How to Make Butterfly Toppers for Cupcakes the EASY Way
These cupcakes are a buttercream frosted treat ideal for Easter, Spring, birthdays, weddings, baby showers and more. Learn how to make butterfly toppers for cupcakes to create these amazing sweet treats.
Enjoy baking or simply decorating some ready-made vanilla cupcakes with a melt in the mouth buttercream frosting and little fluttering butterflies on top. The fondant butterfly toppers are easy to make and stick to your cakes.
Discover how to decorate these beautiful cupcake designs with a spring butterfly theme. It looks as though these butterfly cake toppers are flying over grass. These little butterfly cakes are very easy to create and perfect for Spring and Easter celebrations.
Note: This post may contain affiliate links for which I can be compensated.
Spring is a wonderful time of year and, in the run up to Easter, I enjoy baking gifts for family and friends. These butterfly cupcakes were made as a gift for a friend who loves spending time in her garden. She loves her cakes too. So I'm hoping these will go down a treat.
These cupcakes are topped with a thick, pastel green buttercream frosting and have a butterfly decoration cut from ready-to-roll fondant icing. I'll show you how to make the butterfly toppers for these cupcakes. I'll also provide the recipe so you can make these cakes from scratch if you want to.
You don't need to make these cupcakes. Just buy some ready-made cupcakes and enjoy decorating them with your easy butterfly toppers. No point struggling if baking's not really your thing. You may also be really short on time.
Learn how to make these pretty designs which are perfect for parties, birthdays, baby showers, Easter, weddings and many other occasions.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 1: Making the Mini Fondant Butterflies
What You Need:
Ready to roll fondant icing in 1-3 colors of choice for the butterfly
Small amount of fondant icing in dark brown or black
A small butterfly cookie cutter
Some confectioner's or icing sugar
A rolling pin
To make these butterflies, I've roughly mixed equal portions of pale pink and baby blue ready to roll fondant icing. Ready to roll fondant icing is easy to work with and allows you to make shaped toppers for cakes, cupcakes and other edible treats.
Using a couple of colors rolled together but not totally mixed gives you a marbled look. My mix of pale pink and blue gives a dreamy, pink fluffy cloud look to the butterflies. You can stick to one color of fondant or experiment with 2 or 3 different colors.
Ready to roll fondant icing might feel sticky when you remove it from the packet. Put a light dusting of confectioner's or icing sugar on your work surface, your rolling pin and also your hands to remove the stickiness.
You only need a small amount of fondant to make enough small butterflies to decorate your cupcakes. Roll the fondant until it's around 5mm thick and use a small butterfly cutter to cut out as many butterflies as you have cupcakes. Place them onto a baking tray or baking paper.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 2: Adding Detail to the Fondant Butterflies
This step is optional but I like to add a little extra detail by adding in a body to the middle of the butterfly. There are two easy ways to get this look. You can pipe some icing or pipe melted baking chocolate down the middle.
Alternatively, do what I've done here and roll out some very thin black or brown fondant icing. Just roll it out as if you're making a sausage shape with Play Doh but make it as thin as a shoe lace.
Cut the rolled pieces to the length of the butterfly's body. You stick these on by wetting this part on the butterfly with water (a clean or unused thin paintbrush is handy) and press the body detail in place. The water sticks the two pieces of fondant together.
Now you have your butterfly toppers for your cupcakes. See how I make the cupcakes and decorate them with these toppers with part 2 below.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Recipe Ingredients or Buy Ready Made Cupcakes and Decorate:
Prep time 40 min - Total time 60 min
Ingredients to make up to 15 cupcakes
175g softened butter
175g caster sugar
3 beaten eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
175g plain flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons milk
For the buttercream topping:
175g softened butter
350g confectioner's or icing sugar
2-3 tablespoons of milk
Silicone baking cups or cupcake cases
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 1: Prepare Some Vanilla Cupcakes: Make or Buy Ready Made
If you're not keen on making your own cupcakes, simply purchase some plain vanilla cupcakes and move on to Step 3 where you can decorate them yourself.
Mix the softened butter and sugar together in a large bowl. You can use an electric whisk or mix with a large spoon. Mix in the beaten eggs and then add the vanilla.
