Free The Busy Girls Guide to Cake Decorating by Ruth Clemens Page A

cake you will need two long strips measuring 40 x 3cm (15 3 ⁄ 4 x 1 1 ⁄ 8 in). Carefully lift them, supporting each strip with both hands to prevent it from ripping, and position in place. Each strip should go halfway around the cake. Trim the strips neatly at the back of the cake.
    12 For the bow, make a strip approximately 14 x 3cm (5 1 ⁄ 2 x 1 1 ⁄ 8 in) and mark the edges as before. Flip the strip over so the right side is facing the work surface. Fold each end of the strip in to the centre to create the bow. Lay a small strip over the centre of the bow and secure the ends behind. Apply a dab of water to the back of the bow and secure in position over the join in the strips at the front of the cake.
    13 Dowel the base cake (see Stacking a tiered cake ) and then lift the blue-and-white polka-dot cake into position on top, securing with a little buttercream or royal icing.
    14 Using the 5cm (2in) cutter, cut out seven deep pink circles and cut each in half. Apply a little water to the back of each semi-circle and position around the base of the smaller cake.
    ----
TIP
    Make sure the flat edge of the semi-circles sits down onto the base cake to cover any gaps between the two tiers.
----
    15 Roll 14 balls of white sugarpaste around 1cm ( 3 ⁄ 8 in) in diameter and position between each of the semi-circles. A dab of water on the base will hold them in position.

    16 Trim the edge of the cake board with the white ribbon, securing at the back with a pearl-headed pin.

Butterfly Cascade
Piping a delicate design
    A beautiful cake you really won’t want to cut into. Slow the pace down and relax into creating this beautifully decorated cake.

Get it together…
    30.5cm (12in) square cake, prepared for covering
    35.5cm (14in) square cake board
    30.5cm (12in) square cake card
    Sugarpaste: white
    Edible lustre dust: blue, pink and holographic sparkle
    Royal icing
    Piping (pastry) bags and no. 2 and no. 3 nozzles (tips)
    12mm ( 1 ⁄ 2 in) wide ribbon: pink and turquoise
    Pearl-headed pins
    Basic equipment (see Equipment )
    1 Roll out the white sugarpaste to a 3mm ( 1 ⁄ 8 in) thickness and cover the cake board (see Covering a board with sugarpaste ). Set aside.
    2 Place the cake on the cake card. Roll out some more white sugarpaste to a thickness of 5mm ( 3 ⁄ 16 in) and use to cover the cake. Trim any excess neatly and polish with an icing smoother (see Covering a cake with sugarpaste ). Allow the board and cake to dry out overnight before assembling and decorating.
    ----
TIP
    Setting the cake on a cake card to cover it makes the job a lot easier, the cake can then be transferred to the covered board the following day when the sugarpaste has hardened.
----
    3 Apply a smear of royal icing to the centre of the covered cake board. Lift and position the cake squarely in the centre of the board.
    4 Trace the butterfly template onto a piece of greaseproof (wax) paper (see Templates ). Transfer the butterfly design onto the top of the cake, tracing the outline gently using the end of a paintbrush. The butterflies are clustered around the bottom right-hand corner and become more spaced out the further up the cake they go.

    5 Take a little of each colour lustre dust and place each into a small bowl, with a soft paintbrush for each colour. Begin by dusting with the blue lustre dust to almost fill in each of the wings starting from the centre. Build up the colour from the centre of the butterfly each time to create the graduation.
    ----
TIP
    Tap the majority of the lustre dust off the paintbrush against the side of the bowl before putting it onto the cake, and build up the colour gradually.
----
    6 Add in the pink highlights again from the centre of the butterfly but this time only one-third of the way into each wing.
    7 Once you are happy with the colouring, dust over the entire wing of each butterfly with the holographic sparkle dust.
    8 Fill a piping (pastry) bag fitted with a no. 2 nozzle (tip) with white royal icing. Play around