Oh dear...I was asked by a gal at work to make a cake for her daughter's 16th b-day. She sent me a pic the girl found of the cake she wants, naturally it was from pink box so it's amazing..covered in fondant, topsy turvy, fondant flames and butterflies and tropical flowers. (If I can figure out how to get the pic she sent me posted here, i will)
Mom said that it didn't need to be topsy turvy, just that the girl loved the colors and idea of the cake. I told her that the cake was covered in fondant and since I am only confident with buttercream, I'd only be able to do that for her but I could add fondant flame accents. She said that was absolutely fine since they don't like fondant anyway.
HOWEVER: I have never made fondant flowers/butterflies so here are my questions: Can I make the flowers and butterflies well in advance? Like a week or more? Do I need to make the flames at the time of decorating the rest of the cake for them to remain pliable? How do you attatch flat pieces of fondant to a buttercream cake?
I am going to spend a lot of time watching tutorials and researching here to garner some tips and ideas...but I'm nervous. The cake is due in mid August so I have a bit of time to practice.
Sidenote: The cake picture is three tier and I can bet feeds WAY more than 20 people..so I also had to point out that fact and that the cake I make for her to feed 30 people will be on a much smaller scale.
THanks for listening to my concerns.

Hi! I would make the flowers and butterflies out of 50/50 fondant/gumpaste. They will dry better and hold their shape. And you can definitely make them in advance, as far in advance as you need.
As far as the flames go, you will want to make those at the time you are decorating the cake. Roll out your fondant and cut your flames and then let them sit for a few minutes so the fondant isn't too stretchy (otherwise the shape will become distorted if the fondant stretches when you are applying it to the cake). Paint the backs with a little water, vodka, or vanilla and apply them to the cake.
Are you going to do it topsy turvy or not? I have only done one topsy turvy cake so I have virtually no experience there, but the top tier of the one that I did was so small it was hard to work with. You mentioned your cake would have to be small since it only needs to feed 30 people. Just my experience.

Yes you can make the flowers a week in advance, this way they will be good and hard when it's time to use them. The flames need to be done when you are making the cake so they are pliable! And yes, YOUTUBE it!

thank you to both of you for the responses, makes me feel a bit better that I can do these flowers and butterflies ahead of time. I figured that I needed to do the flames at the time I decorate the rest of the cake so thank for confirming that for me.
I am not doing the topsy turvy thing here, just small rounds...that will be enough to handle. LOL
Again, thank you for your insight, I've taken notes!

For the border I would use a pearl mold. I love the perfect impressions mold-6, 8, and 10 mm. Also 12 inches long.

http://www.globalsugarart.com/product.php?id=21438&name=Perfect%20Pearls%206,%208,%2010%20mm%20by%20First%