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Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

After posting photos of a Swirls and Roses 50th Birthday Cake I made recently, I had a few inquiries as to how I had decorated the cake board. This is a simple tutorial which I hope helps you create some beautiful cake boards. Remember your cake board is like the perfect “pair of shoes” to complete your cake and no cake should be presented ‘barefoot’ to any client.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

I first covered my board in white fondant and allowed it to dry overnight. I placed the Crystal Candy Memoir Stencil across the middle of the cake board first and completed the steps that I am about to explain to you. The reason for doing the middle first is that once it has dried you are able to do the sides one after the other with no fear of smudging.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Once the middle section has dried, line up your stencil so as to complete the design on one side of your board and pin to your board. I pinned in an area I knew would be covered by the cake. You could also pin in an area already covered by a swirl to masterfully disguise any pin marks (see the red pin).

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

I chose piping gel to which I had added concentrated black Rolkem powder for this cake board but Crystal Candy Stencils can be used with royal icing or a mixture of royal icing and piping gel as an alternative. I love the ‘phone a friend’ option whenever I am in doubt and as usual Ray from Crystal Candy was ready to give advice. In this case she said I would need to use a very concentrated black piping gel in order to achieve a black stencilled board. I thought mine looked concentrated enough, however you will see that with black you have to mean business when it comes to colouring anything!

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Pop a generous dollop of the piping gel over your stencil and grab your versatile cake scraper.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Pull the gel firmly across the stencil so that all the design areas are covered. Make sure here not to move your stencil in the process as you don’t want any smudges to ruin your beautiful board. Also remember not to go over the stencil onto any completed areas of your board.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Gently hold your stencil in place and remove all the pins. Carefully peel back the stencil away from your cake board and admire your stencil work as it is revealed. Going back to the colour, you will see here that my  black piping gel did not have enough pigment in  it, and it created a dark grey design instead of the inky black I envisioned for my cake design.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

I decided here that it was not a good idea to let tears drop onto my board and there was no time to start my board again so I pulled out my sparkle dusts and found Rolkem’s Raven Sparkles to sprinkle over the wet gel design. This is easier if you do it over a sheet of baking paper as you can tip the board and gently knock any loose dust off the board. Fold the baking paper and then return any extra sparkles to their glittery home.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

I washed my stencil at this stage and hung it over the edge of my counter to dry before using it to repeat these steps on the other side of my board. Ray suggested a feather to dust off the remaining glitter but with no feathered friends to defrock, I used this really soft fan brush. I remember in my first demo by Andries of Rolkem about 5 years ago…..in the days when I used to wander into Jodees not knowing the difference between a concentrate and a sparkle….Andries said he had been given a brush exactly like this one and it proved to be perfect for ‘feather’ dusting.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

This is the stage where if you are an extrovert you will dance and if you are an introvert you will become an extrovert immediately! I am never shy to do this happy dance even though I may get strange looks from my family, as I believe there is no harm in a dash of this happiness  sprinkled over my work!

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Here I have assembled all my decorative elements, including the swirled cake board,for this cake before popping the fondant cake onto it. The final step was ribboning my board with a deep black ribbon which really makes the swirls pop on the board.

Thank you to these amazing suppliers:

Crystal Candy for your amazing collection of stencils…I can’t wait to try out another design!

Rolkem for the Raven Sparkles to my rescue.

Jodees for the edible printed image of a hand I had coloured in for this design.

Crystal Candy Memoir Stencilled Board Tutorial

Please feel free to Like this tutorial or pop a comment if you have any questions regarding any of the products I used.

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Wendy’s Roses Then(2013) & Now(2017)

Wendy's Rose Cake Topper

Even if I had had a crystal ball in 2011, when I started Cupcakes2Delite, I could never have predicted how my friends would become an intricate part in the story of my business. The fun, the learning and the inspiration I have received from them is woven into the history of the writing of this blog.

Wendy's Rose Cake Topper

Wendy celebrated her 50th Birthday in the September of 2013, and she asked me to do her birthday cupcakes with a blue roses theme. I made her cupcakes and as a small gift added a 6 inch cake with a topper of blue & white roses, a butterfly & flowers on embossed sugar paste (pictured below). I blogged the birthday cake and cupcakes in a post Beautiful In Shades of Blue. In 2013, I had very little experience in the art of sugar flowers and didn’t even know what flower paste was. I was really proud of this little work of art though and it meant so much to Wendy that she kept the topper until last year when she asked me if I could redo it for her as it was looking a little sad!

Wendy's 50th Cake & Cupcakes 2013

Wendy’s 50th Cake & Cupcakes 2013

Wendy's Rose Cake Topper

Here is the same topper renewed and upgraded in 2017. I kept the topper to a tiny 5 inch size to fit into the glass display dome (thanks Ivana for spotting the perfect dome…..my friends even know what I am looking for when they are out shopping!)

The reward of seeing the growth in my sugar skills cannot surpass all the years of friendship with Wendy, but how awesome that the years of friendship have inspired the contrast of these 2 sugar pieces. Thank you Wendy for trusting me all those years ago with your birthday cupcakes and for loving something so simple that I had made for you, that you wanted it again to keep for another few years. I am honoured that this tiny rose display in its glass dome will think it is a sugar jewel sitting amidst your precious Swarovski pieces!

Wendy's Rose Cake TopperWendy's Rose Cake TopperWendy's Rose Cake TopperWendy's Rose Cake Topper6Wendy's Rose Cake TopperWendy's Rose Cake TopperWendy's Rose Cake Topper

50th Birthday Cupcakes

50th Birthday Cupcakes

John celebrated his 50th in gold and navy style and Janita ordered these cupcakes for his special day. Simple but fun 50’s and gold pearls specially coloured to match the cupcake holders were quick and easy to do for this celebration.

Janita’s thank you on Monday morning: “Lisa, thank you for John’s lovely and tasty cupcakes. And the photos!”

50th Birthday Cupcakes50th Birthday Cupcakes