Hi there! okay Im a relatively new cake-fiend and this may be a dumb question considering there are some true cake-ologists on this site (lol) but here it goes anyway, is there a difference between gumpaste and fondant?

i've seen both terms being used on this site and im not sure what the difference is. Also, does anyone have really good directions for making a fondant and/or gumpaste bow??

Thanks everyone..i'll look forward to your answers!

There is probably a more detailed description but basically gumpaste dries very hard in a short amount of time and fondant takes forever to dry and you can actually eat it (chewy vs. rock hard)....

Hopefully someone has a better answer than I do!

The "articles" section on the home page has info re how to make a bow.
Both will dry hard (not recommended for eating) but the gumpaste will dry harder and quicker, and is not tasty. Fondant is tasty (unless it's Wilton brand). My high school students eat my fondant bows; I don't.

Karen, thats a pretty good answer. It has to do with the ingredients...gumpaste dries to a hard finish quickly, so you have to model quickly and it holds it's shape better as you do it. Fondant stays soft much longer, and although you have more time to fool around, it won't keep it's shape as well. One trick to find a happy medium is to mix equal parts of both to get a modelling clay that will hold it's shape, but give you time to work it. Cakery bakery, go check out my pictures to see what you can do with each. The teddy bears and trains are fondant, and the bows are gumpaste. Hope this helps.

thanks everyone!!!! im gonna be making a cake with a bow on top and i wasnt sure which one to use! wish me luck!