My Ramblings on Icing Color and Some Easter Cookies

April 5, 2012 | 87 Comments »

In the last week or two it seems like I’ve made a ton of cookies…or maybe not.  In any case, whether I make 2 dozen or ten, it always seems like I end up a lot of leftover icing.

Look familiar?

Two day old icing looks pretty icky, but it’s actually the beginning of the majority of my cookie creations.  This Easter platter is the perfect example.  The entire set was made completely out of of leftover icing.

Maybe it was it was all those years with a Nanny that washed Ziplock bags and Solo cups, but it just doesn’t seem right to throw away perfectly good icing.  So, when mixing icing I almost never start with white.  Most of the colors I use are a combination of leftovers  made over to suit whatever I’m working on that day.

It amazes me that with just a little mixing leftover purple icing can become three entirely new shades.

In case that’s a little hard to wrap your head around, this might be a little easier to understand.

The top row is the original color.  The second row it the original color combined with ivory.  The third row is the original color combined with black.  I love how simple black and ivory can turn five colors into fifteen!

Same thing goes for white.  Add simple white icing to the brown shade above {created by combining purple and ivory}, and the change is dramatic.

And finally gray, which is one of my favorites.  Who knew it could get so complicated?  Leave it to me to take it beyond simple black and white.  After a lot of trial and error I’ve found that my all-time favorite shade of gray is actually a combination of black and white with a touch of ivory and blue, which kind of reminds me of concrete.

All this, and I didn’t even venture into the other colors.  Anyway, the point is, don’t throw away icing.  Experiment, play, revisit that old kindergarten rule of “yellow and blue makes green”.  Sometimes the results turn into a very pleasant surprise.

If you love color as much as I do, you may want to check out these fun reads:

or visit these sites for color palate inspiration:

I hope this gives everyone a little food for thought.  This is only the tip of the iceberg.  I have lots more to say regarding color, but for now, it’s going to have to wait.

I hope everyone has a very happy Easter holiday filled with family and friends!

Cookies, Easter Cookies, Holiday Cookies, Icing Color, Sweet Sugar Belle, Tutorials
87 Comments »