Princess Castle Birthday Cake

A cake I made for a friend's niece. Her name is Paris and she is turning 7!

I was planning on taking photos of the process, but alas, I did not. I'll describe it as best I can for anyone who would like to make this cake! I looked all over google for inspiration and this cake from Bee's Cake Design caught my eye. I couldn't find details or directions other than that she made the towers from PVC so I had to estimate sizing and whatnot.

The bottom tier is an 8 inch square. I cut off the corners at a slight angle. Once frosted and stacked, is 4 inches high. The top tier is a 6 inch circle, also 4 inches high once frosted and stacked.

The cake is frosted in a shortening based crusting butter cream. The great thing about this recipe is that you don't have to spend too much time fussing to make the icing perfect. After you have frosted your cakes, let them sit for about 30 minutes. The frosting will dry out just enough so that you can smooth it out using a paper towel and a fondant smoother. Gently press a cobblestone impression mat all over the tops and sides of the cakes. 

I used cardboard rounds and wooden dowels in the cake for extra support since it needed to be transported. 

The towers are made of PVC pipe, covered in fondant. The 4 large towers are attached to the cake board with royal icing, which holds them surprisingly well. The 3 smaller towers on top are supported by more wooden dowels. The measurements for the dowels are:

Four 2-inch wide PVC pipes, 8 inches tall.

One 1-inch wide PVC pipe, 8 inches tall

One 1/2 wide PVC pipe, 7.5 inches tall

One 1/2 wide PVC pipe, 5 inches tall

The rooftops are waffle cones, covered in royal icing and fondant circles. They are attached to the PVC pipes with royal icing.

The door, cobblestone walkway, hearts, windows and flowers are made of fondant. Grass and name are butter cream. Doorknobs are pink dragees.

This cake took me only 1 day to complete and was actually much much easier than I anticipated. I hope Paris likes her Castle Cake!!!! Happy 7th Birthday Paris!