I asked some CCers if I could just add some gum-tex to regular MMF so that it would work like gumpaste and firm up etc, and they said that it has worked for them...

So last night I made some centers for flowers (calla lily and rose centers) and left them to dry over night so that I could work on them today - but this morning they were still pliable. Do they need more time (they had sat for about 8 hours), or do I need to add more gum tex to my MMF? I added about an 1/8th of a teaspoon to a ball of MMF the size of MAYBE a golfball, probably a bit less.

I want to make sure that when I go on to the next step for the petals they won't droop....

I'd say add more. I've found that adding GumTex firms fondant up very quickly, but I probably use about 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon to a slightly larger amount than you mentioned... you probably don't as much as the full 1/2 teaspoon, but definitely more than the 1/8th.

So I should be able to tell pretty quickly if the GumTex is working then? I did notice that my fondant didn't have as much stretch, but it never got firm as I was working with it. In fact, I left a piece on the counter while I was on the phone (for a half hour) and it was fine when I came back...but I thought since it wasn't straight gumpaste that maybe that was why it wasn't trying.

I was running out of gumpaste on my last project and reverted to adding Gum Tex to mmf for the heads and hands on my bridesmaids. The very center of the balls stayed soft (which was no big deal and they were certainly dry enough to work with in terms of painting features, etc. nor did they want to sag,) but things like the hands firmed up very quickly. I'd say they would have been the same thickness as your calla lily centers... I think you just might need to up your ratio of Gum Tex to fondant and you'll be fine.


http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1437460

edited to add an additional thought...

Thanks, you've made me feel alot better.. I was in a panic that I would have nothing to put on this cake if the GumTex didn't firm up.. I'll add more tonight when I start the petals. Thanks again!

(and that cake is TOO cute! good job!)

Add more gumtex than the 1/8 teaspoon that you added last time...and also, another very handy tip if you need things to dry quickly and for sure is to place them under the heat of the bulb of a table lamp...just place your figures/flowes about 15cm below the bulb of your table lamp..a normal bulb not CFL and it will do wonders.

Oh nice! Thanks Sheena, that's a nice trick to know!