Working with Gum Paste

• Work with a little bit of gum paste at a time, because it dries quickly. Keep the portion you're not using wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container. Knead gum paste with shortening to keep it moist and malleable. If it becomes sticky, dust the gum paste, your fingers or your work surface with cornstarch or powdered sugar, as needed. Test the letter-shaping techniques on a small, uncolored portion of gum paste so you feel comfortable with them before you begin working with the bulk of the material.

Rolling Gum Paste

• Dust your work surface with cornstarch or powdered sugar to prevent the gum paste from sticking as you worth with it. Form a ball of gum paste between your palms, then roll it flat on your work surface with a small rolling pin. There are cake decorating rolling pins that are designed to roll fondant and gum paste, but a small pasta rolling pin is also acceptable. Roll the gum paste until it is roughly the same thickness you want the letters to be. Gum paste is easiest to handle when it is petal-thin. It is possible to craft thick letters, but thick gum paste shapes are more likely to crack when you handle them. Have shortening handy so that you can keep the gum paste moist and pliable until you are happy with the shape of the letters.

Letter-Shaped Cutting Tools

• There are two basic ways to cut letters out of rolled gum paste: punch them out with letter-shaped tools, like cookie cutters, or make a stencil and hand-cut around the edges. You can buy letter-shaped cutting tools specifically for cake decorating, but cookie cutters, clay cutters or any other letter punching tools are acceptable as long as they’re clean. You may need to dip the cutters in cornstarch or powdered sugar to ensure they won’t tear or stick to the gum paste. Use tweezers to remove the inner pieces of letters that you are punching out so you don't have to excessively manipulate the fragile pieces with your fingers. Alternatively, lay a letter or name stencil on top of the rolled gum paste, and trace around the edges with a cake decorator’s cutting tool -- similar to a penknife -- or the tip of a sharp knife.

For Names Carved Inward

• If you want the name to appear recessed, like you carved it into the surface of the cake or cupcake, you should use the same technique. But instead of applying the gum paste letters to the item you’re decorating, apply the rolled disc of gum paste from which you cut the letters. While gum paste is not the best medium for covering a cake or cupcake, a gum paste medallion or badge with a name cut out makes an attractive decoration.

Applying Gum Paste Letters

• Place the letters in an airtight container until you are ready to apply them to the item you are decorating. Gum glue is a decorating product that binds gum paste pieces together. But there are other ways to affix gum paste to another surface. Brush the back of a letter with water, which bonds the sugary pieces together as it dries. If you are applying a gum paste letter to frosting or icing, water may not bind gum paste to the other food effectively. Apply a small bead of royal icing to the back of the gum paste embellishment, then place it as desired. Royal icing hardens as it dries and acts like a sugary, edible adhesive.