http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1416084

I try and try but eventually the head gets smaller and smaller and looses the forehead or chin or and ends up just not right. I try to be gentle and am using fondant and tylose but its too soft but it needs to be soft to mould !!!Should I use something else ??

Are you kidding! That is amazing and beautiful.

Zowza, no kidding! To me she's exquisite. LOL, I guess that proves we're our own worst critic!

Wow....I would be thrilled if my figures came out looking like that!!!

NONONO sorry I did not mean the one in the picture is squished but how to I make a head like that - MINE end up squished. The one in the picture is adorable I want mine to look like that !!!

I think you all are confused, Strathmore didn't mold that, she (he?) WANTs to mold that way. If you look at the description, it says it was gumpaste, not fondant/tylose, which is a modeling paste. The modeling paste should work well, it doesn't have to be gumpaste. I use a mold to make my dolls, so I don't have the problem of squishing it. I also use a toothpick to hold the head while I mold so I don't touch or press where I don't intend to. I also make the torso and head together out of one piece. Try mounting the head/torso on a toothpick or something to see if that helps.

Thank god sweetflowers you replied knowing what I meant !!! I thought gumpaste would be better but I don't have any. I do have a gumpaste recipie but it uses gum trag - can I use tylose instead ??? The whole gumpaste/flowerpaste/moulding paste thing gets me really confused no matter how much I read up on it. I suppose I should print all it out and stick it to the fridge.

I use gumpaste, but I do place the head upside down in a round palette thing that you put paint in. You can also put it in a "cloud" of cotton balls so it doesn't get depressed. The top of the head sometimes gets a little odd shaped, but I cover it up with hair or hats. Faces are really hard to do well, I think. The one in the picture is exquisite. I wonder if it's modeling chocolate.

Gumpaste and flowerpaste are the same thing. The modeling paste, mixture of 50/50 (half fondant and half gumpaste, OR fondant and tylose or CMC) is the best of both worlds, more modeling time but still dries firmer and faster than fondant alone. Is sounds like yours is too soft so you either need more tylose or to use gumpaste alone. You can make gumpaste using tylose, Nicholas Lodge has a great recipe I use all the time (www.nicholaslodge.com)

You can set the head on something soft if you really need to, but the toothpick is easiest for me. I use batting or soft foam when I have to set something down, the batting doesn't leave little cotton 'hairs'.

Hi thanks for the info. Do you have a link to the recipie ? I went to his site but I can't find gumpaste recipie

I only use fondant and tylose and after the initial shaping, I put my rolled head in a Tablespoon to dry...first I lay a small piece of plastic wrap across, just to be able to pop it out easier.

I do all the features while the head is in the spoon so I never really touch it, I move it around by the handle.