Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Petalsweet Ranunculus Tutorial

Greetings and Happy February!

We hope you are safely enjoying the winter season wherever you are...we have been blessed with a very mild winter here in Southern California, and are taking advantage of as many opportunities as possible to spend time outside enjoying the sunshine!

We’re very happy to announce our Ranunculus PDF Photo Tutorial is now available for sale online!



We have been working on this little project for several months...and are excited to finally have it completed. We know there are a lot of great tutorials out there for this cutie, and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to share our version too!

This PDF downloadable tutorial features our stylized version of this adorable and trendy bloom! It is definitely one of our favorites and such a great flower for spring and summer designs. There are 30 pages of step-by-step instructions along with over 100 photos used to show you how to make our standard flower, leaves, our favorite little buds, dusting techniques and lots of tips for success.

We had a lot of fun putting it together, and we hope you enjoy it! We'd also love to see any flowers you create, so be sure to share them with us! We are so grateful for your support - thank you!

The tutorial is available for $12.95 USD and you can find it here:



We also wanted to share our Favorite Brush Tips! We have been cleaning and reorganizing in the studio this month, and Jacqueline gets a lot of questions about brushes in class, so we thought it would be a great time to talk about some tricks that work for us!

1. We purchase most of our brushes from a local craft store. We don't buy anything super-duper fancy, but make sure the brushes are of high enough quality they don't "shed" on our flowers when we are using them. We buy brushes for both small blossoms and larger flowers. They are gently washed with soap and warm water and then left to air dry before using. If we need a specialty brush for detail work (like tiny dots on an orchid) we splurge a little at the art supply store.


2. We keep our brushes in color families! Storage can be as simple as jars, canisters or a drawer in your work area, and Jacqueline uses labeled plastic zip top bags when traveling. What's great is, we don't spend our precious time washing them, our brushes last longer because they are not getting frayed, and most importantly, we don't accidentally use the wrong color brush on our flowers. There is nothing like making a pretty blush pink flower and then getting the wrong color on it, right?! 

3. Different brushes have different jobs...just like using brushes for make-up, we find it best to use small, firm, flat brushes to apply dust to a specific area or when edging petals and leaves. Big, round, soft fluffy brushes are great for a light dusting over a large surface area. Here are some quick examples...

Firm flat brushes:


Using a flat brush to add color to the edges of a rose:


Round soft brushes:


Using a big soft brush for a light dusting of pearl dust on a parrot tulip:

Stay safe and enjoy the season...more news and updates coming soon!

Thank you and our very best,

Jacqueline and Petalsweet

Copyright © 2014 by Jacqueline Butler of Petalsweet Cakes. Content of this blog (including text, cake and sugar flower designs, photographs, tutorials, videos and layout) is the property of Jacqueline Butler and Petalsweet - please respect copyright laws. If you want to link to our blog, or post any of our photos, please contact us - it would be great to have the opportunity to connect with you. Thank you!

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24 comments:

Melissa said...

YAY! I'm so glad that you are making these tutorials available for purchase! I already bought mine! You are amazing :)

Anonymous said...

Woooow! Thank you sooooooo much! Love this tutorial!! And I love your flowers, too! I'm happy for this download because I know I'll never have the chance to take One of your classes. Thank you again, so much! Silvia

simonarossi66 said...

dearest Jacqueline
finally this tutorial ... I have now bought! Although I would have preferred a video course!
I have noticed that there is a detailed list of the materials used, cutters, veiners, etc. colri (such as there is in the course of your craftsy.com) what brand they are and where you can buy them.
is it possible to have this list?
I also wanted to ask you why were not released more courses with cake masters? I bought your course on gardenia and I had realized that you you had already prepared other!
I like too much your courses .....

Jacqueline Butler said...

Thank you Melissa, Silvia and Simona! I so appreciate your messages!

Simona...you can find all the cutters and veiners from Scott Woolley at www.cakesbydesign.cc I use his rose petal cutters, leaf cutters and the same hydrangea leaf veiner from the Craftsy class (also from Scott). He will know what you need! The dust colors are by Crystal Colors (mentioned in the tutorial) and the colors are Moss Green and Kiwi Green. You can find them online at Global Sugar Art or www.sugarpaste.com. Unfortunately I have had a lot of other things that have needed my time and attention so I have not been able to do more videos. I hope to be able to in the future and will keep you posted! Jacqueline x

simonarossi66 said...

Thank you so much Jacqueline
for your answer.
I always follow you on facebook and on this blog and I hope soon in your other video lessons.
Have a good day !

Shirley Santos-Yanga said...

Hi Jacqueline, I was so ecstatic to see that your Ranunculus tutorial is available for purchase online :-) I immediately bought the lesson and I'm enjoying all the pictures and the detailed instruction. I am really a BIG FAN of you and your work and I'm inspired by your style. I've been wanting to attend your courses for the longest time but living in Vietnam and having a toddler makes it hard for me to leave. Thanks so much for making your lessons accessible. Looking forward to more flowers from you soon!

Jacqueline Butler said...

Thanks so much Shirley! I'm so glady you are enjoying the tutorial - thank you for your lovely message! Jacqueline xx

Anonymous said...

Hi Jacqueline,

I purchased your tutorial and am excited to get started but had a question. I noticed from the tutorial that the rose petal cutters require to be bent so that the shape can be slightly changed - is that right. Am a little worried about bending the rose petal cutters I have- is it easy enough to bend them back into its original shape?

Jacqueline Butler said...

