Your silver icing is done when you can see your own face in it—blurry, like a funhouse mirror, but recognizably human. Gently touch the surface; it should feel dry and slick, not tacky. Now stand back. Admire your glistening, metallic masterpiece.
Then immediately drop the cake on the floor because you’re holding a paintbrush covered in silver dust and have terrible coordination. Don’t worry—just scrape it off, eat it yourself, and tell everyone you “ran out of time.” The silver icing, in your mouth, still tastes like victory. And a little bit like lemon extract. And maybe a few tiny flakes of your own pride.