When that's all well combined, fold in the flour, baking powder and lastly the milk. Combine all the ingredients until you have a nice, smooth cupcake mix.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 2: Baking the Vanilla Cupcakes
I really recommend using some reusable silicone baking cups or cupcake cases which last and last. I've had mine for several years now and they're still like new and wash out well too.
Fill your baking cups or cases about 2/3rds full - not quite to the top because they will rise in your oven.
Pop them on a baking tray and bake on Gas 4 (350°F / 177°C) for around 15-20 mins.
When done, they should be a lovely golden brown color. Don't worry if the cupcakes have uneven tops and are not all uniform in size. These are gorgeous homemade, with love, cupcakes.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 3: Making the Buttercream Frosting
This is my daughter's favorite part (and mine too if I'm honest) because buttercream frosting is just so good to eat.
Whisk the softened butter in a large bowl until it looks like extra thick whipped cream and then gradually beat in the confectioner's or icing sugar.
Add in the vanilla essence, a small amount of coloring if you're adding this (I used green) and 2-3 tablespoons of milk. You're aiming for a very thick but spreadable consistency. It's not meant to be runny.
No fancy icing is needed. Just take a blunt knife or small palette knife and spread a generous amount of buttercream frosting to the top of each cupcake.
Add some sprinkles or hundreds and thousands on top of the frosting. Then enjoy savoring what's left over in the bowl when you're done.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 4: Finish off Your Butterfly Cupcakes
Pick up a finished fondant butterfly and gently press the wings from behind as if you're closing a book. Not too far, but try and shape the wings a little with this movement so the butterfly looks less static.
Then pop the fondant butterfly topper on top of an iced cupcake. So long as your frosting hasn't gone hard, the butterfly will stick to the top of your cupcake. Enjoy your pretty Spring butterfly cupcakes.
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Enjoy baking or simply decorating some ready-made vanilla cupcakes with a melt in the mouth buttercream frosting and little fluttering butterflies on top. The fondant butterfly toppers are easy to make and stick to your cakes.
Discover how to decorate these beautiful cupcake designs with a spring butterfly theme. It looks as though these butterfly cake toppers are flying over grass. These little butterfly cakes are very easy to create and perfect for Spring and Easter celebrations.
Note: This post may contain affiliate links for which I can be compensated.
How to Make Butterfly Toppers for Cupcakes the EASY Way Using Ready to Roll Fondant
Spring is a wonderful time of year and, in the run up to Easter, I enjoy baking gifts for family and friends. These butterfly cupcakes were made as a gift for a friend who loves spending time in her garden. She loves her cakes too. So I'm hoping these will go down a treat.
These cupcakes are topped with a thick, pastel green buttercream frosting and have a butterfly decoration cut from ready-to-roll fondant icing. I'll show you how to make the butterfly toppers for these cupcakes. I'll also provide the recipe so you can make these cakes from scratch if you want to.
You don't need to make these cupcakes. Just buy some ready-made cupcakes and enjoy decorating them with your easy butterfly toppers. No point struggling if baking's not really your thing. You may also be really short on time.
Learn how to make these pretty designs which are perfect for parties, birthdays, baby showers, Easter, weddings and many other occasions.
Part 1: How to Make These Easy Butterfly Toppers for Cupcakes
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 1: Making the Mini Fondant Butterflies
What You Need:
Ready to roll fondant icing in 1-3 colors of choice for the butterfly
Small amount of fondant icing in dark brown or black
A small butterfly cookie cutter
Some confectioner's or icing sugar
A rolling pin
To make these butterflies, I've roughly mixed equal portions of pale pink and baby blue ready to roll fondant icing. Ready to roll fondant icing is easy to work with and allows you to make shaped toppers for cakes, cupcakes and other edible treats.
Using a couple of colors rolled together but not totally mixed gives you a marbled look. My mix of pale pink and blue gives a dreamy, pink fluffy cloud look to the butterflies. You can stick to one color of fondant or experiment with 2 or 3 different colors.
