How To Get A 50 Topper To Stand On It's Own
Decorating By SusanaDalia Updated 24 Mar 2009 , 2:51am by SusanaDalia
Ok, I am still in the planning stages on my father in laws retirement cake. I want to include a gumpaste number 50 topper on the cake. I thought about using skewers to give it stability, but because of the number 50, I just don't see that working. Any suggestions on how to make it stand? Btw, I will be adding it to the cake at the venue.
Depending on the size of the topper. You need get it completely hard.
When you prepare the topper, you have to incorporate either toothpicks or lolipop sticks or even florist wire or something similar inside - really - think lolipop stuck on top of the cake.
If you think big thin topper, I would make double number 50 as mirror image and stand it as a tent like this /\\ But this is my fear speaking that the cake cannot hold the toothpick / stick.
The florist wire could be best bet - you can "root" it deep in the cake.
Good luck!
ok the best way to do gumpaste number topper (INMO) is to make them quite thickish (gives more stability) then i either run florist wire into the bottom (when still soft) at two points at the bootom and leave to dry or once hard heat florist wire with a lighter and it will melt into the gumpaste when pressed into the back, leve to cool. when ataching to the cake pop a little RI to the spot where the toppers will go and then insert the wires into the cake, the RI will dry and they will be locked into place you may need to prop the toppers up with some saran wrap or tissue whilst the RI dries, i use this method and i have transported cakes for over an hour with the toppers already in place with no problem at all. obviously doing it at the venuue is a safer option though. let me know if you have any questions!! i have a couple of number toppers in my pics if you are interested, all were done with this method.
Depending on the size of the topper. You need get it completely hard.
When you prepare the topper, you have to incorporate either toothpicks or lolipop sticks or even florist wire or something similar inside - really - think lolipop stuck on top of the cake.
If you think big thin topper, I would make double number 50 as mirror image and stand it as a tent like this /\\ But this is my fear speaking that the cake cannot hold the toothpick / stick.
The florist wire could be best bet - you can "root" it deep in the cake.
Good luck!
See I was thinking that because of the shape of this particular number I couldn't really use lollipop sticks, maybe if it was the number 1, it wouldn't be a problem, because you wouldn't see it since the shape is perfect, but with a 5 and a 0, not so much. Thanks for the info. If you think of anything else, please advise.
ok the best way to do gumpaste number topper (INMO) is to make them quite thickish (gives more stability) then i either run florist wire into the bottom (when still soft) at two points at the bootom and leave to dry or once hard heat florist wire with a lighter and it will melt into the gumpaste when pressed into the back, leve to cool. when ataching to the cake pop a little RI to the spot where the toppers will go and then insert the wires into the cake, the RI will dry and they will be locked into place you may need to prop the toppers up with some saran wrap or tissue whilst the RI dries, i use this method and i have transported cakes for over an hour with the toppers already in place with no problem at all. obviously doing it at the venuue is a safer option though. let me know if you have any questions!! i have a couple of number toppers in my pics if you are interested, all were done with this method.
What gauge of florist wire, would you recommend? I thought about wire, but thought it would just bend into the cake, but it isn't as if I have ever done it, so I thought it would help to know the thickness of wire. Also, what is "RI"? Thanks for the help, btw.
Not adatay, but:
RI is royal icing
Ok, now I feel silly, I should have thought of that! Thanks!
If you decide to use wire you can get some thicker gauge at places like Michael's but.........a big caution: you *cannot* just insert wire into the cake - it has to go into a straw or coffee stir stick. Some people dip them into choco then into the cake but I don't care for this idea...just personal - that's a waste of good choco!
hi , i use 18 guage for my toppers and cake spikes as they it is very strong and sturdy. you can bend it to the shaoe of your numbers to add more structural support to the actual gumpaste. if you want to do this then you wait until the topper is completely set and use the het meathod to melt it into the back. i always use two wires at the bottom to stop the topper from spinning or turning.
sorry RI (as already stated) is Royal Icing, i use to many abreviations lol!
