I'm pretty new to cake decorating so everything I do at this point is a learning process. I'm trying to make a cake for my brother's college graduation and I'm having trouble getting that deep purple color that the school color is. I started with Wilton colors, trying red and blue together. Trying their violet and adding blue or black to make it darker but that just started turning it grey. I read that it takes a LOT of dye to get a deep color but how much is a LOT? I don't want to waste a whole little tub on it if it isn't gonna make the color any deeper. I also saw people recommend Americolor colors so I ordered their darker purple color but it still looks the same as what I was getting with Wilton's violet. Any advice? I'm also trying to get the same color with color flow icing if that makes a difference.

AI would use an entire tub for a small mixing bowl full of icing. It deepens as it sets, too.

AStart with a blue fondant and add crystal colors powder color. It doesn't fade and it's FDA approved for food use. Www.sugarpaste.com

Bloody hell, this thread made me realize I forgot to include powder colors in my order today. Grrrrr!