Hello all,

I'm new to this site and new to cake decorating. I just finished the Wilton Course 4 last week. Anyhow, I've been asked to make a cake for my church to celebrate a play we just had. They want a sheet cake with a city standing on top. The city will be just a row of buildings. In front of the city they want an edible photo of the cast and crew lying flat on the cake. I've never carved a cake and haven't the slightest idea where to start. Also, I don't know what to do about the edible photo. I thought about going to Sam's Club or Costco and asking them to sell me the edible photo. They do edible photos on their cakes. I want to do the cake in fondant. Can you put edible sugar photos on fondant? Any advice would be appreciatel.

Anita

Does the row of buildings have to be cake? Will you have enought servings from just the sheet? If so then you can cut the buildings out of fondant; stick some toothpicks or sucker sticks on the back and stand it up. If you add some GumTex to the fondant it will dry hard enough to stand up.
I don't think either Sam's or Costco will make you a frosting sheet pic but do you have a chain grocery store like Kroger's nearby? Some cake shops also will do it. Usually the charge is around $10 per pic. Yes, for sure one can put a sugar pic on fondant. Just *slightly* dampen the area where the pic will go. Be very careful placing it as you will get just one chance! No way to move/change it once it is down

If you can't get anyone to make you a frosting sheet pic you can make a paper copy and cover it well with plastic wrap to place on the cake. That's what I did before sugar pix came into being

Whenever I carve cakes, I start wth a shape that is closest to the one I'm going for. For instance, in this case, I would make a bunch of mini loaf cakes. Tip them each on end, trim to make them different heights and ice. Stick a dowel straight down into the top through the mini cake into and through the large cake.