(IMHO as i used before is in my honest opinion)
hope this helped
If you decide to use wire you can get some thicker gauge at places like Michael's but.........a big caution: you *cannot* just insert wire into the cake - it has to go into a straw or coffee stir stick. Some people dip them into choco then into the cake but I don't care for this idea...just personal - that's a waste of good choco!
as long as you use 'florists wire' which is covered in paper you can most certainly insert it into your cake it is completely food safe. if you have normal wire you can wrap it in 'florists tape' to make it food safe. the pre wrapped variety are much easier to work with
We have been told here that we should NEVER insert wire of any kind straight into the cake... it has been known for people to cut the cakes without removing the wire first and using an electric knife has shattered the wire in the cake making it welll you can only imagne..
I personally would make a sausage of icing and insert your heavy guage wire in it then shape the icing to the shape desired then leave it to set rock hard.. even add some tylose or gum trag to it to harden it
We have been told here that we should NEVER insert wire of any kind straight into the cake... it has been known for people to cut the cakes without removing the wire first and using an electric knife has shattered the wire in the cake making it welll you can only imagne
wow that is facinating ! but wouldn't an electric knife wreak havoc with anything left in the cake prior to cutting? like wooden dowels or SPC etc? i'm not sure i understand why anyone would be taking to a cake with an electric knife before these things have been removed? maybe i am misunderstanding? sorry
i always supply instrustions to remove all un edibles before cutting for instance ribbon, support dowels, flowers, wire etc?
Ariginal, i am completely facinated how do you decorate with out ever using wire? do you have something that you use instead? i love finding out new methods! what would you use for cake spikes? i do so many hearts and stars 'exploding out the top' of cakes, not sure what else you could use? sorry i know this is an epic novel hehe! i'm just so curiouse!
I actually just had to do this and I was really really worried about the 50 on top. I ended up using toothpics and putting them in at an angle, so they followed the curve. I was lucky enough that I didn't have to travel far with it but it really was very stable. Just make sure you don't put the toothpicks at such an angle that they poke out of the cake
I used my clay extruder to get the actual rope of fondant/gumpaste and I like that because it gave it a consistent width but wasn't too heavy.
Here's a pic of the final cake. I didn't think to take a pic of the numbers with the toothpics in them.
Great job on the numbers! They look very secure, and I love the style and proportion to the cake size -well done!!
hi , i use 18 guage for my toppers and cake spikes as they it is very strong and sturdy. you can bend it to the shaoe of your numbers to add more structural support to the actual gumpaste. if you want to do this then you wait until the topper is completely set and use the het meathod to melt it into the back. i always use two wires at the bottom to stop the topper from spinning or turning.
sorry RI (as already stated) is Royal Icing, i use to many abreviations lol!
(IMHO as i used before is in my honest opinion)
hope this helped
Adatay, do you mean bamboo skewers by cakes spikes? Also, when you melt the wire into the gumpaste, does it leave bubbles or a mark on the back, or are you able to smooth that out before it hardens back up? Thanks for all your help!
I actually just had to do this and I was really really worried about the 50 on top. I ended up using toothpics and putting them in at an angle, so they followed the curve. I was lucky enough that I didn't have to travel far with it but it really was very stable. Just make sure you don't put the toothpicks at such an angle that they poke out of the cake
I used my clay extruder to get the actual rope of fondant/gumpaste and I like that because it gave it a consistent width but wasn't too heavy.
Here's a pic of the final cake. I didn't think to take a pic of the numbers with the toothpics in them.
Sillywabbitz, that is so coincidental that you would have the exact topper I need advice on, how funny. My question is, how many inches or how far in did you push the toothpicks in the numbers themselves? I was thinking that there wouldn't be enough left to place into the cake without the weight of the topper falling or bending over. Btw, I love the curly effect on the 50, maybe I can try that too.
Glad to help. I would say I left a little more than half of the toothpic sticking out. If you want longer, you can cut the bamboo skewers so you have more length to put into the cake which might make you feel better if you have to travel. Just watch the angle so it goes into the cake not out the side.
