Piped Stencils

• 1). Cover your cake with fondant or a hard-drying icing.
  
  
• 2). Place the pattern you've chosen for your cake on a flat surface. Lay the transparency or wax paper on the pattern. Use a permanent marker to trace the pattern on to the transparency or wax paper. You can copy patterns out of books, print them from your computer and even find them around the house on tablecloths, curtains and walls. Once you start looking for them, you will find fun and interesting patterns everywhere.
  
  
• 3). Turn the transparency or wax paper over, and apply a very light coat of nonstick cooking spray to the back.
  
  
• 4). Prepare a batch of royal icing or piping gel (see Resources). You can also use premade icing purchased from a craft store. Royal icing is a simple combination of confectioners' sugar, lemon juice and egg whites. Meringue powder can be substituted for the eggs if you are concerned about using raw eggs.
  
  
• 5). Fill a piping bag with your mixture. Leave an inch or two of space at the top to twist the bag closed. This will prevent icing from coming out of the top of the bag when you squeeze. Select a tip for your piping bag that matches the size of the lines you want to pipe.
  
  
• 6). Practice drawing a few lines on an extra piece of wax paper to get a feel for the piping bag and establish a good flow of icing or gel.
  
  
• 7). Proceed to your pattern, and trace over your lines with the icing. You should be piping the pattern on the side that you sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Work slowly and consistently. Let the pattern firm up for several minutes.
  
  
• 8). Apply the pattern to your cake. Position your pattern with the icing against your cake, and gently press the piping into the fondant or hard icing. Hold the position for a minute or two. Once the piping has stuck, peel off the transparency very slowly.
  
  
• 9). Attach any loose areas with extra royal icing. A toothpick can be utilized to apply dabs of icing in tight places. The pattern will be very fragile, but if a small piece breaks, you can use the royal icing in your piping bag to execute small repairs. Just pipe the line directly onto the cake.
  
  

Flat Stencils

• 1). Cover your cake with fondant or hard-drying icing.
  
  
• 2). Apply a thin coat of nonstick cooking spray to the underside of your cut-out stencil, and place the stencil on the top or side of your cake.
  
  
• 3). Prepare a batch of royal icing in your desired color (see Resources). Many food colorings are available commercially. Add a few drops of color to your bowl of icing and mix. If you want the color darker, add one drop of color at a time. Mix thoroughly after each drop.
  
  
• 4). Spread a thick coat of icing over the stencil, then use an offset spatula to remove all the excess. Make sure you do not move the stencil.
  
  
• 5). Pull the stencil straight off your cake, taking care not to smear the icing. When you remove the template, the icing that was spread over the cut-outs will be left on your cake. You can also use cut-out stencils to apply sprinkles or powdered sugar to your cake to finish the look.