How to make a flower fairy cake topper

By
Janice Friedman
79

Fairy cake topper

This little sweet flower fairy is made using some of the same techniques, I have used for the teddy bear cake topper. She is just about 3″ tall but can be made smaller if you want to place her on a cupcake, like I have done here:

This is what I use:
Rolled fondant, alternative use gum paste
Tylo powder (Tylose powder, Tylopur, Gum tragacanth & Gum tex can be used)
Butterfly cutter for the fairy wings. The one that I have used here is from Sugar Delites
Cocktail sticks
Half moon tool or just use the end of a drinking straw
Bulbous cone (PME) or another tool with a pointy end
Nesting flower cutters for the fairy dress
Small calyx cutter for the flower hat. A small 5 petal flower can also be used
Edible glue + small brush (see how you can make your own glue)
Food gel paste colors in the colors you want for your fairy
Brown food gel color for the facial features. You can use another eye color if you like
White & pink petal dust + a few drops of either clear alcohol or lemon extract
Super fine brushes
Soft brush to blend in the pink dust on her cheeks.
Glitter dust for the fairy wings
Cornstarch (to prevent sticky hands while working with the fondant)
A little bit of Crisco, if the fondant starts to dry
A little cup or a round cookie cutter with foil to hold the head while you paint the facial features
Flower foam pad + ball tool
Small non stick knife
Cotton sticks
Small plate to mix colors on

How to get the skin color for the body parts:
I have never liked the “skin colors” that you can buy ready to use. So, I usually mix them myself. For this light skin color I have mixed very small amounts of Ivory and Pink into the fondant.

Tools for the face:
Here you can see the tools that I use for the face

Remember that every body part starts out with a smooth ball

Step 1:
Take a golf ball sized amount of skin colored fondant and knead your fondant with Tylo powder (1/4-1/2 tsp) Shape the fondant into a slim cone shape. Insert a cocktail stick in the top and set aside.

Step 2:
Take some more “skin” fondant add 1/4 tsp of Tylo powder. Roll out a 2 1/2″ long sausage. Cut it in two and mold a little foot (Same way as for the Teddy Bear) Remember to check if they are right in size for the fairy body. Glue the legs on at the front of the body using edible glue. Set a side to dry.


Step 3:
Determine what size you want for the wings. Then take some white fondant with Tylo powder and roll it out thinly (2-3mm) Cut out 3 butterflies (in case of breakage) Cut them in two and brush them with some glitter dust and set a side to dry completely.

Step 4:
Have your cup covered with foil ready for the head. Take the amount of “skin” fondant that you find right for the head size and again add a little Tylo powder (If you have any leftover “skin” fondant with Tylo powder from the previous two steps? Then use this) Roll and shape a little head for the fairy. Place the head in the “cup holder” and use the cocktail stick to mark out in the center of the head for the nose. Next take a pointy tool and make holes for the eyes. Then take the 1/2 moon tool and use it for the mouth. Roll two tiny balls of white fondant and attach the eyes with a little glue. Flatten the eyes a bit. Make another tiny ball of “skin” fondant for the nose, fix with a little glue. Let the fondant (head) dry for 30 mins before you start to paint the facial features. In the meantime you can color the fondant for the flower dress (just use plain fondant, no Tylo).

Step 5:
Now it is time to paint the facial features. I like to have a piece of fondant to remove excess paint from the brush but also to make sure that the color is not too strong when I want to paint. It takes a steady hand but it really helps when the head is resting in the foil holder. Mix a little brown gel color with few drops of clear alcohol and with the super fine brush paint the eyes, lashes and brows. Mix some white petal dust & alcohol and paint a white sparkle in each eye. Make some rosy cheeks with a soft brush and pink colored petal dust. Attach the head to the body with a little glue. Let the fairy dry overnight.
TIP! If you should not be happy with what you have painted? Then you can carefully remove the paint by gently rubbing a cotton stick, moisten, not too wet, with clear alcohol. Use a new cotton stick when the other one is dirty. Take a clean soft brush and brush a little corn starch on the spot that you have cleaned with the clear alcohol. Brush away any excess corn starch. Rub a little bit of Crisco if there are any trace of corn starch afterwards. You can then paint the face again.


Step 6:
You can use different nesting flower petal cutters to make the dress. For the two first rows of petals you should be using the same size of petals and a smaller one for the last row. If you like you can thin and frill the petals using a flower foam pad and a ball tool. Brush a little glue on the back of the petals and attach them all the way around the body.


