i am making a cake that will have real-looking gems on them, like rubies and emeralds. problem is...i can't find any hard candy that looks like that, so i have to make them myself. i've never worked with hard candy before so i need some help in that area. should i go from scratch or can i melt some jolly ranchers or other hard candies?? also, i don't have any gem shape molds so what should i use???

well...you could "cut" the gems yourself. One of my former hobbies was gem-cutting, so I can say with some confidence that it's not a "cutting" process but rather a "sanding" process. Maybe you could sand them into the rough gem shape by putting increasingly finer grades of wet/dry sandpaper on a firm surface and rubbing them into shape. And then finish them off by rubbing over a fine, wet sponge. I've been thinking about this myself, but I was going to start with those big gumdrops and shave them into the basic shape with a razor blade and then "polish" the facets with a sponge. Hard candy would look better, but would take longer. Let us know how you end up doing this.

thanks for the tip! i never thought of gumdrops. i'm gonna try the hard candy and if it doesn't work out, i guess i'll do gumdrops.

Hard candy molds work for what you need. They are out there. I sell them here at my store but you can find them online I'm sure.

Someone recommended this website http://jbprince.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=3627 for a different item but this jewel mold (cast from real jewels) that is on the site is AWESOME! I'm seriously considering ordering it. I can think of a ton of things to use it for!

it wouldn't arrive in time. you have a store?!!

Yes, in Fla. Your location says Italy is that correct? If so, you are correct, it won't get there on time.

yeah, i'm in italy. this cake is due next week, but i think i will be getting a lot more request for this type of design. do you have the molds and if so how much are they?? i use to live in florida...panama city.

Ugh, I envy you. I absolutely fell in love with Italy. When my kids are old enough I'd love to move to Sorrento.

Anyway, the molds are only $2.29. I have molds for chocolate and molds for hard candy. I have no clue what the shipping is to Italy and would have to check with the shipping store next to me.

shipping would be to an apo address and apo addresses are considered stateside. all the packages get sent to new york before coming here, so it would be like shipping there.

oh btw, do you have a website??

I can check for you. Do a PM with an address and I can give you more info. I just looked through my hard candy molds and there is one there that would serve well for jems. You can do it in any color. Just let me know.

pslcakelady, i sent you a pm. i gotta run...got three cakes due tomorrow!!
i will check back tomorrow morning!

i have read on another web site that yes you can melt down jolly ranchers and lollipops. Now if you could just get a mold.

I always wanted to do some edible gems as well, and besides melting hard candy I was thinking either jello or coloring gelatine then pouring in a mold. But with gelatin after mixing with water I would melt it again on low heat just so there are no more grains (gelatin has that sandy wet look kind of) and add a drop of color and maybe paint the gems with some luster dust.

Are you wanting shapes that actually look cut? Like a ring-pop (those lollipop things on rings?) You know what I mean?

If you don't, then I maybe you could drop beads of colored sugar onto a silpat or something and they would harden round. I have no experience with sugar whatsoever except last night when I tried to make IMBC and made a huge mess. I noticed all the drippings on my counter from the sugar were these perfect little sparkly dots/half rounds. Just a thought.....

Hey, Diane. I've worked with hard candy a lot. I'd suggest making the candy from scratch. I don't know what project you've got in mind, but if you set the hard candy in a cookie sheet, you can cut (more like whack) it with a knife into very small pieces. The effect is like stalagmites or geodes if you bunch the pieces together. That bejeweld mold looks cool too. One thing I would advise--don't wipe the candy with a sponge. It would be like licking your jolly rancher--super sticky!
Good luck!