My Cake School

Cake Tutorials & Recipes

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Free Cake Videos
    • The Basics
    • Buttercream Techniques
    • Carved/3D
    • Chocolate Techniques
    • Cupcake, Cake Pop, etc. Methods
    • Gum Paste & Fondant
    • Themes and Occasions
    • See All Videos
  • Free Blog Tutorials
  • Recipes
    • Cakes and Cupcakes
    • Fillings
    • Fondant/Gumpaste
    • Frostings and Glazes
    • Miscellaneous
  • Contact
  • About

Octopus Cake Tutorial! My Cake School

June 12, 2010 By Melissa Diamond 21 Comments

1.4K shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

 

Hi everyone!

Today’s cake lesson is an ADORABLE Octopus cake tutorial! Summer always seems to bring adorable beachy patterns on everything from beach towels to baby clothes! I’ve seen some really adorable octopus designs and it has put me in the mood for some octopus cake cuteness!

Cute Octopus Cake Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com! Free cake tutorial. Perfect for pool parties and beach themes! My Cake School Online Cake Tutorials, recipes, videos, and more!

 

 

How to Make a Cute Octopus Cake

This cake design would be perfect for all sorts of summertime occasions, including pool parties, luaus, and beach themed gatherings! This would even be an adorable baby shower cake for summertime.

Let’s get started!

 

First up, LEGS LEGS LEGS!

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

I’ve created eight fondant legs (mixed with a bit of tylose powder for faster drying).

You’ll want to flatten the end of the leg that will go on top of the tier, so the head can lie flat.  Taper and curl the end of the legs for movement.  Any legs that hang over the edge can be propped up with something until dry–I used a clothespin.

You can make the legs fairly thick but keep in mind that you don’t want them to be so heavy that they weigh the cake down.

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

I also inserted a bubble tea straw into the center of the top tier.  Something has to support this big noggin!…

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

Hello Octopus!  This octopus head  is a Rice Cereal Treat—actually, about 6 of them.  It measures approximately 3 ½″ tall.

Press and shape your rice cereal treats into a ball (flattened on the bottom.) Then, rub a light coating of shortening of the cereal treat shape and cover with a layer of green fondant (rolled to about ⅛ inch.) If the head seems a bit too lumpy after covering, you can apply another layer.

Here’s the underside…

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

Time to assemble!

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

You can add a little icing to secure the head to the legs.  Isn’t he cute?  The little suctions on the legs are piped circles royal icing. (You could also use a crusting buttercream for this.)

Now for some cute little details!  I was really excited with how the clam turned out.  First, take some rolled gum paste (or fondant mixed with tylose), shape into an oval, and make lines with a toothpick…

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

Now, for the big secret! ……………..

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

Ice cream scoops make perfect clam shell molds.  Just remember to dust them with corn starch first.

Allow to dry several hours or overnight.  Once dry, it’s time  to place onto the cake!  Secure with a little icing….and don’t forget a fondant pearl!

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

I made seaweed, sea plants with various piping tips, including the tip 352 leaf tip and a crescent tip 81.  Also, my trusty round 4 tip for bubbles and misc. plants.  That’s the fun thing making sea plants–anything goes!  Reminds me of Dr. Seuss!

Now, time for sand.  Sometimes sand is whatever vanilla cookies are around the house.  Today, I pulverized Cheerios.  To make the sand cooperate, I first spread the board with a little buttercream tinted brown.

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

Then, press press press…..

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

And write the birthday boy’s name!  I used a dry paintbrush for this….

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

And here is our finished cake!! So much cuteness!……………………………..

Sweet Octopus Cake Blog Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com!

I hope that you enjoyed this cute little tutorial! Come back again soon!

 

Looking for even more beach themed cakes and cupcakes? Check out these tutorials!

Beach Cupcake Tutorial (featuring Crab Cupcakes and Lollipop Fish!)

The cutest beach themed cupcakes! Free cupcake tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com.

Fish Cupcake Cake!

 

Adorable Fish Cupcake Cake Tutorial by MyCakeSchool.com! Perfect for beach parties and pool parties! Free tutorial.

 

Boy Baby Shower Cake Ideas

This sweet octopus cake would work perfectly for baby shower cakes also! If you’re looking for more ideas for baby boy shower cakes, don’t miss our roundup of favorite boy baby shower cakes! 

 

CUTE Baby Shower Cake Ideas for Boys

 

 

 

No related posts.

Filed Under: Baby Showers, Summer, Blog Tutorials, Custom Toppers & Figure Modeling, Animals/Animal Print, Themes and Occasions, Showers Tagged With: ocean, sea, octopus

Comments

  1. moffittchristine June 12, 2010 at 8:39 pm

    This is so adorable! I may try this for my son’s 1st birthday!

    Reply
  2. Melissa Diamond June 12, 2010 at 10:56 pm

    Thanks!! Yes, I think it’s such a sweet cake for little boys (or little girls!) — I was so tempted to make a pink octopus!

    Reply
  3. becklynn June 16, 2010 at 11:30 am

    So cute!
    Thanks for the tutorial…I am loving My Cake School!!

