I am making a cake for a friend this weekend for about 10 people. i am planning on a 8" round with a beer mug on top. If I put the beer mug on top of the 8" round, do I need dowels? Which is the best color to use to frost the beer mug so it looks like beer? I was thinking of using piping gel to cover the beer mug so it looks translucent but it might drip. any ideas? please?

or should i just make a 3-d beer mug cake? Which pan should I bake that in?

I was just thinking, maybe you could bake a cake in a tall soup can as your beer mug? Just an idea....

yes.. i am planning to bake the smaller cake in a soup can...

If you are putting a beer mug, made from cake just on top, I wouldn't think you'd need dowels then. Shouldn't be that heavy right? Or maybe put one through the top of the beer mug, through the 8" so that it doesn't shift or fall over?

HI ~ The soup can cake sounds the best for a mug on an 8" round cake.
I do hope one of our many knowledgable decorators has the answer to the second part of her question regarding piping gel on the sides.

maybe you could do the piping gel on the sides as you said and then use a piece(cut to the exact size of the beer mug) of that plastic sheeting.....um.....you know like teachers use on the overhead projecters?? Cut some of that to the size and just wrap it around over the piping gel, like a collar.....then it would REALLY look like a glass and that would be very easy to remove before eating.....and may also help the stability of the beer mug as well

KHalstead.. thats a fantastic idea! thanks

not a problem!!!!!