I'm so totally stoked! I found a way that works for me to smooth my cakes!!! I've tried just about everything and couldn't find anything to work for me. So...I was thinking of the Melvira method and why I couldn't get it to work for me and I realized I had the wrong type of paint roller. It wasn't high density. So I looked around my kitchen and found my Pampered chef rolling pin. It's the one that is double sided and is made to hold in one hand....I used that instead and this is what I got!! Not perfect, but SOOOO much better than anything else I've done! So, I just had to share. Oh, also got my new kitchen aid mixer in. I'm IN LOVE! I broke it in by making 7 dozen white chocolate chip/macadamia nut cookies, and it whipped it up like nobody's business. My buttercream came out totally smooth too! Probably helps that I didn't have to keep the mixer on forever (my other one was kind of dying) So, I actually took a pic of the size difference. It's crazy!! LOL..so there's my excitement for the night. Thanks for letting me share.

now that's smooth icing. great tip-thanks for posting it. Also, congrats on the new KA!

Wow, your cake looks fantastic!! Congrats on the KA, I cant wait to get one!

Nice job. Looks damn near perfect to me. So when you used the roller did you coat if or anything. or just use it as is. I just bought one of those so would love to try it.

That PC roller is kind of like the Wilton hand held fondant roller and that's what I used to use and it worked, but it always left little lines where the edges touched the top of the cake! That's why I experimented with the foam roller. I hope you will get the right foam roller and give it another try because it really is amazing how easy and quick it is. BUT... congratulations on finding something that works for you. And your mixers look beautiful together! I have the black Artisan and the darker grey larger one like yours... so our sets are almost twins! Yay!

Hey, thanks for the idea! I have one of those rollers in my box of odds and ends to be sold in my next garage sale!--Used the dang thing once and hated it! I'll have to try this before I get rid of it, I may have to add it back to my gadget drawer.

Melvira, what kind of roller exactly do you recommend?

Hey thanks for the great tip. I bought one of those rollers a long time ago and use it for pizza crust and it works great. Why I didn't think to use it on icing I don't know! But now I am going to have to try it. I bet if you put parchment or wax paper down it would get really smooth. Thanks for the great tip!!!!

I use my pampered chef roller over the Viva paper towels, when I do my smoothing, I find it works better than just my hands/fingers


but alone I didnt care for just the PC roller, it leaves tracks

I didn't coat it at all, just washed and dried it really well.

Also didn't have any problems with tracks, but I went across the cake REALLY lightly, so maybe that helped.

I really want to try the foam roller method though. For larger cakes, I think this way would take a little while longer since the roller isn't that wide. I checked Home Depot, but they don't have any "high density" type rollers. Our Home Depot kinda stinks. LOL. So, I'm going to head to Lowes and see what they have.

Your cake looks really cute. Nice job on smoothing out the icing. Great idea.
I found my roller for Melvira's method at Ace Hardware. I love love love it. Even my DH was impressed on how well it worked.

Great job on the cake

you should see my mixer. I got it at a yard sale. It's a mix master and it's like 20 years old. Someday it will break....it doesn't like making royal icing. ha ha.

that is great. I never thought to use my papmered chef roller like that.

I also love my KA mixer. I couldn't live without it.

Great Melvira, thanks for all the help!!! ps. congrats on your spotlight you deserved it.