Adorable videos of talented people decorating cakes are all over Instagram, facebook, and pinterest. The videos are incredibly relaxing and nearly mesmorizing. Cake decorating – not that hard. The trick is two things: knowing the secret tricks to make it easy and a ton of practice. Today, let’s talk about some of the secrets to cutie pie cakes for your next party.

Tools

You can throw literally as much money as you want on cake decorating stuff. The sky is the limit. That said, there are a few things that are must haves. They are a turntable, an icing scraper, a piping bag, and some piping tips. These things, if you’re on a budget, can be found pretty cheaply or DIY-d, with the expcetion of the piping tips. Those aren’t too pricey, and there’s one for pretty much anything you need. For some starting tips, I recommend getting a Wilton #3, #8, and a #21. Those cover the basics, but you can always add more to your collection later.

Cool the Cake

This a mistake that I see a lot of people make. Your cake has to be totally cold when it’s time to frost it. A beautiful cake isn’t something for a time crunch. If you are pressed for time, throw the whole thing into the freezer. Leave your cake for several hours until it is entirely cool.

Give it a Flat Top

To have a professional-looking cake, flatten out the tops of the layers using a knife. That’s all I have to say about this. It’s a really easy step that makes a huge difference.

Frost in Layers

A professional looking cake doesn’t get frosted in one giant chunk. Do one thin layer of frosting, and then chill that cake. This first layer – the “crumb coat” – holds all the little crumb bits down so that they don’t show through onto the finished cake. Stick it in the freezer for 15 minutes after the first layer. The second layer should be thicker, and will make the whole thing look smooth and flawless.

Cover Up Sloppy Edges

Okay, so you’re (I’m) not the best at smoothing out my frosting, even with the frosting scraper. Cover it up! Ways to cover up that work really well – sprinkles, or coconut flakes! You can also use decorations to cover up little blips here and there if you have it mostly perfect.

There you go! 5 tips to step up your cake decoration game just enough. Practice makes the biggest difference, but these will get you moved a little more into the right direction.

Happy baking!