A Fondant Bow

How have I managed to tinker around in the kitchen for as long as I have and never attempt to make a bow out of fondant? In the Tall Cakes class I took the other night almost every cake had a fondant bow on it; my cake felt underdressed (sort of like the girl who decides to go to the formal dance on the day of it and has to show up in her mom's evening gown, like in that episode of Beverly Hills, 90210). However, all the bows I was seeing in class looked very much like the loopy one on the cover of the Wilton book "Celebrate With Fondant," and I really wanted to make something with two huge loops and a lot of "pouf"; sort of like Hello Kitty's bow, the bow on the Monster High skull logo, or Lady Gaga's bow made of hair. I fumbled around a lot until I figured out what I needed to do. I started by making a pattern out of a piece of paper. As you can see, it's a bit like a football with the ends cropped off. I laid it on a piece of fondant and cut around it with the cutting wheel that came with the Wilton Deluxe Gum Paste Set.

I made two cutouts, one for each half of the bow. 

Then I put them on a waxed paper-covered cookie sheet, wadded up a tissue, and wrapped a loop around it. Be sure to use plain, cheap tissue; not mentholated or lotion-infused. I pinched the ends to keep it together:

Here's another view:

I also made a strip wide enough to mask all the raw edges in the middle and wrapped it around:

I also made a blue bow, that included a couple of "tails." These got their shape from being allowed to dry on a wave flower former. The fondant can be dusted with any variety of edible glitter, if you like. When the fondant is good and firm, you can remove the tissues and it will hold its shape. I'll show you in the near future what I made the pink bow for (no, not my hair).