Tutorial Tuesdays- How to make a Sugar Flower

I am sorry this is a day late!  The holiday totally threw me off, but I am back in the swing of things.

For this Tutorial Tuesday, I want to show you how to make a sugar flower.  So many of us bake our own cakes and cupcakes and this is one way to really dress them up.  You will save money in the long run with buying all the materials needed as opposed to spending $20 - $150 per cake (or more!) each time you want to celebrate with cake or cupcakes.

I have listed the materials you will need to do this craft and you can watch my sugar flower tutorials as well.  I have not been compensated in any way for any of my product recommendations.

 You will need:
Gumpaste (I like Satin Ice brand of gumpaste.  It is $20 for 5lbs at TheBakersKitchen.com)
Crisco (add a bit of crisco to your fingers as you begin to work the gumpaste.  Add more if the paste feels a bit dry).
Flower Forming Cups
Gumpaste Tools- especially a ball tool
Zip lock bag (opened at one end)-  Use this instead of a gumpaste storage board and save some money! This keeps your gumpaste items moist until you are ready to work them.
Flower Forming Pad
Flower cutter
Flower Veiner (I did not use the veiner in this tutorial, but I will in the next one!)
Gumpaste Rolling Pin
Petal Dust
Star Kay White Rose Extract- I got mine at Sur La Table for $9 per bottle.
Food Coloring
Small paint brushes for detail work
Sugar Pearls- buy them at Michaels craft store in the baking section
Silicone Mat or smooth board of some kind for rolling out the gumpaste

1. Roll out your gumpaste until it is thin and you can see a bit of the board or mat through it.  Make sure your mat is totally clean as gumpaste picks up colors VERY easily.
2.  Cut out two sizes of 5 petal flowers-  3 large and two small
3. Put the flowers you are not ready to work on in the zip lock bag as you work on each flower, one by one so they do not dry out.  Use your gumpaste ball tool to thin the edges of the petals and make them slightly curl.  This makes for a more realistic flower.
4. Set each flower in the flower cup as you finish it, one on top of the other and make sure that the petals are off-set.  Also, put a bit of meringue powder between each flower so they stick together.  Put a bit of Crisco in your flower forming cups for an easier release!
5. Let the flower dry completely.  This can take up to an hour or so, depending on humidity and how much meringue you put between each flower.  I always let mine dry overnight.
6. The next day, take the flower out of the cup.  It should slip out easily. Dust the edges with the petal dust.
7. If you want, paint the inside of the flower to look like a real flower.  Use rose extract at it evaporates more quickly than water.  Do not overload the flower with any extract or water as it will soften and fall apart.  Use food coloring for your paint and mix colors just like you would any other paint.  If your paint -food coloring- is too thick, it will be sticky and will not dry very quickly, so it is best to work in light layers if you want a deeper color.
8.  After the paint dries, add a pearl to the stamen for a finished and whimsical effect.  Use the meringue powder to attach the pearl to the inside.

Here are the finished flowers from the videos!

 See my Tuesday Tutorial videos below for detailed instruction.  :-D
How to make a sugar flower
How to paint a sugar flower

Happy Crafting!