How Would You Make These "wires"? This Is A Heart Valve - Any Advice Would Sure Be Appreciated!!
Decorating By jeepsterchick Updated 25 Aug 2020 , 2:28pm by paws4thoughthandmade
I think you would be better off adding an edible image of the "thing" to the top of a cake.
These two ladies give rock-solid advice; they've helped me a LOT! If they say it's so, you can take it to the bank. :D
If you have some time for experimentation, and really want to give 3D a try....
Disclaimer: I have never tried this (yet). Now that that's out there:
There's a lady named Ann Reardon who does a lot of cake deco and chocolate work tutorials on her YouTube channel HowToCookThat. I've seen her address similar challenges by making a tube of acetate the diameter of the object needed, then using tempered chocolate to pipe the design around the tube. In your case, tempering white chocolate would work well; when your design is done, put it in the fridge to set. Once completely firm, carefully loosen and lift out the acetate. Then you can brush it with silver luster dust. For large pieces, she sometimes pipes in stages, letting the chocolate firm in the fridge a minute or two between sections.
This one here is just me brainstorming: if it doesn't need to be entirely edible and you can have an armature inside (and you're handy with crafty stuff too!), you'll need some hexagonal-mesh chicken wire to mimic the lower arches and a spool of same-gauge wire to create the longer ones at the top. Cut yourself a length of chicken wire to equal the desired circumference, and use a bit of your spool wire to tie the piece into a ring. For each of the taller arches, cut a piece of wire equal to double the length of each complete arch. Find the center of the length, and wrap it tightly one complete time around the middle of a top-row chicken wire arch--both ends of the wire should now be pointing up, and roughly even. Twist them together tightly for as tall as you want the straight side of the arch to be, then separate the two ends--it should look like a Y. Repeat around until each top-row chicken wire arch has a wire "Y", it'll look like Y Y Y Y Y Y going around. Now make the Y's hold hands: take the right side of one Y, and the left side of the one next to it, and twist them together to complete the top of the arch. Repeat around, and they should look like this: YYYYY . Make sure to twist them all to the same height/size; trim off the excess wire so final twists are 1/4" tall, then use a pliers to fold these little twist-tails down flush against the tops of the arches. Congratulations--you've made it to the end of the armature! ;)
Now you can pipe or paint on royal icing to cover all the wires; to make that metal frame at the base, cut a strip of sturdy thick fondant. Use a piece of your chicken wire as a guide to help you space and cut the pattern along the top of the frame, then wrap it around the "valve", smoothing into place as you go. Join, trim, smooth the seam, and leave it to dry. Once the whole concoction is fully dry, shine it up with silver luster dust and breathe a sigh of relief that it's finally over. ;)
(This is what happens when quarantine leaves me with wayyyy too much time on my hands....)
Whatever solution you choose, i hope you find something that works perfectly for you! Best of luck with your cake, and please share the end result--it would be wonderful to see! :)
Just a thought: on that last idea, I realized the tempered chocolate would probably work well in lieu of royal icing; you might even be able to dip-coat the wire armature by putting your chocolate in a wide enough bowl that you can roll the armature around, get it covered really solidly, then let the excess drip off before fridge-setting and proceeding with the fondant bottom band. :)
You know, it just might! You could probably get the gumpaste to manipulate around the wires without too much struggle, and it would likely give more open work time than either the royal or the chocolate, right?
I hate to be the fly in the ointment, but I've tried covering wires with fondant (easier than gum paste) for a football helmet face guard and it was horrible, HORRIBLE! I was actually ashamed of it and it was ten times bigger (think easier) than the frame in this picture. I also formed complicated wires for fairy wings and that too was horrible and they were freeform (think easier!).
Piping heavy royal or chocolate onto acetate and transferring the pattern to the cake is honestly the only way I think it could be done successfully and you would have to be very, VERY talented to achieve success with this delicate pattern. I know I sound like a coward (yes), but I would use an edible image to wrap the cake or look for a different design.
By the way, thanks for the vote of confidence, Paws4thoughthandmade!
That's really good to know--so wire is doable, if you don't mind struggling a lot and possibly being really disappointed in the end...lol
You mention making it as an edible image, and that got me thinking again ;) I'm used to the ones that get stuck directly to the cake, but would a freestanding image be possible? So I went digging, and found this link for heavy cardstock-weight edible "paper":
According to this info, this wafer is sturdy and stiff enough to stand up (like scrapbooking cardstock). It seems that with a little patience, the "valve" could be printed on this and the blank areas between the "wires" carefully cut away to create the open spaces....maybe even printing the "valve" several times and layering the sheets to create that sense of depth; then curling the sheets around the cake in a circle (like a paper Burger King crown!). I know that technique definitely works with traditional cardstock, having done projects of that nature before. If this edible paper truly replicates that weight, as it says, then it would give a way to create the 3D look with durability and the least hassle/most reliability for a freestanding result. :)
(BTW, you're welcome, Sandra--you share your experience to help others, and that's awesome! :) )
For some reason the link to the product didn't show, I'll try again:
https://www.neverforgottendesigns.com/products/thick-cardstock-wafer-paper
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