Luster Dust

Stephanie asked,"Since I prefer buttercream cakes to fondant covered ones, I have studied your cakes closely and have noticed that that while the buttercream in Summer Daze has a pearl sheen to it, the White on White looks matte. Do you add something to the buttercream for the shine or is it just the photographs?"

To create the sheen on some of the cakes in our first book (like Summer Daze and New York, New York) I used Luster Dust (http://www.kitchenkrafts.com/search.asp?t=ss&ss=luster+dust&sid=GOOGLE&TID=GL00308060008&gclid=CIXk2Pv9wpgCFQEoGgodNU_Z1g&bhcd2=1233754505). This is basically a metallic powder. It comes in a variety of colors and metallics. I used gold and silver on the stars (page 51-55) and pearl on the Summer Daze cake (page 124). Do not mix the dust into the buttercream, instead to achieve the all over glow, load a medium sized paintbrush with dust, place the brush approximately 6-inches from the cake, take a deep breath, and exhale with one short burst of air. Repeat in different spots until the cake is covered. Be forewarned- dust gets everyone so I recommend doing this outside, if possible.

And here is one of Stephanie's creations - A cream cheese fondant hippo.