Wet On Wet Flowers

I've shown how to make these before but I so love cookie decorating that's easier than it looks and these wet on wet flowers are just that.

They are called wet on wet flowers because they are created by adding wet icing onto wet icing and then using a scribe tool to swirl and blend to create the flowers.

It truly is easy and a little bit of practice makes perfect. The only rules are that you must have all of your icing colors mixed and ready to go at once before you start decorating and you can only work on one cookie at a time.

Here's how:

Get all your icing colors mixed and ready. You want them all to be flood consistency.

I outlined and flooded a cookie with green icing and then immediately added a blob of light pink, the size I wanted the flower to be. On top of the light pink, I then added some dark pink and white.

I used my scribe tool (a skewer or toothpick would also work) to swirl the colors together to create a flower shape.

Then I dropped on a bit of dark yellow for the center.

I highlighted the center by adding some dark pink under it.

And, added some more drops of light pink to create another layer of petals.

Maneuver the icing with your scribe tool until you are satisfied.

I'm pleased with this!

Add some green icing for leaves.

Use your scribe tool to pull the green icing out to a point. Before I did this, I dipped my scribe tool in a bit of the lighter green to create little lines.

I also decided to add a few white dots all around the cookie.

Here's another one. I outlined and flooded the cookie, added the same icings for the flower and added a dark pink border.

I didn't add a center to this flower, I just swirled the colors together. For interest, I added a little line of yellow to the center of the leaves by dipping my scribe tool in the icing and lightly drawing it on.

Here's a variation with lots of small flowers and a bead border. I didn't add any white to the flowers, I just used light and dark pink.

And here's yet another design. There really is no end to what you can create.

Red, White And Blue Cookies

These red, white and blue cookies are bold, bright and perfect for your upcoming Independence Day Celebrations. They are also simple to make and can be made days in advance. To serve, just arrange them on a platter and enjoy the party.

Here's how to make them:

Bake a batch of round sugar cookies. For my favorite tried and true recipe, click here.

The cookies after baking.

Make a batch of royal icing. Leave 3/4 of the icing white and divide the remaining 1/4 into small bowls and tint one red and one blue. Thin all of the icings by adding a teaspoon of water at a time, to 12 to 15-second flood consistency. This is icing that settles back into place in 12 to 15 seconds after you draw through it with the back of a spoon. Place the white icing in a pastry bag fitted with a #3 tip and place the red and blue icing in bags fitted with #2 pastry tips. You need to have all of your icings ready to go at once. Click here for my favorite royal icing recipe.

Work on one cookie at a time. Outline the cookie with the white icing.

Fill in the outline with more white icing and give the cookie a gentle shake to help the icing settle. You can also use a skewer or scribe tool to help evenly distribute the icing.

Now it's time to decorate. While the flood icing is still wet, add your red and blue embellishments. Here I added some simple red stripes.

To the red stripes you can add blue stripes going in the same direction.

Or, you can add blue stripes going in the opposite direction.

For this cookie I added more red stripes going in the opposite direction and some blue dots.

To make a chevron design, add red and blue stripes and then draw through them with a skewer, toothpick or scribe tool, going back and forth in opposite directions. Be sure to wipe your tool off after each swipe to keep the design clean.

This is one of my favorite designs because it looks impressive but is so easy to do.

You can also add dots.

You can add the dots in alternating rows for a Swiss dot effect.

Or you can just add the dots randomly.

Be creative, have fun and have a happy 4th of July!

Fish Cookies

Out of all the cookies I've made, and I've made a lot, these fish cookies are probably the most time consuming. I made them by dropping thinned icing onto a still wet flooded cookie and maneuvering the icing with a scribe tool.

Each one is a little work of art and I think these would make a wonderful Father's Day gift. I definitely think Dads are worth the effort.

There are no specific rules to making these. It's is helpful to look at some fish pictures and sketch a plan but basically you just need to mix your colors and go for it. You need all of your colors ready to go before you start because this is wet on wet cookie decorating. Here's how:

I outlined and filled a cookie with white icing and then added grey icing in the basic shape of a fish. I used my scribe tool to move the icing to get an even better general shape.

I added a stripe of green on the top of the fish and again, used my scribe tool to blend it in.

I also added some pink, teal and orange to the base and once I got that blended, I added the black details by dipping my scribe tool into thinned black icing and using it like a pencil.

Here's another fish. I added the teal scale details with my scribe tool. It just takes some experimenting to figure out what works.

This guy is my favorite.

Rose Cookies

No paint was used to create these rose cookies. They are all made with royal icing that I manipulated with a scribe tool.

The process isn't hard but it does take some time so these probably aren't the best cookies to make if you have to make a lot. But for a single batch, it's a fun afternoon art project. 

Here's how I made them:

These are the colors I used. Take your time choosing and mixing your colors. I mixed cream for the base coats and small amounts of light pink, red, blue/green and yellow, and an even smaller amount of brown.

Put all of the icings into pastry bags fitted with #2 tips except for the brown. Leave that on a plate or bowl covered with plastic wrap.

First outline and fill your cookie with the cream colored icing. Then add drops of light pink and top those with some squiggles of red. 

Use your scribe tool (you could also use a skewer or toothpick) and swirl the red into the pink to make it look like a rose.

Add drops of yellow and blue/green for leaves.

Draw through the dots with your scribe tool to lengthen them to a point to shape leaves.

Dip your scripe tool into the brown icing and use it like a pencil to highlight the leaves with veins and outlines. One dip in the brown icing is good for two or three swipes. You also need to periodically wipe your tool clean so the icing doesn't build up. It takes just a little for this effect. You can also highlight the roses.

Adding highlights to another cookie.

Getting ready to make a single rose.

Adding the red icing.

The finished rose.

After the cookies dry, you might want to add a border. For this pearl border I used piping consistency royal icing and a #3 tip.

A leaf tip also makes a nice border.

When you complete your border you might need to use your scribe tool to knock down the last point.

Framed works of art!