Round Tips

• Use a round tip to make a thin line or tube of icing on your cakes. This type of tip works well to make a straight pinstripe style line around the perimeter of a cake or to write a message on the top of a cake.

Star Tips

• Star tips make star shapes or long tubes with pointed sides. To make a star on the top of a cake, squeeze icing through this tip and let go after a small pea-size portion has come out. To make a wider, flat star push down on the tip as you do this. Or use the star tip to make a leaf shape by making the icing come out wider to start and then lightening your grip to make it come out narrower at the end. For rosettes, swirl the star tip up and around in a circle as you squeeze out the icing.

Flat Tips

• Make leaves and petals with flat tips. Layer the petals out from a center point to make a large flower, and add a star tip in the center for the middle of the flower. Use a flat tip to make a basketweave or lattice design on the sides of your cake by making vertical lines all around the cake and weaving horizontal lines across them.

Tips and Tricks

• Each tip style comes in a variety of sizes as well. Tips with a smaller circumference will make smaller or thinner designs and lines; wider tips will make thicker lines or larger designs. Experiment with a variety of styles as you learn to decorate cakes. When in doubt, practice with a particular tip on an extra plate or a piece of foil before you put the icing onto your cake.