How to Quill With Sugarpaste
Sugarpaste is a special pliable sugar dough used to make long lasting edible cake decorations. This dough is also known as gum paste. Sugarpaste is similar to modeling clay. The dough is rolled into thin sheets, cut and manipulated to create elegant decorations. Quilling is possible with thin strips of sugarpaste. Round, triangular, square and oval quilled shapes are easy to make with the right equipment. Experiment with sugarpaste strips to create small, medium and large quilled edible decorations.
Things You'll Need
- Plastic needlepoint needle
- Flat file
- Flat needle file
- Sugarpaste
- Pastry cloth
- Powdered sugar
- Rolling pin
- Sharp knife
- Ruler
- Wax paper or parchment paper
- Water
- Small artist's paintbrush
Instructions
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1
Place a flat file on a flat stable work surface. Pick up the plastic needlepoint needle. Turn the needle over so the eye of the needle is pointed straight down. File the end of plastic from the needle until the eye of the needle is exposed and open. Use a small needle file and file the two exposed edges on each side of the eye. Set aside. This creates a tool to slide the sugarpaste strip in and create the quilling.
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2
Open and place a pastry cloth on a flat stable work surface. Sprinkle a light coating of powdered sugar on the surface of the pastry cloth. Place an approximate 3-inch ball of sugarpaste in the center of the cloth. Roll the ball of sugarpaste into a sheet approximately 1/16-inch thick.
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Cut the rolled sugarpaste into strips 1/4 to 1/2-inch in width and four to six inches in length.
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Pick up one strip. Slide the very end of the strip into the filed eye of the plastic needle. Line up the very end of the strip of sugarpaste with the outside edge of the needle.
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Twirl the needle between your thumb and forefinger. Wrap the strip of sugarpaste on top of itself to create a snail-like creature. Carefully remove the sugarpaste from the needle. Place it on the pastry cloth.
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Let go of the sugarpaste twirl and allow it to uncurl slightly. Carefully brush a small dab of water inside 1/4-inch portion of the sugarpaste end. Gently push the end against the layer of sugarpaste directly beneath the end. Hold for 15 seconds to allow the two pieces to adhere together.
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Shape the quilled piece into a square, triangle, diamond or teardrop. The circle shape was made with the original quilled piece. Pick up the quill and place it between your thumbs and forefingers. Squeeze the round quilling gently to form the desired shape.
Squeeze a point for the square and diamond by rolling the tips of your forefingers and the tips of your thumbs together. Turn the quilling 1/4 turn and repeat the process to create four points.
Create the diamond by rolling your two forefingers together.
Create triangle by rolling your two forefingers together. Roll the point to the right 1/3rd of a rotation. Make a second point. Repeat the process for the third point.
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Place several quilled shapes together to make other shapes. Attach the quilled pieces together using water and an artist's paintbrush. For example, two tear drops placed with the points together and sides matching creates a heart.
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Tips & Warnings
Use multiple colors of sugarpaste to create colorful quilled edible designs.
References
- Photo Credit Dynamic Graphics/Creatas/Getty Images
