Question About Rice Paper Butterflies....

Decorating By jen1977 Updated 27 Aug 2007 , 7:02pm by jen1977

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jen1977 Posted 27 Aug 2007 , 12:08pm
post #1 of 4

I bought some rice paper to make butterflies for a fair entry, and the rice paper is very brittle and cracks when I try to cut it. Am I supposed to soften it in water first, and if I do, how do I keep the colors from running? If not, then how in the world am I supposed to cut them out without shattering them?

3 replies
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Alligande Posted 27 Aug 2007 , 12:32pm
post #2 of 4

It might be the rice paper, I have cut it with scissors and exacto knifes and never had that problem. Don't dappen it, it will fall apart. Maybe try the trick suggested for edible images put it under a cover with a container of water and see if it will soften

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DecoratorJen Posted 27 Aug 2007 , 12:38pm
post #3 of 4

9. Cut out your butterfly with an Exacto-knife leaving the center connecting the wings.
A. If you want a shiny look, brush A VERY THIN LAYER OF piping gel over the wings and let dry completely.
B. Glitter is nice sprinkled over the piping gel. (Edible Glitter Only) C. Sugar makes a different texture over the wet piping gel. (Table Sugar works fine). The sugar tends to be very heavy and droops very easily so use only one side of the wings. This might be more practical to use on stained glass with royal used for extra support.

10. Fold in the center of the Butterfly very gently.

11. With royal Icing make a body with a small writing tip. # 2 or 3. (Buttercream can be used but is not as durable)

12. Insert antennas into the head. You can use black stamen, slivers of black licorice, black slivers of rice paper, and Etc.

13. Turn the butterfly over carefully and pipe the underside of the body on the bottom side.

14. Insert wire if needed for a wired arrangement.

15. Put on your cake, flowers or where ever...............

16. Prop up the wings with Kleenex, crumpled paper towel, cotton balls or something soft and leave till dry or set.

Earlene Moore ... www.earlenescakes.com

The full instructions are on the sugarcraft website.
http://sugarcraft.com/ (look under butterflies)

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jen1977 Posted 27 Aug 2007 , 7:02pm
post #4 of 4

I ended up having to put the piping gel on first to soften them a little, the cut. It was a sticky mess, but worked fine. I think it was the rice paper. The only kind I could find in my area was spring roll wrappers from an asian market. What can I say...it was only $2, and I got a boatload of it.

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