Whether you're looking for a fresh way to accent a cake or searching for that perfect cupcake topper, this tutorial teaches you how to create a beautiful, lifelike gumpaste dandelion flower and accompanying leaves.

Gumpaste Dandelion Materials:

Ball tool
CelBoard
CelStick
Cutters, The Daisy Collection by FMM
Floral tape
Floral wire, 22 gauge
Gumglue
Gumpaste storage board
Gumpaste, yellow and green
Homemade dandelion leaf veiner, made from food-safe clay
Needle-nose pliers
Petal dust, various shades of green
Pizza cutter
Shell tool
Toothpick
Veining tool

1. For the inner part of the dandelion,  roll a small cylinder with an inverted cone shape, with a looped wire inserted in the pointed end. Slightly indent the top of the inverted cone. Mark vertical grooves along the center with a toothpick. Refer to the photo of a real dandelion center for reference.

Subsequently roll out a thin strip of gumpaste the same height as the center cone and cut very fine strips, to make fringed edges. Then sugar glue the fringe around the center cone and arrange the fringe.  At this point, you should have a bud.

2. Lop off the outer ends with the shell tool.

3. Ruffle each petal with a toothpick to give a slight tubular shape to the petals.

4. After the inner part has dried, the individual petal wreaths can be attached. Cut out daisy petals and vein with the veining tool, rolling side to side on each petal.

Poke the wire through the center of the petals, adding 4 or 5 rows of petals, graduating in size.

5. Either hang to dry or place in a glass that's covered with aluminum foil formed into the desired shape. Punch a small hole into the center of the foil to hang the wire through. 

6. After the flower has dried, roll a small cone out of green paste and string it onto the wire taking care to carefully affix it to the underside of the flower.  Once again, make a fringed strip of green gumpaste using the pizza cutter and glue it around the small cone. Wrap the wire stem thickly with florist tape. Finally, cut a calyx from thin green paste, thread and glue it at the base.

The Leaves

1. Make your own leaf veiner; this leaf veiner was made from food-safe clay.

2. Roll green gumpaste over the groove in the CelBoard. Cut the leaf shape with a pizza cutter. Push wire into the groove made from the CelBoard, and make the veining impression using the homemade veiner.

3. Then, fold the leaf with the help of a skewer, putting it lengthwise in the center. Bend the inner wire slightly to shape the leaf and allow it to dry resting on crumpled aluminum foil.

4. After drying, paint the leaves with petal dust. Mix green with white and yellow dust, and highlight down the center with white.