okay so, this was my first time covering a cake in chocolate fondant. i rolled it out over powdered sugar and it looks dried on and white....not like elephant skin just very dull and has lost its color....is this because of the powdered sugar? would it retain its color better if i used shortening instead? i also had this problem when i made flowers with the chocolate fondant but i was able to brush enough of the powdered sugar off and use luster dust to bring them back to a chocolate color....i feel like giving up with fondant i cant seem to get it to lay right on the cake and i alwasy get creases..im new to using fondant and i think i work it to much and take to long to roll it out....ive tried satin ice fondarific duffs and wilton and the only one that seems to still have life left after im done rolling it out is the wilton...but the wilton tastes awful....after i finish a cake i never know if i should box it and put it in the fridge or leave it out...or what to do! i feel liek i spent so much money on cake classes and i didn't learn anything. I've learned more from these forums that $5000 worth of baking pastry and cake classes! sorry for the rant and rave..just frustrated and ready to give it all up!

I had a whole bunch of problems when I first started using fondant, but you come up with tricks and fixes along the way, so don't get too frustrated - it'll get better! I do two things to prepare fondant before I use it. One is to add about a teaspoon (maybe two) of CMC per pound of fondant. The other is to add about the same amount of shortening to it. Knead it really well and then roll it out. When you're rolling it, don't ever turn it over, because it just picks up too much powdered sugar that way. You're better off turning it around in circles to get it even and to make sure it doesn't stick. You can always run a little more PS under it if it's too sticky. Then put the powdered sugar side down on the cake when you're ready to cover. If it's still dull there are three basic things you can do: 1) rub the whole surface with a little shortening; 2) steam it with an iron or a clothes steamer (careful! a little bit'll do ya); or 3) paint the whole surface with a mixture of corn syrup and vodka - my least favorite method because it often stays sticky and it's easy to smudge your decorations with the color. Hope this helps!