Step 7:
When you have added three rows of petals it is time to make the arms. Take some “skin” fondant with Tylo. Roll a thin sausage and cut a diagonal cut. Form the arms and cut a little thumb too. Attach with glue. Then cut out two flower petals in the same size you used for the last row on the dress. Glue them on top of the arms as sleeves.



Step 8:
Take some plain fondant in the color you want for the hair and roll small strings of hair in the palm of your hand. Brush a little glue on the head and attach the hair. Remember that the flower hat will cover most of the hair.


Step 9:
When the hair is done cut out more flower petals (I have used the large sized cutter that I used for the first two rows for the dress) Glue on the flower petals as shown on the photo.


Step 10:
Cut out a little green 5 petal flower and glue it on the hat. Make a hole in the middle and add a little bit of glue. Make a little green flower stem and attach it into the hole.


Step 11:
All you need now, is to give your little fairy a pair of wings. Brush the wings with a little glue and carefully press them into the back of the fairy. Let your little fairy dry over night or even better for a couple of days. Before you place her on your cake.

Happy Caking!

Louise

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79 COMMENTS

  5. She’s beautiful. Can I ask as new to this.. Is she edible with the tylo powder?? Also how much fondant is needed for a 3inch Fairy????

  6. I love the fairy cake topper & maybe in the future it would be great if for each
    Project all the supplies could be sold as a package.

  7. I just completed my first try at your fairy topper, looks great, although a bit more practice needed. Thanks, my little girls love it!!

  13. As a first timer your explanations are absolutely fantastic. Everything is explained so simply and each step beautifully photographed which makes everything seem much simpler. Many many thanks, can´t wait to get started and will definately be using this site very very often

  14. the flower fairy cake topper is so cute i love how you made it in this beauty you are the best backer i ever know

    thank you for this beautiful fairy

  23. OMG .. you are amazing !! Can you please tell me if we can use the fondant recipe you gave for these ? Also.. what is tylo? Can we work without it?

    • You can use the mmf but I would recommend that you use gum paste or store bought fondant. If you use GP you would not need to add Tylo but you would if using fondant. Tylo powder is a gum agent that helps fondant to thicken, keep it’s shape and dry fast. It can be difficult to make figurines using only mmf or fondant.

  25. This is so great! I always wondered how the cake decorators made the little figurines look so flawless. Your work is wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing.

  27. Thank you sooo much for your tutorials sharing your talents. Tried this one twice and loved the outcome. Could you please come up with a Cinderella carriage cake topper?

  35. es precioso, cada tutorial que pones me gusta mas que el anterior, en este te has superado, muchas gracias por compartir

  43. Thanks so much for sharing Louise
    What is Tylo powder
    I usually make my own gum paste but have no idea what Tylo powder is and what it is used for
    I live in Australia is it called something else over here?

    • It’s a gum agent that hardens/thicken the fondant. It is used when making gum paste.

      Other names for it:
      Tylose powder, Tylopur, Gum Tragacanth, Gum Tex

  50. This is so cute. There are some of the items used that I am not familiar with. For the alcohol I am assuming you use something like vodka, but not sure where to get edible glue and also Tylo? Any hints where to get those items would be great! She is so cute I want to make one now!!

    • Barbara: I will make sure to add a note in this and the forthcoming tutorials. For the alcohol=vodka. The edible glue is made with Tylo powder. I will add links in the tutorial. Thank you!

  55. This is so adorable!
    Your tutorials are so well done and easy to follow and I love that you lay the cutters out so we can see just what your using !
    Thanks so much !

    • There are a link to the butterfly cutter under the material list. The flower cutters are from different brands.

  63. This is so adorable! Your tutorials are always so beautifully done and easy to follow! Can’t wait to try this! Thanks so much for your time and incredible talent 🙂

  64. This is just darning! I have to say that this is my absolute most FAVORITE blog Louise!!!! You make the effort that your readers must endure so very worth it and achievable and I am grateful to you for sharing your talents/craft savy-ness with us. You are appreciated!!!

  65. HI Louise
    Your site was the first I visited when deciding to go back to cake decorating after 14 years. As you could imagine alot has changed in this time. Your site has been a breath of fresh air. So precisly put and easy to follow. I still log in several times a week to get new ideas and am never disappointed. I just wanted to say thanks, you are truly a kindred spirit. The most recent post is just gorgeous I shall be making a few this weekend without fail.

    many thanks

    Natasha

  68. This is stunning! Look my breath away. Cannot wait to make this beautiful fairy.
    Thank you for sharing your amazing talent, much appriciated.

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