I'm making a 'Hey Diddle Diddle' cake and I'm going to use cookies for the characters. Should I ice the cookies all the way to the edge instead of outlining? Do you think if it has the small 'border' that it will take away from the overall presentation?
I'm also very stressed about the detail work. I read somewhere to just dip a paint brush or toothpick (for really small dots, etc.) directly into food coloring gel to paint onto cookies. Will this work? Is there a better way?
Help! TIA!
I don't think a small outline would detract from the overall appearance of the cookies. If you have experience doing cookies, then you could always go without the outline as well. The outline is usually very helpful as it keeps the flood icing from going everywhere and flowing off the edge of the cookie. HTH!!! 
Please do post some pictures!
Sorry, can't be of much help with the fine details & paste coloring. In my experience when I "painted" on the cookie w/the paste coloring, it didn't dry. I think I remember reading somewhere that you can mix it with something though.... Hopefully, someone else can help too! 
Here are examples of four different frostings/glazes (with recipes) used on cookies:
http://tinyurl.com/397hnt
(from www.countrykitchensa.com)
HTH
do you know if an extract with a high alcohol content would work as well? So long as the extract is clear it should be okay. I have used a clear lemon extract with success. It also gives the icing a nice lemony taste.
About the vodka, I have read that some members buy the little bottles like the ones you get in mini bars at hotels because you only need a few drops each time.
Thanks for the tips. I ended up using the thinned out royal and a toothpick for the faces. Everything else I just piped and filled. If I could figure out how to post a pic of the cake here i would, but I can't seem to get that to work. So, check out my photos if you want to see the final product. Thanks again!
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