How to Make an Eiffel Tower Cake

 Eiffel Tower Cake

There is nothing more satisfying than making a custom shaped cake for your family and friends. For those who adore all things French, and Paris in particular, this cake will be a hit and it's easy to create.

EditIngredients

• 2 sheet cakes of choice (a sheet cake is a cake baked in a large, flat rectangular pan); the article uses a chocolate sheet cake with 'Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips' mixed in
• Butter cream icing/frosting
• Fondant and food coloring (gray, red)

EditSteps

1. 1
   

    Bake the two sheet cakes of your choice.
   Bake the two sheet cakes of your choice. Let them cool.
2. 2
   Cut four 12" x 12" (30.5cm x 30.5cm) squares from the sheet cakes.
   • Stack the squares on top of each other. This will give you the base of the cake.
   • Shape the base by shaving gently with the knife down each side of the layered squares. Shape the base as shown in the picture here:
     
     
     
3. 3
   Using the remaining cake from the sheet cakes, cut three squares (the size of these will depend on how much sheet cake you have left over). The cakes need to be the appropriate size to continue creating the narrowing shape that approximates the shape of the real Eiffel Tower.
   • After you cut the three squares, stack them and then shape them as shown below. Ensure that there is a gradual narrowing to the top layer, using the image as a guide:
     
     
     
4. 4
   Once you have the base and middle section shapes correct size-wise, you can dismantle the base and middle section to start crumb coating each section. A crumb coat is a light coating of butter cream icing. Do this for both the base and the middle section. Only the base is shown below:
   
   
   
5. 5
   Since the real Eiffel Tower is gray, use gray fondant with gray butter cream icing for the majority of the cake. Color and then roll out the gray fondant. Then cover the entire base of the cake with the fondant.
   • Cut out the gray fondant to make arches on all four sides as shown below.
   • Use a red fondant for the middle sections.
   • Use a model kit knife to slice through the fondant. Do not worry about matching the fondant edges to each other exactly as these will be covered with a border in the next step.
     
     
     
6. 6
   Use a darker gray for the border and roll a brick pattern over it before cutting it into strips and applying them to the edges of the arch. This covers any gaps you have between the red and gray fondant.
   
   
   
   • It is important note at this time that you do not need to worry about any small bumps or blunders with the base. As the cake progresses, the small bumps and blunders will be hidden.
7. 7
   Cover the middle section with the gray and red fondant as you did with the base section. You can use a different pattern and color for the border if you want.
   
   
   

    Middle fondant
8. 8
   Start the piping, this is where any bumps or blunders will be hidden. Using the gray butter cream, start with the base and pipe as shown below. You can use freehand when piping, however, you could also use a guide by using a straight edge pressing in on the fondant and then piping over the creases. Use the image below as a guide:
   
   
   
9. 9
   Continue to pipe the middle section and then stack it on top of the base section as displayed below. Make sure you use dowels and cake pads between the two sections to ensure stability. As you can see now, the cake is starting to take shape:
   
   
   
10. 10
    For the top portion use Styrofoam covered with gray fondant. You could use Rice Krispie treats covered in fondant as well. Make sure you have a dowel protruding from the top portion so you can attach it to the middle section. After covering the Styrofoam in fondant, continue to pipe it with the gray butter cream as shown in the picture below.
    
    
    
11. 11
    Create a cylinder covered in fondant with a small tower at the top and attach it to the top section of the cake. Finally, you will need to assemble the top section to the base and the middle section. Your final cake should look like the image below:
    
    
    

EditVideo

This video shows the making of a wedding cake quality Eiffel Tower cake. You will see the frosting is done in a different manner and is much more fiddly!

EditTips

• If you have small models, add a few cars, people, park benches, and trees around the base to make it appear more lifelike.

EditThings You'll Need

• Cake baking equipment and recipe
• Bread knife or similar suitable cutting knife
• Flat, clean surface to work on
• Picture of the Eiffel Tower to help your sizing (optional)
• Model kit knife
• Piping equipment
• Brick pattern roller (ask at cake decorator's)
• Dowel and cake pads
• Styrofoam

How to Curb Your Addiction to News

Find yourself drawn daily or even hourly to news, news, news? And all because it's there and it seems so much more exciting than events directly around you? Addiction to news channels, or news sources in general, is a form of distraction or obsession and while you may feel connected to the world, you're actually less involved and engaged than were you to stop imbibing all those news stories and get on with something you're good at, like work, a hobby, writing a polemic piece for online publishing or getting the kids outside to play sport. Worst of all, snippets of information are only the tip of the news story and may not even be an accurate portrayal of events, particularly if your news sources are very partisan. It's time to wrench yourself away from the love of news, sense of urgency and all things titillating and start to do more useful things with your day.

