Newbie Feeling Down- Need Pick Me Up
Decorating By iluvcakes5 Updated 24 Aug 2007 , 3:24am by cassi_g16
Okay, I am doing my first wedding cake and I am so stressed out that I am ready to throw the wedding cake in the trash.
First, of all the heat index here is well over 100 degrees (so humidity is not on my side at all).
But, here is where I need a pick me up -
Is your icing flawless? Buttercreme not fondant? Because from the pictures I see - it is. I do not know what I am doing wrong because I have the high density roller and I have the viva paper towel. But, it seems the longer that I work on a tiered cake - as I add a layer I add more cracks. My icing is not perfect therefore my cake is not perfect. Is there a such thing as perfect? Do clients expect perfection? Please, I need some advice...
I have read that you can add vinegar? I do not - how much?
Deep breath! We'll get you thru this!
Talk to me about your icing that you're using. Butter or Crisco or both?
Are the cracks all over, like a broken windshield? Or is it just a few? Are you moving the cake after you smooth it and if so, how sturdy is the board/base that you have the cake on?
Is your cake in really good shape? That sounds odd, but I used to sell a cosmetic line on the side and part of my speech was "...it's just like baking a cake. If you don't have a good foundation cake, you can slap all the icing you want on it, but it won't look good." (I was making a parallel to slapping makeup on bad skin .... but I digress!). So is the cake level? Was it still level when you put the 2-layers together? Was there a gap between the two layers that might cause gravity to be your enemy?
Are the cakes cold or frozen when you ice them? I iced a frozen cake once and the next morning, the icing looked like it had shattered! Fortunately, I hadn't done the actual decorating yet, so I was able to add another coat of icing and it worked fine.
Lots of questions, I know. 
But it's nothing that cant' be fixed. Your CC family is here for you! 
First of all, I love you all so much and I truly mean that. Reading that indy made me cry. The support and feeling like some is rubbing my back and guiding is some much needed comfort.
Now, the icing...
all Crisco (and not the transfat kind). No, it is just cracks here and there. Is that the norm? I do not know what the norm is because I am self taught and only see pictures on here and in magazines. Is there a such thing as [erfect buttercreme?
As far as being sturdy - I feel it is. 2 10' sq. The base is two layers of foamcore taped together. Has 4 dowel rods in 10' even with the icing. 8' sq (2 layrered) has 1 foamcore layer with dowel rods in it. Then 2 4' sq.
Basically, I just want my cakes to look like fondant without the fondant. Can it come out flawless? How do I avoid the crakcs here and there has the buttercreme is crusting?
Lastly, I assemble my tiers - should I wait til the day of pick up - or is it okay to do assembly a few days before - if you have other cakes and need to move on to them???
Thank indy thank you cc
Take a very deep breath.
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A PERFECT CAKE!!!!!!!!
If you ever watch the food neckwork chalanges take a very good look when they do the close ups. My husband always laughs and says my fondant looks better then theirs. I think the longer you decorate cakes the better you get at covering the mistakes. What type of design do you have going on it. There has been many cakes that I have been ready to throw in the trash because they didn't look very good but when you start putting the decorations on it looks better and better. As Kerry Vinsent would say "keep a stiff upper lip and everything will turn out fine."
It sounds like you are doing everything right as far as support/bases are concerned. Having just a crack here and there is MUCH better than the shattered windshield, so that's ok. (really! it is!)
Phoohbear is right ..... no such thing as a perfect cake. Heck, I've been doing this 25 years and I still get cracks in my icing! So look at it this way .... it's your first one and yours looks as good as mine! 
If you are worried about perfection, are you overdoing the smoothing? You should be able to Melvira the cake shortly after it's iced (I can do mine after 5-10 minutes, give or take). Once you roller the cake, then LEAVE IT ALONE! 
If you continue to roller it after it crusts more, you will cause the surface to look bad. Trust me ..... roller the cake, then put the roller down. It's that simple. Really.
I never assemble my cakes until I get them to the reception site, so hopefully someone who does assembly ahead of time might be able to offer some good advice. That said, I would suggest you look at your doweling system and make sure the dowels are tall enough to support the upper cake. If the dowels are short, the upper tier cake may be slightly sinking into the bottom cake. This causes the bottom cake to "compress" and if your icing has crusted, then the compression may be causing the cracks.
And if you don't learn anything, learn this: The people looking at your cake have NO IDEA how to do ANY of what you've done. So they will think anything you do is great!!! Because it's WAY more than they can do at all! 
I feel your pain!! There are so many talented people on this site. As a fellow newbie to cake decorating, I was stressing WAYYYYY too much over the smoothness. After I had Viva toweled, rollered and smoothed again and again, I finally told myself "step away from the cake!" I was worrying the poor thing to death. It is icing - it will never be perfect. As the multi talented cakers have already stated, even the pros have imperfections - we just think they don't. How many cakes are perfect alll the way around? I will just do my best and try to keep it fun and enjoyable. I now realize that alot of people on this wonderful site are pros and the best thing to do is look at their beautiful cakes for ideas and inspiration, then just practice. Good luck to you and realize there are many people on this site just like you, that have little cracks in their cakes and worry about perfection.
Bake a cake with love, and each bite will give a little hug 
I am covering up the mistakes using scroll work. I hope that the bride likes it. ????
Here it is 100 degrees at 10:00p.m. at night. There are fans all over the house because we cannot cool the house down. Where is fall?
My cake is off centered squares (whatever you call it when the middle square is actually turned like a diamond). Instead of ribbon, the bride wanted fondant. There are like dots on the fondant and then the bride and groom (actually not a wedding but a vow renewal) wanted their intital on the top layer of the cake. The rest of the cake was plain. But, since there are flaws everywhere I added the scrollwork (in the same icing color as the icing on the cake - therefore a design but a sudtle one) the dots on the fondant are a different color than the cake (cake ivory - since she is married already).
I still see some flaws. Basically, I think that I may be to hard on myself. I think that all people expect cakes like Colette Peters and I am by far like her and when my cakes do not look like hers - I think that I suck - LOL !@#$%^&
I just want my cake business to really get started and I feel like my cakes should be better.
Thank you all and love all that are here.
God Bless
Here's a big hug from me!
(I'm really new too and know how stressful it can be)
---Marianne
Its actually kind of comforting to hear another newbie stressing out smoothness as much as I do. My last cake, I was so depressed because it just wouldn't get super smooth. Then, after I decorated it, I was so proud of myself. I thought I need to stop worrying about the smoothness thing because it will come in time. Practice makes perfect...or almost perfect
I do not know how to post pictures. I am that computer literate yet.
I understand entirely what you're going through... but please understand that like they've said.. no cake is perfect.. and being the decorator your eye is simply trained to look for the cracks and the small details... and naturally you judge your own work much harder than yo would anyone elses! Do as they suggested, smooth once, walk away! Continually trying to fix will only create more cracks. Also something else that always helps me... I get so upset looking at my cakes close up... so I've learned to walk out and away from the cake and look at it from 5-10 feet away... just a little difference in perspective makes a huge difference in how it appears. Once you see the whole picture you'll see how lovely it is! That is what the customers will see! (and Love!)
Best Wishes I'm sure it will be lovely
I'm wondering here, indidebi might know. Is this a case where they say a couple drops of vinegar put in the icing keeps it from cracking? I'm wondering if you shouldn't double board, I've found especially with a heavy sheet cake if I don't have a heavy board I get cracks when I lift the cake even if the cake is totally smooth. HTH
Quote by @%username% on %date%
%body%