When you learn cake decorating, you’ll be able to turn any ordinary cake into a wonderful piece of art. It doesn’t have to be as difficult as you imagine. In fact, even the simplest cake decoration can be just as effective if you pour your creativity and imagination into it. Here are some fabulous tips and ideas to keep in mind.
Visit local cake suppliers. Wander around town to visit some places that decorate and sell stylish cakes. This would give you an idea on how they do the decorating. Some of these places allow people to watch the process of cake decoration. You’ll also see the different styles and designs available.
Choose the right type of cake. Not all cakes are the same. Some are simpler, others more difficult to decorate. It’s best to go for those that are simple to decorate, at least for now. Cakes that are suitable for first time decorators include single round and square cakes.
Pick the frosting or icing to use. You must choose a type of frosting or icing that you know you’ll be comfortable in using. Some are more difficult to use than others. Common choices include buttercream or Vienna cream, fluffy frosting, sugar paste, royal icing, pastillage, petal pasta, sugar glue, dusting sugar, and so on. You need to determine the pros and cons of each so you know which one will be most suitable to use.
Use other decorative elements. There is more to decoration than simply using icing and frosting. You may also use decorative items such as fruit slices and shapes, edible flowers, thickened cream, candies, drizzled chocolate, dusted cocoa, chocolate curls, chocolate sprinkles, nuts, streusel topping, coconut shredding, toffee strands, and jams or preserves.
Learn the techniques on how to decorate cakes with each. There are plenty of techniques that you can use. For example, you can paint on sugar. To do this, use a small fine paintbrush dipped in food coloring to paint color on sugar paste, petal paste or pastillage. You may also use strippling, which means painting of dots across the smooth icing surface. Piping is another great technique that would allow you to write borders, patterns, and flowers on the icing.
Explore with colors. Don’t let the cake look dull. Use as many colors as necessary to make it look more vibrant and exciting. Just make sure that you don’t use colors that would clash with each other. Consult the color wheel to get tones that are complementary to each other.
Consider ready-made decoration. There are also decorative items that are pre-made. These may be made of plastic or paper. Obviously, they are not edible but they add a touch of splendor to the cake creation.
Consult the internet for design ideas. If you browse the internet, you’ll find plenty of wonderful ideas for cake decoration that you’ll be able to use for this purpose. See to it that you choose something that isn’t so hard to accomplish. After all, it’s only your first time.