EditSteps

1. 1
   Assess the level of your problem. How badly are you afflicted by addiction to news feeds, whatever their source? Here are some possible indicators that you're struck badly:
   • Do you define your day by checking in to news sites online, flicking on news stations and newspapers?
   • Do you interrupt conversations to be able to hear a news item while you're out shopping, dining or spending time with others?
   • Do you consider 24 hour news stations matter more than any other stations on your TV? Have you subscribed to a massive amount of them? Or would you forgo other things in life just to feed this habit?
   • Do you feel deprived if you don't know what's apparently currently happening in the world?
   • Do you need to be person who has the news first, whether it's who won American Idol or which country has invaded which other country?
   • Even if you hated the reporter's take on things, would you rather watch/read/listen to that reporter's news than not get the news at all?
   • Have you succumbed so badly that you work with news in some shape or form? Are you a journalist, a political adviser, a media specialist? Obviously, this doesn't necessarily mean you're addicted but in a wider context of other indicators, it may reveal that you're hooked on urgency and the need to be "in-the-know" before anyone else.
2. 2
   Evaluate your mood after spending time watching news programs. Your feelings are the key guide as to whether or not you've let a news addiction dominate your life and turn out of control. If you feel anxious, anxiety-ridden and convinced that the world is a basket case on a daily basis, you're overly reliant on news. Has your usual optimistic self being transformed into a pessimistic and joyless self who only sees the dangers, the panic, the fears and the terrible future possibilities ahead of you? Too much news digestion will do that. It's dangerous to allow the news to dictate how you feel; it's even more dangerous to let the skewed, sensationalist, overly negative focus of most news sources give you the impression that life is all bad, troublesome and evil. Telltale signs that news is ruining your life include:
   • You're unable to react to stressful situations rationally. Have you become more anxious or anxiety ridden since you increased your cable news TV viewing and online news scouring? Do you snap at family members or become agitated if someone makes the slightest mistake or dares to suggest that things aren't really so bad as you're making them out to be?
   • You've started to become more paranoid or uneasy in public. Continuous exposure to an abundance of news can make even the most levelheaded individual feel paranoid or concerned that something terrible is about to happen. You start wondering if people are concealing weapons, if that person who made eye contact with you is up to no good and that the egg salad on your daily sandwich is suddenly a field of salmonella contamination despite the fact that the cafe has a clean bill of health and all your previous sandwiches were just fine.
   • Do have an overall feeling of negativity? An overwhelming, overall feeling of doom and gloom toward mankind can result from watching too much news. News is typically premised on the more bad events that can be covered, the more viewers. Humans are primed to react to negative events; it's a survival mechanism. Unfortunately, news outlets have taken this predilection to new heights by keeping our fear level hovering at a constantly high level, wondering where the next bogeyman is about to leap from.
3. 3
   Consider the impact of your compulsion to imbibe news 24/7 news has on your life. Even if you believe that you can cope with digesting news all day long, take a hard look at the way your life is right now. If you used to have diverse interests and were more trusting and open with others, but now feel as though it's best to stay indoors, never get in your car again and definitely go nowhere near where bears roam, people don't speak your language or eggs are eaten raw, then you're curtailing your life. You've stopped looking for the good and simply see all that's bad. And while a little dose of wariness is a good thing for anyone, when it's in overdrive, it's liable to border on paranoia, suspicion, phobias and social isolation.
   
