Hi,

I hope that somebody can help me.

I am working on some moth orchids. I have a wedding cake coming up and is has moth orchids over it. So ... I thought I would try them out first and do some practice orchids ... and boy am I glad I did.

I hope somebody here has a tip for me. Everything goes smoothly. I cut out all the parts of the orchid, vein them dry them. The next day I start assembling the flowers, they are on treads ... so far so good, until I want to put the labellum in the flower.

E-ve-ry sin-gle time I touch the labellum, it breaks Seriously, I think I have made about 10 now, all different ways threaded, and let them dry ... I pick them up to put it together with the flower and they break. Always on the smallest parts of the labellum.

What am I doing wrong? I am as carefull as I can be with the darn things. What is the best way to thread the labellum? Do I thread the labellum?

Because the bride wants the cake to have a branch of orchids, I do need to thread. I've seen the youtube's and the tutorials on google.

What can I do to prevent it from breaking ... I am never one to throw in the towel (and I can't of course) and I will go on until I get it right, but this one is just ... aaarrrggghhhh

Please help!!

Thanks!

do you have any pictures of your booboos? or of the orchids?

i mean sometimes you can just pipe some of that stuff--there's different ways to do it--i'm not up on all the parts of an orchid so if you could elaborate more on which piece you mean--the little dooey in the middle that's supposed to stick up? 

what's a labellum--how are you making the other pieces? if you're threading it into other petals then maybe you should wrap it a bit with florist tape before you thread so it has some support--make the hole bigger--if indeed you are threading through a hole in a petal--

i can do the flowers--i've made orchids but i just need some more info --

i hate to see your post sit here when you're so determined and could use some info--

Hi K8,

Thanks!

Yes, it the little dooey in the middel that is supposed to stick up

The other pieces I make separately, thread them and put them together when dry.

That goes relatively good.

I'll post pictures in a next post, as my iphone and laptop do not communicate ;-) I made one of the flower and one of the booboo's

Thanks for looking!!

A[IMG]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3250047/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

[IMG]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3250048/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

if you continue with your method --i think the little dooey needs to curve up immediately from the wire-- so then there will be room for all the other floral appendages that comprise the moth orchid--your little dooey looks a little flat in the middle then it curves up -- so the other petals are cracking it off when you assemble -- maybe -- could just be the photo -- 

however, scott clark woolley says to wire the tongue only --then his throat, sepals and petals are not wired--they are glued and threaded onto the throat wire--

also the sepals are joined as one three petaled piece --

so you attach the throat to the tongue with glue--the tongue being the only one that is wired--let it dry

paraphrasing here--put a piece of shallow foil in a wide mouth glass or coffee cup-- poke a hole in the middle --place your sepal unit on that -- attach each petal to the sepal with glue and use cotton or filling to support them while they dry--then glue the back of the throat and insert it into the sepals and petal unit -- y'know squish it up around the wire --

that would work a lot better for such a complicated flower

You're not doing anything wrong, those just break really easily because the little part that connects the curved piece to the "body" of it is so thin. try making the entire thing out of thicker gumpaste and making the main part of it sturdier that way. Thin the edge of the little curved pieces so that the edge looks thin but the body of it is thicker and less likely to snap off. Then be ready with the hot glue gun when they snap off anyway.

If you're using "gumpaste" that's made from fondant with tylose added to it that can also be an issue. That gives you a non-gumpaste that tends to be grainier than real gumpaste, so it breaks easier.

AYesss ... Victory ... I managed to assemble a flower without severe breakage

sweet success! and so beautiful, suuske--i think i'd like to order a cake  ...next time i'm in the netherlands...

ASorry, could not resist showing (off) the end result ...

gorgeous! well done -- brava!

That's beautiful!

I live in Singapore and have similar orchids growing in my garden. Yours are really good!

Karen

Just for you to see... This is my moth orchid, not sure of the exact name. Yours are really fantastic ... these orchids are notoriously difficult to put together.

Great work!

Karen