first time poster ( love this site !!! ) and am in need of advise ... preparing for this sunday's bridal show ... have iced my styrafoam in buttercream, 24 to 36 hours later the icing is 'pruning'... wrinkle like
note of what i have done -
happens with premade as well as cut out styrafoam dummies
adjusted the dryness in our home (shut off heater vents, added a water mister)
added more shortening to my buttercream as well as extra liquid and corn syrup
reiced wrinkly cakes still did same thing
have used a different icing recipe
started drinking ... just kidding

also this is the same icing i use when icing styrafoam in the spring, summer and fall months ... no issues than (live in iowa, humidity and dryness an constant battle )
seems to me it is a temperature/dryness problem

my niche is the faux fondant look i would like to display buttercream cakes not fondant or royal

any suggestions ???? i am out of ideas
thanks so much

I have no clue but here is a bump for you.

Hi,

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to do them out of royal? My specialty has always been faux fondant, ultrasmooth buttercream as well, but there's NO WAY I'd ever do a buttercream display for many, many reasons: trying to transport would be a nightmare; brides and their families would have their fingers in it and it wouldn't be smooth anymore; it melts; it sags; it wrinkles; it goes bad; it seriously limits the life-span of the dummy.

If you use royal exactly the same as you would buttercream, then you can still achieve the faux fondant look. It still displays the same, but it dries and lasts for a very long time and can be reused over and over with little damage and repairs necessary.

BTW, I apply the royal icing and smooth it with a Viva paper towel the same as I would buttercream. (It's a little more tricky, but still doable) If you use a non-crusting buttercream, then you should be able to ice it with a thinner version of the royal and get it just as smooth as you would a buttercream.

I realize that this may not be the answer you were looking for, but royal icing is a definite option. Good luck with your bridal show!

Hi,

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to do them out of royal? My specialty has always been faux fondant, ultrasmooth buttercream as well, but there's NO WAY I'd ever do a buttercream display for many, many reasons: trying to transport would be a nightmare; brides and their families would have their fingers in it and it wouldn't be smooth anymore; it melts; it sags; it wrinkles; it goes bad; it seriously limits the life-span of the dummy.

If you use royal exactly the same as you would buttercream, then you can still achieve the faux fondant look. It still displays the same, but it dries and lasts for a very long time and can be reused over and over with little damage and repairs necessary.

BTW, I apply the royal icing and smooth it with a Viva paper towel the same as I would buttercream. (It's a little more tricky, but still doable) If you use a non-crusting buttercream, then you should be able to ice it with a thinner version of the royal and get it just as smooth as you would a buttercream.

I realize that this may not be the answer you were looking for, but royal icing is a definite option. Good luck with your bridal show!

Hi,

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to do them out of royal? My specialty has always been faux fondant, ultrasmooth buttercream as well, but there's NO WAY I'd ever do a buttercream display for many, many reasons: trying to transport would be a nightmare; brides and their families would have their fingers in it and it wouldn't be smooth anymore; it melts; it sags; it wrinkles; it goes bad; it seriously limits the life-span of the dummy.

If you use royal exactly the same as you would buttercream, then you can still achieve the faux fondant look. It still displays the same, but it dries and lasts for a very long time and can be reused over and over with little damage and repairs necessary.

BTW, I apply the royal icing and smooth it with a Viva paper towel the same as I would buttercream. (It's a little more tricky, but still doable) If you use a non-crusting buttercream, then you should be able to ice it with a thinner version of the royal and get it just as smooth as you would a buttercream.

I realize that this may not be the answer you were looking for, but royal icing is a definite option. Good luck with your bridal show!

Hi,

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to do them out of royal? My specialty has always been faux fondant, ultrasmooth buttercream as well, but there's NO WAY I'd ever do a buttercream display for many, many reasons: trying to transport would be a nightmare; brides and their families would have their fingers in it and it wouldn't be smooth anymore; it melts; it sags; it wrinkles; it goes bad; it seriously limits the life-span of the dummy.

If you use royal exactly the same as you would buttercream, then you can still achieve the faux fondant look. It still displays the same, but it dries and lasts for a very long time and can be reused over and over with little damage and repairs necessary.

BTW, I apply the royal icing and smooth it with a Viva paper towel the same as I would buttercream. (It's a little more tricky, but still doable) If you use a non-crusting buttercream, then you should be able to ice it with a thinner version of the royal and get it just as smooth as you would a buttercream.

I realize that this may not be the answer you were looking for, but royal icing is a definite option. Good luck with your bridal show!

Hi,

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to do them out of royal? My specialty has always been faux fondant, ultrasmooth buttercream as well, but there's NO WAY I'd ever do a buttercream display for many, many reasons: trying to transport would be a nightmare; brides and their families would have their fingers in it and it wouldn't be smooth anymore; it melts; it sags; it wrinkles; it goes bad; it seriously limits the life-span of the dummy.

If you use royal exactly the same as you would buttercream, then you can still achieve the faux fondant look. It still displays the same, but it dries and lasts for a very long time and can be reused over and over with little damage and repairs necessary.

BTW, I apply the royal icing and smooth it with a Viva paper towel the same as I would buttercream. (It's a little more tricky, but still doable) If you use a non-crusting buttercream, then you should be able to ice it with a thinner version of the royal and get it just as smooth as you would a buttercream.

I realize that this may not be the answer you were looking for, but royal icing is a definite option. Good luck with your bridal show!

Hi,

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to do them out of royal? My specialty has always been faux fondant, ultrasmooth buttercream as well, but there's NO WAY I'd ever do a buttercream display for many, many reasons: trying to transport would be a nightmare; brides and their families would have their fingers in it and it wouldn't be smooth anymore; it melts; it sags; it wrinkles; it goes bad; it seriously limits the life-span of the dummy.

If you use royal exactly the same as you would buttercream, then you can still achieve the faux fondant look. It still displays the same, but it dries and lasts for a very long time and can be reused over and over with little damage and repairs necessary.

BTW, I apply the royal icing and smooth it with a Viva paper towel the same as I would buttercream. (It's a little more tricky, but still doable) If you use a non-crusting buttercream, then you should be able to ice it with a thinner version of the royal and get it just as smooth as you would a buttercream.

I realize that this may not be the answer you were looking for, but royal icing is a definite option. Good luck with your bridal show!

I ice dummies in BC all the time and never have a problem with getting them smooth, wrinkles, or melting. They dry hard as a rock and last forever. Much easier to work with then royal IMO

not sure what's happening, but I only posted once... it took forever to go through and then it took me to the "server down" page. I came back later and it shows I posted 5 times. Don't know how to delete them...

Sorry!

I have iced & decorated hundreds of dummy and real cakes w/b'cream and can't remember having what you describe happen.
My feeling is there is too much moisture in the recipe. It should be on the dry side so it hardens up on the cake {for dummy cakes, not real}

There must be something different about you weather or the dummies you ar3e using.

I agree with, kakeladi. The only time I've had my icing "wrinkle" was when it was too soft/wet. As the moisture evaporated and icing dried, it wrinkled.

thanks everybody for your advise ... i will experiment more with changes to my icing
what really throws me off is this is the same icing i use on dummies during peak season when the humidity is high and never a problem ... perhaps i overcompensated with too much extra shortening and liquid
mental note to myself ... next bridal show to decorate demos earlier !

thanks everybody for your advise ... i will experiment more with changes to my icing
what really throws me off is this is the same icing i use on dummies during peak season when the humidity is high and never a problem ... perhaps i overcompensated with too much extra shortening and liquid
mental note to myself ... next bridal show to decorate demos earlier !