Tutorial Tuesday: Fondant Flowers

Alright, so I know you’re all dying to know who won the contest, right??
Well, I used random.org to choose a random number for me. You were all in order of who commented first. (sub-comments didn’t count on this number line, just your initial comment, so one chance per person.)

Well, 15 of you entered and random.org picked #2… who is… STEW!!!!

Congratulations. He’s already been contacted for his address :)

For those who didn’t win… there’s always my brand new etsy shop! I joined Etsy in 2008 with intentions of selling and I’m just now posting my very first listing. Oh sheesh. I hope I can sell some other things on there soon like some custom made fondant items. Maybe even make and sell fondant by the lb or something? I don’t know! We’ll see what happens lol.
In any case, thank you guys for participating, I’m so happy with the feedback. Two people asked about making flowers. So here we go!

Now there are a LOT of kits and things for making flowers. It’s not like they’re wildly expensive. That one is around $20, but I’m on a super budget here! So… I don’t have those fancy things. I don’t do flowers SUPER often, so I use what I have and I get by. So, I suppose this is my “how to make fondant flowers on the cheap” tutorial. lol
I love my Wilton tool kit, but I’ve seen some cheap alternatives you can totally get by with online like this one. If you look them up on ebay, you can score a cheap set for around $10.

In any case, maybe you can find some thing around your house that you could use, I don’t know, a spoon end, a q-tip, I don’t know… hahaha be creative.

I start with my fondant, my fondant roller, my flower cut outs, which were super cheap!, powdered sugar and my tools and an empty egg box. I scored this awesome one from a flat of eggs I bought, it actually was the top section that cradled the top of the eggs, the cups are more round more shallow. It’s awesome.

I sift some powdered sugar all over the counter and the fondant and roll it flat. Then I cut my shapes.

(ignore those big ones, I just got that cutter set… I didn’t like how they came out. Will revisit that set later lol)

Then I take one of my rounded tools and gently press it into each petal. It flattens the petal and adds shape.

Then a quick poke in the middle to add a little dip…

Then everyone goes into the egg crate. To dry. Over night. MINIMUM.
They really need to get totally dry. They need to sit out some place cool and dry over night. Don’t put them in the fridge.

Once I get them in there I lightly brush them with high proof vodka to dissolve all the left over powdered sugar. Don’t brush the bottoms or they’ll stick. You can do that after they dry.

The next day, I like to spritz them with the ol’ airbrush. I go over them with a few sheen colors. A little pink, a little yellow, a little edible glitter. Very faint, just enough to give them a shimmer.

I let them dry for a few minutes and then I brush off any extra powdered sugar on the back of them that I think might show when they’re on the cake. I pipe a little buttercream or melted chocolate on the bottom and place them on the cake.
Then last but not least, I pipe a little yellow dot in the centers of the flowers with a small star tip!

That really makes them pop. If your dot pulls up too far, give it 30 seconds to a minute to set up and then you can lightly take your finger and smoosh it down a bit.

And there you have it!

(also, in case anyone wants to know, the rossettes on the sides were done with a no. 74 tip. You just sort of make a spiral from the center out.)
Lovely. :)
And happy birthday to Lisa! She and her husband own the bar I work at on the weekends, Blind Bob’s. I’ve made several cakes for the bar before!
Their one year anniversary cake and a cake to commemorate the one year anniversary of their open mic night! Also known as one of the most insanely awesome cakes I’ve ever made! That thing was epic. Heck, I even made a cake for the bar when I quit in September of 2009! Hahaha. I couldn’t do the waitress thing anymore, but after a lot of chatting with Nate the manager (son of Bob and Lisa) about it and then replying to a text for an offer for the job while pretty intoxicated, I became the normal weekend door person.
Anyhow, I adore Bob and Lisa and I love their bar. Blind Bob’s is totally responsible for helping revive the Dayton, Ohio music scene and I’m more than happy to be a part of it.
When Bob called me with a super secret mission to make a super special spring cake for Lisa’s birthday and bring it over to the bar on Monday, there was no way I could say no!
We love you Lisa! Happy Birthday!