i think unlimited is able to do such icing and decorating thing in the matter of minutes or seconds as she told us. anyway, she has been doing it for 37 years and has been very good at doing it with buttercream. i mean 37 years...wow!!! she could really have mastered it and has discovered ways or tricks to make the work a lot easier and faster. imo.

i personally do not believe, that perfection can be created in 30 seconds flat. simple as that.

Throwing my unsolicited two cents in here....

Unlimited- 30 seconds very impressive...cakes in her profile pictures not so much. I mean look ok but looks like what I can do. And thats not sayting too much. LOL

Sugarshack (and many others that I don't remember names) takes 3 hours. Cakes are stunningly BEAUTIFUL and PERFECT!!!

Weighing the facts here. I would prefer Sugarshacks 100 to 1 over Unlimiteds.

And the attitude that Unlimited diplayed pisses me off. I hate people that think they are better than someone else. No, those words were not used but they were damn well meant.

2-3 hours.

Jen

I didn't think there was anything wrong with the cake pictures, I thought that the scarecrow cake was cute, and I liked the idea of doing it two different ways to see how it looks different using different methods. I'm still interested in the "how" of the fast-icing (yes, I'll keep harping on this) and the only thing that I noticed is that the icing on the piano cake was really thick, so maybe that has something to do with the method she uses. I don't put my icing on that thick, so does that have any effect on how long it would take? Probably, since the thicker you put the icing on, the less you'll need a crumb coat or anything to make sure it doesn't show through the icing.

I'm sorry...I don't mean to laugh at anyone, but the link about the machine icing cakes titled "Unlimited icing a cake" or whatever it said, made me laugh so hard I had tears in my eyes....I fully expected to see a person actually doing the icing.....BTW...where can I get one of those machines??? I want one!!!!

I'm still pretty new at this so it takes me some time. I'm trying different methods and icings as I go,. but on average it's taking me about 40-45 minutes to ice after the crumb coat. The rest all depends on how it is decorated.

I did the Cornelli Lace cake in my pictures in about 6 hours total from putting the pan in the oven to sending it out the door. It was rushed and I wasn't happy with the smoothness of the frosting. My tiered cakes were done over a couple days, so I can't really say how much time it took. I just worked a little at a time taking breaks to care for the kids and so on.

And I do crumb coat just because I don't want to take the chance of getting crumbs in my icing. Plus, I think it keeps the cakes fresher while I'm waiting for them to settle after filling. My instructor can ice without it, but she's been at this for 30 years.

Like I said, I'm still really new at this and learning.

I can torte, fill, ganache,set, smooth, fondant and stack 3 tiers in about 3-4 hours with the help of refrigeration of course. I've only been decorating for about 4.5 months so I don't think I am that bad.

I think the majority of it comes down to which tools you've got to make use of.

I started seriously making cakes in February, right now a three tier to torte, fill, ice (no crumb coat, either in ganache or buttercream) and fondant takes between 2-3 hours. That's with Satin Ice fondant, and my ganache or buttercream already made.

It definitely helps that I've got a great turn table, the right spatulas, and I know to use a bench scraper to get the icing smooth (thanks Edna!). Also I've got a heavy marble rolling pin that makes rolling out the fondant very easy and quick.

Just completed one this very night, had a helper but she is a beginner and is being taught as we go along(she is completely new at this), I have been decorating for a couple of years and tonight's cake took 3 1/2 hours. This included leveling, crumb coating, icing, stacking, cornelli lace and gum paste calla lilies as the decorations. Oh forgot to say this was a BC iced cake. HTH

As previously stated; I am insanley, stupidly, mind-numbingly slow. LOL



I am sure others could do it 3-4 hours but my old tired bones don't move so fast these days. I take a lot of breaks too....haha

As previously stated; I am insanley, stupidly, mind-numbingly slow. LOL



I am sure others could do it 3-4 hours but my old tired bones don't move so fast these days. I take a lot of breaks too....haha

I need to work on my speed... a 3 tier cake takes me 3-4 DAYS!!!!

I must admit that I take "forever" and a day. (or more)

-Debbie B.

Despite everything siad in this thread I'm glad the op started it. It has made me realize I need to push myslef. I think being a home baker I let things distract me while decorating (the tv,phone,couch ). I have a three tier coming up in 2 weeks. All decos will be premade so I'm setting a goal of 2hrs to fill,coat,fondant and apply decos. Wish me luck.

Personally, I don't think the time taken is important, as long as YOU are happy with the results. We are our own worst critics. The clock won't make you do work like you aspire to do. But, with that being said, you do have to be fast enough to make $$$ at it as well.

Jen