Equipment (or lack there of) -

Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening :)

Today I would like to talk about equipment. Tools, brands and substitutes.

I have very little equipment. The things I do have, have been purchased on minimal funds out of absolute necessity, or have been given to me in the form of gifts.

Some of the most used items I have are cutters. Numbers, Letters and a few basic shapes. When (up until very recently) I could not pipe to save myself, Writing messages on cakes was not a pretty site. So one of the first things I bought were the cutters.Unfortunately, they were the number cutters. I had to go on sharing my terrible piping skills with the world for a while longer as the letter cutters were rather difficult to source locally (aside from buying them from Ebay and having to wait, or places like Habitat and Spotlight who I find tend to overcharge, although in the end I didn't have much choice, bit the bullet and bought in spotlight.)

I wanted to share pictures of these items as these were quite cheap, and purchased from a small cake decorating supply shop in Hobart (That I actually LOVE visiting and recommend to anyone who'll listen)

These are the Numbers:

They are just your basic, Run of the mill Numbers. Perfect for a beginner. They will make great Fondant/ Gum paste decorations for a cake or cupcake topper, or use them to indent a cookie before baking to outline where you want to pipe later - Perfect for beginner pipers (I often use this technique, It helps make identical cookies everytime)

Next came the letters:

 

Same deal here, basic block letter cutters. Better than messy piping, (you know, because you can, well, Read it.) And for the most part, quite cheap. Biggest problem I have with these? I can never get them to go back in the tub!

I also have a few basic shape cutters:

These are great for fondant/ Gum paste decorations on a cake, or to use as cookie cutters. Having basic shapes is important, as they are common. These cutters are cheap, and without proper care, can get rust marks and bend or warp if you are to rough with them. I've had most of these about 5 years, and all I do is after I use them, I wash with hot soapy water, rinse and dry them with some paper towel, pop them on a tray in the oven on about 120 for a few minutes, until completely dry, then store as usual. I've yet to get a rust mark on them!

I have alot of decorating bits and pieces, things that Ive bought for one off orders, things Ive found in little shops too cheap to resist, but I actually do not yet own some of the most important tools for making cakes. I don't have a fondant smother, or a mini rolling pin, I don't have fondant decorating tools or impression mats, I dont think I own a single Wilton anything, and I definitely do not (YET) own a Beautiful Kitchenaid. This is the thing I'm working towards more than anything. I WILL have a beautiful green apple mixer if its the last thing I do!

On tomorrows blog entry I'm going to show you some designs by other bloggers (Better, and way more talented ones that I,) that show you how to use these basic shape cutters for just about ANY occasion.

Thanks for reading!

The Beginner Baker :)