Ebook Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes 1 Feb 2014

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes
Learn How To Unleash Your Own Cake Decorating Genius!

By Chrissie Battistessa http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com
Legal Notice:- The author and publisher of this ebook and the accompanying materials have used their best efforts in preparing this ebook. The author and publisher make no representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of the contents of this ebook. The information contained in this ebook is strictly for educational purposes. Therefore, if you wish to apply ideas contained in this ebook, you are taking full responsibility for your actions. The author and publisher disclaim any warranties (express or implied), merchantability, or fitness for any particular purpose. The author and publisher shall in no event be held liable to any party for any direct, indirect, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of this material, which is provided as is, and without warranties. As always, the advice of a competent legal, tax, accounting or other professional should be sought. The author and publisher do not warrant the performance, effectiveness or applicability of any sites listed or linked to in this ebook. All links are for information purposes only and are not warranted for content, accuracy or any other implied or explicit purpose.
Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com
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Table of Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 4 Chrissies Never-Fail Chocolate Mud Cake........................................................................................ 5 Chrissies Never-Fail White Cake ...................................................................................................... 6 The Icing On The Cake! ..................................................................................................................... 7 My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully .......................................... 8 How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide.............................................................................. 12 How To Decorate Cupcakes - A Beginner's Guide .......................................................................... 17 How To Make Cake Pops Without A Cake Pop Pan ........................................................................ 20 My Trial Run Of Wilton Cake Decorating Classes The World Of Swirls Cake ............................ 23 The Beauty Of Online Cake Decorating Classes ............................................................................. 26 Product Review: The Wilton Method Bundle ................................................................................. 28 Product Review: Sugar Ed Productions Sugar Art School ............................................................ 32 Product Review: Cake Topper Techniques - Fondant Animals ........................................................ 37
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Introduction
Welcome to the How To Decorate A Cake Online community! In this free ebook, I have included some fantastic cake and icing recipes to get you started on your cake decorating adventure. I have been using them for many years and although I have experimented with other recipes, I always go back to my favorites. I now use them almost exclusively for every cake and cupcake I make, because I figure if it aint broke, dont fix it! I hope you will get as much joy out of these recipes as my family and I do! I have also included some introductory articles and reviews on educational products to help you on your way to becoming a cake decorating genius. Please contact me at info@howtodecorateacakeonline.com if you have any feedback. I would love to hear from you.
Happy cake decorating!

Chrissie
Recipes
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Chrissies Never-Fail Chocolate Mud Cake
Dairy free Oil based healthier than butter based cakes and stays fresher longer Moist and rich Just as easy, and better than any packet mix cake you have ever tasted! No mixer required Ingredients 300 ml 150 ml 2 tsp 10 ml 250 gs 250 gs 10 gs 50 gs
water vegetable oil vanilla flavor white vinegar caster sugar plain flour Bicarbonate of Soda Cocoa powder
Method Pre-heat oven to approximately 160C (320F). Whisk together water, oil, vanilla, vinegar and caster sugar until sugar dissolves. Sift dry ingredients together, and add to wet ingredients and mix. Pour into 8-9 inch round greased tin round and bake for approximately 40 minutes (check after 30 minutes because ovens do vary). This mixture also makes 60 mini cupcakes, and 24 regular cupcakes. Perfect with dark chocolate ganache for an indulgent treat!
Recipes
________________________________________________________________________________ Chrissies Never-Fail White Cake
Moist and rich Oil based healthier than butter based cakes and stays fresher longer Just as easy as, and better than any packet mix cake you have ever tasted! No mixer required A versatile blank canvas! Ingredients 200ml Vegetable oil 340gs caster sugar 2 eggs 200gs natural yoghurt (full fat) 50ml lemon juice 300gs self-raising flour Method Pre-heat oven to approximately 160C (320F). Whisk together, oil, sugar and eggs until sugar dissolves. Add Sifted flour, yoghurt and lemon juice and mix together. Pour into 8-9 inch round greased tin and bake for approximately 40 minutes (check after 30 minutes because ovens do vary). This mixture also makes 60 mini cupcakes, and 24 regular cupcakes. Variation You can easily make a rainbow cake by dividing the batter and mixing in food coloring! Bake each cake colour separately and assemble into rainbow cake when cool.
Recipes
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The Icing On The Cake!
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Chrissies Rich Dark Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients 600 ml 800 gs whipping cream dark chocolate (cooking chocolate is fine)
Boil the cream in a saucepan until cream starts to rise up. Take cream off heat and pour it onto the chopped chocolate. Whisk until there are no solid pieces of chocolate left. Put ganache into the fridge to firm up. Take out of fridge 2 hours before needed so ganache can return to room temperature and be silky smooth. Perfect for crumb coats and decorating. Also great on ice-cream!
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Chrissies Heavenly Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients 270 gs 90 gs 180 gs cream cheese (at room temperature) unsalted butter (at room temperature) pure icing sugar, sifted
Cream the butter with an electric mixer or beater (or by hand but its hard work!). Add the cream cheese slowly while you continue beating. Add the sifted icing sugar until it is just combined. Dont over mix as the mixture may go runny.
My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully
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I have to admit, up until recently, decorating a cake with fondant and especially covering a cake with fondant alluded me. All efforts had been, well, just short of disaster. Then I decided that maybe, I just needed some guidance, and looked into some online cake decorating classes. Boy was I doing it wrong! Below I have shared my personal insights and top 9-tips on how to decorate a cake with fondant successfully.
My General Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

