Read on for our top 10 must haves for your cake decorating journey. Click on the header link to see what we currently have in stock in our shop!
1. Pans: For even baking and easy decorating, use aluminum straight-walled cake pans. Look for thick-gauged aluminum to achieve professional results with simple pre-bake prep. Our favorite cake pan brand is Magic Line and we are currently working on launching various sizes on our site.
2. Turntable: Make cake decorating easier to handle with a cake decorating turntable. Use a turntable that is at least 5” tall to help keep your back safe when decorating. Use a metal turntable for easy clean up and long-lasting use.
3. Offset spatula: Use an offset spatula to easily spread your buttercream and fillings. Look for wood-handled spatulas for best grip performance and control. The slightly square edges of a wood spatula will help you get the best feel for your icing.
4. Bench scrapper: Achieve straight edges and make smoothing your buttercream a cinch by using a bench scrapper. Dip your bench scrapper in simmering hot water to get even smoother buttercream results.
5. Pastry bags: Use pastry bags with buttercream to pipe your cake decorations. We recommend cotton, silicone-lined pastry bags. Not only are these bags reusable and sustainable, but this material has no give, making them much easier on your hands when piping.
6. Piping tips and couplers: Use cake decorating tips to pipe buttercream writing, borders, flowers, basketweave, grass… almost anything you like! We recommend stainless steel baking tips with no manufacturing seams and sharp ends for the best piping results. Use plastic couplers to make interchanging tips easy in a pastry bag.
7. Cake knife: Use a cake knife, also known as a bread knife, to cut your cake before decorating. Our favorite way to use this knife is when cutting the cake ‘dome’ that forms after baking and when carving a shaped cake.
8. Fondant roller: Use a fondant roller to roll small pieces of fondant. Choose a rollers made of high quality polyoxymethylene (POM) plastic. This material is smooth and easy on your hands. Because POM material has become more scarce, newer versions of this popular tool have shifted to more rigid materials. Our shop, however, remains committed to continue sourcing rollers made of POM.
9. Fondant smoother: When working with fondant, achieve a clean and smooth finish with a fondant smoother. Use these smoothers for your fondant-covered cake or when rolling pieces of fondant for your smaller detail decorations. You can also use two smoothers at a time when trying to achieve sharp edges on a fondant-covered cake.
10. Gel icing colors: Achieve deep and bright colors with ease, use gel icing colors. These gel colors are made specifically for oil based applications (like buttercream!).
