Anyone tell me how to make wired hearts/stars etc for a cake topper? Flower paste, fondant paste, petal paste? Do you thread the wire through the heart or just lay it over and press down?

ive used fondant and gumpaste. they both are similar but gumpaste dries way faster and harder. i've also attached to wires by gluing with candy melts, sticking wires in directly. lots of different ways to skin a cat i think!

i have a couple of pics in my photos that show stars, dots, etc. on wires that might give you an idea.

On this cake I curled the wire around a dowel first, heated the end of the wire with a lighter and inserted it into the stars, notes and monogram. They were 50/50 fondant gumpaste mix. You have to get the wire really hot - like red hot. It worked really well and held amazingly. However, be careful of burning your fingers!

http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1536354

Hi Carolyn, welcome to CC. You will find there are many different ways to get the results you desire. Heating the wire is one way (it melts the fondant around the wire as it is inserted and acts like glue.) However, that is rather labor intensive when making a glue from dissolved gumpaste is so much easier. Simply dissolve gumpaste in warm water until you have a glue-like consistency. As well, you can use that glue on so many other items for the decoration of the cake.

The one common thing you should be hearing is that you insert the wire into the star/heart/ etc. then allow them to dry. Also, there is a better way than simply sticking those wires into the cake --and safer too:

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-632290.html

Hope the info helps.

That's the only time I have used decor on wires, and I had read a lot of complaints about items spinning on the wires. Win is right, the sugar is melted by the hot wire and then sets to it as it cool. I thought the sugar melting onto the wire would be more stable. I'm not opposed to trying it a different way - that's just the first and so far only way I've done it. I'll probably try wrapped wires or just gum glue the next few times so I can find what works best for me.

Also - I stick the part of the wire that will be going into the cake in a cocktail straw filled with royal icing.

Thanks everyone. Will give it a go!

Carolyn

What guage wire do you use? 20 or 24??