Fondant troubles...

I'm a fondant beginner so, I understand your struggles...

I don't have much advice about the stretching/working the bottoms of your cakes. But, for the short term have you considered trying to roll a piece around the sides and then a separate piece on the top? I've seen this before & it looks really sharp if done right. You could always trim with an exacto knife if you need to.

As far as getting the fondant to stick...I've heard a light mist of water works. BUTTTTT, like I said - I'm a beginner. Oh - I also learned that ganache on a cake...under fondant allows for super sharp edges when you lay fondant the normal way.

I hope you get some real help. Good Luck.

The best way is just practice! I'm a relative newbie too although have done quite a few fondant covered and tiered cakes now. You certainly get to know the 'tricks' ' the more you do it. Round cakes are usually easier to cover than square so start with perfecting these. Also, putting your cake onto a turn table if you haven't already can help too. Maybe invest in a couple of cake dummies so you can practice covering these - I prefer to do real cake though. Ganache does give nice sharp edges but you can get a good finish with buttercream under fondant too. There are some good clips on YouTube that show you how to get a good finish using two cake smoothers to get nice, clean edges too. Good luck

Practice, practice, practice. I know it's hard, it took me forever to learn how to do it properly and to be honest I sometimes still have trouble but the more you do it the easier and more professional it will look.

good luck!

When using a buttercream base I don't let it crust before applying the fondant. I kneed and get my fondant ready, then coat the cake with the buttercream, then roll out and apply the fondant straight away.

I live in a very warm area but still use ganache coating very regularly you just have to adjust the recipe to the temperature/humidity and make a farily stiff ganache (eg. in the middle of our hot humid summer I use a 2.5:1 choc:cream ratio, and winter this can come down to 13.8:1 ) which is warmed very slightly in the microwave to a nice texture for applying to the cake.

Regarding getting the fondant on the cake without folds and bunches around the bottom, as everyone says this really is just a matter of practice. However, I always find it is much easier to avoid this if you ensure you have rolled out enough icing so that when you put it over the cake it comes down well past the sides - not just to the bottom. I have my cake on a turntable and lean over working on the far side of the cake, gently tease and turn out the excess fondant out so that it horizontal (as in lying flat across the cake board) before pressing the bottom edge gently onto the and then slowly turn the cake continuing to tease and turn out the bottom edge of the fondant and press the fondant to the sides of the cake once you can see it is sitting well with no folds.

I hope that makes sense.

Enjoy all your cakes and your practice, and remember you will always see the flaws no matter how experienced you get!! I know I do.

Practice, practice, practice is the key...Always roll fondant out few more inches from cake so you can work out those edges on bottom..I learned that works really good and takes that away..Mist bottom edge with water or put a very thin layer of piping gel on bottom edge for sticking to cake.

I've been doing this for years now and will always see flaws no matter what. Others don't see it and that is a good feeling,,but like stated before,,you will always see flaws somewhere.

Good luck!

......use a crusting buttercream if the cake is going to be in a warm place, and I'm having trouble getting the icing to stick to the cake...

As has been said, do NOT let your b'cream crust before applying the fondant over it. You want a creamy b'cream (rather than stiff, dry) so you might want to increase the fat - not the liquid to thin it.

Re: fondant not smoothing.........has you tried elevating the cake? If you put it on something so it is off the table, the fondant will naturally hang straight down w/o wrinkles. You need to have a slightly thicker fondant so it does not pull down & tear but many have found this method works...oh, and you need to work fast to cut off any overhang that is below the cake board.

If I may....I don't want to hijack...but:

(1) If you put the fondant on before the BC crusts do you compromise the sharp top edge?

(2) Is the logic that you can sort of reshape that top edge with the two fondant smoother method?

(3) Maybe I'm confused...I just assumed you applied buttercream in the same amounts & methods as if you were leaving it JUST buttercream. Let it get set..chill so the butter in the buttercream firms up - NOW, apply fondant with a water mist. Is this right at all?

There are honestly many ways to fondant cover a cake. If you are wanting a fairly thick layer of buttercream coating on the cake under your fondant, then yes you definitely need that to firm up before applying the fondant, which will of course mean it will crust and it would need spraying. If you use this method you don't want to work the fondant too much when smoothing because buttercream doesn't firm up that much and can "smoosh" around a bit if you have a heavy hand.

Personally I only apply a fairly thin coating of buttercream. I have a sharp top edge as I use the cake upside down, and I apply my fondant immediately after coating the cake.

There isn't one right method, if your cake looks good and tastes good - then I'd say your method is just fine!

Thanks for the reply. So, I'll try it both ways. Maybe one way will work out better - !

I would highly recommend watching Sweetwise's fondant video online. She shows you how to cover a cake in fondant quickly & very smooth. I also use "The Mat" to roll out my fondant which helps tremendously! I use a crusting BC & also flash freeze my cake for about 10-15 mintues so my BC won't smoosh under my fondant. I usually don't even need to spray my cake to make the fondant stick, I just start smoothing with my warm hands & it will start to stick. Just like the other posts said, Practice, Practice, Practice! I used to dread covering my cakes in fondant & now I prefer it over BC.

thanks for the video tip...will do.

You might also want to ask your clients if they want the sharp edge or a rounder one. When I check with my wedding clients 9 out of 10 do NOT want a sharp edge on the fondant. That might be something regional or it might be that we decorators think that the sharp edge is more appealing than "normal" people do.

Oh boy - I just figured sharp edge = neat execution. Interesting. I'd like to be able to try some different decorating techniques is all. It seems some things are easier with fondant as a base.

I'm searching for my decorating style, now that I feel I'm closing in on the smooth buttercream stage.

Thanks for the info - and thanks to the op. That 1/2 way down IS in fact the turning point. I guess it's just practice...I'm right beside ya in that same boat!