I cut the dowels for my most recent cake a good 1/4 inch below the surface. But when I laid the fondant over the cake (rolled to about 1/8" thickness) the dowels started to poke through. Is the fondant so heavy that I need to cut the dowels shorter? What might I be doing wrong?
You did nothing wrong. Fondant is heavy like a quilt vs. a blanket. Next time try a denser cake and cut a tinsy bit lower. Hint.....I add a thick coat of BC on the top also. (I also suspect your cake was really fresh when you covered it and it didn't have a chance to settle.....I bake one day, BC the next day and Sculpt w/Fondant on the third day.)
Welcome aboard to CC!
Remember to post your pix. 
Misterc: Who says it's wrong? Not me, there are too many ways to do something. I've seen plenty of professionals do it this way. But on a tiered cake you have another layer to cover the holes......
Omicake: I sculpt (see my avatar), so the little holes usually interfere with my design. 
Either way is fine - right?
Thanks for your help. It was a tiered cake (Mary's birthday cake in my photos) and the dowels were visible in the top layer only. On the bottom layer, I placed the dowels after the fondant, but obviously couldn't on top. I'll try using a denser cake next time.
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