HI
Some of you may recall that I am doing the Canada day cake for my town. My idea was to draw a map of Canada on the cake and do FBCT's of all of the provincial flags (keep in mind this cake is going to feed 1000 people so it will be 4.5 feet by 2.5 feet wide) Anyways, I want to color each province a different color how would I do this? I was planning on icing the whole cake white and then draw the map on then color each province with different color icing, then put the FBCT's on. Will this be too much icing? Is there a better/easier way to do this? How can I keep all my icing smooth? I also have made up to 18 batches of icing already and it's the non - crusting 
because I wasn't even thinking!!
Please help!
I don't know if you have an airbrush? But would work to ice it smooth and cut a template and airbrush the color that coordinates to the province? Then you could just outline with a plain round tip? Or I could have a compltetly different picture than what I see!
Oh my...I can't even imagine. I wish I could help, but that size cake is just beyond my thinking. Sorry....good luck!
Instead of the transfer of the flags why not edible images, or just name the provinces. It seems an awful amount of work.
Ok I am thinking! No it should not have any affect on the buttercream _at least never with me-SMBC.Ok I will try again-How about rice paper. You can lay the paper on the buttercream and using gel colors and alcohol you can paint the rice paper to the color you need? Not too wet or it will start to melt. Or colored fondant? I am flush out of ideas!
now,now..patience (a vritue I don't have)
ok....
1) the map will eaiser to draw if cake is more square than oblong (unless you don't mind a lot of distortion) -- a quick estimate would be for a cake 36 in. wide by 30 in. tall or just make a full 36in square w/ more "polar snow" at top (add santa's workshop???)
2) do you have a piece of software (this would be the stand in for publisher) that will let you "tile" an image...meaning enlarge it so it will spread out over several sheets of paper and then print the sheets individually? if so...the would set up custom image size to match the dimensions of the cake in inches.
plop a map on this custom page (i found a nice multicolor one at: time zone map and then print it out.
Tape it all together. then cut out one province at a time to use as stencil.
for color: I'd use sanding sugar crystals....load up the old strainer and sift away using your stencil.
after each province, type cut out one back in, cut out another and repeat w/ sanding sugars.
re: your frosting....can you remix it or add more powdered sugar to make it crust???
Doug YOU ROCK!!!!!!!
LOVE YOUR IDEA!! You always come to the rescue!
Okay, so I had a friend draw me the map of Canada - sorry I forgot to mention that, so that's not a problem at all! I'll just cut out each province and do as you suggested! Just to be sure I understand, sanding sugar crystals are just the colored sugar? You can buy this at the supermarket, it's not a specialty item?
and I don't really understand this part:
"after each province, type cut out one back in, cut out another and repeat w/ sanding sugars."
Sorry to be ignorant but could you please explain it a little more?
Thanks so much!! 
yep..sanding sugar is that colored sugar you can buy at any supermarket
re the other part>
take the map the friend drew...now cut a hole in it...yes a hole...the shape of one of the provinces (that is cut along the lines of the province).
now you have a BIG stencil for that province. lay atop the cake and sprinkle the sugar.
now tape the part cut out back into the map and cut out a different provicne and repeat.
you have to cut out only one province at a time and tape it back in when done so you can reuse the one map over and over again as your stencil. lots of cutting, lots of tape!
don't know way to color at home
don't really need that many colors if you are willing to settle for repeated colors...can do a map w/ only 4 colors and no two will touch.
of course you could blend colors together for some interesting affects...such as yellow/blue, blue/red, green/blue, yellow/green, red/yellow.
crusting icing will help insure the stencil doesn't stick...but if you let it "dry" awhile before putting on the sugar and ever so gently lay the stencil down you should be ok.
once the sugar is on an area, that area should be "non-sticky"
I found something that might help with the colors alternating:
http://www.maptown.com/images/mcr0102l.jpg
I think you can get away with 6 colors. And I would make a big red dot or maple leaf for your town. "You are here" kind of mark.
Do share a pic when it's done! I'd love to see it.
From a fellow Canadian.
I haven't tried it but I've heard of people coloring sugar by adding a very tiny amount of koolaid to the sugar. Just enough to tint it I was told. If you don't want to try this is there any kind of powdered color on market to color frosting? I've heard somewhere there is.
Quote by @%username% on %date%
%body%