My hubby will be getting certified as DOC officer coming up in a month. I would love to make him a cake to let him know how proud of him I am. So i was thinking maybe carving a cake in the shape of his badge. But I have no idea how to start carving since it will be my very first attempt at a carved cake. In fact i don't even know if the idea is plain silly. I am so lost right now please please I need help. Thankfully I have at least a few weeks to figure this thing out. Did I mention that my youngest son's birthday is on the same day but that another story.

The only way we learn is by trying! I would suggest tracing the badge onto paper and then photocopying it to make it as large as you need. Layer your cake the way you want (or even a 2" high cake would be fine for this) and then use the photocopy as your template. Using a large, serrated knife cut around the template keeping your knife straight up and down and using a sawing motion. Crumb coat the cake after carving and then put a final layer of icing on. Carving cake is usually cleaner and easier if the cake is either very chilled or even semi-frozen so if you have fridge space then chill it before carving.

Good luck!

Okay very cool thank. Do you think cardboard would be a better template than regular paper?

I would probably go with card stock but I don't think it really matters.

It is good suggestion to make a template from paper and lay it on the cake to get the initial shape. This is how I carve my cakes.

I heard someone say once to carve slowly, small bits at a time because you can always take more off but you can't add back what you have cut off. A badge should be fairly simple.

Cut straight down all around the shape to get the right shape, then remove your template and round the upper corners a little with your knife. Let us know when you post photos.