How to Pipe a Frosting Border on a Cake

by | Jan 29, 2020 | Cake

Cake Shop Vancouver

Baking cakes and decorating them are fun because there are no limits to creativity when it comes to icing and if you’re a beginner, there are certain tips that can help you develop the skills to pipe cake borders beautifully and professionally.

It’s important to remember that practice makes perfect and it’s through trial and error that you will become more confident with your frosting skills. Your borders may not be perfect right away but with every cake you make, your skills will improve and eventually you will be able to do it perfectly.

Borders help elevate a cake and transform it significantly, appearance-wise. If you want your next cake to be beautiful instead of plain and boring, keep the following tips in mind:

  1. Type of frosting. Certain types of frosting are better suited for cake decorating and buttercream and royal icing are usually a favourite because they pipe easily, allowing you to create a border in the design that you like. Although these are the most common icings used for decorating cakes, you are not limited to these two options and can use whatever you like as long as it can hold its shape as you are piping so that it does not fall apart or melt as you’re trying to decorate your cake.
  2. Proper tools. Without the right tools, you are setting yourself up for failure, which is why you need to have the right decorating bag and piping tips to help with your creation. If you require different tips, make sure your tool allows you to remove them easily so that you can replace it with a different size efficiently.
  3. Type of border. Decide which style of border you wish to work on so that you can focus on that design specifically. You can choose to do a shell border, rope border, ruffle border or star border, to name a few. Depending on which style you choose, you will have to apply the specific technique necessary for that particular design. 
  4. Techniques required. These can include the angle at which you hold the piping bag, amount of icing that you will have to squeeze, when to stop or continue piping and how to pull the bag away to create the desired effect. Developing these skills will take time but with every cake, you will get better and an improvement in your border will become visible. 

These are just a few guidelines to help you create the perfect border on your next cake, but if you want to see how the professional bakers pipe their frosting, visit Sweet e’s Pastries and Sweets in Vancouver today! This cake shop bakes and prepares the best cakes and pastries, including gluten-free treats, so if you’re looking for a delicious dessert (or two), check out Sweet E’s Pastries and Sweets today!