Hi! I'm new here, and I've been having the hardest time laying my fondant smoothly! It's just awful! I always make sure I have about two extra inches when I go to cover the cake, but it always ripples and tears. It just don't see how it's possible to make it so there are no folds! Are there any tricks to this? I've watched so many videos but still can't figure it out! Ahhh!

Hi Kriss, It could be the fondant you are using. Or maybe you are drying out your fondant. Once fondant is rolled out you have to use it quickly, otherwise it will dry out causing tears. Try not to get discouraged Remember practice makes perfect and you might need to practice a little more. Eventually you'll be able to cover a cake like a pro

Iva

Good Luck!

I have the same feelings. Except I abandoned ship pretty quickly.

I use Marshmellow fondant on cookies. Did it for a while so then I tried a cake. Except I tried a different recipe. It was a chocolate fondant recipe. I did it once, the very first time...perfectly. No problems. Tried again...NOPE. Nothing I did made it work.

I also had a serious case of beginners luck years ago. I made a 3 tier (using a floating stand - so definitely cheating on the stacking issue) and covered each tier with wilton pre-made fondant. Gross I know. But they weren't gonna eat it anyway. It was just for looks. Amazingly enough, I covered all 3 tiers perfectly. The one tier was HUGE too.

But, since I had so much trouble with the chocolate fondant I have yet to try to cover a cake with regular flavored fondant. I've seen many people use the marshmellow fondant with success. It's pretty cheap so messing up isn't a huge issue.

I share in your fondant woes. I'm sure if I took the time to keep working at it, it would get better. So - just keep trying. Maybe even set up several small cakes & do like 3 in a row. Or, with different fondant recipes. Maybe that's it.

I hope you figure it out!

Please don't get discouraged! It takes a lot of practice to lay fondant properly. If you love decorating cakes just keep at it eventually it will be perfect! Do lots of research to find the technique that works for you.

As was mentioned it most likely is the brand/type of fondant you are using.
Are you rolling it out on a mat? Using p/sugar or shortening? How thick?
Those are things that will effect the outcome.

THE MAT!!! Ever since I started to use a similar product/idea my fondant has come out soooo much better, smoother, etc. Love how much easier the fondant is to roll out and to transfer to the cake. BTW, I use/make the mmf, so it now looks great and tastes even better!

Ahhhh - the mat! I'll have to invest when I feel brave enough for fondant again! Thanks for the tip.

Hi,

I have just ordered The Mat and can't wait to use it!

I struggled in the beginning to get my fondant smooth too, but it just takes patience and practise. I ended up getting a dummy cake to practise on.

You will get there. I also found different fondants behave differently and some find others easier to use. Also temp can play a part in it also.

Just keep practising! If I can do it anyone can.

Tina

I have the MAT and I've also taken FONDANT I at Sweetwise in Nashville if you go to youtube and search for the sweetwise chanel and then look for her fondant survival video you will see how much this helps and she talks about a technique going "one inch down all the way around, then two inches down all the way around" and so on til you get to the bottom of the cake and its really helped me alot. I think this will help you see how useful the MAT is. Hope this helps you!

Megan