1. Keep fondant sealed at all times when you are not using it and work quickly with it when you are. It may sound obvious, but even 5 minutes out of a sealed bag or container can make it more difficult to work with. 2. Dont try to color fondant red or black unless you have no other option! Trust me I have tried. I used an entire Wilton tub of red to colour Elmos face and the red cake balls and about a quarter of a tub of black for his mouth and pupils (see below). It took forever and the fondant became very sticky and hard to work with.
3. Keep surfaces, hands and tools super clean. It may seem like common sense, but sometimes I overlook these things and regret it later. I have had both buttercream and
________________________________________________________________________________ colouring accidentally smeared all over my fondant covered cake because I didnt clean up between each stage. After all that hard work! 4. Fondant cutters and moulds are the best invention ever! I dont have a natural ability to sculpt and model things from my bare hands (although Im working on it see my review of Cake Topper Techniques Fondant Animals). Fondant tools are fantastic for fooling people into thinking you are a professional. Flowers, letters and numerals, babies and baby items (yep I have seen a baby mould!) and any shape under the sun you will most likely be able to find it somewhere.
Covering A Cake With Fondant - lots of breath holding!

5. When rolling out fondant to cover a cake, measure how big it actually needs to be by adding together the diameter, and height x 2 and then add only a couple of inches extra. I started out rolling out a huge piece just to "make sure" it was big enough. The problem with that is that the excess weight of the fondant weighed it down and it would tear at the top of the cake. On the other hand, you could roll out the fondant too small. Both of these situations are very hard to come back from without making a mess out of your fondant and cake. Take the guesswork out and measure, and if you want to make the job really easy for yourself, buy a non-stick fondant mat with convenient measurements!
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6. If you are inexperienced, dont try to roll out the fondant too thin. The thinner the fondant, the more easily it will tear. It's ok to aim for 5mm thick to start with, then eventually work towards 2mm or 3mm when you are more confident. 7. After you have applied the fondant and smoothed it down all over, use the fondant smoother to seal the base of the cake so no crumb coat can escape (see photo below). Before I was "enlightened" on how to decorate a cake with fondant, I didnt realise I had to do this and ended up with dark chocolate ganache spewing onto my white fondant.
8. If you get the opportunity to use a spare pair of hands (especially if they are bigger than yours), take it! Ideally you would get someone to hold the fondant over the top of the cake so there is no tension on it, while you smooth along the top and downwards. This way you are less likely to get cracking on the ridges, or worse, tearing! I have often timed fondant covering around the time my husband is home so he can help me!
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________________________________________________________________________________ 9. Dont freak out about bumps and lumps on a fondant covered cake. Smooth them out as best you can and strategically place decorations where the problem spot is. You can also hide the ugly bit down the bottom where the cake meets the board. So far, I have used piping, fondant balls and ribbon.
Remember gravity + very thin fondant + lack of support + not working quickly before fondant dries out = fondant covered cake disaster!
If you would like more about how to decorate a cake with fondant successfully, please look at my Products page where I have reviewed cake decorating classes and memberships. In particular, the Wilton Method Bundle includes a Decorating with Fondant class where you can learn in detail how to cover different shaped cakes, moulding, embossing and much more. You can purchase this class individually or as a package with the Wilton Method Bundle. Cake Topper Techniques Fondant Animals features step by step instructions to make cute handmoulded animals from fondant - great for cake toppers. Sugar Ed Productions Sugar Art School is a cake decorating membership chock full of how-to fondant related articles and tutorials, like how to fix a fondant blowout, how to make fondant ribbon borders and how to apply a metallic effect on fondant.
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How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide
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Now there are squillions of ways to decorate a cake. What I will do here, is list out the basics and touch on a few easy ideas I have come across when deciding how to decorate a cake for maximum wow factor. I get my inspiration from surfing the net and then tweak things to my liking. Sometimes my cake will turn out nothing like the "inspiration cake" from which it morphed.
Cake brainstorm
Before you even pick up a piping bag, if your cake is going to be a success, you need to sit down and have a good think. To me, a pen and notepad is a must. I usually have scattered ideas flying around in my head so drawing the cake and making notes helps me to see if all my crazy ideas are going to work together to form a great looking, good tasting and reasonably uncomplicated cake. I know Im no artist, but here is a plan I drew up for a birthday cake I recently made, just so you can get the idea.
How To Decorate A Cake Using Colour

