Barbie Cake Topper Tips & Tricks

How fun is this cake?! My favorite thing about cake decorating is being able to customize the cake to that specific person and their likes. This cake in particular was for my step-sister's 30th birthday. Her cake had to be epic to say the least!

In this post, I'm going to go over a few different hacks and techniques I use to make sure that my cakes are not only cute, but are stable and reliable.

1.) Establish your design- Get creative. What type of occasion is the cake for? Who is the cake for and what are their interests and hobbies? How many people does the cake need to feed? Is there a specific flavor/filling request?

I made this cake for my step-sister's 30th birthday so I knew it would have to be epic. She works at an urgent care, loves rock n' roll, and knows how to get down in some cowgirl boots. I found this Barbie on Offer Up and I'm not even kidding when I say it looks just like her! I decided this would "make" the cake as a cake topper and decided to spend the 15$ on her.

I couldn't stop there now could I?! Well, actually, yes, I probably could have shown more restraint but because it was her 30th, I decided to splurge on this Barbie "Career Woman" fashion pack...I just had to! And seeing as how she works at an urgent care, it was perfect. This was $10 on Amazon.
I bought the candy and cake pops as filler and to give more height alongside the Barbie. It's always a good idea to give a cake symmetry if you can.
The Dirty 30 cake topper I also bought on Amazon for around 5$.

2.) Anchor your cake into place using straws or skewers.

I cannot stress how important this step is, ESPECIALLY if you have a heavier cake topper like a Barbie. Otherwise, when the cake is at room temperature and it's buttercream, there is a great risk of an "avalanche" where the layers will literally start to slide down and get all lopsided.

Just insert the straws, then lift to trim, and stick right back into the cake, just below the frosting.

***I would still recommend using supporters with fondant cakes. You can never be too safe!!

3.) Ganache Drip & Chill

I like to use a ganache drip when using a heavy cake topper. The chocolate hardens and not only looks cool, but it gives the cake topper a hard and strong foundation to lay on.

***I FREEZE my cakes before I do a ganache drip. This ensures the chocolate ganache won't melt your buttercream in the process of doing it. Freezing the cake also makes it even more stable for Barbie to sit on top of.

My sis had a Hawaiian themed party and requested a strawberry layer cake. That's where the Ciroc Pineapple vodka shooter comes in. Not only is Barbie a professional, but she's got her dancin' boots on and is ready to PARTY! I picked up the shooter at Total Wine for around $6.00. Again, it was worth it!;)

4.) Keep your cake as COLD as possible, for as LONG as possible!!

When a buttercream cake is cold, it retains its strength and stability better. This is soooo important, especially with a heavy cake topper like Barbie! I pulled the cake out of the freezer from the previous night in the morning of her party and moved it to the fridge to slowly start to thaw. Because I live in Arizona, I really have to make sure to keep my cakes colder longer. By the time we sang happy birthday that night, the cake was just starting to bulge and sag a little bit due to the heat. But, it was hardly noticeable and could have been avoided if we ate cake sooner and it spent time cooling in the refrigerator and not just out on display for hours.

How cute is this?! It looks like we decided to burn Barbie at the stake but I promise you, Barbie was not harmed from the candles. And check out Kaitlin's boots, they almost match Barbie's boots and funny thing is, it wasn't even planned!

Anyways, the cake was a huge hit!

I hope this post has given you a few pointers as to how to

support and design a one-of-a-kind cake!

Dolly's Kitchen

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