Cake icerers - help please?

[Kitikova]

S2's birthday is in 2 weeks. I've decided on a jungle theme for him. I have the base of his Christening cake that I am going to use for his birthday cake, but am going to make a new top layer and embellishments for it to make it jungley.

This is the cake I'm taking some inspiration from Birthday Jungle Cake » Pink Cake Box Wedding Cakes & more although mine won't really look anything like that

I'm just wondering for the animals, how far in advance can I make them?
Also, is the ready-to-roll icing okay to use? Or should I be trying to make something? I was going to look at Spotlight today while the sale is on to see what they have to help me.

[photocat]

At my cupcake decorating class yesterday we used some orchard brand ready-to-roll icing. It's really easy to work with but not something I would use much because I like my cakes iced....as in sticky gooey chocolatey, yum!

But that's just me. For a cake like in the link you have it should work very well and you can make some bits in advance, though how far ahead I'm not sure. Maybe buy some and take a bit out of the packet and leave it to see how it goes?

FYI, the ready to roll ingredients are sugar, glucose, water, vege shortening, humectant, colour (even though it's white), vegetable gum, emulsifier, preservative 202.

[Kitikova]

Thanks Cat! I tried Spotlight this morning and well they had SFA both for cake decorating AND for jungle theme party supplies. Sometimes I just want to smack whomever is responsible for stocking Spotlight upside the head

Anyway, I went to the cake icing shop up the road and ended up $70 lighter but armed with fondant, colour, and some cool cookie cutters, as well as some instructions on how to do what I want to do

If anyone's interested, with the fondant apparently you just colour little bits and mould it like playdough. It then goes hard, but not rock hard IYKWIM so it's still edible. Can be made well in advance. The lady suggested rolling out icing and using the cookie cutters to cut shapes, paint them and store them in the cupboard to use on cupcakes when you get the urge...

Anyway, unused fondant can be put in a ziplock bag and kept in the freezer so there's no waste.

Just thought I'd share incase anyone else wanted to know!