I Have To Ask..how To Make Dots Without Leaving A Tail
Decorating By pinky73 Updated 5 May 2010 , 7:49pm by jhay
This is probablly obvious to those with even a rudimentary grasp of cake decorating, but....when I pipe large or small dots, I almost always have a little spike or tail coming off the top of the dot where the buttercream leaves the tip...they often look like a little hershey kiss. sometimes I go back and pat them down but that gets time consuming and I suspect that I am doing something wrong to get them inthe first place. How do I get rid of the little tail? Is it technique? Is my icing too soft? I see pics of buttercream piping and usually don't see any little spikes on dots or other piping work. Any ideas? Thanks for putting up with my lack of knowledge.
Yes pinky it's technique. It's all in the pressure you apply to the bag. when you are piping dots squeeze until you have almost the desired size and then stop squeezing and gently pull to the side. If you pull away while stil squeezing the bag you will have those nasty peaks.
Until you get the technique just right you'll have to go back and pat them down with your finger or paintbrush.
Another thing to try is as you are pulling the tip away from the dot, give it a little swirl. Hard to explain. Instead of pulling straight away so the tail goes straight up, make a little circle. It seems to lessen the point, and what point there is lays down more, not straight up.
pinky thanks for asking, because I was going to. I call them "nipples" on my dots
Thanks for the replys everyone, it has helped me!
thanks for the advice everybody. I sort of had a feeling it was a technique thing and it's something I will have to practice on for sure. The pressure on the bag and laying off that pressure makes sense, I'll remember that next time. I also understand about finishing with a bit of a swirl motion, I will give that a go as well. If all else fails, I will continue to pat down those little spikes. Thanks everyone, I really appreciate your tips!
Another thing to try is as you are pulling the tip away from the dot, give it a little swirl. Hard to explain. Instead of pulling straight away so the tail goes straight up, make a little circle. It seems to lessen the point, and what point there is lays down more, not straight up.
I agree. And, I may be a little OCD , but I count to 5 in my head as I go. Like, I squeeze the size dot I want, release pressure and count to 5, then swirl to the right and down.
Yes, keep the tip in the icing, until you build it up like you want, then stop pressue and swirl it around and off to the side. Then, no need to use finger or brush to smooth it.
in the article about making royal icing tiara it tells you to pat the points down with a damp paintbrush. it really worked when i made the tiara and there weren't any points visable but I am unsure if this will work with big dots but its worth a try.
Yes it's a technique that I've never mastered. That's why I just use the tip of my finger to press those little things flat.
Yes it's a technique that I've never mastered. That's why I just use the tip of my finger to press those little things flat.
oh I am so with you on this one !! I really hate dots. Once in a blue moon will I get the swirl no tail dot and am so excited.
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