wondering which each one is better for. I'm a novice but amd diving in head first

making a beer cooler cake for tomorrow and a beach cake with edible seashells next week

Generally speaking, fondant is for eating and gumpaste is not.

Fondant decorations take longer to harden than gumpaste. They don't dry absolutely rock hard, at least not for a while. Fondant on a cake stays soft enough to be eaten.

I use gumpaste for flowers, for any decorations on wires, and for things like shoes.

You can work with fondant longer before it starts to dry and the surface wrinkles. You can work gumpaste a lot thinner than fondant, making it ideal for flower petals.

So basically both have their uses.


I usually make seashells with white chocolate and candy molds...you can just paint the chocolate in there thick enough to make a shell, let it harden and pop it out, you don't have to fill the entire mold.

I thought about making the seashells from chocolate but I'm worried about the chocolate melting its been quite hot lately

if the fondant dries out is it ok to add glycerin? or corn syrup thought I heard that on a cake show
thanks so much!

You can add glycerin but only add a drop or two at a time. If it gets too soft and sticky, that's worse than it being a little dry.