Ready to roll fondant icing might feel sticky when you remove it from the packet. Put a light dusting of confectioner's or icing sugar on your work surface, your rolling pin and also your hands to remove the stickiness.
You only need a small amount of fondant to make enough small butterflies to decorate your cupcakes. Roll the fondant until it's around 5mm thick and use a small butterfly cutter to cut out as many butterflies as you have cupcakes. Place them onto a baking tray or baking paper.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 2: Adding Detail to the Fondant Butterflies
This step is optional but I like to add a little extra detail by adding in a body to the middle of the butterfly. There are two easy ways to get this look. You can pipe some icing or pipe melted baking chocolate down the middle.
Alternatively, do what I've done here and roll out some very thin black or brown fondant icing. Just roll it out as if you're making a sausage shape with Play Doh but make it as thin as a shoe lace.
Cut the rolled pieces to the length of the butterfly's body. You stick these on by wetting this part on the butterfly with water (a clean or unused thin paintbrush is handy) and press the body detail in place. The water sticks the two pieces of fondant together.
Now you have your butterfly toppers for your cupcakes. See how I make the cupcakes and decorate them with these toppers with part 2 below.
Part 2: Making the Pretty Butterfly Cupcake Designs
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Recipe Ingredients or Buy Ready Made Cupcakes and Decorate:
Prep time 40 min - Total time 60 min
Ingredients to make up to 15 cupcakes
175g softened butter
175g caster sugar
3 beaten eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
175g plain flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons milk
For the buttercream topping:
175g softened butter
350g confectioner's or icing sugar
2-3 tablespoons of milk
Silicone baking cups or cupcake cases
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 1: Prepare Some Vanilla Cupcakes: Make or Buy Ready Made
If you're not keen on making your own cupcakes, simply purchase some plain vanilla cupcakes and move on to Step 3 where you can decorate them yourself.
Mix the softened butter and sugar together in a large bowl. You can use an electric whisk or mix with a large spoon. Mix in the beaten eggs and then add the vanilla.
When that's all well combined, fold in the flour, baking powder and lastly the milk. Combine all the ingredients until you have a nice, smooth cupcake mix.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 2: Baking the Vanilla Cupcakes
I really recommend using some reusable silicone baking cups or cupcake cases which last and last. I've had mine for several years now and they're still like new and wash out well too.
Fill your baking cups or cases about 2/3rds full - not quite to the top because they will rise in your oven.
Pop them on a baking tray and bake on Gas 4 (350°F / 177°C) for around 15-20 mins.
When done, they should be a lovely golden brown color. Don't worry if the cupcakes have uneven tops and are not all uniform in size. These are gorgeous homemade, with love, cupcakes.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 3: Making the Buttercream Frosting
This is my daughter's favorite part (and mine too if I'm honest) because buttercream frosting is just so good to eat.
Whisk the softened butter in a large bowl until it looks like extra thick whipped cream and then gradually beat in the confectioner's or icing sugar.
Add in the vanilla essence, a small amount of coloring if you're adding this (I used green) and 2-3 tablespoons of milk. You're aiming for a very thick but spreadable consistency. It's not meant to be runny.
No fancy icing is needed. Just take a blunt knife or small palette knife and spread a generous amount of buttercream frosting to the top of each cupcake.
Add some sprinkles or hundreds and thousands on top of the frosting. Then enjoy savoring what's left over in the bowl when you're done.
Image Credit: photo belongs to the author.
Step 4: Finish off Your Butterfly Cupcakes
Pick up a finished fondant butterfly and gently press the wings from behind as if you're closing a book. Not too far, but try and shape the wings a little with this movement so the butterfly looks less static.
Then pop the fondant butterfly topper on top of an iced cupcake. So long as your frosting hasn't gone hard, the butterfly will stick to the top of your cupcake. Enjoy your pretty Spring butterfly cupcakes.
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CraftyMarie is a craft themed website by Marie Williams Johnstone. I love to craft in the winter and garden in the summer. I make handmade cards, papercrafts, crochet and seasonal crafts. I enjoy many of the more traditional crafts and hobbies including sewing, embroidery and working with felt and fabric. Thanks for leaving me a comment. Comments do not show up until I approve them. Marie