Sunday Sweets: Fun and Fondant Free

Believe it or not, you CAN have a gorgeous cake without fondant! And I have proof!

(By The White Flower Cake Shoppe)

Glass-smooth icing, perfect piping, and buttery soft flowers that make you want to dive in face-first?

YES PLEASE.

 

A bunch of today's Sweets will have you doing double-takes:

(By Cup A Dee Cakes)

At first glance, you'd swear this was fondant! Other than the white chocolate centers on the ruffles, though, that's all buttercream.

 

It doesn't have to be fondant-smooth to be a stellar Sweet, though; some bakers actually use the buttercream texture to their advantage:

(By Queen of Hearts Couture Cakes)

Aha! Edible paints! Brilliant.

 

Or how about something like this?

(By Fat Cakes Design)

Love that ombre fade! And imagine how boring it would be without the extra icing texture.

 

I bet you've seen this technique over on Pinterest:

(By Catherine, a friend of CW reader Melissa M.)

SO FUN. And even better, it's actually something we mere mortals can do!
(In a nut shell: Pipe a large dot, smear with a spoon, repeat!)

 

But supposing you DO want the smooth look of fondant.
It can be done!

(Baker unknown. Anyone recognize it?)

That gumpaste ribbon really helps sell the look.

 

Oooh, now this next one made me do a triple-take:

(By Shannon Bond Cake Design)

 

How is that all buttercream?? And how the heck did they pipe that ruffly tier? I'd be dragging my wrist through it by the second line!

 

And another mind-bogglingly intricate piping job:

(Photo by Jay Tsai Photography, baker unknown.)

Just looking at all that lace is giving my hand sympathy pains. WOW. Can you imagine?

 

Now, personally, I'm a big fan of excessive frilliness from time to time:

(By Linda Wolff)

Ahhhhh. Love it.

 

But there's also a lot to be said for bold, modern patterns:

(By Tea Party Cakes)

Not to mention poppies are my favorite flower - so brush-embroidered poppies? Suh-WEET!

 

This baby shower cake has it all: flowers, dots, perfect pattern piping, and even stripes!

(Also by The White Flower Cake Shoppe)

Plus I love those colors. So springy.

 

And finally, a stunning combination of buttercream flowers, brush embroidery, and what I think is a cornelli lace variation:

(By Emma Page Cakes)

The background pattern reminds me of the subtle crackle/glazing you see on fine china. SO PRETTY!

 

Hope you guys enjoyed today's fondant-free fancies! Happy Sunday!

*****

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