Smoothing A Character Cake

Decorating By lipstickvk Updated 7 Jul 2007 , 6:10pm by meldancer

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lipstickvk Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 2:13pm
post #1 of 7

I'm attempting to smoothing out different parts of a character cake. What is the secret to getting them really smooth with buttercream? Mine never look smooth icon_sad.gif

6 replies
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meldancer Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 2:29pm
post #2 of 7

I have used a tip 7 or bigger, depending on the size of the place you want to flatten. Fill in the space, then using your finger dipped in cornstarch, press the icing flat.

OR if you haven't decorated the rest of the cake yet, after filling in the space, let the icing crust. Lay a Viva paper towel on the icing and smooth with your hand gently until the lines disappear.

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DianeLM Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 2:33pm
post #3 of 7

First of all, I never do that 'finger dipped in cornstarch' thing. Never works for me. Depending on the size of the area that needs smoothing, I either pipe the icing on with a round tip or just spread it on with a spatula. Then, I wait for the icing to crust a bit. Take a small piece of Viva paper towel and lightly smooth over the area with your finger. If the paper towel becomes greasy before the area is smooth, get a new piece and continue smoothing until it's right. Sometimes I have to smooth an area for several minutes before I get all the seams out.

Make sure you do these smoothed out areas first, before doing your star fill-in.

If you're using a non-crusting buttercream, you'll have to chill the cake before smoothing with a hot spatula. It won't be as smooth as with a crusting buttercream.

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lipstickvk Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 2:46pm
post #4 of 7

Thank you ladies. It's a large area and I'll just wait for it to crust over and smooth with the paper towel. Your help is much appreciated icon_smile.gif

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DianeLM Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 3:13pm
post #5 of 7

meldancer - I just wanted to point out that you and I were posting at exactly the same time. My negative comments about the cornstarch finger thing were not in response to your post. It sure looks bad, tho, doesn't it? icon_redface.gificon_biggrin.gif

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SheilaF Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 5:00pm
post #6 of 7

I use wax paper and/or the fondant smoother. I've never had any luck w/the paper towel method (although I hear it works well for others).

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meldancer Posted 7 Jul 2007 , 6:10pm
post #7 of 7

No worries! icon_wink.gif

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