AI will be using brown sugar for sand on a cake for first time. The entire top of cake will be sand. Do I ice top as normal and then put a cardboard cake separator on top of that and lightly ice and add the sugar or do you just cover the icing on the cake? I was thinking if I put the sugar on cardboard it could be removed before cutting.

either way--there's no rules to it--but it will be quite dry & crunchy as i'm sure you know if it's served -- so if you don't do the cardboard --you could ice the cake thicker so it's easier to enjoy enough cake with the icing and leave the sugar on the plate--but sure either way --honestly that's a pretty good idea to remove it--

best to you

AThank you so much ;) so nice of you to respond. I know it was probably a simple common sense thing but it helped to have someone else chime in with thoughts . Thank you.

you are right it is a simple common sense thing now that you said it--and i have been doing cakes for decades and i never once thought of it so than you for sharing your good common sense--i needed that -- lol 

AI have used crushed graham crackers, i buy th pre-crushed ones :USA:

I like using cruched grahm crackers better.  The brown sugar is overpowering - and some people will try to eat all that sugar.  And then complain that the cake was too sweet.

AI like to use crushed Nilla wafers.

That would work well too!

AThank you for the other ideas :) K8memphis I am so sorry way my response sounded. Ever post something that sounds ok in your head and then post, read what you said at a later time and think " well I sounded like an ***" lol

no no no no no no -- i didn't take it that way at all -- i have used brown sugar for golf course hazards and beaches forever and i never thought of making it easy to remove and i thought you were/are brilliant to think of it srsly