When deciding how to decorate a cake, colour has a huge effect on the outcome. What feel do you want the cake to have? For example, is it for a childs birthday - bright colours; a cake for a grown man - masculine colours, like blue, brown, black, grey; and for a baby shower or 1st birthday, pastels are cute and portray innocence. Look at pictures of cakes you like and take notice of the colours and the effect they produce.
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How To Decorate A Cake With Icing Which Base Do I Use?

Buttercream, ganache, cream cheese, dream whip or fondant? Each have their strengths and weaknesses. If you use fondant, you will need another icing, usually buttercream or ganache to bond the cake and fondant together. I am certainly no expert when it comes to icing (yet), but I will tell you what I know about the ones I most commonly use: Buttercream
You can use only butter, replace some butter for vegetable shortening, or use purely vegetable shortening.
The more vegetable shortening you put in the buttercream, the sturdier it will be. It produces a textured effect. Doesnt go completely white unless you use purely vegetable shortening. Most people prefer the taste of buttercream icing to fondant.
Ganache
Needs to be the right consistency to smooth on a cake. not too runny, not too thick. I leave mine out at room temperature (about 22C) for a few hours before decorating.
Great taste (mmm chocolate!). You can buy tinted chocolate to make coloured ganache, just for something different.
Fondant

You need to work quickly with it as it dries out quickly (like play doh). If you can do it with play doh, you can usually do it with fondant! You can colour it yourself or buy pre-coloured fondant. Keep in mind if you need black or red fondant, you are way better off buying it pre-coloured! Those colours are notorious for needing lots of dye to get to a deep colour. Trust me, I've tried it and its just not worth it. 13
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Smooth professional finish. Good if you want a pure white icing.
How to Decorate A Cake With Finishes

This is where a cake really comes alive and there are no limits. Here are some ideas:
Fondant balls around the bottom of the cake to hide where the cake meets the board which sometimes gets messy. You could also use a ribbon or piped icing.
Fondant cut outs are fantastic for hiding bloopers and an easy way to spruce up a cake. If fondant is wet, you can just use water to bond two pieces together, otherwise sugar glue works well on dry fondant. Fondant models can be the focal point of a cake, adding a cuteness factor. See my review on Cake Topper Techniques Fondant Animals.
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An easy way to write a message on a cake without relying on a steady hand is by using letters cut out with letter cutters.
Gum paste flowers can beautify and add classic wow factor to an otherwise plain cake. You can make them or buy them ready made. Some of them are deceivingly easy to make. You just need to have the right tools. The down side is that gum paste doesn't taste very good, but most people won't eat the decorations anyway.
Piped icing can add character to a cake with swirls, stars, flowers and much more. See my blog on the "World of Swirls" Cake.
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________________________________________________________________________________ I can't wait to bring you more detailed information on different cake decorating topics. In the meantime, I hope this blog was helpful to you all beginners out there. I'm still learning cake decorating through classes, other cake websites and good old fashioned trial and error. If I can do a good job, you can too.
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How To Decorate Cupcakes - A Beginner's Guide
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I loooove cupcakes, and seemingly, so does everyone else. Why is it that it's so easy to make a cupcake appealing with the simplest of detail, yet a full sized cake seems to be less forgiving and need more pizzazz? They are conveniently packaged, favoured at outdoor parties, day care and school for their no knife, no-plate, no fork factor. So do you want to know the basics of how to decorate cupcakes? The cake decorating industry has made it easy for you. For example, edible cupcake toppers and cupcake papers inject personality without you trying too hard. Of course, there is an infinite amount of cupcake designs out there, and not all of them fit into a mould. But generally speaking, to start with, you need to decide which decorating foundation to choose from: fondant or piped soft icing are the main ones.
How To Decorate Cupcakes With Fondant

