Hi everyone! Would anyone be able to offer me tips and techniques on how to create a snowflake that will stand up on a fondant cake? I've seen lots of designs where people will use snowflakes as a topper on a tiered cake and I am interested in knowing how it's made so that I can reproduce it.

Any help would be greatly appreciated! TIA

Pipe them in royal icing Just lay the pattern on something like a cookie sheet; cover w/plastic wrap (make sure it is wrinkle free) and pipe over the lines using a small round tip. Allow to dry - how long depends on what the weather is like in your area - but definately should be good overnight. Now, push the finished flake to the end of the cookie sheet or table and pull the plastic wrap *down* & off. They will be fragile. Turn them over and pipe over what you already piped; allow to dry again. You can sprinkle them while still wet w/edible glitter.
If you have a variety of tiny cutters, you could also make some out of Fondant that you add some GumTex to - it will stiffen the fondant some and help it to dry quicker and stronger. Cut out the basic shape, then use the tiny cutter to make lots of holes of different shapes to form the pattern in it.
I've even made a few from straight fondant, allowing them to dry several days - if you live in a dry area

I did a successful snowflake cake using royal icing snowflakes. I printed out a few designs I liked, placed them on a table covered in wax paper, traced the images with royal icing and let them dry for several hours. I flipped them carefully and glued a sucker stick to the back using more royal icing. Make several extras, they break!

The PME plunger snowflake cutters dry hard if you have time to order them or if you already own them.

A quick way to get them to stand up all by themselves on a cake is to (like others said) they need to be stiff and dry. Then flip them over and attach a toothpick to the back of each flake with melted white chocolate. Sets up in seconds and sticks better than glue.

The PME plunger snowflake cutters dry hard if you have time to order them or if you already own them.

If you are going to cut them out with a cutter, then use gum paste. Gum paste can be rolled very thin and it dries quickly and very hard. Because it can be rolled thin, it's also a LOT lighter than fondant. I use gum paste for any toppers or decor that needs to stand. I also use Wilton's premade gum paste which you can get at Michaels or Hobby Lobby and print off a coupon for 40% off.

I made some recently using gumpaste and some with mmf. They dried for a few days, then I brushed with some corn syrup and sprinkled with edible white glitter.Both are stiff as a board and sparkly as well. Just stuck them into the cupcakes. They look great.

............I printed out a few designs I liked, placed them on a table covered in wax paper, traced the images with royal icing and let them dry for several hours.........

There is far less breakage is you use plastic wrap/cling film instead of wax paper. They are much easier to get off plastic than wax paper.

Wow! Thanks for all the tips! I will definitely have to try all of these methods. Sounds like it will be a lot of fun testing.

Have any of you used cookies cut out as a snowflake instead?

I used cookie cutters for the snowflakes on this cake
http://cakecentral.com/gallery/1901229/

But they're not near as delicate as some of the other options. Next time I would do small cutouts inside the snow flake for some extra detail.

I have just decorated a cake using snowflakes that stand...I cut the flakes out of fondant icing mixed with a little GUM TRAGACANTH, this makes it go very hard when dry.
After cutting them out leave to dry on greaseproof paper then use a little fondant behind and royal icing to stand them in position.
Hope this helps

kakekadu, I have tried that method and it never got hard enough.. what recipe do you use for your royal icing?

I meant "kakeladi" ............... sorry!

So I used the royal icing on my cupcakes this weekend and it turned out to be a disaster.

I piped my snowflakes on tuesday and let them dry over night, I then tried to pick them up to turn them over and pipe them again but every snowflake I touched crumbeled so instead I piped over the top and let them dry another night. I got up the next morning and put them on my cupcakes making sure I handeled them carefully and touching the center only (the thickest part) and that seemed to work really well! But..... when I got to the party about 50% of my snowflakes has broken I guess from the vibration in the car or something.

I think maybe I will try the chocolate molds next time... only concern there is when piping the chocolate does it run all over??

Might not be true with your chocolate molds but with some, you can pour chocolate in haphazardly then take a plastic bowl scraper and scrape off any leftover chocolate and put it back in the bowl then freeze the chocolate snowflakes and pop out after about 10 minutes. And here's a hint about royal snowflakes. I use egg whites and powdered sugar with a half teaspoon of cream of tarter added - same recipe as my gingerbread house icing. Real whites dry harder and stronger. Then I pipe them on waxed paper with the pattern under the waxed paper. Then when dry I take a length of sewing thread and wind it around a finger of the right hand and one finger of the left hand then wiggle the thread under the snowflakes to loosen. And lastly (as you've already found out) it's best to put them on the cake upon arrival to prevent breakage.

That is definitely a lesson learned! lol

I will try that recipe next time I need something like that is that recipe good for the bows too?