Cake Ideas 101

Easy Cake Decorating Ideas

food color spray

Cake Ideas – The Finishing Touches

Cake ideas come to life when the finishing touches are put on the cake. Decorating cakes is fun, but what is done to "polish" it with the last little details is what leaves that lasting impression. Once the cake is frosted and decorated with the borders and design on top, little things can be done to make it noticeable – not just a cake on the table. Here are some ideas that can make your decorated cakes look remarkable.

  • Put artificial flowers (or real ones if available) in one or two of the opposite corners of the cake. This will give it a definate 3-D effect. Artificial flowers come in so many colors and kinds that you can let your imagination run wild. Mix and match the kinds and colors to come up with contrasting or complimentary colors to the rest of the cake theme and design. Whether using fake or real flowers, just cut the stem about 1 1/2" long and poke down in the cake in whatever position or angle you desire.

  • Use spray food coloring to add a little color without having to use colored frosting. If there is a certain place you do not want any overspray, cover it up with a sheet of paper while spraying. Start with a light mist and then go over it till you have the shade you want.

  • Sprinkles are a great way to add color to the cake, they come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, colors, and themes, so let your imagination run with that one.
  • Confetti can be used to decorate cakes because there are not only designs available, but also words. People will a lot of times sprinkle confetti on tables for decorations at a party, but it can also be used on the cakes. Just make sure you tell the people when you serve the cake that they will need to pick the confetti off 🙂 . The main timesweI use confetti is around the frosting sheet on a 12×18 or 11×17 cake where you end up with a wide border, that needs something to fill it in. The other time is on sheet cakes on the individual pieces. Below are pictures as an example of both instances, and the first one actually shows how a black and white photo looks when used for the frosting sheet.

  • Small toys and decorations can be placed on the cake that go with the theme. For example, we are from a rural community and a cute idea for a little farm boy is to put a miniature tractor or toy cows or horses on the cake. And what little girl wouldn't like a little princess doll on hers?

These have just been some examples of cakes we have produced for customers. The finishing touches are what gives the cake a personality and character.  Just use your imagination and come up with your own cake ideas. 

Be sure to sign up for our FREE eBook "Cake Decorating: How To Go From Beginner To Expert" by subscribing to our FREE Monthly Bulletin at the top of the right side about decorating cakes, and to receive contest notifications. recipes, and cake ideas.

Cake Ideas – Colored Frosting Tips

Decorating cakes can be done to make them look elegant or simple. One thing that adds to the look is the colors that are used. Sometimes just using white icing to trim out the edges and borders on the cake makes it have that finished look, but does not distract from the main design or decoration. If you do use colored icing, here a few ideas that may help. It is important to remember that the longer the icing sets, the darker the shade it will be. As the air dries it, it will darken somewhat. This little hint needs to be remembered when you run out of a color and need to mix up more. Leave it just a minute shade lighter and it will darken and hopefully match what you had before. One other thing we found out the hard way, that we will mention here since talking about colors changing, is that if you are going to transport cakes in a vehicle for any distance, make sure to cover it up if at all possible. We are not sure if the sun affects all colors, but we do know from experience that purple frosting will turn blue. When transporting our son's wedding cake 75 miles away, the sheet cakes were in the cake boxes with the clear plastic insert in the lid. One of their wedding colors was purple, so we put purple rose buds on the cakes. Where the sun shown in the vehicle, it faded the pretty purple rose buds to a cornflower blue. Where the edges were covered by the cardboard of the box lid, it was fine, but where the plastic was it was no longer their wedding colors. So those cakes got served last!

This sheet cake was one that the flowers changed from lavendar and purple to  shades of blue. And the big one we were really nervous about transporting 75 miles. 🙁 We do keep on hand the basic colors of the Wilton tubes of colored icing. All you have to do is take off the cap and put on a tip and coupler ring designed for that purpose. We have found that if we set the tube in a cup of hot tap water for several minutes that it will make it much easier to squeeze out of the tube. These tubes can be a great time saver if you are needing a small amount of certain  basic colors. Another thing we use occasionally are the cans of food color spray. Both Wilton and Betty Crocker carry these. If you frost the cake with white icing, you can use it like spray paint to change the color of the icing. We generally use it as just a light mist – just enough to give it a little color. This can be a great time saver and it comes in the basic colors of Red, Blue, Yellow, Green, Violet, Pink, Black, and Orange. Colors can make the cake. As with painting a room or a house, it says something about the person the cake is for. Have fun with the colors, and people will be impressed with your decorated cakes. 

Be sure to sign up for our FREE eBook “Cake Decorating: How To Go From Beginner To Expert” by subscribing to our FREE Monthly Bulletin at the top of the right side about decorating cakes, and to receive contest notifications, recipes, and cake ideas.