How to Make a Lipstick Birthday Cake

A lipstick birthday cake is equally perfect for a little girl who loves to play dress-up, a teenage fashionista, or even a woman who works in the cosmetics or fashion industry. Despite the unusual shape, a lipstick cake is simple to put together using square and sheet cake pans. All it takes is a little creative assembly and trimming. Finishing touches, like colored frosting, edible glitter dust and a hand-stenciled logo make a lipstick birthday cake look like the real thing.

Things You'll Need

• Two 8-by-8-by-2 inch square cake pans
• Two 4-by-4-by-2 inch square cake pans
• Two standard sheet cake pans
• Four boxes of cake mix or equal amount of batter
• 24-ounces of butter cream or fondant cake frosting
• Sharp knife
• Pastry brush
• Spatula

Instructions

1. Bake two cakes using 8-by-8-by-2 inch square pans. You'll layer these on top of each other to form the lower part of the lipstick tube. If you're using cake mixes, one box is enough for both of these cakes. If you're using a recipe, choose one for a regular sized sheet cake.

2. Bake two cakes in 4-by-4-by-2 inch square pans. These are to form the center band of the lipstick tube (the part that holds the lipstick). One box of cake mix is more than enough for both cakes.

3. Bake two regular size rectangular sheet cakes. These will form the lipstick itself. The sheet cake pan should be 2 inches high, but the length and width are up to you. Sizes 9-by-13, 12-by-16 and 10-by-15 can all work well. This requires one box of mix for each cake.

4. Prepare everything you need to assemble the cake. Let each layer of cake cool completely. Cover a large platter, cutting board or piece of heavy cardboard with aluminum foil to create a portable base for the cake. Lay out your frosting and tools like knives, brushes and spatulas.

5. Assemble the cakes in the shape of a tube of lipstick lying on its side. Lay one of the 8-by-8 inch squares on the right side of the foil-covered base, place one 4-by-4 inch cake up against the right-hand edge of that, then lay one sheet cake to the right of the 4-inch layer. Cut down any uneven surfaces with a knife. Use the knife to contour the edges of the cake all the way around. Cut away one corner of the sheet cake at an angle that looks like new lipstick. Brush off any crumbs with a pastry brush and use a spatula to spread a liberal amount of frosting over the whole cake's surface. Place each of the remaining three cakes on top of its matching bottom layer. Put the cake in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to set the frosting.

6. Frost each section of the cake with colored butter cream or fondant. Black, silver or ecru work well for the 8-by-8 inch section. For the middle, you can create a metallic look by using gold or silver frosting sprinkled with shiny edible dust available from professional confectioner's supplies stores. For the lipstick color, the age of the birthday girl is a good guide. You might choose light rose for a young girl, hot pink for a teenager or deep red for a woman.

7. Add a logo to the lipstick tube. To give your lipstick birthday cake a professional touch, cut out a paper stencil of the logo of any popular cosmetics line. Put the cake in the freezer for 15 minutes. Remove the chilled cake and carefully lay the stencil on the 8-by-8 inch section. Fill in the open area of the stencil using colored sugar sprinkles, spray-on food coloring or piping gel thinned with corn syrup.

Tips & Warnings

• Always preheat the oven. If you don't, the cakes may turn out misshapen and difficult to layer and shape.

• Both black and dark red are difficult colors to achieve in cake frosting, so store-bought frosting is the easiest option if you want these colors.

Resources

• Find a variety of square and sheet cake pans.
• Choose the perfect cake batter and frosting recipe.
• Get black frosting and edible shimmer dust from Wilton Industries.
• See photos of finished lipstick cakes.