My dear friend Raquel knows me very well. She knows I absolutely love cute little things - charming, but casual at the same time.
As proof, she recently gave me this wonderful gift that she made herself: a beautiful decoupaged bag in a summer nautical theme!
Isn't it great? Perfect for a beach day! 
The problem is that I haven't yet got a swimsuit to match it! (Okay, keep calm and breathe, Aixa! This is a problem that will soon be remedied . . .)
I am so excited to share with you my latest cookie project: a vintage swimsuit cookie! I think it will be the perfect fashion accessory to complete my navy-chic look this summer.
- 1 square cookie
- White royal icing, flooding and medium-stiff consistencies
- Decorating bags and couplers
- Large piping tip, for flooding
- Marine/coastal rubber stamps, such as seashells, starfish, and crabs
- Edible markers (See note below.)
- Small flat brush, for painting cookie edge
- Vodka (or alcohol rejuvenator spirit or alcohol-based extract), to extend colors into paint
- Swimsuit cut-out, to trace swimsuit shape
- PME #1 piping tip (or equivalent)
- Scribe tool or toothpick
- Pale brown royal icing, medium-stiff consistency, for piping rope
- Paint palette and colors (See note below.)
- Small round paint brush, for painting swimsuit
- Rainbow Dust edible markers: Red and Blue
- Sugarflair: Aztec Blue (paste), Ruby (powder), and Extra White (powder)
- White edible marker (I used a nontoxic Sakura Gelly Roll pen.)
Step 1: Flood a small square cookie with white royal icing (flooding consistency) as usual. Let the icing dry completely (about 8 hours at room temperature or 45 minutes in a food dehydrator).
Step 2: Now, "ink" the rubber stamps with the red edible marker, and gently press them, one by one, straight down onto the edges of the cookie. (Again, the icing must be completely dry all the way through, or you may crack it.)
This inking method is a slight variation of the one I used in my vintage sunflower postcard tutorial, where I applied a coating of color with a round brush. Of course, you can use a dauber or uninked stamp pad as well to get the coloring on the stamps.
Step 3: Once you have finished stamping, paint the cookie edges, as desired, with white powder coloring extended into a paint with a few drops of vodka (or equivalent). For the most even finish, use a small flat brush.
Remember to paint the cookie sides as well! Let the stamped and painted colorings dry about 30 minutes at room temperature.
Step 4: Now, using a swimsuit cut-out as a tracing guide, draw around it with the blue edible marker. (You can also use a nontoxic pencil, of course.)
Step 5: Prepare a piping bag with a PME #1 tip (or equivalent), and pipe the outlined area with white royal icing (medium-stiff consistency). Use a scribe tool or toothpick to spread the icing into tight spots and to pop any annoying bubbles.
Let the swimsuit dry completely (about 3 to 4 hours at room temperature or 30 to 45 minutes in a food dehydrator).
Step 6: While the swimsuit is drying, complete the cookie edge with a pale brown royal icing rope border, and let that border dry. For more details, I highly recommend that you visit SweetAmbs' wonderful video tutorial.
Step 7: Using a small round paint brush, handpaint the swimsuit first with the Aztec Blue color and then with the Ruby color (mixed with a few drops of vodka as usual, of course).
Step 8: Let the paint coat you just applied dry a bit, and then, as a finishing touch, draw some heart shapes on the swimsuit with the white edible marker.
I think this is definitely my "swimsuit soul mate"! Now, I’m ready to enjoy my vacation! 
Have a great rest of your summer too! "See" you on my next post. 
Aixa Zunino is the soul of Dolce Sentire, a virtual corner of sweetness and creativity dedicated to cookie decorating. On her site, this garden engineer, self-taught decorator, and lover of flowers and animals lets her imagination fly, sharing everything she has learned since discovering the world of cookies in early 2012. She combines this activity with courses around Spain (her current home) where she teaches all the secrets to getting dreamy cookies. Meet her on Facebook or her website, and email her your cookie decorating questions or concerns at dolcesentiredolci@gmail.com.
Photo credit: Aixa Zunino
Note: Get Inspired with Dolce Sentire is a monthly Cookie Connection blog feature written by Aixa Zunino, where, through in-depth tutorials, she proves that if you can dream it, you can cookie it! This article expresses the views of the author, and not necessarily those of this site, its owners, its administrators, or its employees. To read all of Aixa's past Get Inspired tutorials, click here. And to see all of Cookie Connection's tutorials, click here.
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