2D toppers are "the cherry on the top" Ennas' Cake Design style! The idea came to me about two years ago when I made a Mario Bros. cake for my sister's baby shower. The idea then evolved from the horizontal topper you can see below to the vertical topper I'm about to show in this tutorial.

You certainly don't need to be an expert cake decorator or use special tools to make 2D toppers. The secret lies in slicing the design of your choice as a puzzle and carefully selecting what layer each elements belongs to. Once you've learned that trick you'll be ready to use this technique on whatever design you like to.

For this tutorial we are going to build a Twilight Sparkle topper. If you have a daughter, as I do, you may hear something like "mommy, are you making a cake for me?"... so be prepared for a little visitor overseeing your progress. Whether you make only a topper or also a cake for the topper to sit on top of, once you're ready I'd love to hear from you and see pictures of your projects... Ready? Let's have some fun 2D toppering!

What you need:

Step 1: Print at least 3 copies of Twilight Sparkle at the actual size you want it to be. I printed it 4" tall. (Note: for more complicated designs you may need more copies)

Step 2: Cover every copy, front and back, with packaging tape. This will protect your patterns from water or grease stains and keep them from ripping easily. This step can be skipped if you print it on card stock.

Step 4: Roll out black modeling chocolate (MC) 1/4" thick (I used two 1/4" thick balsa wood sticks to do it easily) and let it rest for about 10 min.

Step 6: With the help of a scalpel and the first pattern (see step 3) cut out the base for your 2D Topper.

Step 8: Prepare the MC colors for the all of the layers needed in the design. Roll them out using two 1/16" thick balsa wood sticks, and let them rest for 5 to 10 min before cutting your pieces.

Step 10: Carefully place the lager pieces of the puzzle first (body, tail, and head). Attach them with a bit of sugar glue or water.

Step 12: To help the tail stay attached to the body, stick a toothpick on an angle inside the black base, this will make the joint of the tail sturdier. Do this before placing the color pieces. 

Step 14: Place the eyes on the topper making sure they match the pattern before glueing them.

Step 15: With an edible marker or a paintbrush and some black food color paint the eyelashes.

Step 3: With the help of an x-acto knife or a scalpel cut out your patterns. Use one copy to cut out the whole character; this will be used to make the figure silhouette. Use the second copy to cut out every color separately (big areas inside of the outline), and the third copy to cut the details and elements that go on the second layer.   

Step 5: Cover your MC with a thin coat of shortening and stick the pattern. This way you won't need to hold the latter while cutting. Remember that too much manipulation softens the MC making it lose its shape.

Step 7: Place one toothpick on each of the legs of the pony, This will serve to place the topper on the cake.

Step 9: Using your patterns and a scalpel cut out every piece in its corresponding color. Remember to keep the pattern stuck to the MC, this will prevent the smaller pieces from losing their shape.

Step 11: Carefully remove the paper from each piece of MC after attaching it to the base.

Step 13: Making the eyes is more complicated because the pieces are smaller; it's important to double check every time you cut a piece and adjust it if necessary. These are the steps:

a. Cut the white, purple and black pieces using the patterns. b. Place the purple MC piece on top of the white and carefully cut out the white piece using the purple as your pattern. Discard the white section from under the purple piece and assemble the remainder white and the purple pieces together  c. Repeat step b using the white smaller piece to cut the black. d. To make room in the iris for the pupil repeat the step b with the black and purple pieces. e. Glue all the pieces together with some sugar glue, always checking your pattern. f. Roll a very small piece of white MC for the sparkle. g. Repeat the same process to make the left eye.

Your 2D topper is now ready!!! 

Feel free to share this tutorial with your friends if you like it and send pictures of your 2D toppers.

Leave your questions and comments in the section below. 

Posted
AuthorIrina Salazar
CategoriesTutorials

After launching my website on July 1st, I was planing on taking a few days off but -as you all know- once you fall in love with cake decorating that's nearly impossible. Every family gathering, holiday, birthday, special day or just because... the first thing that pops in my head is 'what kind of cake can I make this time?' So when my cousins invited us to come over their house to celebrate the 4th of July, I couldn't resist.

As I recently made a patriotic cake for my husband, I wanted to make something a bit different this time. I browsed cake designs online, looking for some inspiration. But it was with the help of my husband that the final idea came to mind. For this cake I only had 2 days to make the whole thing from scratch, but of course with 2 toddlers running around I barely had a few hours each day to design, bake and decorate.

I wanted to make this cake special inside and outside, so each slice had the American flag! Here you can find a video of how to achieve this. I know the idea is not new, but still it's something that I wanted to try but adding my personal touch. Usually the flag is made by coloring a big batch of vanilla cake in red and blue, and adding no color to make the white bars. Instead, I made vanilla cake for the white and the blue, using chopped blueberries and only a little bit of gel paste for the latter. For the red bars I made red velvet. The combination of flavors and the surprise of finding the American banner inside the cake was definitely a big hit!

Golden Gate and Statue of Liberty

Space Needle, Empire State Building and Sears Tower

For the first time I entirely decorated the whole cake with modeling chocolate only, using the paneling technique. The top tier was designed after uncle Sam's hat. The bottom tier represents America at night, waiting for the fireworks to start... dark blue skies, black horizons and silver landmarks. 

God bless America!

Posted
AuthorIrina Salazar
CategoriesCake

Irina Salazar

The woman behind Ennas' Cake Design it's me, Irina Salazar, a Venezuelan-American who fell in love with the beauty of cake decorating about 2 years ago.

I am so excited to start this new chapter on my cake journey, and to be able to share it with you is the best part of all. I have learned a lot from other cake artists' blogs and web sites, so in some way I wanted to return the favor by sharing with all of you my cake adventures. I hope you find in this website some answers and inspiration for your own cake projects.

In this website you will find information About Me and a Contact section where you can send me questions, suggestions or anything you'd like to share. My work is featured in the Cakes! gallery, where you will also have short comments about how the cakes are made and where I draw inspiration from. If you want to know more about the tools I use to decorate, check My Favorite Tools, where you will find a list of the most useful and practical tools that I normally use wile creating a cake, including links where you can buy them.

The main section of this website is the blog you are reading right now. On a weekly basis I plan to post tutorials, reviews, information, tips and tricks and my latest creations. I know some of you out there are looking forward to seeing my tutorials. Here's your chance to help me decide which one will be the first.

Here are the options:

a. How to make the makeup brushes from the makeup case cake.

b. How to create a 2D topper, like the ones on the Yosemite Sam Cake, Hello Kitty cake or Care Bears cake.

c. How to make the lipsticks from the makeup case cake.

Please click here to help me decide which of these three options you'll like too see next.

Thank you in advance and welcome again to my cake journey... I hope you enjoy the ride as much as I will!

Posted
AuthorIrina Salazar
CategoriesMisc