I thought it would be fun to experiment with creating a bokeh effect on these butterfly cookies (if you're not familiar with bokeh, you can see some examples here). I studied a few images and zeroed in on the features that I thought would capture the overall feel of a bokeh background. I love how these turned out!
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Here's what you'll need to make these butterfly cookies:
- Roll out cookie dough (use your favorite recipe or get mine in the Cookie Art Club)
- Ruler and paring knife to cut 3.5 x 3.5" square cookies
- Flood consistency royal icing in 4 shades of teal, white, and purple
- Stiff consistency royal icing in white
- Decorating tip 3
- Decorating tip 2
- 12" decorating bags
- Butterfly cookie cutter ( I couldn't find the exact one anywhere online, but this set has some really pretty butterfly shapes)
- Scribe Tool
- Blue Pearl Dust (This shade from NY Cake is perfect because it has an iridescent shine)
- Soft brush
Colors: All of the icing colors were made using the Wilton Color Right color system
- Teal = blue + yellow
- Purple = teal + pink
To create a bokeh effect on your cookies, you'll need 4 shades of teal (or any color you want to use for the background) plus white flood consistency icing. Each of these bags is fitted with a Wilton tip 3.
Begin by flooding a square cookie with the darkest shade of royal icing. 
While the icing is still wet, pipe dots using icing that is one shade lighter. Overlap some of the dots.
Use one shade lighter to fill in the areas where the circles overlap. 
Continue piping layers of dots with the lighter shades of teal icing. Use the white icing to fill in the areas where the lightest circles overlap. Allow the icing to dry completely (I usually allow my icing to dry overnight, but 8 hours should be enough).
To complete the bokeh effect, use a soft brush to create circles of light blue pearl dust.
Trace a butterfly cookie cutter with the scribe tool so that you scratch the outline into the icing. Fill it in with purple flood consistency icing and a tip 2.
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Pipe a staggered bead border with white stiff consistency icing and a tip 3.
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Dust the edges of the butterfly with the same blue pearl dust that was used earlier.
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Gorgeous...too pretty to eat.
Thank you, Tiffany!
This is lovely...but it makes me laugh! I accidentally created that design using that technique a couple years ago when I was still learning how to use different icing consistencies I hadn't let the foundation layer dry and went to pipe on the design but it sank in! Didn't even think to keep it as an actual design method!
So pretty! Love these. 😉
Thank you, Michele!
Such a cool effect - it really is three dimensional! Very clever 🙂
Thank you, Lucy! 😀
its simply awesome. I love it alot. im inspired by ur cookie decorating alot. I have a request if u can accept it plzz post its video tutorial on ur Facebook page.
Thank You
Thank you, Nida! My video clip of this technique will be on my Facebook page on Tuesday afternoon 🙂
THANK U SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH.
Amber this might seriously be the coolest thing I've ever seen done with royal icing!!! I love it!!
Thanks, Rebecca!! 🙂
That is very creative! Did you think to use a darker shade for background - midnigh blue, dark brown or even black?
Thanks! On my trial runs, I tried a darker color in the background and then I tried one even lighter than this. Somewhere in the middle seemed to be the best option!