This simple tutorial will teach you how to make fondant ruffles for cakes without a garret frill cutter. All you need is a few simple ingredients and tools! The world of cake decorating can seem like a bottomless pit of opportunities to spend money (and it is!). However, with a little creativity, it doesn’t have to be so expensive. Here’s an easy tutorial to show you how to make fondant ruffles without purchasing any special cutters for the task. 

How to use fondant ruffles for cakes

Fondant ruffles are a great addition to your cake decorating arsenal for making so many different beautiful accents. I have most often used them to trim the edges of cakes for all kinds of occasions. You can use them for wedding cakes, ruffled fondant blankets, ruffle swags/clusters, and fondant pillow cake edging (just to name a few!).

I’ll include some photos for inspiration later in this post so that you can see what’s possible with this beautiful, edible decoration!

Making fondant ruffles with a garret frill cutter

Fondant ruffles are made by rolling out fondant (or in this case, a mixture of fondant and gum paste) until it is quite thin. Next, ruffle pieces are cut with a tool called a garrett frill cutter (which is basically a cookie-cutter tool in the shape of a curved strip with a scalloped edge). Once each long strip of fondant has been cut, the edges of each piece are thinned and frilled with a cell stick, ball tool, or frill tool. The pieces are then attached to the side of the cake (or the top, however you plan to use them) with a little bit of edible glue, water, alcohol, or clear vanilla for fondant cakes, or just with a bit of frosting for buttercream cakes.

How to make fondant ruffles without a special cutter

This tutorial is the easiest way to make ruffles, since you don’t have to purchase a special frill cutter in order to make get the ruffle effect. All you need is a few basic frilling tools, a knife, a rolling pin, and a couple of other simple things (which, if you’ve done any work with fondant in the past, are likely things you already have). 

My method (shown with step-by-step pictures below) is simply this:

1. Cut out several curved fondant strips from a thinly rolled out piece of fondant and gum paste, mixed together. The gum paste will give the fondant more structure and allow the ruffles to dry more firmly (making them more durable). 
2. Roll the fondant into a thin disc (about 1/8″ thick).
3. Cut a half circle into the fondant shape with a knife or small spatula.
4. 1″ strips into the half circle, making a “Rainbow” of fondant strips.
5. Use your fingertips to gently pull out the edges of each strip to make your own scalloped edge.
6. Frill the edges with a cell stick, frill tool, or ball tool (according to the tutorial directions below).
7. Use as desired to decorate your beautiful cakes!

The best kind of fondant to use

Having made cakes for many years, I’ve tried many different kinds of fondant; and well, I have to say that my favourite (hands down) is the Massa Grischuna fondant from Albert Uster. It tastes and smells amazing, has incredible workability, and comes in many different colors.

That said, if this is a hobby project and you don’t need a 13-lb tub of fondant, you can go ahead and pick up some ready-made fondant. You can get this from your local arts and crafts store (such as Michael’s or Hobby Lobby).

Other fondants I’ve used:

• Wilton: A pack of Wilton brand fondant will work well, but I’ll caution you. While this brand has great workability, I can’t say that it’s anything I’d recommend in the taste department. There is a bit of a chemical smell/taste that I really do not enjoy.
• Satin Ice: I’ve also used Satin Ice, and I find the workability almost as good as Wilton, and the taste much better.
• Homemade: Another option would be to make your own fondant, although I’ll warn you: if you haven’t worked with fondant much in the past, making your own (and getting it to the right consistency) can get pretty tricky.

Choosing the best gum paste

Once again, my favourite gum paste comes from Albert Uster; however, it only comes in a large bucket which will last the average person a very long time! That said, you can pick up ready-made small tubs of gumpaste at your local arts and crafts store. Once again, I love the workability of Wilton brand; however, the smell/taste is a little bit off-putting to me. 

If you’re feeling adventurous, you can also make your own gumpaste; however, once again, I would not recommend doing that unless you have enough experience to know what the consistency of gumpaste should be. 

Some inspiration

Whether you’re making a wedding cake, a baby shower cake, or a cake just for fun, I hope I can offer you some inspiration for how to use your fondant ruffles! Here are some cakes I’ve made using this method for creating fondant ruffles.

Ruffled Wedding Cake:

Butterflies and Ruffles Cake:

Sleeping Baby Cake with Fondant Quilt:

Sleeping Baby Cake (In Blue):

Pink Baby Pillow Cake:

You will need:

• Equal amounts of fondant and gum paste (I’m using a golf ball size amount of each for this tutorial)
• Cell stick
• Frill tool (optional)
• Small spatula or knife
• Rolling pin
• Foam mat
• Corn starch
• Shortening
• Plastic wrap

Tools

Left to right: Gum paste, fondant, frill tool, cell stick, small spatula, rolling pin, foam mat (orange, at the bottom of the picture). This picture was taken on a fondant rolling mat.

Rolling the fondant

Knead the fondant and gum paste together until pliable. Then roll into a thin disc.

Cut into a half circle:

Use your spatula to cut a half circle into the fondant disc.

Making “rainbow” strips:

Cut 1-inch strips into the disc to create “rainbow stripes.”

Make the scalloped edge:

Working over a mat dusted with cornstarch, use your fingertips to gently stretch a scalloped edge onto the long strip of fondant.

Frill the edges:

Use the cell stick, frill tool, or ball tool to create frilled edges by gentle thinning the fondant along the scalloped edge.

(Curve the fondant strip as you thin the edges)

Make fondant swags by bunching the ruffles, or fasten them on the cake in long strips:

If you like this tutorial, you may also like:

• Gum Paste Roses [Tutorial]
• Gum Paste Rose Leaves
• Royal Icing [Recipe]
• ​Dark Chocolate Buttercream [Recipe]

If you like this tutorial, make sure to leave me a comment below or tag me in your beautiful cake pictures on instagram @naomicakesofficial! I love to see what you guys are creating. 

Thanks for being here! Back next week,

Naomi

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