Because I let them dry for a couple of days they were really stable even with just 1/2 the toothpick sticking out. I did put Gumtex powder in my fondant because I didn't have any gumpaste.
The font: There are a lot of font websites. One is called fonts.com and you can "Try Fonts" and have it generate lots of sizes in the demo window. You can then right click on the image and copy it. Then paste it into Word and print it. I then laid a piece of wax paper on top of it and shaped my number according to the printed sheet. Worked great.
Adatay, do you mean bamboo skewers by cakes spikes? Also, when you melt the wire into the gumpaste, does it leave bubbles or a mark on the back, or are you able to smooth that out before it hardens back up? Thanks for all your help!
no i mean wire with a gumpaste fondant item on the end stuck into the top of the cake (in aus we call them cake spikes)
melting the wire into the back doesn't leave bubbles but you do still see the wire in the back as iy sinks into the back but does not cover over. however if you are concerned with the visibility of the wire you can add a layer to the back. the madhatter cake below is one layer on th toppers and the 18 is two layers just to show you what i am talking about
oops not sure why that didn't work but here is the link anyway:
http://www.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1296736
http://www.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1284391
come to think of it they both jave cake spikes to if you want to see what i was referring to
I use the wire in mine and put a small straw in cake then put the wire down that with a little bc frosting in the straw to hold it still. Then you don't have to worry about the wire touching the cake. I have also used the toothpicks. They hold up extremely well.
The font: There are a lot of font websites. One is called fonts.com and you can "Try Fonts" and have it generate lots of sizes in the demo window. You can then right click on the image and copy it. Then paste it into Word and print it. I then laid a piece of wax paper on top of it and shaped my number according to the printed sheet. Worked great.
That is a really great suggestion about using the wax paper. Thanks again! Once I make it in the next few weeks, I will post a pic for you all to see.
Adatay, do you mean bamboo skewers by cakes spikes? Also, when you melt the wire into the gumpaste, does it leave bubbles or a mark on the back, or are you able to smooth that out before it hardens back up? Thanks for all your help!
no i mean wire with a gumpaste fondant item on the end stuck into the top of the cake (in aus we call them cake spikes)
melting the wire into the back doesn't leave bubbles but you do still see the wire in the back as iy sinks into the back but does not cover over. however if you are concerned with the visibility of the wire you can add a layer to the back. the madhatter cake below is one layer on th toppers and the 18 is two layers just to show you what i am talking about
Ok, now I get what you meant. Hey it might be called cake spikes here in the U.S. too, I just don't know the lingo sometimes, I just wish I could do an Aussie accent. You have been a great help, the pictures really helped too. I think the double layer idea, is worth a try as well. Thanks so much!
I use the wire in mine and put a small straw in cake then put the wire down that with a little bc frosting in the straw to hold it still. Then you don't have to worry about the wire touching the cake. I have also used the toothpicks. They hold up extremely well.
The straw idea would solve the problem of the exposed wire. Thanks, I will keep ya posted!
Sillywabitz, what was the font you used from fonts dot com? I really liked your "50". I am finally making the cake today.
Susana, I'm so sorry I missed your post. Did you find a font you liked? Be sure and post a pic.. I would love to see how it came out.
Sillywabbitz, I just uploaded the photo, so it may not be appearing yet. It's ok on the font, I understand. I found it and used the same one as you since I know I liked it. I think it was the same one you used. It was the Curlz font. I couldn't make the "0" as curly though since my snake was too thick. Again, thanks to all that helped me out.
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-photo_1335120.html
i have used lollipop sticks or 18 gauage wire on the back of a gumpaste 50. attached with melted white choc on the back.
look in my photos for the cake with burgundy poinsettias and a gold 50 on top.
even if the numbers were pushed all the way down direclt on the top of the cake icing, with no flowers below them, it would have worked with no wire/stick showing.
HTH some!
<----stick wires straight in cakes.
It's how I was taught by several well-known professionals, and if it's good enough for them, it's good enough for me.
Susana,
It came out great! I think it was Curlz... I remember having to roll the ends a bit thinner but I think your's looks perfect.
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