Do you know how to make a rose out of gum icing or modeling paste? It's easier than you may think.
Gum Paste by Any Other Name...
Gum paste goes by many names including gum icing, gum modeling paste and even candy clay just to name a few. Generally speaking, it's all the same product - a sugar dough that is used in cake decorating in much the same way as fondant. The main advantage of using gum paste is that it can be rolled much thinner and dries far harder than fondant icing. This makes it suitable for making very detailed decorations such as flowers and lace drapes.
Learn How to Make a Rose Out of Gum Icing or Modeling Paste
Read the following directions for making rose buds and blooming roses from gum paste, watch the video demonstrations, and then try it yourself.
Rose Buds
Supplies:
- Gum paste
- Floral stems
- Rolling board
- Foam petal pad
- Square of craft foam with a small center hole
- Five petal rose cutter
- Wooden roller
- Ball tool
Directions:
- Color your gum paste by kneading in enough coloring paste to create the shade you want for your rose. Store it in a sealed plastic bag or tub until you're ready to use it.
- Create a small cone out of gum paste for each bud you plan to make. The size of the cone establishes the basic size of the flower, but you'll add on thin layers of petals that will slightly increase the finished size.
- Insert a floral stem into the base of each cone, and allow them to dry for approximately three days until they are hard.
- On a greased cutting board lightly dusted with cornstarch, roll out a section of the dough to 1-16th of an inch. This will be used to create your rose petals.
- To create your petals, use a five petal rose cutter to cut all the petals at once. Alternatively, you can use a small circle cutter to cut out five individual petals, but you'll need to attach each petal separately following the same basic method described below for the single five petal piece.
- Lay your petal cutout on a piece of foam and gently run the large end of a ball tool around the edges of each petal to thin them and add a bit of ruffling. Flip the petals over and do the same to the other side.
- Next, run the large ball tip up the center of each petal to give it a slightly cupped shape.
- Dip a small paintbrush in egg white and coat the center of the petal cutout. Poke the wire of the cone through the center, and then through the hole in your craft cone. This will support your petals while you begin attaching them one at a time to the cone.
- Apply egg white to the bottom two-thirds of the first petal, and gently bring it up and around the cone so the edges of the petal slightly overlap on the other side. Use your finger to gently press these pieces together.
- Next, apply egg white to the petal directly across from the first petal and attach it in the same way, slightly turning the upper edges out a bit.
- Now, coat the petal directly to the left of the first petal and attach it the same way as the second petal.
- Repeat these steps for the fourth and fifth petals bringing them up to cover the edges of the previous petals. Gently shape the outer edges until they look pleasing to you.
- Slide the craft foam off the end of the wire, and stick the floral stem in a piece of Styrofoam to hold the flower while it dries.
Blooming Roses
The technique for creating a blooming rose is similar to creating a rose bud. The main difference is that you'll want to cut out nine separate petals using a small circular cutter. You'll also use many of the same tools/supplies as listed for the rose bud, but you'll need to keep your extra petals covered with plastic wrap so they don't begin drying before you're ready for them.
Directions:
- Several days in advance, prepare a cone and stem for each rose you want to make.
- On a prepared rolling surface, roll out the petal dough to 1-16th of an inch and cut out nine individual petals.
- Working with one petal at a time, run the ball tool around the outermost edge of the petal to add shape, and then run the ball around the center to slightly cup the petal.
- Apply egg white to the lower half of the first petal, and wrap it tightly around the cone just as you would for a rose bud.
- Attach the next two petals exactly opposite to each other and at the same level with the first petal. Turn the leaf edge outward a bit and pinch them slightly to resemble the shape of real rose petals. That completes the first layer of petals.
- Begin attaching the next three petals slightly lower on the cone base, placing the first petal across where two petals meet and working your way around. Turn out the edges slightly as you did with the first row.
- The third row of petals is attached in the same manner, beginning slight below the previous row.
View a video demonstration at MetaCafe.com.
Learning how to make a rose out of gum icing or modeling paste is actually fairly easy once you know the steps. With a little practice, you can make roses that rival those from a professional cake decorator.
