I need to make 2-D chocolate characters to go on the side of a round cake. I'm thinking that flat characters wouldn't look right on the side of the cake, since the edges will stick off the cake, so I'd like to make it curved, but I'm not sure how to do it? Any suggestions?

My suggestion would be to use modeling chocolate. It's chocolate, but still pliable and you can shape it any way you like. If you use just pure chocolate I don't think there is a way to get it to curve in the way you're describing.

you could set them on the side of the pan you used to let them dry. it would give them a slight curve.

Yep, the side of a pan works. I'm presuming you're talking about using melted chocolate? If your designs are taller than the height of your pans, you can use a 4 inch tall styrofoam dummy. If you don't have one of those, take a tour around your kitchen or house and see if you can find something with the height you need and the same circumference as your cake (don't forget the parchment or waxed paper). Before I got the dummies, anything was fair game Oh, and brace whatever you use so it doesn't roll around on you.

Modeling chocolate would work and the letting it rest on a curved side will also work great.

I used the 4" (one 8" round and one 10" round) styrofoam dummies to mold my gumpaste rainbows on this cake http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-photo_1521990.html [img]. Molding figures for the sides would be basically the same concept. Just use the same size dummy as whatever your cake size would be. Just let your molded chocolate cool on parchment paper on the side of the dummy. Make sure you secure it so that it can't roll on you.[/img]

I'm doing chocolate transfers, so I actually need a "reverse" curve while it's drying, so that I can flip it over and it will mold around the cake - does that make sense? It's not a "figure" but a "picture" of a character that I make by tracing a picture with melted chocolate. To clarify, it's like a fbct, except with chocolate, so that I can have part of the figures stand up a little higher than the cake.

I would think that using the inside of a pot would work. Check to find a pot the same circumference as the cake, and after the choc has set up a bit, tape the wax/parchment paper to the inside of the pot.

That makes sense - thanks! I don't know why that didn't occur to me!

Yep, I figured you meant filling in a picture with melted chocolate, but I was picturing like a royal icing runout (haven't done those in a month o' Sundays because of the humidity here), not reverse like a buttercream transfer. Great idea with the pot, Leahk

I know this is an older post, but thank goodness I read it...haha I was going to go home tonight and do a FBCT of a logo for a beer can cake I'm doing and I had already taped the reverse picture on a juice jug to get the same curve of the cake... Yes, I am a blonde, and thanks for reminding me I need a reverse curve to do the FBCT on!!!