Watch how to decorate and ice cupcakes with this simple guide. From buttercream swirls to professional piping, add these icing techniques to your cake decorating skills.
Whether you want a simple swirl, an ice cream-style finish or even a fancy iced rose, follow our simple video to make your cakes look professional.
Our step-by-step video guides will make piping and decorating your cupcakes so much easier. Once you’ve mastered the basic piping technique, the plain swirl with a plain piping tip, you can move onto other techniques and piping nozzles too.
Piping a plain swirl with a plain piping tip
- Twist the icing bag and grip between your thumb and index finger. Place the other hand at the bottom of the bag and use this to guide the tip.
- Applying pressure with your hand at the top of the bag, start at the outside edge piping round the edge of the paper in a spiral towards the centre, pushing the tip into the icing as you pipe.
- When you reach the top, pull up quickly to finish the swirl.
- Decorate with sprinkles or sugar flowers.
Ruffle icing using a flower tip
- Twist the icing bag and grip between your thumb and index finger and place the other hand at the bottom of the bag and use this to guide the tip.
- Begin piping in the centre of the cupcakes. Lift upwards slowly so the ruffles fall on top of each other then gently pull away.
- Decorate with sprinkles or sugar flowers.
Piping an ice cream type swirl scalloped piping tip
- Twist the icing bag and grip between your thumb and index finger. Place the other hand at the bottom of the bag and use this to guide the tip.
- Applying pressure with your hand at the top of the bag, pipe a star shape in the centre of the cupcake.
- Now, pipe round the star keeping an even pressure as you squeeze. Keep piping in a spiral until the star is completely covered. When you reach the end push down slightly and pull up quickly to finish.
- Decorate with sprinkles or sugar flowers.
Other piping techniques to try
Bakery-style swirl using a palette knife
- Beat the icing until you have a soft spreadable consistency.
- Put a blob in the centre of your cake and pat down to get a nice round shape and so the icing reaches the edge of the cake.
- Push the pallet knife into the icing on the top and turn the cake to create a crater. Then turn the cake in the opposite direction and flick up.
- Decorate with sprinkles or sugar flowers.
Cupcake roses using a flower tip
- Twist the icing bag and grip between your thumb and index finger. Place the other hand at the bottom of the bag and use this to guide the tip.
- Starting in the middle of the cake let the icing fall onto the cake. Then pipe over this icing in a spiral action, over piping what you already piped by about a millimetre or two. When you reach the end of your swirl and
you have covered the cake release and gently pull. - Sometimes the join is quite neat, however if it isn’t you can use a sugar flower or leaf to cover it.
