FMM’s Easiest Peony Cutter is the perfect way to create beautiful and realistic sugar peonies, no matter what your skill level. bone tool (for softening edge of petals and frilling petals, also included as standard in most modelling tool sets)

Sepals - Roll out the green gumpaste thinly. Use the sepal cutter or template and cut out 3 sepals for each bud. Bend a hook in the peony wire and hang on a flower drying stand or from a mug tree to dry completely. Take a piece of white florist’s tape (giving it a little stretch to activate the in-built adhesive), then starting approximately 1.5 inches from the top of the three wires, tape the three pieces together. Use the wide end of a dresden tool to gently frill the top edge, then use the thin end of the dresden tool, to carefully run it over the surface of the petal.Use a JEM veining tool to create texture on the surface. If you do not have a JEM veining tool, you can also use an ordinary veining tool. Thinking of making your own sugar peonies from scratch? Follow our simple step-by-step instructions below to find out how… Cut out five petals of the next size and repeat the wiring, frilling, bending and colouring as before. Use a ball tool for additional help to curve the petal inwards. Allow to dry a little before adding onto the flower with petals overlapping. Roll paste out very thinly and cut out two shapes with the smaller cutter, and two shapes with the larger cutter. Working on the smaller pieces first, thin the petal edges all round with either the ball tool, or the end of the rolling pin. Then, using either of these tools, ball each petal to curve inwards – do this along one side, then turn paste over and ball the second side. This will ensure that all the petals curve inwards the same way. Place the calyx into the centre of the palm of you hand and use a ball tool to cup and shape the calyx.

To create your paste you can use equal quantities of sugar paste and Cake Star modelling paste together, or simply use sugar flower paste. Knead well and add colour if required ( you may want to make the colour for the centre petals a darker shade, graduating to a paler shade for the outer petals). Make a ball of paste which, when measured against a petal in the small cutter, fits well inside it. Elongate the ball slightly.Using a styrofoam centre and just four rows of petals, learn how to make this easy peony with our step-by-step instructions below.