I made a sheet cake thinking it would be easy...NOT....Had the worst time with getting the corners to look like corners and not rounded...What is the trick to this??? I posted my pic of the sheet cake...and I think it looks unprofessional..could you give me some advice? TIA

Think your cake looks very acceptable, you're really being hard on yourself.

However, I was able to find an article on how to frost square cakes:

http://www.cakecentral.com/article51-How-To-Frost-a-Square-Cake.html?osCsid=2f35cd03a65ab935e341dda3ad407d21

HTH

Let me just say, WOW! I was just browsing thru your gallery, HAD to see the horrible corners for myself, and do you know what, I couldn't find them!!! Your sheet cake looks just fine.

I noticed that you do mostly round cakes, and that may be why you are finding so much fault with your sheet cake! It is out of your "comfort zone". I find that I have less confidence, when I am working on things that are unfamiliar to me. But, I also find that it a great confidence builder to try new things are learn new techniques!

You have some really cute cakes in there! I especially liked the school bus and your gingerbread house! They look great, I left you comments!

I haven't made a gingerbread house in 15 yrs, but it makes me want to try again this year with my kids! May have to bake a whole little gingerbread village so my daughter, son and I can all make one! Thanks for the inspiration!

I think your corners look great. If you just have a regular wilton sheet pan though you won't get the really square corners because the pan doesn't. You can buy the pans with the really sqaure corners if you want that look. HTH

I thought your corners looked pretty good myself! I find adding enough icing to the corners is the biggest trick, then going back and "squaring" them off with my spakling tool. (If you don't have a spakling tool just use your icing spatula.)

It's hard to explain but when trying to square them, I start from the outside and come across towards the center of each side/end. does that make any sense?
HTH j

I so have had the same problem and like you so thought a sheet would be easy !!....not !!

anyway I fussed and fussed and used a hot spatula to shape with extra frosting -they came out ok but not great..

I think that 1. the cake pan does matter a lot and too like gmcakes said it is out of my comfort zone and I need practice practice practice


p.s.-I think your cake looks great!!

Sorry, I took for granted that you didn't use a pan with square corners. This happend to me on my sheet cake. So, I just assumed you were in the same boat. I was going to try and fix mine with extra icing. But, was making it for people who didn't like a whole ton of icing.
I had to check out your gingerbread house after gmcakes mentioned it. Very cute! I'm kind of scared to try that. You did a great job.

It doesn't take very much extra icing on the corners to put a square to it, even for those who do not like "a whole ton of frosting".

My pans all have that "rounded corner" look and I fought with it while learning, but eventually got it. OCD? maybe

Ya, OCD but you also have TONS of TALENT & PATIENCE!!

Ya I would love to watch her!

wgoat55: I put this together to give you an idea of how I do the corners and it doesn't take all that much icing.

Sweetpeeps, watch carefully and see if this makes sense.

(This may take a while as I'm posting several pics)

Hold the blade of whatever you are using so you can pull it towards yourself. (if that is comfortable to you)

these posted out of step but you get the idea! I may be pretty good at square corners but adding attachments isn't my best!! LOL!

It's pretty much the same on the opposite side of the corner but going away from you. (if that is comfortable to you)

Well, it may be old news for some of those who can do the corners well, but for those who are having problems I hope this helps some what.

Joann

I'll add this one as well to show from the same angle as the pic of the pan.

That's so awesome. I guess I assumed you had to really build it up. You make it look like magic! Now that I know it's possible to do with rounded corners I'll try try again.
Thanks!!

I didn't get a reply to my post in my email!!! UGHHH...Thanks a lot guys, all the info really helps!! I guess we are our worst critics, I am delivering my cake this morning when I drop off kids...I hope they like it. I have been looking for pans with square edges, yes mine are rounded...I guess I need to just pony up more money and buy the better ones. Thanks JScakes I printed out your tutorial . It looks simple enough but I bet it isn't. I decided to do a monthly Bday cake thing for school to get more practice..Thinking I will do all sheet just to get more practice with them. I find them difficult because (not only the corners) but you have to really think about placement of the decorations. I want my cakes to look like professionals have done it I don't want them to look like I just threw them together, because in all honesty no matter what they turn out to look like I have taken my time and my patience to try to make them look their best...and it takes me hours to do anything that might look presentable. I baked my sheet cake in the morning....afternoon I leveled it.....around 6 I crumb coated and around 10 I started to decorate..ended up till 4 am and I couldn't believe how long it took. The leaves all had to be filled..crust over...smoothed and then I pipped outlines...Sheesh..I hope it does get faster...Have you ever noticed though that through halfway being done with your cake you really don't think they are looking good at all...and then at the end it kind of hits ya...it doesn't look that bad at all? Well I think with my sheet cake I didn't like the look of it for the first few hours...now I really don't think I did such a bad job. I took my time and used the skills that I know at my level. Thats all ya can do right? Practice Practice Practice. Thanks all for the nice comments and help!
Christi

Very well said gmcakes!

It's amazing how quick you learn short cuts and can soon put a cake out in fairly good time!

Now I'll have to look for a bench scraper, I do have the 2 sizes of "wall paper smoother thingies" from the hardware store that I use for the tops of the larger sheet cakes.

Joann

Yep, and I recently bought a 12" metal paint edger for the tops of larger sheet cakes!!!

Now that's smart gmcakes! I never thought of that! Talk about making it more easy for sure!

I kind of feel like I'm cheating when I use it, but oh! my does it work like a dream!

My full sheets (2, 12x18" cakes iced together on 1 board) used to take me forever to get smooth, and I was always very frustrated. Now just a few swipes with that big blade and I'm done!

[ps. Way to go TC, I am so proud of your weight loss on your "Ticker"! Keep up the good work!]

Thanks gmcakes! I appreciate that~

Thanks for your tip too! We can all benefit from that. It takes me forever to smooth a cake. I hate it! I think it's because I'm a perfectionist... it's gotta be perfect.. I mess with it & then mess it up.. then have to start over again. Go figure!

Ya'll have a nice day~ Gotta go back to work~

You guys haven't heard about the paint roller for smoothing that one of the members wrote about. Go to the forum and find I think it is I share because I care.

Kathy

It just occered to me that some of you may not know what I am referring to as a "bench knife" or "paint edger"...see picture below!

It is in Cake decorating section the Melvira Method
I had to go back and check sorry.

Kathy

I am going to the paint store and get mine today.

It is in Cake decorating section the Melvira Method
I had to go back and check sorry.

Kathy

I am going to the paint store and get mine today.

I can honestly say Thank you sooooo much for helping me with your comments. I love decorating these cakes so much but sometimes you get so frustrated with inexperience ya just wanna throw in the towel. Watching CC keeps ya from wanting to throw it in. Thanks so much for the help and thanks for being kind enough to offer your tips and time.
Christi
Now off to get a bench scraper and a wall spackler LOL

I haven't read all your responses, but wanted to say that you could always cover up the corners with a shell border. Plenty of people do that. Also I wonder if hte paint roller would help with that too. I havne't tried it yet, but I usually end up with finger marks in a cake somewhere using the Viva method, so I bet the paint roller would help avoid that.

But I think your sheet cake looks good!!

Unfortunately paint roller doesn't help with corners....But I like the edger idea..that is what I meant to say when I was going to buy a spackler LOL...I mean an EDGER lol...thanks again CC'ers

gmcakes!!! That is what I've been using for a long time now, just bought the longer one and it's so nice!!! LOL! I love the hardware section for my cake decoratin!! Now I do have to get a bench scraper for sure, might be easier to handle.

I love all the tips posted by everyone, it really helps everyone! THANK YOU!