I'm cutting out designs with fondant and as I cut or shape them they dry out as soon as air hit them(like a previous question I asked). I was wanting to make the fondant designs in advance and color them before putting them on the cake but the fondant gets so stiff you can't shape or bend them. I'm afraid I'm going to have the designs tear or crumble trying to put them on the cake.
Do I need to decorate the cake as I cut the fondant and then color them later or is there an easier method.

...or is gum paste a better option?

...or is gum paste a better option?

Maybe your fondant is too dry? Air in your workspace too dry? Try using a vaporizer to moisten the air. Work in some glycerin into the fondant or some crisco to make it more moist. If you place the fondant cut outs on a similar shape to the cake you are making they should be okay. ie: placing cutouts that will be on the side of a round cake on the side of a round cake pan to mimic the curve you are going to fit the fondant on.

HTH

I've never heard of fondant drying that fast. I color it before cutting, cut and place on the cake.

First of all, what kind of fondant are you using?

Gumpaste will dry out faster than fondant and harder, so i don't recommend using that ... but you can color your fondant with wilton or americolor icing gels before cutting and i would recommend placing them on your already iced cake while the fondant is still pliable, that way you can shape the fondant the way you want to.

I use mmf and it doesn't dry out too fast...

Hope that helps a little

Not sure why it would dry that fast. You could try working some shortening into your fondant and that should help.

Bec

Thanks for these tips. I know that my fondant dries really fast as well and I had a hard time covering the top of my cake today the way that I wanted it. I will try the crisco next time!

Thanx to everyone for their wonderful advice and I will certainly try all of them. Wish me luck.