Did you know that you can elegantly decorate a cake with nothing more than a doily and powdered sugar? Yes, you can! This proves that cake decorating ideas do not have to be challenging.

To accomplish this, all you need is a doily and powdered sugar. Doilies are nothing more than pieces of paper with intricate designs cut into them. Circle doilies are best for circle cakes, and square doilies are best for square cakes.

Gather a variety of doilies, available at your local grocery or craft store. If you prefer, you can create your own doilies. You can do this by taking a piece of paper and cutting out whatever pattern, words, or images you want.

Now that you have your doily or handmade paper, place it on the top of a baked, undecorated cake. Next, carefully shake powdered sugar on top of the doily.

If white is too plain for you, then add a touch of color. Get some colored sprinkles and add those to the powdered sugar.

When you are done adding powdered sugar, carefully remove the doily, taking care to not spill any sugar onto the cake.

Viola! You now have an elegantly decorated cake that took less than five minutes (probably three) to create.

Share the fun by getting your children involved. Let them cut out their own designs and shake the powdered sugar onto the cake. True, the results may not be as perfect as yours, but their looks of joy should more than make up for any spilled sugar.

Cakes are a favored method to celebrate just about any occasion in today’s world. Cake decorating ideas can be seen just about anywhere, if you know where to look Even So, not everyone knows how to decorate a cake. Luckily, there is a extensive variety of items and cake pans that will help make decorating them simple.

Before you begin, you will need to know what social function to make your cake for. It would not look good to offer an Elmo birthday cake for a Saint Patrick’s Day party. The good news is, once you know the occasion, the rest is simple.

ANIMALS

You can use an animal pan. Numerous occasions can be represented by an animal. IE, a bunny can symbolize Easter, Christmas can be represented by a deer cake, and a cat cake can be used at Halloween.

Or, you can select from numerous popular character animals for birthday cakes. Presently fashionable animal characters include Blue the dog from Blue’s Clues, Elmo and many of his buddies from Sesame Street, and Boots the monkey and Swiper the fox from Dora the Explorer.

The decorations on the cake can also have animals. Stores carry a large variety of small, plastic animals that you can use to decorate your cakes. This is an an outstanding way to create a zoo setting.

HOLIDAYS

Holidays are forever fun to make cakes for, and you can let your imagination go wild. If nothing else, you can add colored sprinkles. You can add edible heart decoration sprinkles on cakes for Valentine’s Day. Orange and black sprinkles are perfect for Halloween cakes, as are green and red sprinkles for Christmas cakes.

You can use decorative cake pans made in designs appropriate to a particular holiday. Frankenstein, ghosts,, and other monsters can be used for Halloween. Pumpkins are good for both Halloween and Thanksgiving cakes. Turkeys and cornucopias may also be used for Thanksgiving. Hearts and cherub pans are perfect for Valentine’s Day. Bunnies and eggs are just right for Easter. Leprechauns, pots of gold, and rainbows pans are great for Saint Patrick’s Day. All you need to do is find a cake pan or decorative item specific to a holiday and start creating a holiday cake.

VEHICLES

Vehicle cakes are perpetually popular with young boys. There is just something about a moving vehicle that pleases boys. You can create cakes that showcase boats, cars, airplanes, dump trucks, fire engines, helicopters, and tractors. You can place vehicles into the frosting to create scenes with them. You can also add Lego’s people and small building built from Lego’s. Just make sure whatever you use as a decoration the cake will not be damaged by either the frosting or water from washing off the frosting from the vehicle or item.

YOUR OWN IMAGINATION

Do not forget that your own imagination can be just as good, if not better than, manufactured pans and ideas. Chances are you come up with themes that no one else has come op with before. Your local arts and crafts store can be a wonderful place to get ideas and items that you can use for your own ideas.

