How to make realistic buckles for a cake purse

I had a few inquiries about this Mini Elephant Cake Purse I made a few weeks ago, so here are a few pictures so you can get a visual idea in how I made it.

I covered the cake in chocolate fondant, I used this Giraffe texture mat, I loved the pattern and the mat was very inexpensive. I just notice that is out of stock on the site,I am sure it will be back soon so you can grab one.

The zipper was super easy to make. I just rolled the fondant out, let it set for a few minutes and then I imprinted the zipper using this mold. I then cut the zipper and attach it to the cake with a dab of water.

Silicone molds can be expensive, but if you want to accomplish realistic patterns and details on cakes they are worth every penny.

To give a more realistic look to the zipper, I painted it with a mixture of silver luster dust and vodka.

Making the buckle

I used gray gumpaste.

I rolled it not so thin, let it set for around 5 minutes and cut the buckles using 2 sizes of small rectangle cutters ( I got them at the same site where I got the Giraffe texture mat ), I adjusted the shapes a little to get the look I was looking for and then I set them aside to dry completely.

I use a tip 10 and a tip 2 to make the little holes for the strap. (tip 10 to cut the dot and the #2 tip to cut the inside of the dot)

After the pieces were all dry I air brushed them with silver color.I attached the buckles to the cake with a little piping gel.

A little info about the cake

-I baked the cake in a 9" x 13" baking pan, 2" high. I then cut it in 3 parts of the same size and  trimmed off the sides and top with a serrated knife.
-I stacked the pieces on top of one another,double wrap them in plastic wrap and put them in the refrigerator to get cold.

-I added a thin coat of buttercream directly on the cake board and place the first layer of cake on it.

-I filled each layer with vanilla SMB and place the cake back in the refrigerator for the buttercream to set.

No pictures for this part...

-I crumb coated the top and sides of the cake,placed the cake back in the refrigerator for the buttercream to set again.

-When the buttercream/cake was set,I carved the sides and top of the cake to form the purse shape I was looking for, then I frosted the whole cake with buttercream and let it set  in the fridge for a few hours.  

-Next, I covered the cake with chocolate fondant in 4 stages. First the sides of the cake, then the front and back of the cake.

Well, sorry for the lack of pictures but at least you can get an idea how I made it.

Happy Wednesday!