Fondant topped cupcakes have a professional, polished look. Its great if you want a pure white smooth base as it can be difficult to get pure white icing with piped icing, depending on which type of piped icing you use.
Even cupcakes with fondant tops will need some kind of cement to bond the cupcake and fondant together. You could try buttercream, ganache, royal icing or dream whip.
You will then need to colour the fondant, if required, or purchase pre-coloured fondant if you can find the colour you need. I recommend the latter as it saves you time.
Roll out the fondant and cut a circle to fit on the cupcake. You can purchase cutters or use a circular object you find around the house to cut out circles. The tricky part is finding a cutter that is the right size for the cupcake!
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Decorate with more fondant cut outs, piping, sugar flowers, sugar pearls the list is endless! If you are sticking soft fondant together, water is enough to form a bond. Otherwise use royal icing or sugar glue (you can purchase this from cake decorating stores).
How To Decorate Cupcakes With Piped Tops

Piping icing can consist of buttercream, cream cheese, ganache or Dream Whip (a pure white dessert topping). Piped icing provides texture and volume to cupcakes. If you need to transport your piped icing cupcakes, keep in mind you will need a good cupcake caddy as any knocks to piped icing will show up. Vegetable shortening can be added to buttercream icing, along with, or instead of butter for a more stable icing.

Make your icing according to recipe and tint to the colour you need (if required). Pipe onto cupcake using a piping bag and tip. There are so many different piping tips on the market producing a variety of effects, and are fantastic for experimenting. Or if you dont have piping tools, a basic round swirl pattern can be produced with a zip-lock bag with a hole cut one corner.
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Decorate, or let the piped icing be the feature. Some ideas for decoration are sprinkles, sugar shapes, lollies. You wont need glue to stick in decorations as you can embed them into the icing immediately after piping.
This is obviously not the definitive guide to how to decorate cupcakes. There is only so much I can put into one post! But rest assured, as one of my favourite things to talk about (and eat!) there will be much more information coming this way. Watch this space!
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How To Make Cake Pops Without A Cake Pop Pan
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Move aside cupcakes, cake pops are now the new black! Do you want to know how to make cake pops without buying a cake pop pan? I think you may be surprised to know that its a piece of cake (hee hee). No seriously, its really easy! The best thing about making cake pops without a pan, is that you dont have to bake a cake if you dont want to! Just use bought cake or leftover cake scraps. Cake pops are basically crumbled cake mixed together with icing of some sort to make the mixture bond and become pliable so they can be shaped into balls. I have seen buttercream frosting, ganache and cream cheese mixed into cake to make cake pops. Then they are coated with chocolate (typically) and decorated. This was my first time making cake pops and I didnt follow one particular method. I tried to wing it. I googled how to make cake pops and as I usually do, took a bit of inf o from here, and a bit of info from there. They turned out great for a first time, but I would tweak a few things ne xt time, as Ill explain below.
How To Make Cake Pops By Hand

Id been looking for an opportunity to use up some red velvet cupcakes that I had stored in my freezer. The cupcakes tasted awesome, but their shape after baking wasn't what I wanted. I crumbled the cupcakes up as fine as I could get them with my (clean) hands. I then mixed in some milk chocolate ganache, again with my hands. Next time around I would use a food processor for the crumbs. I found that I still ended up with a few small clumps that my hands couldnt get at, so the balls were not perfectly smooth.
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________________________________________________________________________________ Then I made the balls but squishing the mixture in my fist to compact it and rolled it between my hands for the ball shape.
I put the balls on some baking paper on a tray and into the freezer for an hour to firm up. So from here it got a bit messy and there was a bit of trial and error involved. I used white chocolate for some of the pops, and dark chocolate ganache for the others. I had to get the consistency right with the ganache so it was just right for coating, not too runny, but also not too thick. I dipped the tips of the lollypop sticks (from a kitchen store) in the chocolate/ganache, about a centimetre deep and pushed the cake pop through, but not to the end of the stick. The chocolate/ganache at the tip helps to anchor the pop so its stays on the stick. I had worked out by the end of decorating the cake pops that the easiest method of coating them evenly was dip them head first in the chocolate or ganache and spin them around.
I realised that with the chocolate topping, you need to add decorations fast, before the chocolate sets. It took less than 10 seconds! The ganache is more forgiving.
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________________________________________________________________________________ Lastly the decorating! I used what I had lying around at home - some sprinkles and sugar pearls. I then set each pop in a cake pop holder as seen below, although the one I have here I dont recommend. If you are purchasing one, make sure it has generous buffer room between each pop.
The Result
I dont think I did too badly for a first try and as with everything practice makes perfect. Now that you know how to make cake pops without having to buy a cake pop pan, why dont you give it a go? Its little effort for lots of wow factor. They really are heaven on a stick.
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My Trial Run Of Wilton Cake Decorating Classes: The World Of Swirls Cake
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My Trial Run Of Wilton Cake Decorating Classes The World Of Swirls Cake
Does this cake look like the work of a professional cake decorator?
Well I can tell you honestly, its not, because I made it myself by following the online Baking Basics and Buttercream Skills classes offered by Wilton online. I have reviewed these classes along with others in the Wilton Method Bundle review. But its all talk unless I undertake a hands-on trial of what Wilton cake decorating classes can do for the average person (me). So I set up my IPad on the kitchen bench, brought up my online class, and went to work. If you want to know how my cake worked out and a few things I learnt in the process, read on...
Your Personal Insight Into Wilton Cake Decorating Classes: Baking Basics And Buttercream Skills
First I had to bake two cakes. Unfortunately I tried to save money by only buying one tin and baking one cake at a time, but soon realised that not only would that take up more time, but more electricity for my oven. See I really am a beginner! In the class we are told to use a wet cake band to achieve flat cakes. You can buy them, however I used a DIY cake band by taking some scrap fabric, cutting and folding it to wrap around the cake tin, wetting it and securing it with a safety pin.
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It worked for the most part. I only had a little bump I had to cut off the second cake (above), probably because I didnt wet the fabric as much the second time around. In the Baking Basics class Beth, the instructor, makes custard to fill the cake. Im not confident with making custard. I always manage to scramble the eggs. I wanted to keep it simple and opted to use buttercream which I had to make anyway for the decorating. The Wilton cake decorating classes I watched, advised using half vegetable shortening and half butter for the buttercream icing. This seemed unusual to me as I have only ever previously used butter. I got to work Googling and found out that vegetable shortening does three things when added to buttercream:

