How to:
Sculpting Petals on Wire
Sculpting petals individually on wires is best when making larger flowers that need movement.
USE THIS TECHNIQUE TO MAKE:
- Hellebores, Iridescent Black cake, page 228
- Bayahibe rose, Dripping Pearls cake, page 237
- Orchids, A White Cake, page 299
- Double tulips, peony, and mini poppies, Vintage Tin cake, page 309
TOOLS:
- cornstarch in a muslin bag for dusting
- silicone rolling pin
- Sugar Paste (page 59)
- petal cutters
- damp tea towel wrapped in plastic wrap (see page 134)
- foam pad
- large and small-medium ball tools
- silicone veining mold
- 24-gauge wire, trimmed to 6-inch lengths
- 1:1 mixture of water and corn syrup
- fruit carton
- white and green floral tape
- medium-size stamens
- powder dyes
- vodka
- paintbrushes
On a cornstarch-dusted nonstick
surface, roll out the sugar paste, rotating evenly, to a thickness
of ¹⁄16
inch. Cut out various sized petal shapes using petal cutters,
setting the petals on a plastic-wrapped tea towel and covering them
while you work.
Working with one petal at a time,
place the petal on a cornstarch-dusted foam pad, and use a large
ball tool to thin out the petal.
Place the thinned petal on a
cornstarch-dusted silicone veining mold and press gently to make an
impression. Gently remove from the mold. Place the veined petal
back on the foam pad and use a small-medium ball tool to ruffle the
edges.
Dip the end of a wire into the
water–corn syrup mixture. Place the wet wire onto the end of the
petal.
Pinch the underside of the petal to
adhere the sugar paste to the wire.
Set the finished petals in a fruit
carton and let dry for 48 hours to 1 week before continuing with
the next step.
To make the flower center, use white
floral tape to secure a bunch of medium-size stamens to a wire. Mix
yellow powder dye with vodka and use a paintbrush to paint the
stamens.
Once the petals have dried, attach
them to the center one at a time, starting with the smallest petals
and ending with the largest, wrapping green floral tape around the
wires. A small flower will take 5 to 8 petals, while a larger
flower will take 12 to 15 petals.
Once all the petals have been
attached, wrap the entire wire with green floral tape.
To finish the flower, use a
paintbrush and powder dye to dry-dust the petals, creating shadows
and highlights on the ruffles and veins.