...that doesn't like doing cakes in buttercream? I absloutely love working with fondant and its versatility and look. I had a customer ask if I did cakes in buttercream for a more homey look. I am not comfortable working with buttercream because I don't feel in control of the cake and too many things can go wrong since buttercream lacks the rigidity that fondant provides. Do others feel this way or am I alone? I hate loosing a customer but don't want to be a nervous wreck and not pleased with my work.

hey Allycook, I feel the same way... I LOVE working with fondant, all I like to use buttercream for is on borders, flowers, to write and stuff like that...

I feel the same way. I try not to use buttercream to decorate a cake. I think with more practice the better you get at it. I know now that I have worked with royal icing a lot, I am getting better, but to do an entire cake in buttercream, I don't think I could do it. I admire those who can.

I've tried BC a couple of times and have decided I am just a complete moron when it comes to BC. I have no patience for those tips! I will only do fondant. Period.

I'm the opposite........I love BC, making it, decorating with it and eating it. Fondant, hate making it, decorating with it and mostly hate eating it. I guess because when I started doing cakes in the 80's, BC was the thing (I know I'm dating myself). I don't think it's uncommon that decorators feel like we do. I dread getting an all fondant covered cake order

its got nothing to do with control for me, i just like the look of fondant better. I don't do buttercream cakes at all, really. it's a rarity for sure.

I hate decorating with buttercream! I'm very OCD so if I can't get it totally smooth I get nuts! Even when i do the coating to go underneath the fondant i get very picky till i have to let go! I could never cover cakes in buttercream to sell!

I actually like the challenge of doing both. I have good things and problems with fondant and BC. Still like trying!

Oh no! I hate buttercream and I hate the taste of it! And like I tell my clients that when you get buttercream you cant really do as much with it. Your stuck with just buttercream. But with fondant you can have a chocolate frosting underneath and still have a white wedding cake! You cant do that with buttercream!
Not to mention most of the buttercreams out there are made with lots of shortening and I just dont think that tastes right to me. Ive tasted them with butter added but its still an overly sweet thing for me. Its always got tons of sugar also.
I call myself a food snob. And I thought that I was the only decorator out there that didnt like the stuff. Glad Im not!!! I thought I was an oddity!...ok, no comment from the peanut gallery!!!

I used to feel that way too. I really like the look of fondant and really admire those that can cover a cake with fondant and make it look smooth. I have tried several times and I have not been able to get the hang of it. I used to also get frustrated doing a buttercream cake until I got Sugarshack's DVD. That made all the difference in the world for me. Now, I cover all my cakes in buttercream and use the fondant for sculpting and decorations. I still have a lot of work to do when it comes to tip work with buttercream, or any medium for that matter. I hope some day to invest in Sugarshack's fondant DVD, but until then, it's buttercream for me.

I LOVE FONDANT !!!!

9 out of ten I do Fondant... I do not like BC because it is messy and gets ruined easily. With Fondant, it is very stable and you can almost do anything with them.. figures, all kinds of flowers, swags, etc...

I love Fondant..

i have noticed with myself that i love the way a cake looks covered in fondant but the more cakes i have covered in bc the better i am getting. my last cakes came very smooth and looked great. i've seen some cakes here covered in bc that look exactly like fondant. we do have to make our customers happy.....what they want they get.

Stupid Buttercream!

Fondant ROCKS!

I only do fondant. If anyone calls me asking for BC I refer them to a friend who only does BC in her shop. She does the same for me if she gets someone who wants fondant.

So funny to read the responses...

I am a BC girl...love how fluffy the borders look, the roses, the designs, the taste. I have steered clear of fondant...mostly because I think I am afraid of it!!

That's not to say I don't have thoughts of crossing over to the other side!

I prefer working with fondant as it's easier and looks so much better. The only problem is that no one I know likes the stuff lol we all grew up with buttercream. The last cake I made with fondant with a buttercream crumb coast everyone threw the fondant away saying "yuk" what is that stuff? lol so lesson learned no more fondant except for accents. This way I'm not wasting my time or my ingredients only to see it thrown away.

Fondant all the way! MMF mostly. My husband is the only one who doesn't like MMF everyone else loves it.
I can't do a buttercream to save my life. Even with the roller tricks.
As far as taste I like it all!
Jen...

Oh, I am so glad to hear all of the resounding comments that I am not alone. This just encourages me in my response to the person requesting bc. I am not strange after all. Maybe in the future I will broaden my ability and conquer bc but for now I'll stay in my comfortable element of fondant.

allycook there is nothing wrong. I felt the same way when I first started cake decorating and I use to refuse cakes with buttercream. But when I went to pastry school it learned to appreciate buttercream. I like swiss buttercream it is easier to work with. But my favorite is buttercream. I tell brides if they want that smooth look must use fondant. They tend to go with fondant and also in the summer I stay away from buttercream. So stick with fondant if you feel more comfortable

I made my very first cake cover with fondant. I use Wilton's out of the box fondant. I crumb coated the cake with buttercream frosted that I brought from a baking supply store. I then covered the cake with white fondant. I found the process very easy and my cake looked very nice. I do have a question. My family and I did not like the taste of the fondant. We pulled the fondant off our cake slices and enjoy eating the rest. I love the look of the fondant on the cake and have not yet used homemade buttercream to cover an entire cake due to the feedback that buttercream is difficult to work with and also I am a novice to cake baking and decorating. I want to continue using fondant for most of my cakes. Is there any way to make the fondant taste better or is it usual that most folks will not eat the fondant anyway?
Should I just continue to buy the ready made buttercream and try to frost an entire cake. I did find the texture of the buttercream a bit stiff to work with, I had a lot of crumbs. Is there any way to thin the ready made buttercream? Thanks for your help.

i am a caterer and have sliced a few million cakes in my time. fondant is gorgeous.. but we always peel the fondant off in the cutting process cause very few people actually like the taste of fondant.. just fyi!
best of luck to you all on your cake designs!

andideal, very few people actually like the taste of WILTON fondant. Almost all the people I know and have made cakes for LOVE the fondant I use. I had a wedding on Saturday and we stayed to clean up after. There was not ONE plate with fondant sitting on it. I was so proud. If I found out the caterer "peeled" my cake before serving it I would be very upset. It just depends on what kind of fondant is used. I see that you are new here, so hopefully after some reading you will see that there are brilliant alternatives to that nasty wilton fondant. We use homemade MMF (marshmallow fondant), Satin ice, or Choco-pan. All of these are extremely enjoyable. I use Choco-pan, and it tastes like white chocolate fudge... MMMMMMM