Cake Jewelry 101

Marilyn Monroe said it best, or should I say, sang it best..."Diamonds are a girl's best friend."

Wearing jewelry has got to be one of the best ways to glamourize an outfit. I mean, think about the red carpet: the stars are dressed to nines. Everybody asks them what they're wearing and, of course, they talk about the dress, the shoes, the bag and the JEWELRY. What better way to make a statement than to wear a bazillion-carat ring or cascading diamond earrings?

And when it comes to cakes, a little bit of sparkle can turn even the simplest cake into a show-stopping centerpiece. Surprisingly enough, I learned how to make cake jewelry from watching the Food Network. I was watching the Ace of Cakes episode, "Wedding Bells and Shotgun Shells." They were making a wedding cake for Sherri, one of the cake decorators at Charm City Cakes. Duff and his staff were stringing crystal beads through some fishing line and hung them on wire supports to stick into the cake. I must've watched that episode hundreds of times just so I could figure out how to make them. Thank goodness for TiVo! After a couple of tries, I finally got it.

Let's get started...

Here's what you'll need:

- swarovski crystals and glass beads

- fishing line

- needle-nose pliers

- wire cutters

- 18-gauge stem wire or 20-gauge beading wire

- florist tape

1. Cut a piece of fishing line, about 4 inches or so, and string the first bead through.

2. Bring the two ends of fishing line together and string the second bead through both ends.

3. String the rest of the beads through.

4. Tie a knot at the end of the fishing line, but leave enough space on top to loop the wire through later.


5. Cut the wire to the desired length. Use needle-nose pliers to bend a loop at the end of the wire.


6. You can leave the wire straight or give it a curve.



7. Loop the fishing line through the end of the wire.



8. Wrap florist tape around the wire before sticking it into the cake.

Here's the finished product: