Unusual Items Turned Into Cake Decorating "tools".
Decorating By tanyap Updated 30 Aug 2011 , 9:27pm by laceylady
I use my potato ricer for hair and pasta. Its a bit thicker than a garlic press and works like a champ. Not sure if someone else previously mentioned this? I have a headache from reading all the great posts!
Elle McG
okay...dumb question.....what is a potato ricer?
It's kinda like a big garlic press but you put potatoes in it and they come out thin and stringy from the bottom
Cool, thanks!! I'll have to look the next time I'm at the store.
I started culinary school yesterday (I'm a pastry arts major, with dreams of owning a cake-and-bake shop), but today I had my class in the cake decorating lab.
And what did I see?
Stacks of egg cartons, and two GIANT tool storage chests (like the one pictured earlier in this thread) just chock full of piping tips.
Sounds like y'all are on to something 
OK, Let's see if I can be half as clever as you guys.
-Checkers board(the kind that stands up) for flower drying.
-Clay tools for fondant.
- Doll house section for floring mats,they make excelent impression mats.
- doubled zip-lock bags for icing-frosting.
- Bamboo sticks for tiered cakes(already sharpened)
Geez, I guess I can't compare to you guys.
Keep on though I want to learn more.
ok...17 pages, and Im done, wow. So many great Ideas I love the idea of using th eplastic babay food containers, i just moved in with my sister and her baby. Last week while going my dishes and hers i discovered the brushes to wash the nipples from the bottles do work great on tips. And I have been using the clay tools also. I actually found a mold for people faces. So I used that to make my first 3D Human Figures and it worked brilliantly, then painted the perfect little faces.
I to have just spent the last 2hours reading and taking notes on all 17 pages.
Here are Some things I use: As an Instructor for wilton I have to carry alot of stuff with me.
I purchased a couple of those rolling scrapbooking totes to store all my stuff in. they work great.
I think this was mentioned but I use the fancy bladed scrapbooking scissors for cool edges.
Paint mixing trays for drying small gumpaste flowers.
Condement cups from resterants for mixing small amounts of royal icing and color flow
I also use childrens coloring books for pictures to but on cakes.
I to have just spent the last 2hours reading and taking notes on all 17 pages.
Here are Some things I use: As an Instructor for wilton I have to carry alot of stuff with me.
I purchased a couple of those rolling scrapbooking totes to store all my stuff in. they work great.
I think this was mentioned but I use the fancy bladed scrapbooking scissors for cool edges.
Paint mixing trays for drying small gumpaste flowers.
Condement cups from resterants for mixing small amounts of royal icing and color flow
I also use childrens coloring books for pictures to but on cakes.
not a tools tip, but I don't cook/bake very clean ( I'm messy)and one day decided to cut a garbage bag so it layed flat and covered the counter with it. When finished just throw it away along with the messy cake crumbs, icing etc. I'm left with an instantly clean counter
I hope I can resurrect this thread because it was so great. We lost a couple of pages at the end though. I got a lot of great ideas from this thread and would like to get more. I use my tracing wheel from my sewing kit to make stitch lines on fondant.
I am totally engrossed in this thread! It's great.
One of my favorite tips is for gumpaste flowers. I take straws (preferable McDonald's as they have a wide opening) and cut them into 1" sections. Then I stick one end in a piece of bread and fill the piece of bread with as many as I can fit still leaving space between each straw. Viola! A place to put tiny flowers to dry. The centers fit into the straw nicely and the petals can drape down as they dry. Perfect tiny flowers every time.
Another tip is that I have a pastry mat for rolling out pie crust on. I roll out my fondant on that with a bit of crisco and then pick the entire thing up with the fondant still on and rolled out and put it on the cake. I can then peel the fondant from the mat and it drapes over the cake.
Someone mentioned this thread...LOVE IT!!! Anyone have any new "tools".....
i use pineapple slices tins to make mini cakes i can get 12 in my oven at once, i also use paper punches like snow flakes or holly with thinly rolled fondant, last christmas i used the christmas bells of the tree as bell moulds, but they looked better when greased with crisco and latticed with a tiny piping nozzle left overnight to try, to take mould out fill bell with hot water,which melts the icing and voila free bell shapes out of icing sugar, can be used for weddings etc,
childs rolling pin for flowers or small projects, pinking shears for fancy edges or ribbons. free chopstix from the chinese as dowels cut to length required, variouse ice cream wafers or buiscuits for textures on cup cakes, childs doll for small footprints, various soap making moulds for fondant, my pc for just about any font i want, a right angle triangle for diamond pattern and various foam packing for rolling flowers on, papercraft embossing boards and tools to use with fondant and unmounted rubber stamps dipped in food colouring for pictures and words, and a scoring tool to be used as a ball tool, i also use the bottoms of large coffee cans as cake boards covered in clear plastic,and i keep the empty glitter pots to make and keep edible glue in
A few things that have been mentioned in other threads:
Drywall cutter to cut perfectly round cake boards up to 16 inches in diameter.
