We are working on an adorable circus cake, and these sweet circus animal cake toppers are part of the fun. To make the full project easier to follow, the modeled circus figure tutorials are being divided into separate lessons. The complete cake design will also include a circus tent cake, with the clown and animal figures arranged around it for a playful circus theme.
In this tutorial, you will learn how to make a gum paste seal and a fondant elephant for a circus cake. These figures are simple, cute, and full of personality, making them a great choice for birthday cakes, circus themed cakes, and children’s celebration cakes. The techniques are approachable, even if you are still building confidence with modeling fondant or gum paste. With a few basic shapes, a little edible glue, and simple details, you can create circus cake decorations that look charming and polished.
The seal is designed with grey gum paste or fondant strengthened with tylose, a small black nose, a colorful collar, and a bright ball. The elephant begins with a rice cereal treat body, which helps keep the topper lighter while giving it a stable shape. Grey gum paste or tylose fondant is used to cover and model the elephant, and the finished design includes a blanket, hat, toes, and other simple accents. These circus animals are meant to coordinate beautifully with the larger circus cake design, but they can also be used on cupcakes, sheet cakes, or as individual cake toppers.
Materials:
SEAL:
Grey gum paste, or fondant with tylose kneaded into it
Tinted black fondant for the nose
Flower cutter for the collar; I used the medium daisy cutter from a Wilton set, but any flower cutter will work
Toothpicks for anchoring and for creating impressions
Tinted fondant for the ball; I used red and blue
Food coloring gels, including Americolor Super Black to make the grey gum paste, plus your colors of choice for the collar and ball
Americolor black food coloring pen for the eyes
Piping gel, tylose glue, or your edible glue of choice
Pixie dust for optional sparkle; not edible
Elephant:
Rice cereal treats; I used 1 ½ cereal treats in the 22g size for the elephant body
Grey gum paste, or fondant with tylose kneaded into it
Tinted red fondant for the blanket on the elephant’s back, or your color of choice
Food coloring gels; I used Americolor Super Black for the grey fondant, Royal Blue for the hat, and Americolor Bright White for the toes
Toothpicks for anchors and modeling, or your anchors of choice
Q-tips for applying the white toenails
Lemon extract or vodka to create white paint
Piping gel, tylose glue, or your glue of choice
Pixie dust for optional sparkle; not edible
If you are using fondant instead of gum paste to create your circus animal figures, keep in mind that guests may think the toppers are meant to be eaten. Because toothpicks are used as anchors in the animals, it is important to warn customers or guests not to eat the decorations. This is especially important for cakes served at children’s parties, where small modeled figures can look like candy or edible treats.
If you prefer the elephant and seal cake toppers to be completely edible, allow the individual animal parts to dry thoroughly before assembling them. Once firm, the pieces can be attached with small balls of dampened fondant or gum paste instead of toothpicks. Dry pasta can also be used as an alternative anchor if you would like to avoid toothpicks. Choose the method that works best for your cake design, drying time, and the way the finished cake will be served.
These circus cake animals are a fun way to add movement and character to your cake. The seal with its colorful ball and the elephant with its blanket and hat bring the circus theme to life without requiring complicated sculpting. Take your time with each detail, let the pieces firm up as needed, and enjoy creating these cute handmade decorations for your circus cake.