I've never done a bct before, but I was wondering if you could follow the same instructions, but use a royal icing, so that it will dry hard. There are no cake toppers on the island that I live on, so I'm trying to find a way to make my own "toppers". Has anyone tried this? Does it sound like it will work?

I've done millions of royal icing (RI) decorations on parchment to save as future decorations. (I think its also called colorflow?) Dry, peel and stick! They last FOREVER! I've never done a BCT.

Here's what I do: Make a line drawing of what you want on paper, slide it under parchment, trace with regular RI, thin colored icing with egg white or water and fill in your picture. You might need to smooth with your finger.

Tips :
* Don't get it too thin or it may ripple
* A fan may help it to dry more quickly and smoothly
* Thinning with egg white makes it stronger and less prone to air bubbles
* Don't go crazy trying to get a really dark color. Just like buttercream, it will darken as it dries. Too much dye could weaken it.

See my Bulldog Groom's cake done with this technique.

HTH!

The following is from www.wilton.com. The method you are taking about is Color Flow, also know as Run-In-Sugar or Flooding. You can use Royal Icing instead of the Color Flow Icing. Color Flow icing is said to dry harder and shinery. Royal Icing is said to dry more matte, though there are those that say if you dry it under a desk lamp it will be shiny.

http://www.wilton.com/recipes/recipesandprojects//icing/colorflow.cfm

Wilton Color Flow Icing Recipe

Color Flow Icing Recipe: (full-strength for outlining)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon water
1 lb. (4 cups) sifted confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons (6 teaspoons) Color Flow Mix

With electric mixer, using grease-free utensils, blend all ingredients on low speed for 5 minutes. If using hand mixer, use high speed. Color flow icing ?crusts?quickly, so keep bowl covered with a damp cloth while using. Stir in desired icing color.

Makes approx. 2 cups color flow icing.

Thinned Color Flow
In order to fill an outlined area, the recipe above must be thinned with ½ teaspoon of water per ¼ cup of icing (just a few drops at a time as you near proper consistency). Use grease-free spoon or spatula to stir slowly. Color flow is ready for filling in outlines when a small amount dropped into the mixture takes a count of ten to disappear.

**To outline and fill in a Color Flow design, follow the steps outlined below:

l. Tape pattern and waxed paper overlay to your work surface. Waxed paper must be free of wrinkles.

2. Outline pattern with full-strength Color Flow Icing and tip 2.

3. Let outline dry a few minutes until it crusts.When filling in an area with a different color from outline, let dry 2 hrs.

4. To fill in an outline, soften icing by adding water to 1/4 cup icing, 1/2 teaspoon at a time. As you near proper consistency, add just a few drops of water at a time. Stir slowly by hand in a figure-8 motion to prevent whipping in air bubbles.

5. Test the consistency of the Color Flow Icing by dropping a small amount of icing into the mixture. If it takes a full count of ten to disappear, the icing is the right consistency.

6. Fill a parchment cone no more than half full of icing. (Do not use a tip as it might break outline). Cut a tiny hole at the end of bag. If filling in a large area, have 2 half-full bags ready; otherwise, icing could crust before you finish filling in the pattern.

7. Begin filling in outline along the edges first by gently squeezing and letting the icing flow up to the outline almost by itself. Work quickly, filling in pattern from the outside edges in and from top to bottom.

8. When all outlines are filled in, let dry thoroughly for at least 24 hours. For quick drying, use a heat lamp: position lamp 2 ft. away from decoration for 2 hours. Remove lamp and air dry for 12 hours.

9. Remove the Color Flow from waxed paper by placing it near the edge of the counter. Slide the piece slowly over the counter's edge while carefully peeling half of the waxed paper away. Turn piece around and repeat.

Color Flow Information
Color Flow Technique

Wilton color flow mix contains dried egg whites and sodium laurye sulfate, a whipping agent. When stored at room temperaturein a dry place it will last at least one year.

The color flow decorating technique is a special decorating method used to make detailed icing decorations for cakes. Itis "drawing", using a special icing, parchment bags, and tips.

When mixing color flow icing, set mixer at low speed to avoid whipping in too much air. Use medium or high speed if using a hand-held mixer.

Only use parchment bags. Never fill the bag more than half full.

For color flow decorating, you need a flat, level and firm work surface.

Use full strength icing for outlining and overpiping; softened color flow for filling in. Color flow is softened by adding small amounts of water.

Use grease-free utensils and bowls, as any trace of grease will cause the icing to break down.

Paste food colors work best and do not affect icing consistency. Colors fade slightly when a dried color flow piece is exposed to sunlight.

Attach all icing outlines by blending smooth with a slightly dampened art brush so that there are no "breaks" which allow softened color flow to leak out and ruin your decoration.

If outline and fill-in are the same color icing, let outlines dry a few minutes until they "crust". If outline and fill-in are made from different color icings, let outlines dry thoroughly (1-2 hours) before filling-in.

Outlines that are flat indicate soft icing or touching surface with tip while drawing outline. Remember, outlines are piped with the tip held above the surface to give a rounded line.

Color Flow designs take a long time to dry, so they should be created at least 2-3 days in advance. Occasionally, color flow takes even longer to dry, and may not ever dry. This is almost always due to humidity. Wilton's color flow mix contains dried egg whites, and it is very unlikely that the mix varies from one batch to the next.

A heat lamp can be used to dry the color flow piece more quickly. The heat lamp should be placed two feet away from the color flow for two hours. Afterwards, the piece should air dry for 12 hours. This method produces a piece with a high shine.

If a number of colors are used, finish all of the sections of one color first, before starting on the next.

If placing the color flow piece on a frozen cake, let the cake defrost 6-8 hours to be certain it is dry. Moisture will break down the decoration quickly.

To make a curved color flow decoration for the side of the cake, tape the pattern and wax paper onto the curved surface of a cake pan or on cake side formers. Then follow the basic outlining and filling-in procedures.

Prick tiny air bubbles with a pin while Color Flow piece is still wet. Beating the icing at an overly-high speed may cause air bubbles.

When filling-in, the icing should have a "pillowed" effect.

If icing runs up and over the outline, you may be squeezing too much; the outline may be too flat; or the icing may be too thin.

Are Color Flow Decorations Edible?
Color Flow decorations are edible, however, they are usually not eaten because they are hard and very sweet.

Color Flow Decorations/Storage:
Color Flow pieces should last indefinitely, if stored properly. A cool, dry cupboard would be a good storage place. Do not put the color flow piece on a refrigerated or frozen cake. If the cake has been refrigerated or frozen, allow it to come to room temperature before placing the color flow decoration on the cake.
Allowing the cake to come to room temperature should help prevent the color flow piece from bleeding which is due to moisture. Color flow pieces can be set on sugar cubes to eliminate possible bleeding.

Egg White Substitute
Color Flow Mix consists of dried egg whites and sodium lauryl sulfate, which is a preservative.
Color Flow Mix can be substituted in some recipes for egg white. The substitution is one egg white equals two (2) teaspoons dry egg white (Color Flow Mix) plus two (2) Tablespoons water. Color flow mix does not work well for angel food cake.