O.k. I have a customer who wants a sheet cake designed to look like a gymnastics gym with a beam, bar, floor mat etc... anybody have inspiring ideas for what to make the beam and bar out of? I'm pretty sure I can handle the floor mat without any problems. I'm thinking for the beam like a sugar wafer cookie covered in fondant but what for the legs? Anybody ever done this before or have great ideas they will share with me? Thanks in advance.
ok...here's an idea
large sheet cake.
mats are all fondant colored blue or similar and layed atop the frosting.
the gymnasts are all fondant figures that have toothpick skeletons. toothpicks long enough in appropriate places to connect gymnast to cake.
1) floor ex...is doing a split, toothpick is through body and connects to cake and head
2) vault....toothpicka in arms go into apparatus to support body.
3) beam...no need for toothpicks...trick is to get body to look right bent around like Olga Korbut did when she did beam at olympics.
4) offset bars.... use wires (like from bread wrapper tie) to make arms to hand body from..toothpicks in legs with leg resting atop lower bar.
all supports for apparatus....lollipop sticks...can use food color to paint them or leave white. you may have to sharpen sticks. can use RI for glue.
vault...tootsie roll
beam...kit kat bar
offset...all lollipop sticks.....and for a real challenge pipe RI support guywires (oy!)
HTH
edited to get the right gymnast on the beam and then spell her name correctly!
Wow, Doug! You are one cool guy to go to all that effort to help her out! Your ideas sound amazing.
Hey doug since you are a fellow carolinian want to come over and help me your plans are amazing!! Thanks so much for the help. The mom now wants to use a barbie on the cake that is dressed like a gymnast. I really would have prefered to model some gymnast so the porpotions would have been right. She wants a 1/2 sheet cake (when she first called she said sheet cake and then she called back and said she needed to serve about 20 people. Most people around here don't know what a sheet cake really is some call a 9 X 13 a sheet cake.) So I know to make all the equipment fit and look right it won't be very big. I think the items you suggested would be great for the equipment. The mom wants the Barbie to be on the floor mat in a split. Do you think the other equipment will look stupid on there if it's mini compared to Barbie? Mom keeps coming up with ideas for me so I don't know how this will turn out. I like a customer who knows what they want but I also like a little room to play with my creativity. Or your creativity (LOL) I can't believe you took the time to sketch it out for me that was so nice! Sure hope it all works out.
Hey where is Lumberton?
Hey doug since you are a fellow carolinian want to come over and help me your plans are amazing!!
Well, that depends on where you are. NC is a big state! could be fun tho'.
Thanks so much for the help.
You're welcome
The mom now wants to use a barbie on the cake that is dressed like a gymnast.
GAG!!!!!!! 
The mom wants the Barbie to be on the floor mat in a split. Do you think the other equipment will look stupid on there if it's mini compared to Barbie?
Maybe: turn sheet so looking at it long ways. then put barbie at farthest end and scale each of the other apparatus progressively smaller toward the front of the cake (sort of like leading up to the big finish!) say vault, then beam, the off set, then barbie!
ok...exposing my ignorance about the world of barbie dolls....but is there a "small" size barbie as opposed to that..........grrr........... full size one?? that might bring things more into scale?
or look at the sketch below....would she accept a 16 or 18" half round layed out with Barbie at back and the miniatures around the front?
I can't believe you took the time to sketch it out for me that was so nice!
I love a challenge and you're likely to run into my sketches all over the place --- with translations of my hieroglyphics! (aka handwriting! 
)
ok...exposing my ignorance about the world of barbie dolls....but is there a "small" size barbie as opposed to that..........grrr........... full size one?? that might bring things more into scale?[/quote]
Yes, there is!! Barbie's little sister, Kelli!! LOL
Diane 
Mom has a particular barbie she wants to use that is dressed like a gymnast I mentioned modeling gymnast to her on the phone several times and she kept going back to the barbie and how adorable it would be. I tried to gently persuade her otherwise but she is one of the few customers I've worked with that pretty much knows exactly what they want with little room for interpretation.
She is a repeat customer and it is her cake so I guess barbie will make an apperance on this cake.
I live in Hickory which is in the foothills of NC. I've seen several people on here from NC lately. Looks like there are several carolina cakies in the Raliegh area. What part of the state are you in? We may all have to meet up and do a Day of Sharing sometime.
Perhaps not what you were looking for but i thought it was still pretty cute:
http://www.cindascreativecakes.com/home/home.htm
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