Its firmer than butter and the icing holds it shape better for decorating. It holds its ground better in warmer climates than if you used just butter, which would just end up in a puddle within 10 minutes of 38C (or 100.4F)!
Its pure white, so great for making buttercream whiter, or use only vegetable shortening for pure white buttercream, but keep in mind it wont have a buttery taste.
I then needed to tint the icing a light lavender colour (for the top swirls and bottom stars) and darker lavender (to cover the cake, and I needed extra for the filling) and leave a small portion white (for the swirls around the middle). I used Wilton colours Pink and Violet for the lavender colour. Covering the cake with the icing was relatively easy with the right tools a basic spatula and a turntable. After about 10 minutes however, I had to say to myself Chrissie, put down the spatula. Being a perfectionist I wanted to get rid of every single imperfe ction, but there arent enough hours in the day. It was at that point I realised, that while trying to be economical (again) and using a cake platter and not a one-use flat cake board, that I couldnt do the stripes! I couldnt get a 90 angle with my textured cake scraper! Oh well, thats another one for my what not to do next time list.
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________________________________________________________________________________ Now I am not lying to you when I say it only took 5-10 minutes to do the stars and swirls. That was the easy part. Although I obviously should have taken more time, because my white swirls were a little off-centre (thats me below).
Finally, here is my son, Zac putting the finishing touches (sprinkles) on the cake.
The Final Result

