I have tried and tried and tried to stencil my bc cake (test cake for nov wedding) and no matter what i do, the image will NOT work!

my base is very crusted so i know that's not the problem. I'm using a medium consistency to put the stencil on, BUT i have tried all three consistencies and the stencil still will not show up right!!!!

I'm really, at this point, not looking for perfection bc I know it's buttercream, but this is ridiculous! What am i going to do??

I can't free hand scrolls - too shaky; i can't stencil - dont' know why; i tried sugarveil - cant' get it to dry

can ANYone help me figure out how i can decorate this cake??? she wants it simple, all BC, tiered with fountain/stairs/satellites and she wants roses (which are no problem)......sorry this is so long...can you tell I'm desperate??!!

Since you can't freehand scrolls can you use a scroll imprinter and lightly imprint them onto the sides? Then you can just pipe over them. Or, if you have scrolls on the stencil just put them up against the cake and lightly trace them onto the sides and then pipe over them.
evelyn

what is happening that is not working? Is it bleeding? Is it not sticking? Please be more specific and more people can probably help you.

Your icing may be crusting but is it cold and solid? That extra solidity will allow you to press your stencil harder on the cake and allow cleaner lines.
How are you applying the BC?
Need more info!
Don't worry. Someone will be able to help you!

I might be mistaken, but I thought I had read that royal icing was used for stenciling. Would that get you to where you need to go?

the cake is cold and very solid. holding the stencil on is not a problem and i'm not moving it.

i guess the best way to describe it is that it looks REALLY messy - not just a little bit where i could touch it up, but goopy looking and there's just no dimension to it. i've tried a more med consistency and even a stiffer consistency with no luck.

i would use RI but i'm told that the RI would melt bc of the fat from the butter in the BC. i tried the sugarveil but no luck with it either.

thanks everyone for responding so quickly and being compassionate bc i'm just clueless now.....

dont' use royal icing on buttercream. make sure your cake is very cold and hard when you stencil. It will make is SO much easier. what kind of stencil are you using? and what kind of tool are you using to spread the buttercraem over the stecil?

i'm putting the BC over the stencil so you can't see the stencil at all and smoothing it with a dough scraper (metal) ....

Check out this video:

Maybe you can compare what your are doing with what they are doing and see if your are doing some different cause the design to look messy. Good Luck and HTH

I can't do steciling either so I use home made gum paste and use cutters for the impresstion. The home made gum paste stays flexiable for awhile so you can move it around without breaking. I also use it in my cutting machine.

Yes you can use royal on buttercream. I pipe it directly on SMBC all the time and a custing buttercream would be much safer than that. Try it and see since you are experimenting. I haven't done any stenciling, but maybe you're putting it on too thick?

Hmmm. Goopy looking. I'm thinking you may be putting it on too thick. Are you wanting a flat stenciled look, or do you want it raised a bit? I did a stenciled teapot (in my photos) and it was a raised surface. I just used my regular buttercream to do it and then painted the leaves.

Also, have you considered doing a buttercream transfer instead? That may solve a lot of your problems.

I like stenciling with thinner consistency BC. It should not be runny, but thinner than medium. Maybe try using a small pointed angled spatula when applying the BC, then go back over the stencil again, taking off more BC . I hope this makes since. Again, like everyone has suggested, do this on a cold cake. Best Wishes

Thank you for all of your suggestions......how do you do a BC transfer?????

I'm going to start fresh tomorrow and try this again - change the consistency a bit, etc.

I'll let you know!

check out this video for frozen butter cream transfer:

http://seriouscakes.com/wordpress/?page_id=389

this looks like something that would work only question is can i transfer the frozen BC onto a ROUND cake????? I'm afraid it would just crack in half??

I'm using the designer stencils which are quite intricate....

Here are some FBCT I have done.

http://cakecentral.com/gallery/2031979

http://cakecentral.com/gallery/2031979/2032013

So far this designer stencil for me was intricate:

http://cakecentral.com/gallery/1829787

I have only tried fbct on top of a cake, they work on round as well square, or sheet cakes. Are you planning to use on the side of your cake?

I have lots of experience stenciling buttercream-on-buttercream (look in my photos). It sure sounds like you're using too much icing to stencil with. I use a very small "palate" knife (in Sharon Zambito's videos) and use a light touch (no need to press hard or to have a really cold cake), just must be well-crusted, which you have said it is.

I do not thin my buttercream at all...just plain ole' medium consistency. You mentioned a "dough-scraper"...is that like a bench scraper? If so, I think that's entirely the wrong tool to use. You need to use a much smaller off-set spatula (maybe one with an angled head) or a palate knife like I mentioned earlier, and do small sections at a time.

Hope that helps?

I agree. I use a small palette knife and do not put the bc too thick over the stencil. I use the palette knife to go back over and scrape off any excess before carefully pulling the stencil away from the side of the cake.

I will def try using the offset spatula....the more I read some of these posts, the more I'm thinking the intricacy of the design (from Designer Stencils) or at least some of the tinier openings may not be completely against the crusted cake causing the icing to slip...hmmmmm....I've enlisted my dh to help me hold it down....

Is there a trick or better idea to help hold the stencil against a round side?

i really wanted white on white, but her colors are navy/red - so i tried the stenciling with the navy - HONEST opinions please.....

if you don't think it looks good enough, please let me know.....or advice is always welcome.....or even a plan B

thanks!

lis

for the life of me, what am i doing wrong in attaching pics here??? i attached the pic and submitted, but nothing showed up....i'll have to try again later.......

Hello! To hold your stencil on your cake, you may want to punch a small hole at the top of your stencil, just 2, one on each end. I use sterile corsage pins to hold the stencil on. I usually work at night like an Kebler Elf and there isn't any one conscious in house to help . To post a picture you would have to have a photobucket or flickr account, I think that is the name of the websites, in order to have pictures to show up here on the forums. Otherwise it would have to be added to your pictures. I'm partial to red stencil on white BC with navy accents. Just a thought. HTH

the pin trick is my last option - hahaha before i give up entirely!

i also prefer the red as well but the bride wants to emphasize navy with red accents.....so roses will be red/navy/white......

thanks for the photo tip! i never knew that......

lis

I used the Damask Designer Stencil the other day, although this was brown royal icing on fondant. Is your problem that your BC is getting under the stencil, in between the designs? That was what was happening to me. I ended up having to pick the bits off that were not supposed to be there...I used the very very end of a super sharp exacto knife, so as not to dig in to the fondant too much. Just wondering if your BC is crusting, you may be able to do the same. It's not perfect...but it works in a pinch if nothing else does! At least you get a kind of clean line where it's supposed to be. I bow to those who can do lovely stencilling...

yes, the BC is getting under the tiny detailed holes of the stencil and looking "goopy" underneath.....

the more i think about this, the more i think the white on white is also a part of the problem which is why i attempted using navy stencil on white BC....

i so want to perfect this technique b/c the options are endless - you can get either a dramatic bold look or a dainty elegant look!

i just want to thank all of the cake decorators on here - all of your advice, tips and uplifting comments make this board my very favorite place to visit!

Now that I have been practicing with this stencil and it 'sort of' worked.....I have a question on BC recipe.....

1. Can I use the same BC recipe to stencil AND cover the tiers?

2. Can any of you recommend YOUR fav BC recipes that are:

a. cover the tiers with a very smooth surface
b. not too sweet
c. will crust well for stenciling
d. and can be used for rose making

Is this an unrealistic quest? this is what the bride wants......

I use Sugarshack's recipe. It's fabulous for having a SUPER SMOOTH finish. You do have to follow her instructions or it will not work out that great!

HTH!!