Seashells and Starfish with Timbo!
Timbo Sullivan is a world-renowned cake artist based in Columbus, Ohio. He has appeared on television shows like the Food Network's Duff Till Dawn and Outrageous Wedding Cakes, and the Game Show Network's Skin Wars: Fresh Paint.
Timbo is recognized for his complex sculpting, intricate detail work, and a hyper-realistic special-effects style. Today he's demonstrating how to make these incredibly convincing seashells and starfish completely by hand- no molds needed!
Everyone is either always asking me how I make my seashells, or not asking me because they're assuming I just use molds....I don't! I'm going to show you all the quick and easy way I make some of my seashells and starfish.
My starfish are probably the most popular in all of my classes. You could very easily use a star cutter for this but, then you can't brag that you didn't use any molds or cutters.
I start with a fondant ball and then slightly flatten it. I SOFTLY pull and pinch to make legs (don't pull them too long yet). Use your pointed Sugar Shaper to press in between each "leg" and then softly pull and pinch again, making the legs longer.
Next I line each leg from the center out, and finish by using 3 or 4 toothpicks to add a sponge texture to the starfish.
Now, let's make some seashells!
For the first one, I'll repeat the same 2 steps from the starfish but this time I'll flatten it a little more. Using my pointed Sugar Shaper, I start at the center-top of the fondant disc, press in slightly, and then drag downward towards the center-bottom. Repeat that step on both sides as many times as you like. You can also cut the very bottom off to get rid of any imperfections.
The next seashell we'll make is one of the easiest. You roll a fondant ball, roll it sideways in your hand or on your workspace, only on one side so that the other side stays pretty thick and rounded. After you have a carrot shaped piece, simply roll the smaller end up to the larger end (you may need to add a little water).
You can keep your shell like that, or you can softly pinch a pull along the top to add spikes. I normally pinch and pull in a circular motion so that the spikes don't LOOK pinched.
The next seashell is even easier. Simply roll your fondant ball out so that it's slightly thinner on both sides. Fold one thin end to the other thin end (add water) and then twist the middle while holding the top. You can use your orange Sugar Shaper to hollow out the shell's cavity.
You'll do a similar twisting motion for the next piece, but you won't roll the fondant balls as long. Once you have a football shape, you'll line the center with your tri-tip Sugar Shaper (the red one), and then twist the tops.
You can even make a few using marbled fondant. When adding color, I normally airbrush or drybrush the outsides using a darker color of the fondant color I used (ie: Navy over Blue, Red over Orange, Orange over Yellow). You can also add a pearl sheen to each one or a select few!
Hope you all find this useful, and if you do, SEND ME PICS!!!!!
We hope you're as excited as we are about Timbo's Starfish and Seashells! If you want to see more of Timbo's work and hear about his upcoming classes, follow him on Facebook and Instagram.
8 Responses
Marjorie Angelo
Thanks, Timbo! Great tutorial!
Shirlene de Zilwa
Simple but effective way to mould shells. Thanks!
Elsa
Thank you Timbo – I have seashell molds but they’re small, for cookies and cake pops; now I can make ANY SIZE SEASHELL!!
Thank you, again!
CARMEN
Thank you
Tisha Joiner
I will most certainly put this tutorial to good use! Thank you!
Bunny
Thank you SIR!
You are a genius !!
Heba
Timbo, these are really easy and fun to make, so many variations and colors, so thank you for sharing your technique :)
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Grace
March 09, 2017
Hi Timbo,
You have a generous heart in sharing this to us! People in our cake world love for us to buy their products, and their posts are driven to this end.But you share this and wants us to have fun while doing our projects. THANK YOU so much!! What a giver you are! Somebody out there will bless you!