It's not required that you bend your cutters. Most ranunculus petals have a bit of a flat top edge on them instead of rounded like rose petals, but if you are concerned about bending your cutters then I would just leave them as they are and try to widen the petal a little bit towards the top when you are cupping with the ball tool. You will still get a great looking flower! Once I bend my cutters I leave them that way and use them only for ranunculus flowers - and have other cutters for roses. Have fun and please share photos of your flowers! Jacqueline x

Unknown said...

Hi Jacqueline,

your work is really exceptional and inspiring. Thank you for what you have given to the world of sugar craft. I have been following your blog for some time and noticed that you have mentioned that your peony cutter set will be available for purchase in the near future. Forgive me if you have already told us when and where, and I have missed it, but I was wondering whether your peony cutter set is out for sale. If so, from where could i purchase it? Many Thanks. Anita

Jacqueline Butler said...

Thank you so much Anita! I had peony cutter sets made, but have revised them and unfortunately it has been difficult finding a reputable company to make them for me. As soon as I have any updates I will post about here. Thank you for your interest - I hope to have good news to share soon! Jacqueline

Unknown said...

Hi Jacqueline, many thanks for your reply. forgive me please for the long question below (you dont have to post all of it or post it at all), but while i wait for your peony cutters to come to market, could you please advise which cutters and veiners I should use? there are so many on the market i am confused as to which to buy. I know that previously, when asked, you have said that you use a combination of the original cutters by Sunflower Sugar Art (SSA) and some others (Colette Peters i think you may have said). Is this correct? Which combination would you recommend? i was thinking of using a combination of the original SSA ones plus the oriental peony cutter also by SSA. Do you think this is ok?
I also love your parrot tulips they are the best and most life-like i have ever seen. I bought a cutter for these and tried it out but mine did not look anything like yours - i may have bought the wrong cutter of not a very good design or maybe my technique is wrong. Which cutter and veiner would you recommend for the parrot tulip? Do you use the James Rosselle one for yours or some other?
Also, am I correct in saying that the pdf photo tutorials for your peony and parrot tulip are not available as yet?
Warm regards
Anita

Anonymous said...

Hi Jacqueline, I love your ranunculus tutorial and I appreciate he time you took to create it - it came out really great and is easy to follow! I'm hoping that you will release more tutorials like this one, I'd especially love to learn how to make your beautiful cosmo and cherry blossoms!Best wishes, bella

Anonymous said...

Hi Jacqueline!! I am new to sugar flower making and I am having a hard time looking for high quality brushes for my petal dust. I usually find brushes with paint that chip every time I wash them... and the bristles are not soft either.. what brand could you suggest? Thank you!!!

Anonymous said...

Hello. I tried making the ranunculus but had some problems with veining them. I rolled the gumpaste which I made using the Nicholas Lodge recipe and rolled the paste on no 4 using the kitchen aid roller. While the veins were quite clear when I was veining them, they soon began to fade and not as obvious as the photos on your tutorial. Can you help troubleshoot? I also would like to know what colour gumpaste was used for the light green? I used moss green but don't think that was the colour you used in the tutorial. Thanks so much.

Jacqueline Butler said...

Dear Anonymous...I believe you sent me a message a few weeks ago regarding the same question...are you in NZ? If so, were you able to try my suggestions? If not, #4 on pasta machine sounds quite thick - what happens when you apply more pressure with the shell tool? And if the veining is disappearing, you may also want to add a bit more moisture to your paste which can help retain the veins. The green gumpaste was made with Americolor Gel in Avocado and just made in a pale shade. If you have more questions about the veining please email me a jacqueline@petalsweet.com so I can answer in a more timely fashion and perhaps you can send me some process photos. Jacqueline x

Jacqueline Butler said...

Hello! Regarding brushes, it's tough to find good ones without paying a premium, so I would suggest if you want quality they you should shop at an art store and talk to the staff there. I don't like to spend a lot of money on brushes, but I don't wash mine either. I have brushes in all color families and they stay there with no crossover. That way the bristles last longer and I don't spend time washing them too. I usually just buy flat, square head brushes from Michaels craft store in a range of sizes. Not super cheap, but definitely not the expensive ones either. I hope that helps? Jacqueline x

Jacqueline Butler said...

Hi Bella...thank you so much! I am working on more tutorials and hope to have them available soon! We'll be announcing them as they become ready...probably in May! Jacqueline x

Jacqueline Butler said...

Hi Anita...thanks for you patience in my reply! I think what you have chosen to mix for your peony sounds very good. You don't want all of the petals to look the same, so having them be similar but slightly different is a great way to go. Both of those sets are great for peonies. I do not have a tutorial yet for mine, but we are working on one and it should be available in the next few months along with other tutorials as well. I have not done a tutorial on the parrot tulip as James has his class on Craftsy so I don't think it would sell well, but I'll definitely think about it! SSA and James both have good cutters and I have used both for my parrot tulip classes depending on what is available. Does that help? And please feel free to send me an email at jacqueline@petalsweet.com if you have lengthy questions as I'll see those first before landing here. Jacqueline xx

Anonymous said...

hi Jacqueline,

When are you coming back to sydney we miss you. I noticed that you are doing classes in perth any paln to visit

Jacqueline Butler said...

Hi! I will be visiting Sydney this year after Perth but I'm sorry I have no plans for classes there at this time. Hopefully later in the year! Thank you! Jacqueline x

Ada Trumbull said...

Hi Jacquelin . Where i have to go to take classes with you , im living Tampa. Thanks

Ada Trumbull said...

Hi , where i have to go to take classes with you.

Jacqueline Butler said...

Hi Ada,
I've been teaching overseas for most of the summer - sorry to take so long to get back to you. The best way to receive class updates is via our newsletter. We send it out when I have new classes available.You can sign up here on our blog or our FB page Petalsweet Cakes. Jacqueline