Entering the world of cake decorating can be overwhelming.
And when it comes to buying cake decorating supplies, who’s there to tell you what you really need vs what you can come back to later.
From evenly frosting your cake to bordering it with intricate floral designs, there are so many exciting elements to wrack your brain on and wonder where to start.
Wonder no more — we’ve rounded up the six essential cheap cake decorating supplies that will get you started in the right direction…
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Cake Decorating Supplies
Wire Cake Leveler
Before icing your cake with fancy borders and lettering, it’s important to make sure your cake surface is even.
With a wire cake leveler, you avoid cracks, uneven stacks, or unwanted crumbling as you decorate.
Wire cake levelers are made of a metal or plastic handle that is attached to stainless steel cut adjustable wire.
First, you’ll need to adjust the wire to the height at which you’d like your cut. Next, slide your wire back and forth in a shimmy or wiggling motion to torte your cake. Do not treat the cake leveler as a knife to saw through the cake or you will risk crookedly severing it. Slow and steady wins the race, especially after the cakes are soft and freshly baked.
Cake Turntable
Cake turntables are circular rotating trays, resembling a cake stand.
The top platform can turn while the base is stationary so you can crumb, coat, fill, or torte your cake.
They are convenient as a cake decorating supply because they allow you to spin the cake while smoothing the tops and sides with icing.
Place your cake onto the turntable and see how much easier it is to decorate your cake by simply moving the gadget.
You can easily hold your hand stationary and steady while piping it via spinning the turntable. This makes a world of difference compared to having to maneuver and shift yourself around all sides of the cake.
When you are done icing, use the turntable to make small, smooth motions to the left or right as you place designs around your creation.
Offset Spatulas and Scrapers
Offset spatulas are cake decorating tools used to level and smooth frosting down.
To get your sides and tops of cakes looking pristine, you use an offset spatula to spread icing evenly onto every inch of your creation, so that it doesn’t look lopsided or heavy with icing on one side over the other.
Cake scrapers, also known as bench scrapers, are used to apply icing and fondant to cakes. Scrapers are shorter and wider than a spatula and can give you the feeling of more control while decorating.
Use these tools to remove air bubbles and extra fondant for a finished, polished look.
Fondant Rollers and Smoothers
Fondant rollers are like your average rolling pin, except they are strong enough to flatten fondant. They are made of silicone or plastic and come in small and larger sizes.
Small fondant rollers are used for fondant decorations, whereas large fondant rollers are used for bigger fondant pieces, such as to sheets to cover an entire cake.
Whether you’re rolling a large or small fondant piece, sprinkle your hands, roller, and work area with powdered sugar so that the fondant doesn’t stick.
Roll your fondant as if it were dough until you reach the desired thickness and length.
If covering your cake in fondant, use a fondant smoother to release any air bubbles trapped under the fondant sheet.
Fondant smoothers are flat surfaces attached to small handles and make it easier to smoothen and shape the dough. They are essential for getting tight corners that are too tough to perfect using your cake scraper alone.
Once you’ve covered your cake with fondant, utilize your smoother to shape your fondant to the cake. Work your way down the sides, carefully and gently pushing air bubbles toward the base.
When your fondant is void of air bubbles and the cake looks perfect, use a sharp knife to cut the excess fondant off at the base of the cake.
Piping Bags and Tips
Piping bags are pastry bags used to ice cakes, once you’ve filled them with the icing of your choice.
The bag has a nozzle where you attach tips of various shapes and sizes.
Two signature designs are the star tip and the simple round tip.
The classic star tip can create rose-like designs or fancy grooves at the edge of your cake.
The simple round tip design creates modern designs, like dotting and lettering.
Parchment Paper
Parchment paper is grease- and moisture-resistant baking paper that can be used to line cakes and make cleaning up so much easier.
Use parchment paper as a surface when cutting or torting your cake.
When you flip your creation over to place on the cake turntable, the parchment paper will make for an easy non-stick release. At the end of cake decorating, you won’t have to worry about cleaning up your mess, as your parchment paper will have caught all the crumbs.
You can also use parchment paper as a placemat to cover your table when sheeting cakes in fondant. The nonstick texture ensures the fondant will not grip your table, which can cause unexpected and unwanted tearing.
You are now fully equipped with these top six essential cake decorating supplies. Consider these items your cake decorating starter kit!
