When cake decorating, I make the modelled figures first as these can be made days or weeks before hand. There’s a plethora of resources to inspire and guide cake decorating pursuits. As with any art, in cake decorating, there’s all manner of techniques involved and the masters of it have practised and refined their skills. I am a mum; making a cake for her children. I’m keeping it simple. Yes, my superhero modelled figures are pudgy. Yes, I’ve mixed the DC and Marvel universes. Are my kids’ favourite characters there? Yes. Can they recognise them? Yes. Then I’ve done what I’ve set out to do. With a few simple ingredients and tools you can too. It really isn’t hard, and it’s so much fun letting your creativity loose.

My basic materials and tools for cake decorating modelled figures include: an assortment of food colouring gel; sugar glue (though you can also just use water to stick the various parts of your models together); small rolling pin; brushes; scalpels; edible ink pens and gum paste. The basic process of making the modelled figures is to knead the gum paste until it is pliable; colour it with food colouring gel; mould it to the shape you require; assemble the various parts of your model together.

Any creature can be shaped out of gum paste. Figures can also shaped out of marzipan, modelling chocolate and fondant. Once you have made one type of figure, many others can be made using the same techniques with only slight colour and detail variations.

Yes, my superhero modelled figures are pudgy. Yes, I’ve mixed the DC and Marvel universes. Yes, my kids loved them. Yes, I’ll be decorating their birthday cakes again next year.

N & M: 4 years
E: 2 years
June 2012

The post Cake Decorating: Superhero Modelled Figures by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

Scrolling through the many wonderful ideas linked up in last weeks’ Kids Co-op made me smile too. It’s not just the creative ideas and stories that impressed me, it’s the generosity of so many people willing to share their stories of how they work, rest and play with their children.

WORK
There are some old-school ideas that have stood the test of time.
Like a Pretty Petunia reminds us of Alphabet Beads.

REST
NurtureStore shares a lovely craft for Mothers’ Day, complete with an anti-paint smudging device.

The Kids’ Co-op is co-hosted by over 60 (and growing) fun kids’ blogs. Add your child-focused link here and we’ll share your idea across all of our child-focused blogs and pin the best to our popular Weekly Kids Co-op Pinterest board (which has over 212,000 followers). You can also follow the Kids Co-op on Facebook.

The post Weekly Kids’ Co-op: Work, Rest & Play by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.