Hi Everyone,  can anyone tell me what to use to attach the wafer paper "feathers" to a fondant cover 3 tier cake?  Thank you all in advance.

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/40/6e/8b/406e8bd3667c78cf6879e06a720e3c02.jpg

..Like in this pic, what type of "glue" would best adhere the wafer/rice paper "feather" strips to fondant on a cake?  I'm afraid if I use the wrong adhesive it may melt the wafer/rice paper  .. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

Royal works very well.

Thank you, Chelles.  Would I need to make the royal icing a very thin consistency? 

Considering how delicate the wafer paper seems, I was wondering if there is anything I should be aware of to avoid any potential disasters before I attempt this cake tomorrow?  Any advice is helpful, as I have never worked with this material before.  Thank you again, and wishing you all a very HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Water or gum glue should be fine for attaching wafer paper.  Use a damp/not wet brush.  Pre-cut as many feathers as you can for your design and put them in a plastic bag for safe keeping. 

The royal shouldn't be too runny . Gum glue or water can distort or sort of melt the feathers that is why royal works best.

Start at the top and like JWinslow says , have as many precut as you can.

Good Luck , and don't forget to post a photo.

Chelle

Thank you both so very much, I greatly appreciate all your helpful advice!

I just wanted to supply you with this link - the feathers were applied with butter cream.  http://cakecentral.com/g/i/1530029/my-attempt-at-a-feather-cake-feathers-are-1-strips-of-rice-paper-and-dusted-with-rose-luster-dust-glass-beads-were-added-to-give-it-some-sparkle/
 

Thanks for posting the link, JWinslow.  That's a beautiful cake.  I've done so much research on these lovely feather cakes and have read people using various different adhesives to glue down the wafer "feather" strips.  It can all be a bit confusing. I wonder which of all these types of adhesives is the best solution.   I guess my biggest fear is the wafer paper weakening and melting away ruining the striking effect it supposed to have.   Thank you again for all your help, it's beyond appreciated! 

If you have concerns about water than don't use it.  Royal icing and butter cream will both work.  It doesn't take much to hold the paper.  I have used royal icing and know it will hold it just fine.  Haven't tried the butter cream. 

So, in this thread, that's 2 votes for royal icing.  Wafer paper is tougher than you think. Don't let it scare you in the least.  You will do just fine - be sure to post the pics so we can see your cake. 

 yes, my anxiety about this sure does show .. lol!  But I'm also am very excited, I've been wanting to try my hand at making this cake for a while now.  Life is more interesting when we challenge ourselves.. I really can't thank you enough for being so helpful. 

Here is another vote for royal.  That is what I used and it worked great!  I piped a short line of royal, then applied a section of wafer paper, that looked like spikes.  I held it in place for a second, then I did the next one, etc.  I would stay away from anything wet, as it melts the paper.

Thanks so much for the helpful instruction, CindiM, I'll definitely try it way.  And I'm convinced using Royal icing is the best for this cake design.  Thanks again, I greatly appreciate the advice.

A very thin coating of clear corn syrup works very well.  Just use enough to make it tacky.

Thank you Carol-Ann, that's exactly what I ended up using.  Worked perfectly! 

A tad off the subject, but I have a client that wants "hair" on a purple minion and the photo he supplied looks like wafer paper, but it's dark purple.  Can someone direct me to a site that sells colored wafer paper or can I somehow dye it?  Thanks for your help.

Wafer paper, although very delicate, can be airbrushed to any color you want.  I start by airbrushing lightly so I doesn't melt, let it dry, then go over it again until I get the desired shade. 

I have tried to find colored wafer paper, but, I have only been able to find some patterned paper and it can be quite expensive.  One of the other things I've done is buy a piece of the decorative paper from Michael's and photocopy wafer paper (it goes through the photocopier just like regular paper) using edible ink.  So if you buy a piece of the dark purple paper and copy it, you should get the color you want.  Wafer paper can also be dusted with any of the petal dust, luster dust, etc.  Hope some of this helps.

Thank you!!

You're welcome.