whats the best way to make people?...ive done it with fondant in the past with mixed results...gum paste?..does it need some sort of internal structure like wires?..if so what kind and how is it done?..is modeling chocolate better? i appreciate any input

Thank you for posting this. I am very interested in what everyone has to say. Sorry if I gave you false hopes of having answers! I'm in the same boat!

Welcome to CC Attackofthecakes. You could use:

fondant and add tylose
50% gumpaste 50% fondant
gumpaste
modeling chocolate

I know I've read that some use toothpicks. Just cut toothpicks to size (like to attach arms to bodies).

I have found Wilton's fondant to work well for figures, for my sitting figures I just use a piece of floral wire to attach the head to the torso. you can find lots of info on youtube also for how to make figures.

Toothpicks, or raw spaghetti works great too.

yeah ive used most of these methods for sitting type figures...i guess i should have explained myself better..it s more the standing type, usually ive seen on cake shows that its been done with modeling chocolate...i guess i can try the floral wire for the inner structure...anyways im trying it tonight so well see!!

To make a standing figurine i use like a square foam piece thick enough to hold 2 dowels and mold the person around the dowels while their standing on the foam square and when their finished i take the dowel off the foam and you stick it on the cake! i dont know if that's clear ....oh geeze i'm not good at explaining things! their's a picture in my album...you can see he's standing on a foam piece and the legs all the way up to the shoulders is two dowels and i just sculpted around that.

I use Gum Paste/Fondant 50/50 or fondant with Gum Tex added, I like the Wilton fondant for this. I make figures 2 weeks ahead and let air dry but I have made them a few days in advance and put a fan on them day and night. I use #6 Bucatini, which is a thick spaghetti with a hole down the middle, for armatures. I like to keep my figures completely edible just in case. You never know what happens at parties.

So, once your figures are completed? How do you store them until ready to place on your cake?

Thanks!

I put a fan on them for a couple of days, by then they are dried enough they can be handled carefully. I then store them uncovered so they continue drying and out of the light to prevent colors fading..