Is that styrofoam? I have not seen styrofoam in chocolate color before. I wish I had an answer for you in regards to permaice. I would look online for permaice and email the company your question. They can tell you what it is made of.
This should answer some of your questions:
http://www.bakingshop.com/cakes/permaice.htm
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