Unicorns are still one of the biggest party themes around, and if you’ve had a request for a unicorn cake, don’t panic — we’ve rounded up 17 easy unicorn cake ideas you can make at home, no professional cake-decorating course required.
From simple traybakes dressed up with buttercream to fully tiered showstoppers, there’s a unicorn cake here for every skill level and every amount of time you have on your hands. Take a look through the ideas below and let us know which one you’d try first.
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Magical Unicorn Cake Ideas
Isn’t this unicorn cake just adorable? Cake Style made this cake for her daughter’s birthday and has a full video tutorial showing you how to recreate it at home.
Next up is this unicorn cutie from Cake 2 The Rescue. This one was made from a kit, but you could easily recreate the look with a hand-drawn stencil cut from a rectangular cake, just like the one above.
The signature of any great unicorn cake is a magical, glittering horn. Learn how to make the perfect one with this tutorial from Baker’s Party Shop — just scale up the size for larger cakes.
This fun unicorn cake idea is from Pinterest. All it takes is a plain white cake and strands of multi-coloured fondant “hair” laid gently into place. A silver horn, a pair of cute unicorn ears and a few wired stars finish the magical look.
This might be one of the cutest unicorns we’ve ever seen. The Icing Artist uses a dome-shaped cake as the base, then adds pastel buttercream hair and playful cartoon-style eyes.
Whipped Bake Shop made this delightfully simple unicorn cake by laying pieces of fondant directly onto a plain white cake to create the features. A glittery gold horn is the perfect finishing touch.
Go for a double-height cake and a taller horn for a more majestic look, like this rainbow-maned design. This particular version was created as part of a Craftsy kit, but the finished cake is great inspiration for your own version.
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Short on time or short on baking confidence? Transform a plain sheet cake into a unicorn cake, like this version from Cakes.com. A multicoloured buttercream mane, a horn, ears and a set of fluttering lashes make a big difference to a plain homemade — or shop-bought — traybake.
We found this one on Pinterest, and love how the unicorn design has been carried across two tiers. Rainbow hair, hearts and a sweet border finish it off in style.
If you’re after the unicorn emoji in cake form, this is the tutorial you need, thanks to Zoe’s Fancy Cakes and her great step-by-step video.
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Learn a New Skill
Piped buttercream roses look fantastic and are a brilliant choice for unicorn “hair” on any cake. This buttercream rose tutorial walks you through it step by step — a skill that comes in handy well beyond unicorn cakes, especially for bake sale or birthday cupcakes.
Once you’ve got the technique down, here are a couple of ideas to put it into action:
This unicorn cake from Sugar Geek Show features a rounded top, a clean white ganache covering, a marbled candy horn and a bright, piped buttercream mane — not forgetting those amazing lashes.
Another fantastic example comes from Rosie’s Dessert Spot, which uses multicoloured piped roses for an enchanting mane.
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Unicorn Cupcakes
These showstopping cupcakes, seen on Party Delights, will go down a treat at any unicorn party — even though they’re almost too good to eat.
Dress up the simplest of cupcakes with swirled buttercream and a small horn, with full instructions from Cupcake Recepten (the page is in Dutch, but translates well).
Meanwhile, The Crumb Canvas shows how different piping tips can create a completely different look for the mane.
Kids — and adults — will love these unicorn cupcake cones from My Heavenly Recipes, ideal for parties, bake sales or just a weekend treat.
A pull-apart cupcake cake makes a fantastic party centrepiece, and we love this one from So Yummy. There’ll be a scramble for all the bite-size treats, so making extra is a good idea.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the easiest way to make a unicorn cake at home?
Start with a plain round or dome-shaped cake, cover it in buttercream or fondant, then add fondant or piped buttercream features — ears, a horn and hair. A simple sheet cake or traybake dressed up with a mane and horn is the quickest option if you’re short on time.
Do I need special equipment to make a unicorn horn?
Not necessarily. A horn can be shaped by hand from fondant or candy melts and left to firm up, then dusted with edible glitter or lustre. No special tools are essential, though piping bags and tips make the mane easier.
Can I make a unicorn cake without fondant?
Yes — several of the cakes above use piped buttercream roses or swirls for the mane instead of fondant, which is a great option if you’d rather avoid working with fondant altogether.
How far in advance can I make a unicorn cake?
Many decorating elements, like fondant horns and ears, can be made a day or two ahead and stored in an airtight container. The cake itself and any buttercream decoration are best done closer to the day, depending on your recipe.
What’s the best cake base for a unicorn design?
A rounded or dome-shaped cake works well for a classic unicorn head shape, but a simple round, rectangular or sheet cake will work just as well once you add the ears, horn and mane.
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- Jellybean Rainbow Cake Recipe
- 50 Best Bake Sale Ideas to Make You the Coolest Parent Ever
Save These Ideas for Later
Love these unicorn cake ideas? Bookmark this page or pin your favourites so you have them ready the next time a unicorn birthday request comes your way — and browse our other party food and cake ideas for more inspiration.
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