Cake Lace Molds | Elegant Fondant Details Without the Work
Chef Alan TetreaultIn this tutorial: What You'll Need · Prepare the Fondant-Gumpaste Mixture · Dust and Fill the Mold · Emboss, Cut, and Unmold · Finish with Pearl Dust · Design Inspiration: Wedding Dress Cake
Two-piece silicone lace molds make it easy to create elegant, intricate lace designs for cakes -- no piping skills required. In this tutorial, Chef Alan Tetreault of Global Sugar Art demonstrates how to use these molds from start to finish, including how to mix the right paste, fill and emboss the mold, unmold a clean lace piece, and add a pearl dust finish for extra elegance. He also shares a stunning wedding dress cake that showcases what these molds can do.
What You'll Need
- Two-piece silicone lace mold -- available in a variety of patterns; both the top and bottom pieces feature embossed detail.
- Fondant -- combined with gum paste for the ideal lace-making medium.
- Gum paste -- mixed 50/50 with fondant for a paste that holds detail and cuts cleanly.
- Small rolling pin -- for pressing the top mold firmly into the paste.
- Pasta machine (optional) -- for rolling paste to a perfectly uniform thickness.
- Cornstarch puff -- for dusting the mold as a release agent
- Super pearl dust -- for accenting the finished lace design.
Prepare the Fondant-Gumpaste Mixture
Chef Alan Tetreault recommends a 50/50 mixture of fondant and gum paste for making lace pieces. This blend holds fine detail during embossing while remaining flexible enough to apply to a cake without cracking.
Once the mixture is blended, it should be rolled out very thin and very evenly. A pasta machine is ideal for achieving uniform thickness, though rolling by hand works as well. The rolled sheet should be sized to fit the bottom piece of the mold -- slightly larger is fine, as excess paste will be trimmed away.
💡 Tip: Run the paste through a pasta machine rather than rolling by hand. A uniform thickness ensures the lace piece embosses evenly and looks consistent across the entire design.
Dust and Fill the Mold
Before filling, both halves of the mold need a light dusting of cornstarch to prevent sticking:
- Dust both the top and bottom pieces of the mold using a cornstarch puff.
- Flip each piece over and tap out the excess -- this is critical. If cornstarch fills the grooves of the embossed pattern, the detail will not transfer to the paste.
- Lay the rolled fondant-gumpaste sheet over the bottom piece of the mold.
- Gently press the paste into the mold with your hands, making sure it settles into the embossed pattern.
⚠️ Warning: Do not skip the step of tapping out excess cornstarch. If the embossed grooves are filled with cornstarch, the lace design will not show properly on the finished piece.
Emboss, Cut, and Unmold
This is where the two-piece mold does its work -- embossing and cutting the lace shape in one step:
- Place the top piece of the mold embossed-side down onto the paste-filled bottom piece.
- Roll firmly from the center outward using a small rolling pin. Press hard -- the top piece is simultaneously embossing the design and cutting through the paste to create the lace shape.
- Hold the top piece in place and gently peel away the excess paste from around the outside edges.
- Remove the top piece of the mold.
- Clean up the edges by pressing any stray bits of paste back inside the mold with a fingertip.
- Flip the bottom mold over and release the finished lace piece onto the work surface.
💡 Tip: Start rolling from the center of the mold and work outward toward the edges. This distributes pressure evenly and prevents the paste from shifting inside the mold.
Finish with Pearl Dust
To accent the embossed design, Chef Alan Tetreault recommends brushing the lace piece with super pearl dust before placing it on the cake. Applying the dust while the piece is still off the cake keeps the pearl dust from getting on the surrounding icing or fondant.
💡 Tip: Always dust the lace piece before attaching it to the cake. Dusting in place risks getting pearl dust on the cake surface, which is difficult to remove cleanly.
Design Inspiration: Wedding Dress Cake
Chef Alan Tetreault showcases a heart-shaped cake designed to capture the look of a wedding dress -- a creative example of what lace molds can achieve:
- The bodice was created using a lattice pattern from a lace mold.
- A strand of pearls was added where the neckline would be.
- Seed pearls were placed around the bottom edge.
- A piece of white lace was wrapped around the base of the cake board.
The concept was designed as a "bride" cake, intended to be paired with a matching heart-shaped "groom" cake decorated as a tuxedo -- a fitting theme for an engagement party.
💡 Tip: Because both sides of a two-piece lace mold are embossed, lace pieces look beautiful even when they hang partially off the edge of a cake. If the lace will sit flat against the cake, only the outer face needs to show detail -- but having embossing on both sides opens up more creative placement options.
This tutorial is part of Global Sugar Art's library of free cake decorating videos by Chef Alan Tetreault. Browse all tutorials →
