I'm currently doing my first topsy turvy cake and so far have had 2 attempts at covering and now around 2.5kg of expensive icing in the bin. When smoothing the icing down it's splitting on the top cake edge. I've never had his problem before and am used to covering odd shaped cakes but this just isn't working for me. It's days like these I feel like just packing it all in

How long do you have until the cake needs to be ready? I'm guessing you are using regalice? I hate that icing...

If you can wait and cover it tomorrow I would suggest making Michelle Foster's Fondant. I say wait because you have to let the icing rest and firm up. It is so much better than regalice. You can get the ingredients from any of the big 4 supermarkets.

If you can't wait I would suggest covering it in two pieces, wrap around the sides and a piece on top and then hide the seam with strategically placed decorations... I did that for my topsy turvy.

If you go for the Michelle Foster's recipe, PM me and I will go through it with you just to ensure it works first time.

Forgot to add, if you don't want to make your own, give Asda's own brand sugarpaste a try. In my opinion it is way better than regalice and it is only £2.05/kg.

Hi
I use covapaste. I never normally have any problems with it. I have some supermarket cheapies in the cupboard, I might just get a couple of slabs of that out and see if it's just my icing playig up. I'm getting so frustrated. I've wasted a mountain of icing as I've now had 3 attemptes at covering, all of which have failed. The cake is being picked up in the morning. I have a 1st birthday cake and 24 cupcakes due tomorrow as well. My 2 year old is screaming at me. I just want to quit and go to bed I've managed to get the top tier covered but it's a mess, think I'm going to rip that one off and start again too. I'm going to make aother batch of frosting and put an extra thick layer on in the hope it might stop my icing from splitting. Just feel like crying.

I HIGHLY recommend using the upside down method for icing topsy turvy cakes! You'll be amazed at how fast and easy it is

@ LisaPeps the undercoat

@ jem2131 Truly just the same way that you do a straight sided cake. Larger cake board lined with parchment, spread icing on parchment, place on top of cake (I buttercream it before I cut the middle hole), flip cake upside down onto same cardboard, smooth sides, chill, flip, remove paper, viola! At this point I cut out my center hole, re-buttercream the inside of that, and cover in fondant. Think about how much easier it will be to ice / \\ than \\ / !

Try brushing on a corn syrup mixture just underneath all the top corner edges, all the way around the cake. (Mix about 2 tbsp corn syrup with about 1 or 2 tsp of water, then paint on with a small paint brush/pastry brush) It will help the fondant immediately stick to the edges of the cake where gravity takes its toll on making the fondant stretch. Good luck, I hope this helps!

How did everything go in the end?