so i assume all the cakes designed like this are with molds? i love the detail, and have come across some very un-userfriendly molds. does anyone have any advice as to a good brand of molds with this design, or close to this design. tia

Nope, no molds.

The damask patterns are either stenciled using royal icing or BC (or you could use printed edible images) and the scroll pattern is done using scroll cutters with fondant or gum paste.

Rae

They kind of look like the edible images I found on countrykitchensweetart.com

Here's a pic

....... patterns are ... stenciled .......
..........look like the edible images .........

That cake could be done using either of these ^^^ techniques.

Yeah. I've seen these stencils on eBay!

This is Martha Stewarts Damask cake set on Designer Stencils @ designerstencils.com. Their stencils are amazing but costly IMHO.


http://www.designerstencils.com/Martha-Stewarts-Damask-Cake-5-tier-Set-P12607C104_SKU_C406.aspx

so you stensil with an air brush?

You can airbrush with them, but it's really an art to do it cleanly & well on the vertical sides of a round cake--consider all of the masking necessary to avoid overspray, trying to match up patterns, etc.............much easier on a flat surface.

For those round cakes, again, much more likely to have been done with royal icing or buttercream.

Rae

I have used them with RI on fondant. I have considered airbrushing them, but I never have time to do it on a test cake, one day I'll get brave and "just Do it" LOL Stencils require 2 people IMHO one to hold and one to spread. There are youtube videos that show you how. Although, Designer Stencils has come out with a tape & clip system that supposedly allows you to do them alone, but I cannot see how that will work since the tape will run through your previously stenciled designs.