Easiest Way To Cut Wooden Dowels.. + A Few Questions!
Decorating By trishalynn0708 Updated 2 Apr 2012 , 5:42pm by kendra_83
I have a 2 tier graduation cake that I need to stack.. This will be my first time having a 2 tier cake so I am need of a little help.. I have small wooden Dowels that I have purchased from walmart. Probably about as round as a pencil and very tall... My questions are..
1. What is the easiest way to cut these so that the end is flat on both sides.
2. how many of these do you think I would need?? Bottom tier is going to be 10 inches
Would you say from the picture in this link that the top tier is 6 inches??
http://www.simplicitydesserts.com/images/gallery/cakes/graduation-cake-lg.jpg
The cake is going to be similar to the one above but different colors and more graduation accents.
3.. When I stack the tier on top, do I wrap the cake board it will be sitting on? Or do I just put the cake on the cake board?
4.. Is it easier to frost the cake and then put it on top of the 10 inch??
Thank you for any help!
1. I use garden pruners (clean/new of course) to cut my dowels. They work great & the ends stay straight.
2. I'd say 3-5 depending on what size top cake you are supporting. I also like to put 1 long center dowel through both cakes for stability, just sharpen one end with a pencil sharpener.
Would you say from the picture in this link that the top tier is 6 inches??
--No, that top cake is definitely not a 6". It looks more like a 10" or an 8".
3. I always cut the board to fit under the top cake so it's not poking out then I wrap it in foil.
4. You can do it either way, but I find frosting it before stacking is much easier. I always frost & smooth my cakes first then stack.
Ok.... Would you say that bottom tier on this cake is 12 inches and an 8 inch cake on top???
As an alternative, you may want to use large drinking straws instead.
If you can find them, bubble tea/milkshake straws are great--I get them at Bed Bath & Beyond, but even McDonald's straws will work.
They're easy to cut with a scissors, super stable (wooden dowels can shift), and you'd only need 4 or 5 to support an 8" tier or 3-4 to support a 6" tier.
I cut 3/16th inch foamcore for my cake boards and then apply a thin coat of soy wax to both sides. If you want to use regular corrugated cardboard cake boards, I suggest putting 2 together, waxed sides on top and bottom. You can use glue dots or tape rolled onto itself to stick them together. No, they don't need to be wrapped with anything.
For the bottom tier, it, too, should be on it's own board--a single cardboard will do--and then placed on the decorative underboard.
Yes, you decorate the top tier while on it's same sized cake board(s). After the bottom tier is iced and the supports are inserted, then you put on the top tier. I like to chill both cakes very well before doing this and I also put some buttercream or royal on top of the supports.
HTH
Rae
Ok.... Would you say that bottom tier on this cake is 12 inches and an 8 inch cake on top???
To me, it looks like a 10" & 8" or a 12" & 10". If it were a 12" & 8" there would be a lot more space on top of the 12".
Straws are def way easier however I found that the wooden dowels I purchased from global sugar art are 100 times easier to cut than the ones you can buy from michaels or walmart. It looks like a 10" & 12" to me. You def want to ice each cake seperately b4 u stack them. You would need 5-6 dowels and theres no need to wrap the cake boards.
When you say that you use straws... Do you mean literally, straws. As in the ones you drink out of??? What I have in mind are the white one's with the red stripes up the side.. Those are sturdy enough to hold cakes up fine?? If so I am getting those! Less expensive than those dowels I can't cut!!! lol
Are they the extra wide ones? Than yes those are fine.
When you say that you use straws... Do you mean literally, straws. As in the ones you drink out of??? What I have in mind are the white one's with the red stripes up the side.. Those are sturdy enough to hold cakes up fine?? If so I am getting those! Less expensive than those dowels I can't cut!!! lol
Yes. With the wider, thicker walled ones, you need fewer of them. If you need to use thinner ones, you need to use more of them.
Think about it--take a 4" length of a straw, place it between the palms of your hands (put something between your palms & the straw or you could get hurt)--vertically, and try to press your hands together. Bet you can't crush the straw, top to bottom. That's the power of the hollow cylinder.
Rae
I have actually found them at Michaels too. I believe they were near the candy making section, so you'll want to look around for them. I was using wooden dowels before but have since changed to the straw type support just for ease of cutting and they're wider, so more support.
I'm so glad to have found this thread; I'm doing a cake tonight and ran out of dowels!! I'm trying straws on this one!! 
But I wanted to add that when I do use dowels, I use some that are pretty thick. I use a new pair of pet nail trimmers to cut them; works like a charm!!! I use the type that you squeeze like pliers made for up to large dogs (like these http://s.petco.com/assets/product_images/0/076681007676C.jpg )
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