    Reply
  4. Melissa Diamond June 16, 2010 at 10:12 pm

    Thanks Becklynn–I’m glad that you are here!

    Reply
  5. lorie May 8, 2012 at 7:27 am

    do you do any pictures on cake let me know

    Reply
  6. vinisha August 12, 2012 at 1:03 am

    excellent..my sons first birthday is coming up.i may give this a try but if u do winnie pooh figurine please please let me know.thank you in anticipation

    Reply
  7. Kidzsheets October 2, 2012 at 11:28 pm

    Excellent..

    Reply
  8. Sarah July 28, 2013 at 7:52 pm

    Love this! How did you make the little hat? Also, would Marshmallow Fondant work instead of regular fondant?

    Reply
  9. SweetS August 5, 2013 at 7:13 am

    Sooooo cute, Melissa!

    Reply
  10. zeliwe mwanza November 25, 2013 at 2:40 am

    love your cakes

    Reply
  11. Casie January 2, 2014 at 12:46 pm

    What is the board covered with?

    Reply
  12. BeBe January 2, 2014 at 1:07 pm

    Hi Casie, This board was covered in green paper and clear cellophane (fruit baskets are wrapped in this) is over the green paper. If we were doing this today we would use a green plastic tablecloth to cover the cake base. Taping it onto the base or using a stapler to attach it. If you staple it to the cake base, be sure they are fully in the board so as not to scratch someone’s table.

    Reply
  13. Stella May 1, 2014 at 5:51 pm

    Hi! How far in advance did you make the octopus head? I’m wondering how well it will store if I make it a week before…

    Thanks!

    Reply
  14. BeBe May 1, 2014 at 9:47 pm

    Hi Stella, You can definitely make the octopus head one or two weeks before the party. Just keep it out of direct sunlight or fluorescent lighting because the colors will fade. Also, do NOT keep it in an airtight box. A bakery box would be fine or any container that can be loosely covered.

    Reply
  15. Karen Gianni November 20, 2015 at 1:15 pm

    Really cute cakes and cupcakes. I think I could try these. Thank you. ?

    Reply
  16. Rebecca Booth May 25, 2016 at 11:50 am

    Hi amazing cake! I am going to do a version of this for my sons first birthday – how was the hat made and attached to the octopus head?

    Reply
  17. Melissa Diamond May 25, 2016 at 12:08 pm

    Hello Rebecca! I’m glad that you are making this! I can’t believe that I don’t explain the hat…so strange! I made this 6 years ago and so it’s been a while…but looking at it I can see that you’ll start with a white ball of fondant or gum paste, slightly flatten it into sort of a pumpkin shape. You can add impressions with a toothpick to create the look of seams if you’d like in a x pattern. A put a tiny ball of fondant on top, slightly flattened. Then I took a strip of fondant (which I added ridges to with a toothpick) and wrapped it around the ball to complete the hat. You can use a little water as your glue…or piping gel if you need something stronger. I hope this helps! ;0)

    Reply
  18. Janet October 18, 2016 at 2:24 pm

    This is such a cute a fabulous Octopus cake!! Thank you for sharing and well done. I’m going to give it a shot for my daughter’s 9th birthday next week, eeek! I hope it turns out as nice as yours did.

    Reply
  19. Melissa Diamond October 18, 2016 at 2:41 pm

    Thanks so much Janet! I’m happy that you are making this!! xoxo

    Reply
  20. Coco in the Kitchen January 20, 2020 at 4:46 pm

    So cute and clever! I love how you made the clam shell!

    Reply
  21. Melissa Diamond January 20, 2020 at 7:17 pm

    @Coco in the Kitchen- Thank you!! ;0)

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • Lemon Buttermilk Cake {A Scratch Recipe}

    Lemon Buttermilk Cake {A Scratch Recipe}
  • Sweet Balloons Cake

    Sweet Balloons Cake
  • White Chocolate Coconut Cake

    White Chocolate Coconut Cake
  • Striped Buttercream Panels Cake

    Striped Buttercream Panels Cake
  • Lemon Coconut Cake with Lemon Curd Filling

    Lemon Coconut Cake with Lemon Curd Filling
  • Milk Chocolate Cake

    Milk Chocolate Cake
  • Buttercream Tulip Cake

    Buttercream Tulip Cake
  • Flamingo Ruffle Cake- A Cake Decorating Video Tutorial

    Flamingo Ruffle Cake- A Cake Decorating Video Tutorial
  • 60+ of the BEST Cake Recipes for Spring and Summer

    60+ of the BEST Cake Recipes for Spring and Summer
  • Lemon Cake {A Scratch Recipe}

    Lemon Cake {A Scratch Recipe}
Facebook Instagram Pinterest Twitter RSS
  • Free Blog Tutorials
  • Free Cake Videos
  • Recipes
  • Contact
  • About
  • Free Blog Tutorials
  • Free Cake Videos
  • Recipes
  • Contact
  • About

Copyright © 2022 My Cake School. Melissa Diamond. All rights reserved | Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy