Use these expert cake decorating techniques to make modern, fresh, and fun cakes that reflect your style and taste, or try out some of the easy, time-saving shortcuts to make fabulous, bakery-style cakes without the fancy price tag. Author and pastry chef Erin Gardner is famous for her unique designs and cake decorating skill. In these pages, she demonstrates professional techniques for creating beautiful, custom-made cakes that are also completely delicious. From how to make mouthwatering, homemade buttercream to moulding gorgeous fondant flowers and bows, Erin's detailed, step-by-step instructions offer home cooks all the decorating know-how they need. She also presents a host of secrets and shortcuts for dressing up plain cakes in absolutely no time. Throughout the book, Erin shows time-pressed cooks how to improve upon well-known cake decorating techniques.