This is the professionally made cake from the Baking Basics and Buttercream Skills. I didnt do too badly for a beginner, did I? If I can do this, imagine what you could do! Click here If you want to know more about the Wilton Method Bundle.
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The Beauty Of Online Cake Decorating Classes
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Would you like to have a completely unlimited view into the cake decorating world? On-site cake decorating classes can be social and fun. Ive done a couple myself. But if youre just starting out, wanting to brush up on your existing knowledge or need a specific cake design to follow, online cake decorating classes are a great alternative.
Reasons to consider online cake decorating classes:
You don't have to leave your house!. I know personally how hard it is to get out of the house when you have children, live far away from the travel provider or don't want to spend your precious time driving back and forth. I do my online classes while my eldest child is at school and my youngest is napping.
Flexibility - once you purchase the class it is yours to view whenever, wherever (mostly!) and however many times you like.
Online cake decorating classes are usually cheaper than on-site classes, as the providers don't need to pay for materials, room hire, insurances etc. I have seen classes as low as US$10!
You don't have to rely on your memory. On-site classes give you one opportunity to soak in everything you see, while online cake decorating classes are only a click away for an instant reminder.
Unlimited topics you can access a world (literally!) of cake decorating, rather than only what is taught in your local area. 26
________________________________________________________________________________ Enter the online revolution! The internet is a feast of not only online cake decorating classes, but also memberships to cake decorating communities providing you with tips, ideas and techniques. Do you want to get pure white icing, cakes that bake flat, or learn to make fondant figurines? Its all there, waiting for you. Just ask Google.
Good online cake decorating classes such as those available at Craftsy allow you keep the course forever after purchase. Are you concerned you wont have the ability to ask questions and receive assistance like you would in an on-site class? Check that this is covered. All good online cake decorating providers will give you access not only to the video tutorial but also to the instructor, so your questions and concerns will be addressed. I have recently used Craftsy, and in the name of research I have asked a couple of questions, curious to see how the system works and how long they would take to get back to me. It took about 48 hours. Not bad considering time differences I am in Australia and they are based in the USA. Online classes can be done at your leisure, after work, on the weekend, or while the kids are taking a nap. If you are disrupted, no worries, pause and resume when you next have time. The provider may even remember where you left off. And you can rewind and fast forward as much as you like. The instructor wont roll his or her eyes at you! If its important to you, check that you can view the classes on a portable device, such as an I Pad. This is extremely helpful to me as I can set it up in the kitchen and follow instructions as I go. A good online cake decorating class provider will also include notes and materials summarising what you have learnt during the class. So if you are looking for some cake decorating guidance and inspiration dont dismiss the idea of online cake decorating classes instead of the more traditional option. Just check out my Reviews or Google online cake decorating classes.
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Product Review: The Wilton Method Bundle
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Overview
As an alternative to traditional on-site cake decorating classes, Wilton, the respected name in cake decorating, has created a set of four Wilton Method online classes, available through Craftsy. This means you can become a cake decorating pro without leaving your home!
Product description
The Wilton Method classes are instructed by Wilton guru, Beth Somers. They feature videos as well as a virtual classroom, an interactive question panel on the right side of the screen for Beth and other students to comment and answer your questions.
Beth demonstrates the techniques, and then wraps up the class with a demonstration of how the techniques can be used on real cakes.
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________________________________________________________________________________ The classes can be purchased either individually, or all four classes as a bundle. I purchased them as a bundle as it seemed like value for money for a budding cake decorator. The cost was A$73.80 for the following classes:
Baking Basics (A$15.99) I have done a little baking before so most of this class made me a little impatient to get to the good stuff, but would be ideal for a beginner baker. Towards the end of the class though, I did pick up a few new tips on basic filing and icing of a cake for example what a dam and a burp is!
Buttercream Skills (A$26.99) see my blog for the World of Swirls Cake". Decorating with Fondant (A$26.99) - embossing has opened up my world! and Piped Flowers (A$26.99) Name a flower, it will probably be here!
Note that the prices listed above are only a guide and will vary depending on your currency and sales that Craftsy has from time to time. The package started off very basic (with the Baking Basics) and transitioned to some quite challenging decorating techniques (well, challenging at least for me).
Strengths
100% money back guarantee as with all classes offered by Craftsy. I also discovered that Craftsy will honour any sales price if the product you purchased goes on sale within 30 days of the purchase.
Fantastic for beginners, and even moderately experienced cake decorators will pick up new techniques. Beth delivers the content clearly and in an extremely detailed manner, as if assuming you dont come into the class with a background in cake decorating (or baking).
Notes and recipes available in written form for you to download and print. Great support from Beth. I posted two questions on separate occasions and received a response within 48 hours pretty good considering we are on opposite ends of the world in very different time zones! 29
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Each class is broken into Lessons, which are broken into Topics you can skip to, just like a contents page which makes navigating very easy. There is also a 30 second repeat function which is great when you don't grasp something the first time and want to hear it again.
Introduction to tools that I never knew existed, or wondered how they work. Sometimes tools can make or break a cakes success.
You can view the classes on a portable device (I used it on my IPad while baking and decorating). The functionality is slightly less than you would get on your computer. The main thing I notice is the side question panel disappears, although you are still able to post questions, so this didnt really bother me.
Weaknesses
In the Wilton classes (surprise, surprise!) they demonstrate their techniques with Wilton products. Not a bad thing really, just something to be aware of. You certainly dont need to use Wilton products to get value out of the classes.
Some repetition of techniques from watching all four classes, because they are sold separately as well as in a package.
If you purchase the classes as a bundle, you will need a little spare time up your sleeves. Eight or so hours in fact! I told you it was good value for money!
I had one little technical issue although it was easily fixed. At first the video wasn't running smoothly for me. Craftsy's troubleshooting page said to turn the HD mode off at the bottom right of the screen and that worked. Keep this in mind if you have the same problem.
Summary
I do actually practice what I preach! Click here to see my blog on the "World of Swirls" Cake from the Baking Basics and Buttercream Skills classes. I will include a picture of it here anyway
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Overall I thought the Wilton Method classes were fantastic value for money. I now have a few cakes up my sleeve for when the need arises and a multitude of techniques to experiment with. If you are already a cake decorating pro, this is probably not for you. But if you are new to the craft or even at an intermediate level, the Wilton Method classes and a little hands-on practice are all you need. Click here to find out more about the Wilton Method Bundle, or here to browse other cake decorating classes available through Craftsy.
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Product Review: Sugar Ed Productions Sugar Art School
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Overview
As Im writing this, I have just finished an on-site cake decorating course and feel like Im having withdrawals. I decided I had to fill the void somehow. Individual online classes are fantastic although tend to zone in on a particular cake project or technique. I felt I needed something more comprehensive that covered all (or at least most) bases. I also needed value for money as I have spending up a storm on online classes! It had to be something I could do from home, because as great as my on-site course was, it wasnt easy to get to. I loved the human contact I had with my on-site class: the shared excitement that "non cake enthusiasts" just dont get, the insights, the horror stories! So I searched, and I came across a great cake decorating membership website called Sugar Ed Productions Sugar Art School which I will call Sugar Ed Productions for short.