   
   
   • How are your friendships going? Are you actually interested in what your friends are doing and thinking or are only inclined to base the majority of your conversations and interactions on what you read and see on the news? Can you only relate to others based on what is going on in the news or feel left out when friends or colleagues discuss subjects, such as their family or even what’s going on at work?
   • Do you find ways to bring up news topics, even if they aren’t being discussed? If you’ve become consumed by watching around the clock news coverage, you may feel that the only way you can relate to others is through showing your knowledge about the current stories. You may even consider driving a conversation toward a recent story or look for opportunities to move the conversation away from a non-news topic to something you’ve recently seen. For example, during a trial of a parent who has committed a crime against his or her child, do you find that when friends or colleagues discuss issues relevant to their children or parenting skills, you’ll try to morph the conversation into something about the latest larger-than-life trial coverage rather than keeping it solely at the level of the reality of the parenting issues in front of you?
   • Have you skipped or missed important events or opportunities to be with others to watch the news? A true news junkie will forgo gatherings and events in order to avoid missing out on breaking news. Although the story will be replayed dozens of times over the next few days, many news addicts feel as though it is important to get the story as it breaks. Alternatively, perhaps you do go but you're rude enough to keep checking news stories on your smartphone throughout the whole event, ignorant of how self-absorbed this looks to everyone around you.
4. 4
   Dig into your obsession with news. Now that you've acknowledged you have a problem, start working on cutting your ties with news addiction. Although "news addiction" isn't a recognized medical issue as such, any time that something obsesses you and causes you to lead a less fulfilled life as a result of the obsession needs to be dealt with in the same manner as an addiction in order for you to break free from its hold. Here are some ideas for getting started:
   • Identify when your neediness for news began. Sometimes an obsession is simply a symptom of a larger issue, so identifying the underlying cause can put you in a better position to beat the addiction. In some cases, professional psychological assistance may be necessary to address problem but for now, assume you have a handle on this.
   • Did you start to watch more and more news after experiencing a traumatic event, somehow identifying with other people's pain? This can be an especial problem where you haven't had proper debriefing or care following a traumatic event of your own, and you're vulnerable to identifying closely with the loss, pain and sadness of those depicted on TV or in other sources of news stories. Another reason can also be because you're trying hard to care for yourself by telling yourself that other people have it so much worse than you. While this has good underlying intentions, when all you end up doing is watching how many other people have it worse than you, you're obsessing, not healing.
   • Are you making up for a sudden appearance of free time? In some cases, if you're newly retired or unemployed, your children have "left the nest", or you've experienced a reduction in responsibilities or duties, you may be simply trying to find ways to handle extra time. This can easily translate into increased news viewing, which may feel like an intellectually acceptable outlet to keep your brain in gear and your knowledge of events current. Moreover, if news channels come with your TV package and online news is there at the click of a mouse, it's all too easy to gravitate toward them.
5. 5
   Curb your addiction to news. Going cold turkey is one possibility but for most people, a little news is a good thing and that should be the goal to aim for. Plan how you'll approach news sources from now and then action the plan. Here are some possible approaches:
   • Create a schedule that maps out your daily events. Include news reading, viewing or listening as a minor portion of each day, and no more. Setting limitations and tracking your time on a daily schedule or planner will help you to hold yourself accountable for the amount of news viewing going on.
   • Allot yourself a specific amount of time to watch cable news. Aim for a set maximum amount of time that won’t interfere with other activities, both things you have to do and things you want to do (apart from news obsessing). Typically an hour of cable news can provide you with ample coverage; any more than that and it starts getting repetitive.
   • Apply the same rules to Internet news. Give yourself a chance to break your news addiction by limiting your online news reading to set portions of the day and even if you see headlines, don't click there unless it's your allotted time. If you're subscribed to news feeds that make you jittery for more every few minutes, unsubscribe. The world will keep turning.
   • And yes! Get off Twitter! If it's junked with news about the latest sensational, terrible something, just what is the point of reading about it from fifty different sources that all say the same thing that hour? Get a grip on yourself! Update infrequently unless you're actually in the epicenter of an unfolding issue and need real-time help.
6. 6
   If you don't feel you can do this alone, ask a friend or family member to hold you accountable to reducing or stopping your news viewing. Having someone to help you adhere to your goals will provide you with a greater chance for success, especially if your obsession has been bugging them or spoiling your relationship together.
   
