The cake was a two tier creation, all in purple, pink and white. Since my cousin wanted fondant and gumpaste elements, I had to being working a week in advance. Actually, I began on Monday night and that gave me plenty of time to complete things. On Monday night, I created the gumpaste bow, which turned out pretty well. I used a mixture of white gumpaste (I bought the mix) and very hot pink Satin Ice fondant. The blend made it a nice color -a bubblegum pink.
The next night I constructed the crown. I read on a website to make two, just in case one breaks, so I made two. Luckily, the first one never broke. This photo was taken after the crowns were dry enough to remove their "stablizers" which turned out to be a vase for one and a can of bread crumbs covered in wax paper for the other. I greased both of these well with shortening before wrapping the crowns around to dry. That way they slipped off easily. The bow is also here as well. I stuffed it with tissue to help it keep it's shape while drying.
I made other elements out of gumpaste and fondant - including small crowns, fondant balls for a border, stars and a scepter for the topper. I painted all of it with a mixture of luster dust and vodka and let it dry for a few days.
I also made a nameplate for the front of the bottom tier. This was a slight challenge because since it was going on a curved cake, I'd have to dry it on a curve. I searched the house looking for something (other than the cake pans) that measured 9 inches around. Luckily, a tin of popcorn my son had worked perfectly. I covered it in wax paper and laid the nameplate on to dry. The name and decoration was done in edible marker.
The cake was just three 9-inch rounds for the bottom and two 6-inch rounds for the top. All was iced in a violet purple frosting. I put all decoration on each layer (minus the crown and scepter) and boxed them up. I would wait to assemble them until the party.
On a whim, I decided to make a figure of the birthday girl. This was my first attempt at figure making, but I'm quite pleased with the results. Unfortunately, as soon as I finished the figure, I realized there was no place for her on the cake anywhere -not the board, the top or the sides. So, I figured I would have to make a mini-cake for the birthday girl where I could put her little figure. After speaking with her grandmother, I learned that she's quite obsessed with their dachshund Missy, so I added a dachshund figure that would stand on the board and "beg" for cake.
Here is the result:
And finally, the Princess Cake. Assembly was quick. The crown went on perfectly, but - the bow was a bit big. This was my first bow attempt, so now I know that I don't need a bow with loops quite as wide for a cake like this. Oh well - it still turned out okay I think.
Other elements on this cake are edible pearls for the crown points that I found at Ross Dress for Less of all places! I love these pearls and have used them over and over. I have them in about 6 colors.
Overall, it turned out very well and my customers were pleased.
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