Product Description
Sugar Ed Productions is an online one-stop cake decorating shop. It is owned and run by Sharon Zambito, a self-proclaimed cake maniac and cake decorating celebrity. You may have seen her compete in the Ultimate Cake Off series. Please go to
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________________________________________________________________________________ http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com/products/review-sugar-ed-productions-sugar-art-school/, see the video clip of Sharons audition video. Sugar Ed Productions offer a standard membership (US$100 per year) and a premium membership (US$175 per year). To confirm membership prices, please check the Sugar Ed Productions website at your end in case there is a change in price. The highlights included in both memberships include 12 months' access to:
a library of video tutorials, currently 40+ at time of writing, and viewable on portable devices;
a library of photo tutorials, currently 60+ at the time of writing, and printable; a recipe bank featuring recipes that have been tweaked to perfection by Sharon and her team;
a bank of decorating articles as well as business and marketing articles ideal for a cake decorating business;
member tutorials, photos and recipes from the Sugar Ed Productions "community"; and member forums and the ability to post comments and questions on absolutely anything cake related for Sharon and her team.
The difference between the standard membership and premium membership, is the latter has the added perks of three one-on-one private phone consultations with Sharon per year, and 20% off online shop products. Having one-on-one guidance from a professional and 20% discount off shop products won me over, so I purchased premium membership.
33
________________________________________________________________________________
Strengths
With the premium membership, you get to chat privately to a celebrity cake decorator! Imagine what this could do for your business or career if you work in cake decorating. Even if you are a hobbyist, this would definitely give your cake decorating a boost (and bragging rights).
Outside of these private consultations with Sharon, or if you are happy with the standard membership, you can still post questions and have them answered quickly. So when you need guidance, you will always have someone there to hold your hand. I know this as I have posted questions on two different occasions and received
a response immediately direct from Sharon! She lives in a completely different time zone to me, so maybe she just doesn't sleep!
The website has a community feel to it. Members and instructors are enthusiastic about cake decorating and have a genuine desire to help. You wont find that on YouTube.
Fantastic value for money. Just think, you could pay $40 for a specialised online class which teaches you one technique, or how to decorate one cake, or you could have access to a plethora of cake decorating for under $200 for a year. The tutorials, articles, blog, and forum are based on projects, techniques and tools, business and marketing, food safety issues, trouble shooting and much more! The tutorials are as detailed as they need to be. Im slowly working through the tutorials, but so far, I have seen anything between 5 minutes to 2 hours. It looks like Sharon and her team are madly ramping up their tutorial posting, as 34
________________________________________________________________________________ 13 new video tutorials have been added just in the last month. So over the course of the year, I expect it will only get better.
Sugar Ed Productions has a convenient online shop for Tools specialising in what is required in the materials list for the tutorials. (You can use your 20% off here!)
Weaknesses
The memberships are more costly upfront than individual online classes, although its definitely value for money over the year. The standard membership can be paid monthly ($10 per month).
They have instructional DVDs which they sell separately. The membership fee doesnt buy you those. However they are in DVD format so I guess there are costs associated with producing, storing and shipping them. There is definitely enough material included in your membership to keep you busy if you dont want to spend any more money.
Here is a snapshot of the Metallic Effects on Fondant tutorial, which is amongst many others I have watched. Truly amazing! I will definitely keep that one up my sleeve!
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________________________________________________________________________________ And a great idea for that Christmas cake I promised my family I would make - The Winter Wonderland Cake!
Summary
I am so glad I stumbled across this website as it was exactly what I was looking for. I would recommend it for:
cake decorating hobbyists beginners through to advanced. Some of the tutorials are quite involved, so even if you are a seasoned cake decorator you will learn something new. See the Roast Turkey Cake below.
professional cake decorators - existing, and in the making. There is lots of info on the business and marketing side of cake decorating.as well as the fun practical stuff.
If a membership to Sugar Ed Productions sounds good to you, please click on the membership link to find out more. Sugar Ed Productions also do gift vouchers so keep this in mind for your cake decorating friends and family.
36
Product Review: Cake Topper Techniques - Fondant Animals
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Overview
Ive always been mystified with hand-made figurine cake toppers, especially the caricature animal kind! Childrens eyes light up. Adults eyes light up too! They really are a great way to transform an otherwise bare cake. Wanting to expand my expertise in this area (and needing a break from baking!) I decided to purchase Cake Topper Techniques Fondant Animals. Are they as difficult as they look? I have a blog post on my fondant animal experience coming soon. But for now, I have reviewed the class below.
Product description
The Cake Topper Techniques Fondant Animals class on Craftsy is an online cake decorating class which shows you how to make those cute little animals you see on childrens novelty cakes. The class is led by Sharon Wee and labelled as great for beginners.
37
________________________________________________________________________________ As with all Craftsy classes, it features videos as well as a virtual classroom - an interactive question panel on the right side of the screen for Sharon and other students to comment and answer your questions (see screen capture below).
I purchased the class for A$32.99, although this is just a guide and you will need to check the cost from your end due to currency differences and sales that Craftsy often have. The class consists of a series of mini projects animals. Sharon begins with basic figurines, like a lady bug and bee and gradually progresses to more challenging figurines like a gravity defying pig-in-mud and a pair of love birds! Awwww This is a class where you really need to have the ability to run the video while you are actually making the figurines. The techniques are very detailed and visual in nature and therefore need to be shown to you rather than described in writing, or shown to you only once.
Strengths
100% money back guarantee as with all classes offered by Craftsy. I also discovered that Craftsy will honour any sales price if the product you purchased goes on sale within 30 days of the purchase.
Written notes available for you to download and print. Most importantly to me, how Sharon made up the colours used in the class.
Lots of student and instructor interaction. I found that many of the questions that popped into my head had already been asked by other students and answered by Sharon in the question and answer panel. 38
________________________________________________________________________________
Each class is broken into Lessons, which are broken into projects you can skip to if you only need instructions for a certain figurine. You can go at your own pace. You can use the 30 second repeat feature if you didnt quite catch something, or pause until you are ready for the next step.
You can view the classes on a portable device, which is handy because it means you can set up wherever you want, say the kitchen bench or the coffee table (my favourite).
To get started, you dont need many tools. Most of the moulding is done with your hands. As the figurines become more complex, more tools are needed, although most of these are general household items, for example, skewers and masking tape.
Once you learn the techniques, you can use your imagination and adapt them to other figurines you want to make.
Weaknesses
This class only addresses animal figurines. If you would like to know how to make human figurines, the class for you is Cake Topper Techniques Figure Modelling. (This class is on my wish list too!)
Summary
I found this class mesmerising. I love the fact that while I relaxing in my lounge room, I can create a focal point for an otherwise plain cake. I sincerely recommend this class if you want to add wow factor to your cakes, especially childrens cakes. For more information click Cake Topper Techniques Fondant Animals or click here if you would like to browse other cake decorating classes on Craftsy.
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Thank you for reading the
Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes

