I have waded into the cake decorating pool for the first time, and I love it! I'm taking the Wilton Courses, have a book or two, have surfed the net (and this site) for many hours, and have decorated with buttercream, royal, and fondant. Have read about whipped icings, cream cheese icings, IMBC, Swiss, etc. and am in a state of "sophisticated confusion" when it comes to all of it!

So, I'd love your suggestions for a great resource that covers all types of frostings, complete with recipes, do's & don'ts, how long different icings can stay at room temp or frozen, when to best use them, what sort of decorating they are good for, etc...

Does such a resource exist? Thanks in advance!

Boy, that's a toughy. I use favorite recipes from so many different books or websites. The book I use most often for cake, filling and icing recipes would be Alice Medrich's Cocolat. It is out of print but turns up often on eBAY, unfortunately the price has zoomed. I have never had a failure with any recipe in that book and I have tried nearly all of them. You might see if your local library has a copy you could check out.

Thanks, Shirley! I'll check the library- great idea!
It's trial & error & experience for the most part, I guess. But that's why cake decorating is such an ART!

Anyone else have ANY favorite books or resources? Even if they don't include all of the "specifics" I mentioned above? Thanks!