There is no need to worry that you will not be able to come up with good cake decorating ideas. Do not make the perfect cakes seen at bakeries your goal when decorating cakes. They are sure to be delicious regardless of how they look. Your efforts will certainly be treasured, no matter how they turn out. So, decorate your cake, then sit back and bask in the praise you receive from the people who enjoy the fruits (or, in this case, cakes) of your labor.

For additional cake decorating ideas be sure to visit Cake Decorating Ideas.

If decorating cakes is a new activity for you, then you may be befuddled by the multitude of cake decorating terms. It is possible that these phrases may be intimidating at first, but,, if you take the time to get familiar with them, then you will approach them with confidence. Below are many of the most common cake decorating terms, and their meanings. After you master these terms you will likely be inspired with your owncake decorating ideas.

Airbrushing

Cake airbrushing is a fast means to add a picture or background onto a cake’s surface with food coloring. Airbrushing is accomplished with an artist’s paint gun used with an compression air pump.

Border

A cake border is a continual thread of icing that beautifies the top, sides, and/or bottom edges of a cake.

Buttercream

Buttercream is a rich icing created by mixing either butter or shortening (or both) together withicing sugar, and beaten until smooth. Buttercream is an easy, all-purpose icing that can be used to both cover and decorate a cake

Decorating Bags

Decorating bags are also known as icing bags, frosting bags, or pastry bags. Decorating bags are small, triangular shaped bags that are made of parchment paper, cloth, or plastic. The bags are fitted with ornamenting tips and filled with icing and used to pipe decorative items such as icing flowers, edges, scrollwork, and lacework patterns.

Decorating Tips

Decorating tips are often called decorating nozzles. Decorating tips are used to make decorative details such as basketweave designs, icing flowers, and shell edges. Tips come in different shapes, and are used with an icing or pastry bag that is filled with icing. When the bag is pressed, the icing or cream is piped out in the shape of the tip. Drop flowers are created with a single squeeze of the icing bag, while rose petals are produced with masterful maneuvering of the tip and icing.

Flower Nail

A flower nail is shaped like a nail with an large, oversized head. A flower head is used for piping royal icing and buttercream flowers that are transferred to a cake after drying.

Frosting

Frosting and icing are often flipped for each other. Those in the US tend to use the phrase “frosting” to mean the creamy, sugary substance that covers a cake, while people in other English speaking countries tend to use the term “icing”. In the U.S.A., “frosting” usually refers to the icing that is spread over the cake, while “icing” typicallyrefers to decorative icing, such as piped borders and icing roses.

Fondant

Fondant is also known as sugar paste. Fondant is an frosting sugar dough that can be worked in much the same way as pie dough. Fondant can be rolled into smooth sheets, then draped over cakes, making a smooth, flawless finish. Fondant is very popular for cake decorating ideas.

Ganache

Ganache is a velvety smooth frosting. It is formed by melting either dark or white chocolate, then mixing it with heavy cream.

Gumpaste

Gumpaste is an edible, clay-like dough. It is made by combining glycerin, gum Arabic, and frosting sugar. Gumpaste is used to mold eatable flowers and designs. Gum paste can also be rolled super thin and used to make complex ribbons and lacework, as well as delicate flower petals.

Marzipan

Marzipan is a doughy almond substance. It is created from the very ingredients as almond paste, though marzipan has more sugar, less almonds, and has a smoother consistency. Marzipan is frequently used for modeling cake decorations, and as a base covering underneath fondant.

Piping

Piping is a adorning technique where a decorating bag or tube is filled with icing and fitted with a decorating tip. Piping occurs when the bag issoftly squeezed to make shaped dots and ribbons of frosting toadorn cakes and other baked goods.

Royal Icing

Royal icing is a sweet white frosting that is created by whipping icing sugar with either fresh egg whites or dried egg whites and meringue powder. Royal icing creates distinct icing borders. It is perfect for piping intricate writing, edges, scrollwork, and lacework on cakes. Royal icing dries very hard and preserves indefinitely if stored in a cool, dry place, but is subject to softening and drooping in high humidity.