   
   
   • Alert your friend to the telltale signs you’ve been watching too much cable news, such as becoming easily agitated or paranoid or not answering the phone when your friend calls. Let him or her know what to look for especially if you don’t come clean if you’ve relapsed.
   • Consider quitting together. Being addicted to round-the-clock coverage is common. If your buddy seems to be pulled in too, think about supporting each other in your effort to kick the habit.
   • Keep a money jar for lapses. Every time you watch more than the allotted amount of news, put money into the jar that goes to your friend at the end of each week.
   • Make an online pledge to stop. There are a number of websites available that let you make your pledge to stop doing something public. You can even tie failure to do so to donating to charity.
7. 7
   Consider a new hobby or venture if your news addiction surrounds new-found free time. If part of the problem is that you have too much time on your hands, try something new such as taking a class at the local community college, tackling a project you’ve had on your “to do” list for years or making a concerted effort to see friends and/or family members more often.
8. 8
   Go for quality, not quantity. Be more selective about the news you choose to absorb. This requires being rather skeptical about the news sources, but that's a good thing, so the sooner you get started on this track, the better.
   • Start questioning the news you're hearing or reading. What vested interests are being given credence in the things said?
   • Are those surveys predicting dire consequences credible and accurate? Should you really curtail your day because of a survey? Do some deeper digging. The more a news service keeps relying on shoddy information, the more you will be put off trusting it.
   • Equally beware figures, statistics, percentages, graphs, charts and the like. They're easy to distort and still appear technical. Find out whether the creators of these items are reputable or it was the backroom news crew prettifying a story to bring out the terrors in viewers or readers.
   • Listen for weasel words. These tend to accompany generalizations or they're very emotive. If the report suggests that everyone is doomed, wise up to the weasel words that are being used.
   • Look for the bigger picture. A lot of news gives snippets because this allows a narrowing down to a specific, terrible situation. When you draw back though, suddenly the chances of the same thing happening again or even at all, are minuscule. Influenza is a very good example of narrow reporting––X amount of people die but in a country with 350 million people, 50 influenza deaths is a small amount. Don't assume pandemic without good evidence.
   • Look news fear straight in the eye. Fear sells stories. It makes us sit up and take notice because we might be next in line for whatever terrible event has befallen another. While empathy is desirable in the right context, so is being rational, especially when distanced from what is occurring. Be extremely wary of defeatist reporting that suggests that nothing can be done, so be alarmed, be very alarmed. If nothing can be done, the very purpose of the story is aimed at creating fear and you don't need to buy into that. Learn to pick through defeatism and scare tactics and to recognize what matters.
   • Be wary whenever anybody suggests that "this is the greatest threat we've ever faced...". Look for credible facts to back this up before assuming it's an accurate assessment––many times the speaker is grandstanding or overstating the matter, precisely because it gets your attention.
   • When you're tempted to believe that things are getting worse because of the news, stop and ask yourself: Are they really? And why do I think that? Are those facts credible? Just taking the time to question the fear-mongering news stories can create is a good way to break the cycle of being obsessed with them.

EditTips

• If you can’t seem to cut back on news viewing, consider more of a guerrilla approach and stop cold turkey. This may mean either getting rid of cable and internet completely if other family members can live with your decision. If you become addicted to both online and TV news, you may need to limit your news resource to newspaper only.
• If it's really bad, entertain the notion of attending a 12 step program or meeting. While you may not be an alcoholic, a 12 step program may help you find ways to get a handle on your addiction, plus provide you with a basis for additional support.
• Be honest if you’ve slipped. Admit to yourself if you’ve spent the last five hours watching cable news. Everyone with an addiction is vulnerable to relapse, so instead of brushing it under the carpet, admit what happened and then learn from the circumstances surrounding your relapse.

EditWarnings

• A report featured by the US Department of Veteran Affairs says that watching too many hours of news coverage that center on traumatic events can trigger the viewer to experience post traumatic stress disorder. Seek help immediately if you think you are traumatized by what you’ve seen on the news.
• If your addiction to news has completely interfered with your ability to interact with others or has cost you your job or relationships, seek assistance from a qualified mental health professional.

EditThings You'll Need

• Alternative activities

How to Make a Baby Sling

The practice of baby wearing goes back thousands of years and has continued to be practiced in cultures around the world. It is also enjoying a renewed popularity among many new parents in Western countries. Baby slings and wraps are an essential part of this tradition that benefits both the baby and the parents and caregivers. While there are many baby slings and wraps on the market, making a homemade baby sling allows parents to save money while personalizing the baby sling to the needs of their baby and their lifestyle. Two of the most popular types are ring slings and pouch slings.

