How to Make Gum Paste Lace Butterfly

Just got myself a box full of butterfly cutters of different sizes and shapes. So, now I'm having a butterfly craze!

This is the finished product where I dust them with lustre dust using a big blusher sized brush. I call them Spring Butterflies.

Equipments to prepare: rolling pin, flower former, folded paper, dusting pouch, butterfly cutter, tips and white flower stamens.

Tips used are 1, 2, 3, 104, 101, 81 and 97.

Firstly, roll out the gumpaste.

Cut out the butterfly using the cutter.

Dust cornflour or icing sugar on both sides to ensure it is not sticky.

Use various tips to cut out designs.

Fold the butterfly and place them on the folded paper on a flower former.

Mold the body and stick in the feelers. Run blade across the body to make horizontal lines. If you prefer white butterflies, then this is it!

Another variation is the Summer Butterflies below.

Yellow Orchids on a 4-tiered Wedding Cake

This is the outcome from my 20 pieces of yellow moth orchids made from gum paste. Amazing transformation into a 4-tiered wedding cake by Nina from CyberCake.

More pictures of the cake can be found here

Yellow Moth Orchids

Had an order of yellow moth orchid from Sharifah for her wedding in KL. Yep, just the flowers...as the her 4 tiered wedding cake will be done by Nina in KL.

Preparing the orchid throat.

Attaching the throat to the lip.

A whole box of petals to be attached.

The end product.

When flowers are the be transported, it is wise to ensure that the wire stem is taped down onto the container to prevent them from sliding and knocking into each other during the trip. I learned the hard way. :(

Here's a look at my other moth orchid. You will notice I curved the petals out this time. Both varieties are correct, which do you prefer?

A Time to Destress and Get Creative

Have just conducted the second session of Cupcake Class 2 last Saturday. Being a public holiday (Wesak Day) as well, we had as usual a good mix of people...Wilton students like Aishah; first-timers to my class like Theresa and Janice; a friend who runs a fried chicken stall in my regular pasar malam (an entrepreneurial lady, Faizah); Intan Bazian, who is on holiday from Switzerland; and a Japanese student who is also interested in sugar paste flowers (wonder what is the cake decorating scene like in Japan). 

Below are some creative efforts from the class.

An autumn theme basket...one of my favourites.

Thank you everyone for attending. See you all in Cupcake Class 3!

Elyne & Yus

The wedding of Elyne and Yus on 1st of May 2009 at City Hall, Ipoh. Congratulations to the lovely couple on the wedding dais of red and white theme. Everything is in red and white, including the attire of the bride and groom's family.

A 12" and 8" two-tiered chocolate moist wedding cake with blueberry buttercream filling, covered with fondant and gum paste roses and swirl designs in royal icing. 

A set of "hantaran" cupcakes from the bride.

A wedding gift of jewelery box made from gumpaste as a keepsake for the couple.

A Rose Obsession

The latest book by Alan Dunn, The Wedding Cake Decorator's Bible (2009), a good value for money and definately going to be one of the most refered to in my collection. Twenty three decorating techniques are shown including some rarely heard of like Battenburg lace, using gelatine for cut-outs and flowers as well as cocoa painting.  

There is one section dedicated to sugar flowers which shows 5 types of flowers, 3 types of foliage, and 2 types of "filler" flowers. Dusting methods are also in detail. Above is one of the 3 types of rose shown in the book. This is known as Formal Rose. The other 2 is Open Rose (as shown on book cover) and Modelled Rose.

My attempt at the Formal rose. It is the half rose stage...another step (10 steps altogether as listed in book) before reaching full rose stage.

Frangipani...A Wedding Flower?

Frangipani...a common flower in Malaysia, known to produce a wonderful scent, is also known as Plumeria rubra. It is a tropical flower, native to Mexico, Central America, Southern India, Venezuela and is the national flower of Nicaragua and Laos.

According to Wikipidia, the flowers have no nectar and are most fragrant at night and possesses poisonous, milky sap. Its colour ranges from white with a yellow centre to pink and blood red.

In several Pacific islands, frangipani is used for making leis and indicate relationship status, whereas in Malay folklore, it is associated with ghosts and demons (pontianak) and is known as graveyard flower, as per discussion in forum here.

Elsewhere, it has been a wedding favourite and is also a popular flower used in cake decorations.

I found this rare frangipani in front of a shoplot near my house. This is the second time I've seen this plant in front of shops. Guess it is now a decorative plant with feng shui purposes. 

A close-up of the flower. Compared to the white species, its petals are not as thick.