hello what tools are a must when it comes to working fondant covered cakes i have been making due with only 1 fondant smoother a bunch of piping tips (about 15 i in hearted some from a family member) tips and a small angled spatula and a cake leveler and a mat for to roll the fondant out on.of corse i have the simple things like coloring and the eatable markers and so on,but i feel like im being held back with what i can do because i dont have any tools but i have NO clue what to buy. i have looked on line but you can really find a list except for the things i already own.

so what are the things you have that you could not live with out! i know alot of people dont like to share there cake secrets its a competitive world out there i have found out but any help i would truly appreciate it and so would my family and friends that i make cakes for =)


OH also how about a box or something to hold my stuff right now its in a diaper box lol and its a mess i hate it my coloring spills cuz it tips and ugh just a mess any one have any recommendation besides the ones they sell at craft stores because those are so0o expensive. i am all about using things that wernt ment for that purpose but work amazingly lol

Stardust, I was basically in the same boat you are in about a year and half ago. But, believe me when I say that you don't need a lot of fancy tools to do the job. What I have found is that you basically need a good bench scraper for smoothing your icing, a good crusting buttercream (I use Edna's or Indydebi's), a mat for rolling out your fondant, a good rolling pin, cookie cutters or flower cutters. On my wishlist to get are some good flower making tools (I have some cheapies, but I want to upgrade) and some fondant crimpers. Watch Elaine Macgregor's videos on youtube.com to get some ideas on what she used. She does lovely fondant work with both fondant decorations and flowers. And the best part is it's free to watch them, but you will gain so much knowledge about working with fondant. But mostly it is about patience, this I have finally gotten pounded in my head.

ty so much am reading your blog now. im trying to suck up as much information my brain can take in lmao! i love making cakes. its the only thing i have ever done in my life that when im doing it nothing else in the world matters every thing just fades away..and the looks on the faces of the people who get the cake is what its all worth! i would go broke just to do this for the rest of my life =) sorry im all emo over cakes hahaha

I told my husband the other night...I don't know how you can love to do something so much, stress over it it so much while you are doing it, be so glad when it's finished, and turn right around and do the same thing over again.

OMG I have a whole room full of cake paraphenalia (sp).

You need first and foremost:
1. A good non-stick mat for rolling fondant
2. A set of plastic modelling tools, plus a roller cutter, and a frilling tool
3. Basic cutters like blossom cutters, geometic shapes and butterflies etc
4. Colours (which you have)
5. Chalks or petal dusts
6. Supplies like tylose, shortening, gumpaste, corn flour, powdered sugar, fondant, gumpaste
7. A little firm non-stick board for doing gumpaste work
8. An apron, disposable gloves, cleaning wipes
9. An exacto knife, or sharp straight paring knife
10. Piping tips, and piping bags, recipes for royal icing etc
11. A little cornflour bag made from unused knee-high pantyhose, or a handkerchief
12. Plastic containers to hold bits and pieces.
13. Lots of different sized (cheap if you can't afford sable) paintbrushes.
14. Cake tins, cake boards. cake cardboards - just buy as you need them when you are starting out.

Of course, this is just what is included in the 'basic kits' for most classes in Australia. You will know what you need for a particular cake - just buy as you go. I will admit I have a weakness for books and magazines to learn more and more techniques, but they are strictly when I have cake proceeds to play with

Last year was a great year for my business, so I bought an airbrush, compressor, extraction unit, airbrush colours, and a Cricut cake (which I haven't yet used, LOL). I think if you are savvy with your money, you won't overextend yourself. The more cakes you sell - the more pin money you have to spend on groovy cake gear!

I also have a great collection of petal veiners and moulds and such now - but please - these are only really time-saving devices - you can do most flowers without special cutters or veiners. For example - a dried corn husk makes a perfect petal and leaf veiner!

Best of luck, sweetie. Its such a brilliant career or pasttime

if your just starting out and cant afford it all in one hit, just buy what you need when you need it. thats what i have been doing.. my collection is slowly growing.. has outgrown its once roomy position on a shelf in my cupboard.. and has now taken over half my buffet as well! lol. If you ever have some extra cash then go treat yourself to your "wish list items" i did this the other week.. got some disco dust AND edible metallic gold and silver paint. =)) im pretty pleased.. now thinking up projects to use them all in.. lol.

also to be honest, you can substitute alot of the tools with things around the home.. like gumpaste tools, i bought a cheap manicure set to use before i got the proper ones.. i still find alot of the tools from the manicure set work better then the proper gumpaste ones! pizza wheels for fondant, round cups or lids to cut out shapes.. i once evn lost my rolling pin and had to use the side of a cup to roll my fondant out! lol.

A few things I use with almost every fondant cake, Pizza cutter, I just bought at the dollar tree a shaker for my powdered sugar and I just saw on amazing cakes they uses PVC for rolling pins so I bought that at Home Depot. Also Dollar tree in the teacher section had letter stencils so I bought them and had a case cutter that I use just for fondant and it made letters a breeze. I also buy 12 x 48 inch MDF board Home Depot cuts them into 12 x12 squares and use those for boards. They work out to be $1.20 each which is so much cheaper than the cake drums. I cover with solid color wrapping paper and contact paper both from the dollar tree!

My absolute most essential tool at the moment is a citrus peeler that I use for making fondant or gum paste ruffles (I ask you, what's a valentine's cake without a ruffle or two or ten, lol?). I used it for the ruffles on the white cake with the red hearts in my photos. I pick them up at the dollar store in a pack of two for a dollar. They tend to break after awhile especially if you use them alot at one go (when they start to feel warm, I switch to a fresh one so they last longer), so I buy five or six packs at a time. They'll also do as a veiner in a pinch, and I even used one to mark the stiching on the teddy bear in the gift box in my photos.

wow these are some great reply's! thank you all for taking the time out to answer my question! im going to have to get a pen and paper to take notes to keep in my purse while i am out.i have been wanting to get some paint brushes but didnt know what ones would be safe to use around food bc i heard some are chemically treated and wouldnt think they would be safe around food even after being washed..the manicure kit i wish i would have thought of i have wasted soo many tooth picks and gettn mad because they didnt really do what i wanted them to.lol wow this has topped my night of to come home and see these great ideas! i was officially hired to do my first cake today. i have done many but have never been offered money for one.im so excited that people are taking notice in what i do and actually like it. i told them that i wouldnt mind doing it for free sense its a long time friend of the family but they insisted they payed me. im to make a 3 tear green and brown monkey cake for a baby shower! 0o0 im so thrilled its not another birthday cake! thank you all again im glad to see that there are good people here