Piano Cake

Buttercream finish and fondant keyboard, with airbrushed gumpaste roses. Design is inspired by mommachris's spiral piano cake. To answer how I did the spiral: I had one ten inch tier and one 8 inch tier. I stacked them, with the smaller tier all the way to one side, and dirty iced them first. I placed a 6" round cake board on the top to use as a guide...to help me visualize where the spiral should start and to help me achieve a round top. I took a toothpick and drew into the frosting where I wanted the spiral to go...along the top and sides. As I carved, I realized I would have to use some of the cake trimmings from the bottom to fill in an area on the top so my spiral would flow smoothly down the side. I was also going to have to trim away some of the 8"cake tier's cake board as well. When I got to the bottom, I trimmed the cake around the back side to make it have a curve around the back of the cake rather than a straight "wall" at the bottom of the spiral. Next, I pieced in cake where needed and stuck it on with icing, and trimmed to the desired shape. Then, I put a second coat of buttercream on it...using every trick in the book to get it smooth!