Hello fellow cakies!

I am making my mother in laws wedding cake for August. I have used fondant plenty of times and am confident in using it however my bride has a few other ideas up her sleeve! Instead of fondant she wants it to be covered in a buttercream, vintage style so not flat, all puffed up and flicky. In the photos she has given me it looks gorgeous, even dyed a nice ivory colour, very vintage chic. However I'm freaking out about it melting! I live 4 hours away so I know I will have to frost the cake at the venue however it's a winter wedding and they have a fireplace so will the cake need to be refrigerated until serving? Anybody know of any good recipes that won't melt? I have used one "fake" buttercream recipe which is just icing sugar, copha and vanilla. It just tastes too fake and fatty to me. I have attached a photo of what frosting she is talking about, please give me your suggestions and theories people!
Sorry for the novel ^^

Meeka.

So someone is having a reception in an environment hot enough to melt a cake? Did I read that right....the fireplace will be ON, in August? If it's indoors, surely there will be air conditioning? I use SMBC all year, even in my area that can see 110 degree Fahrenheit weather for days on end. But no one has outdoor events, and I work inside with the a/c on of course. Surely you can use whatever you want, especially if you're decorating on site?

August is winter in some parts of the world.  Her avatar doesn't tell us where she lives.  She does mention Copha instead of Crisco, so I'm assuming Australia.

Mother in Law would be OP's husband's mother!  

As long as the cake is not set right in front of the fire, I would think a buttercream would be OK. 

I am getting ready to transport iced cake tiers 10 hours.  With proper boxing and a cool car, there's no reason not to have it iced already.

Good luck!

Ah, yep, good observation. So the concern is melting because of the fireplace, not the weather. 

Whew....I must have eaten too many candy Easter Eggs.   

MeekaLee jump onto the Australian thread you'll probably get some super good answers.

I love this kind of design!  As long as you place the cake away from the fire you should be fine.  Also, with real butter and vanilla, you shouldn't need to dye it ivory - it'll be a pale ivory naturally.  Even better, if you want a darker ivory - and a richer buttercream, try making a mousseline buttercream.  It uses whole eggs, so the yolks bring a richer color and texture - it also holds up beautifully.  Here's a link to a Rose Levy recipe and instructions.... I highly recommend a candy thermometer for the sugar.

http://www.realbakingwithrose.com/2012/03/buttecream_rules.html

Beautiful cake idea! I like it.  It so classy. I will have to give that one a try.

That design is so quick and easy, the perfect cake to do away from your kitchen.  Try it out on your next cake for your friends or family and see how easy it is.  Any icing should work, what is your usual recipe?  That should be fine.

True indeed!  Never assume!

Here is a link to a great little recipe that I found a while back - have used it several times, with rave reviews.  I use 1/2 butter though as I don't like the taste of just shortening.  HTH  xo

http://cakecentral.com/a/delicious-crusting-snow-white-buttercream-decorators-icing?utm_source=CakeCentralNewsletter&utm_campaign=Fondant+Frill+Tutorial+plus+Crusting+Buttercream+Recipe&utm_medium=email