I made my first fondant cake last night at class - and it was fine when I went to bed. Woke up and the side of the cake is bulging!! - just the fondant part, I can push it back to touch the cake, so I know it is not the cake bulging. What happened? Any advice for next time? (not that there is going to be a next time at this rate!!!! )

I'm sorry to hear you are having problems. I've only used fondant once so can't help ya. But, I did want to tell you your cake is beautiful. Your colors the bow everything is gorgeous. I'm sure someone can help you out with tips. But, with a cake that pretty please don't give up on the fondant because the rest of your cake is wonderful.

That does not look that bad at all..that's just air trapped inside.
Poke it with a toothpick and push back and try o smoothen again..
Your Fondant look fine to me, except for that big bubble..
pretty colors.

Is it the cake or the fondant dropping? From the picture it looks like the fondant.

If it is the cake, do you have filling in it? Was the buttercream used for the filling firm. The dam as it is called if it is soft the cake will bulge.

Sorry if not much help but it looks like the fondant for some reason just started to streached (sp).

Let see what others says. Besides that problem it looks great.

I had a similar problem when I did my cake like that. When I cut into the cake, the best I could figure out is that the top layer had shifted over a little and caused the cake to lean slightly and made the fondant bubble out on one side. I think I also had too much icing underneath and some had squeezed down from the top onto the side. I really disected the cake trying to figure it out because I didn't want it happening again. Let us know what you discover when you cut it!

The fondant isn't 'stuck' to the cake properly. When you set your cakes up you need to 'crumb coat' it by spreading a thin layer of buttercream over the top and sides of the cake. Then chill the cake in the fridge until the buttercream is set. Then roll your fondant, place over the cake and smooth the sides all over with a smoother so that the fondant has stuck all over to the buttercreamed cake. If this is done then the only thing that would make the fondant come away like that is if there is filling inside the cake bulging out. Let us know what it was!

Emmascakes,
I recently did a wedding cake and the exact same thing happened to me. I dont know why, because i did, and have always done the exact same thing you wrote. It was like the cake from hell!!! Laughing at me till the very end I too dissected the cake and couldnt figure it out for the life of me.

Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions at what went wrong...

We finally cut into the cake tonight, and the buttercream on the fallen side attached itself to the fondant - and was not attached to the cake anymore at all. The cake was still intact, and the filling was still inside the cake.

I think emmascakes was on to something. I did the buttercream crumbcoat, and let it set overnight. However, the icing seemed to "unset"/get soft by class time (super-high humidity and lots of rain - never good for cake class!)... and I think that is what led to the cake's downfall, literally.

Thanks again for everyone's help! It helped a lot to know I wasn't alone. Though after now tasting fondant for the first time, I'm not sure how much I'll be working with it again (or I'll just have to try MMF instead!).

It looks like your fondant might be abit thick as well which will make it heavier than it needs to be. Try MMF-much tastier than yucky wilton.
Also when using fondant, put on your crumbcoat and put the fondant on shortly after, don't wait over night.

im sorry this happened but your cake is STILL very cute!

AAAAHHHHHH!!!!! Thats what EXACTLY what happened to me!!!!! I had to refund the bride $150.00 Just seeing it again brings the horror back!

Anywho, yeah, I think I may have ALSO rolled on the fondant too thick, or let it set too long. Something to think about, ey RobLee? Live and Learn. Oh yeah, I would say to definitley try the MMF. I like almond extract in mine. Yummo!

After a year of teaching Wilton classes I've finally learned another reason why fondant cakes do this --

It seems weird, but it's definitely true that fondant cakes which have been sealed in airtight containers (like the cool round Wilton one everyone buys in Course I) make the cake "sweat". This causes all kinds of problems -- even on fake cakes! It's like the cake creates its own humidity in there, even in a refrigerator! Ergo, I never seal my fondant cakes tight anymore. I do refrigerate them, though -- never seems to harm them (despite Wilton's warnings). I just don't refrigerate gumpaste or stand-up flowers and bows, when I can avoid it.

Also, the canned frosting --even the Wilton brand-- is famous for sliding off of cakes, even when it seems completely set. The emulsifiers in the product that keep it soft on the shelf keep it soft on the cake as well. Not great for fondant!

Don't give up -- fondant is fun. Just try, try again : )

Laurie
www.sweetcelebrations.us

The same thing happened to me! i'm sorry