Please visit http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com for more cake decorating fun.
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Ebook Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes 1 Feb 2014

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Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes

Learn How To Unleash Your Own Cake Decorating Genius!

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

Happy cake decorating!

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

Chrissies Never-Fail Chocolate Mud Cake

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

________________________________________________________________________________ Chrissies Never-Fail White Cake

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

The Icing On The Cake!

Chrissies Rich Dark Chocolate Ganache

Chrissies Heavenly Cream Cheese Frosting

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

My General Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

Covering A Cake With Fondant - lots of breath holding!

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

My Top 9 Tips On How To Decorate A Cake With Fondant Successfully

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide

How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide

How To Decorate A Cake Using Colour

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide

How To Decorate A Cake With Icing Which Base Do I Use?

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide

Smooth professional finish. Good if you want a pure white icing.

How to Decorate A Cake With Finishes

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate A Cake A Beginners Guide

Happy cake decorating!

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate Cupcakes - A Beginner's Guide

How To Decorate Cupcakes - A Beginner's Guide

How To Decorate Cupcakes With Fondant

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate Cupcakes - A Beginner's Guide

How To Decorate Cupcakes With Piped Tops

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Decorate Cupcakes - A Beginner's Guide

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Make Cake Pops Without A Cake Pop Pan

How To Make Cake Pops Without A Cake Pop Pan

How To Make Cake Pops By Hand

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Make Cake Pops Without A Cake Pop Pan

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

How To Make Cake Pops Without A Cake Pop Pan

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

The Final Result

Beginners Guide To Decorating Fabulous Cakes http://www.howtodecorateacakeonline.com

The Beauty Of Online Cake Decorating Classes