friend wants this wedding cake. last wedding cake i did i learned that the simple look isn't always easier. it also needs to serve 400 so it will be big. i am planning on icing it in bc instead of fondant and piping the details, but i don't want to freehand it and i don't want to mess up the bc with a stencil, what can i use to get those details on there prefectly?

she also said she didn't really like the flowers and i think she would like a ribbon around the bottom of each tier. i have heard of people's ribbons bleeding onto the cake. is there a certain kind i should use? and any ideas about the flowers? she might have just not like the colors.

any help would be MUCH appreciated!!!!!

thanks in advance

oops forgot to put the pic


http://weddingcakecreations.com/gallery2.asp?id=454&num=1

For the designs, see if you can find a press set with that particular pattern. You just lightly press them into the crusted BC, then trace over the lines with your writing tip. As for the ribbon, the main problem I've heard of (with real fabric ribbon) is the grease from the BC staining the fabric. You can do several things to combat that. Clear contact paper on the back side of the ribbon is one I've heard. And someone here rubs Crisco all over the whole thing so it's all the same greased color, if that makes sense.

ok thanks. and i was wondering where to get those impression thingys and do i need to use different sizes of them for each tier?

I haven't tried to find any before, but I'd start with a cake supply store. If you can find any that way, maybe Global Sugar Art or Wilton will have some. Good luck!

You can also do the ribbon out of fondant - there shouldn't be a bleeding problem and you can make it exactly the color you want.

Check out this impression mat by Kathy Scott

http://www.globalsugarart.com/product.php?id=22122

Very similar to the one in the photo. Easy to use on crusted BC

awesome! thanks it doesn't mess up the bc with the rest of the mat touching it? i was trying to find one of those cut out things but couldn't find one like that.

and about the fondant ribbon, i thought of that but wasn't sure i could pull it off. is it possible to roll out a piece long enought to not have seems anywhere except the back? i want it to be as flawless as possible. is that what you used in your profile pic cuz yours looks really good btw and i like the border you put on top of it also, i might steal that idea

the wedding is in january so she stil lhas some time to decide. she did tell me this was her final choice, but i'm thinking she might change her mind a little when she sees more cakes.

If your BC is crusted, then the mat shouldn't damage it any. I'd definitely do some practice runs until you get the hang of it.

You could cut the mat apart and have individual imprssions then.

If you can't find the press you could print the cake picture, enlarge it up to size, take floral wire and mold it to the pattern. Make you a handle out of the wire and use that to imprint then you can pipe over it. This way your pattern is uniform and looks freehanded.

txnonnie, i loooove that idea thank you soooo much!!!

as for the crusting bc, i have use the wilton recipe. that's what i have always used and am afraid to try something new, lol, but i don't really think it crusts really well. it's actually pretty soft. i have also tried adding cornstarch to it but that really didn't do anything that i could tell. i ahve made a stencil out of cardstock and used it on a whipped cream iced cake before and that wasn't bad. the paper actually stuck to the side of the cake and i airbrushed over it and gently pulled it off, but since this is a wedding cake i don't want to take any chances.

and yes the tiers are going to be huge and i don't have a pasta roller. i always wondered how the pros did it i have a kitchenaid mixer and i think they make a pasta roller attatchment? i was just thinking about that yesterday, i will have to look into that. i like the look of the fabric ribbon though,

thanks for all you guy's help! i really appreciate it she is coming over next week for a tasting and i will show her some more pix. i was really hoping she would pic something a little more funky, lol

And make sure to use a very fine tip, or a parchment cone for the very fine lines in thse scrolls. If you use the same tip for all of it, the effect will be lost and will not look as pretty as that picture.

you guys are so helpful

You could also make a impression mat out of acetate and hot glue. Print off the design (in reverse), lay the acetate over it and outline with hot glue. Just make sure your hot glue isn't so hot it melts the acetate.

In a same way that hot glue was suggested for making an impression tool, you could use royal icing. Pipe the design in royal icing on acetate, and when it's dry, imprint design into crusted buttercream.

If you use royal icing on a mat this is flexible, bye bye icing....it will crack off the first time you flex the mat.

Why wouldn't your glue be smooth?

............mess up the bc with the rest of the mat touching it?...........

If your icing hasn't crusted or not enough put a piece of tulle between the impression & the icing to prevent sticking/messing up the icing.

i don't think my bc is very "crusty" is there a better recipe for that? i have heard of a few others but havn't tried any of them yet

What makes an icing crust is less fat to more sugar. There are many wonderful recipes out there to try. I recommend both Sharon Z (Sugar Shack)'s and IndyDebi's.
Try them to see which one you prefer.