Dropped Cake Advice Please - Intended For Friends Tonight

Decorating By Jennifer353 Updated 15 Jul 2011 , 11:44am by Sam_paggers

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Jennifer353 Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 8:31am
post #1 of 7

I hope you can help; Ive never posted in cake disasters before but had an accident with a cake this morning.
A really good friend is having a before we have our baby party (they have said its positively not a baby shower because they dont want presents) at the weekend and Im going this evening so made a cake last night. Inspired by one of adelle422s cakes I made it a blue background and put stars and how I wonder what you are around the edge. I was really pleased how it turned out and this morning when I checked to see it had dried ok it was still perfect until I asked my boyfriend to put the tin it was in, in a bag so I could carry it. Im not sure exactly what he did but ultimately he dropped it and now there is a great big crack across the icing on the top and some holes where icing fell off. The pieces that fell on top of the cake I patched back on as best I could and got a new letter o (they are just purchased sugar letters) but some of the icing fell on the floor which obviously I couldnt re-use to patch.

They dont know I am bringing it but I really want to and wanted it to be the best I can (Im still new to this so it was never going to be a master piece and the mum to be cant have butter cream or fondant)

The icing is powdered sugar with water and colouring but I dont have any more made up so matching will be very difficult and the stars are fondant but again I dont have any more that colour.

Anybody have any ideas on what I can do? Giving it to them and saying it used to look much nicer but my boyfriend dropped it, sorry is an option (my boyfriend will be there too) should I do that and not try getting a near match to the existing colour to fill the holes. Anything I can do to try and mend/minimise the crack?

Thanks for any help/advice you can give me, even if its not to trust my boyfriend with a cake again!!

Edited to add link to photo: http://cakecentral.com/gallery/2098278

6 replies
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sharon24 Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 8:49am
post #2 of 7

hi, i would take off all the writing and stars and put another layer of icing on it.

can you get to the supermarket?

I would buy some royal icing mix (they sell at tesco) and mix it up thick and do a bumpy layer on top, it doesnt have to match exactly in colour, a lighter or darker blue will be fine, then put the words back on and cut some more stars from the large yellow ones you take off.

oh - and dont ask the bf to carry cakes again. i usually put my cakes in a cake tin on the lid so the tin itself is upside down, can you get what my dh did? yes turned the tin over - end result one mushed up ruined cake. and he has done this twice now!

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Sam_paggers Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 9:01am
post #3 of 7

i second sharons suggestion and i understand the feeling!

Over 3 days i made royal icing tiaras...i must say my finest attempt and even made a back-up in case of any breakages. Well my bf's only job was to carry the tub with the tiaras )all bubble wrapped) to the car and next thing i know they are smashed all over the road. Gutted but was forced to laugh it off or kill him!
xxx

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afunk Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 10:37am
post #4 of 7

You could remove the letters and make thick white icing to repair the damage and turn them into clouds, and add clouds around the sides of the cake too.
Good luck!!

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Jennifer353 Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 10:50am
post #5 of 7

Thanks for your support and advice. I know these things are accidents but they are annoying when they happen, do you think is it worse when you do something yourself or someone else (read bf/dh!) does it?

Oh Sam I would have wanted to kill him or at the very least scream at him but probably would have gone away on my own for a bit instead!! Sharon, I use an upturned tin too (which is what this cake was in as it happens) but that hasnt happened to me yet at least!

I have more icing sugar and colouring even grabbed it this morning after the incident and put it in a bag to bring with the cake. Looks like I have my lunchtime plans sorted! Im lucky enough to live close enough to work to be able to run home and at least do some of it, the rest I may have to do when I get to my friends since Im going straight after work.

On a side note, a question. Growing up Mammy always used icing sugar and water and referred to it as royal icing as did I until I started using this site, but there is also the royal icing with egg whites in it are both of those royal icing?

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Jennifer353 Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 10:54am
post #6 of 7

I only saw your post after I had posted afunk, thanks for your suggestion. That could look really well and I know others would be able to pull it off perfectly but Im not sure if I could do it well enough. I'll think what I could use and look better at the damage when I get home and go from there.
Thanks

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Sam_paggers Posted 15 Jul 2011 , 11:44am
post #7 of 7

definately worse when someone else makes the damage.... if i do it, i can only be frustrated with myself. In the situation above, we had a very quiet drive to the venue .... although he did buy me take away to say sorry, so not a total loss!!!

Icing sugar with water, as far i have been bought up is 'glaze icing', its not as strong as RI and looks much shinier when dry. RI (becuase of the egg whites) is easier to control, dries harder and makes a fantastic glue icon_smile.gif

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