EditSteps

Making a ring sling

1. 1
   Select the fabric for the sling. Choose a fabric that is soft, flexible and likely to keep baby comfortable. For the purposes of this article, the fabric measurement is 2 1/2 yards, 2.28 meters.
   
   
   
2. 2
   Hem three sides of the material by folding 1/4-inch (6.35mm) of the edge of the fabric onto the wrong side and sewing a line of stitches to secure. Leave one short side un-hemmed.
   
   
   
3. 3
   Pleat or fold the un-hemmed end of the fabric lengthwise. This can be done several ways. One of the easiest is to fold the material back and forth along the long edge like a fan, making the folds slightly bigger than the diameter of the rings.
   
   
   
   • To ensure that they don't unravel during the next step, secure the folds by taping the fabric together or running pins or a loose stitch through the folded fabric.
4. 4
   Feed the folded or pleated edge through the two rings. Fold it back onto the fabric, wrong sides together.
   
   
   
5. 5
   Secure the end back onto the fabric with two straight lines 1/2-inch (1.27 cm) apart. This end will be kept at the shoulder of the wearer and allow the rings to bear the weight of the baby in the sling, so additional lines of straight or zig-zag stitching can be added to ensure the stability of the sling, if needed.
   
   
   
6. 6
   Prepare the sling for the baby by feeding the hemmed edge through both rings, coming up from the wrong side of the fabric, and then threading the end back through the bottom ring only. The sling will be worn around the body and over one shoulder, with the rings at the shoulder, forming a pocket for the baby. The tail of fabric that was just fed through the rings can then be pulled to tighten the sling the desired amount to secure the baby in position.
   
   
   

Making a pouch sling

1. 1
   Select the fabric for the sling. Choose a fabric that is soft, flexible and likely to keep baby comfortable. For the purposes of this article, the fabric measurement is 2 yards, 1.83 meters.
   
   
   
2. 2
   Cut the fabric in half lengthwise. Each of the resulting pieces will make one pouch sling.
   
   
   
3. 3
   Round off the short edges of the fabric. To make these symmetrical, fold the fabric in half lengthwise and then width-wise, so that the four corners are together. Starting at the bottom (folded) area, mark a small arc to the top edge, as if making half of a smile, ending 2 to 3 inches (5cm-7.5cm) shorter. Cut along this line. This will round off all four corners with the same cut.
   
   
   
4. 4
   Sew the rounded edges together with the right sides together. This seam will be weight bearing, so it should be strengthened. This can be done with extra rows of stitching, a zigzag stitch, surging or by employing a French seam (by folding the seam to the side and sewing it onto the fabric.
   
   
   
5. 5
   Hem the long edges by folding the edge down 1/4-inch (6.35 mm) onto the wrong side and sewing a line to secure. Turn the sling right side out.
   
   
   
6. 6
   Wear the sling by folding it in half lengthwise, with the hemmed edges together, and putting the head and one arm through the center. It should be draped over one shoulder like a sash with the edges up and the seam in the front. This makes a pocket in which to place the baby.
   
   
   

EditTips

• When choosing a fabric, a solid fabric with some elasticity is best for providing both support and comfort. Avoid fabrics with too much elasticity, such as jersey, as they will not provide the needed support and will stretch out with wear.

EditWarnings

• Slings can pose multiple suffocation hazards to infants younger than 4 months old. Care should be taken to ensure the baby's mouth and nose are visible to the sling wearer and not covered by the sling's fabric. Additionally, the infant should be positioned in such a way as to avoid a curled chin-to-chest position. In young infants, this position restricts the airway, limiting the baby's supply of oxygen. A safe position is one where the sling wearer can place at least two fingers between the baby's chin and chest. Sling wearers should check the baby often during wearing, to ensure that proper positioning is maintained.

EditThings You'll Need

• Fabric: Ring sling-2 1/2 yards, 2.28 meters; pouch sling-2 yards, 1.83 meters
• Chalk or fabric marker (for pouch sling only)
• Scissors
• Masking tape or straight pins
• Sewing machine
• Thread to match fabric
• 2 large nylon or aluminum rings (between 2 to 3 inches (5 -7.5 cm) in diameter) (for ring sling only)