With my last cake this past week I used White Chocolate Cream Cheese Butter Cream which almost always hardens VERY well when chilled. But the more I added those florals to my chilled cake the more like elephant skin it looked.

I have the Sharon Zambito butter cream videos and I'm forever in the "try try TRY!!!" mode. I've read this thread but can't see what I'm doing wrong.

Any ideas??

Can you post a picture and the recipe that you used?

Is that the Hula Girl cake you're talking about? I'd think that was caused either by the cake not being heavy enough and bulging under the weight, or perhaps the buttercream wasn't thick enough?

Did it get hot while you were working on the cake? I've noticed sometimes that it doesn't even have to be "hot" in my kitchen for my work to come out funny, just a couple of degrees warmer than usual.

Great design!! Hope someone here can maybe provide better answers.

Im not an expert but looks like one of two things (or a combination of both):
1.) the hula figurine is too heavy (was it doweled or properly supported?) and/or placed too far to the edge of the cake causing it too push the already very crusted icing out/over the edge a little.
2.) the buttercream was too soft or was in a hot/humid environment.
I am thinking that the weight and placement of the decorations are the most likely culprit. HTH
Fedra