For smoothing sides: Drywall trowel (or drywall knife, or mud knife, or taping knife) is often very wide (up to a foot?) and stainless steel. I don't think the paint edgers are stainless steel and may rust.
I have several graphic arts templates, e.g., one plastic rectangle with 20 different sizes of circles (or triangles, or ovals, or hexagons) cut out of it. You can use as a template on fondant to paint inside, or put it flat on fondant and use an X-acto knife to cut different sized circles (if you don't have cutters the right size) or you could trace around the shape gently with a stiletto to mark the shape and then trace with royal icing.
I took three onesies (different sizes), washed throughly in hot water and anti-bacterial detergent, and cut the tops and bottoms off so I had one straight loop of fabric. These are stretchy and can be soaked in water and put around cake pans for baking strips. If they are too big, they can be shortened several ways--pin, binder clip, sew a seam in the loop. If they are too wide, you can fold them into layers, or cut apart to make more than one strip.
Wow, I just finished reading all 18 pages of this! These ideas are priceless and invaluable! Thank you so much everyone.
My own two cents:
- I use a big evenly shaped watermelon wrapped with plastic wrap for making bowls and curvy things when needed.
- I take thick leaves from household plants, wash them thoroughly and let them dry for a few weeks - and there's my free veining tool!
- Non toxic sidewalk chalk taken up and ground into powder makes for great petal dust.. after grinding, I put them in their own small individual containers you get from the dollar store - can't tell the difference!
- While working with gumpaste (and making mass flowers), I roll the gumpaste out huge and cut as many flowers as possible and put them in plastic sheet protectors (dusted with cornstarch) to keep air out - keeps them from drying out until I need to use them!
- I keep a small bowl or cup handy while working with gumpaste and use it to cover my unused pieces as a means of keeping air out until I need to use them.
Seems like everyone has said it all! As for the play-doh tools, can't wait to check out the local toy store! 
- Non toxic sidewalk chalk taken up and ground into powder makes for great petal dust.. after grinding, I put them in their own small individual containers you get from the dollar store - can't tell the difference!
WOW, how did you even think of that!! LOL What do you use to grind it?
- Non toxic sidewalk chalk taken up and ground into powder makes for great petal dust.. after grinding, I put them in their own small individual containers you get from the dollar store - can't tell the difference!
WOW, how did you even think of that!! LOL What do you use to grind it?
- Non toxic sidewalk chalk taken up and ground into powder makes for great petal dust.. after grinding, I put them in their own small individual containers you get from the dollar store - can't tell the difference!
WOW, how did you even think of that!! LOL What do you use to grind it?
I'm a newbie to cake decorating, but I found this awsome tip that I thought I'ld mention here.
Heres a link: http://chefmommy-brandao.blogspot.com/2011/04/tip-best-tip-ever-for-filling-pastry.html
In case the link doesnt work I'll try to explain.
1. You need a plastic pastry bag, tip, coupler, and PLASTIC WRAP.
2. First step is to cut a sheet of plastic wrap.
3.Then, plop some frosting right in the center
Starting on one side, carefully roll up the frosting. Another great thing about using this method is that the plastic wrap hugs the frosting and eliminates air pockets.
4. Now, twist both ends tightly (like a big tootsie roll)
5. Pull back the pastry bag and insert the plastic wrapped frosting
6. Gently pull the plastic wrap taut straight out of the base of the coupler
7. Snip off the excessive plastic wrap at the base of the coupler.
8. Screw on tip
9. Add a pastry bag tie thingy if desired (but not necessary)
TADA!! You are now ready to pipe and frost.
10. When you are done, clean up is a breeze. Simple remove plastic wrapped frosting and save or discard. Wash the frosting tip and rinse out the pasty bag if needed. Mess free....got to LOVE it!!
I really hope the link works because it has great pics to demonstrate. Let me know if you try it and think its efficient.
I havent tried this one either, but thought I'ld share the idea.
http://potteryblog.com/2007/11/how-to-make-a-texture-roller-for-clay/
basically take your roller and draw the design on it then trace the design w/ hot glue. Wait for it to be completely dry then roll on fondant (making sure no glue gets left behind)
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