Piping tips accessories

What accessories are available for piping nozzles and piping bags?

Nozzles and piping bags are already indispensable helpers in the kitchen, but a few accessories make work even easier.

To make filling piping bags particularly easy, there are piping bag holders. These have a practical shape and an opening over which the edge of the piping bag is folded to keep it open and clean.

If the cream residue just won't come out of the nozzle, a nozzle brush can work wonders. Its conical shape makes it perfect for the nozzles.

Flower nails and flower lifters are great tools, especially when it comes to decorating beautiful buttercream flowers. The flower is piped onto the nail and then placed on the cake or cupcake with the lifter and arranged with other flowers.

What is a flower nail or rose nail used for?

A flower nail allows you to pipe your buttercream flowers and place them afterwards. This allows you to turn and improve the flower in front of you and if something goes wrong, you can simply start again. As the flower nail itself does not adhere very strongly, you can first pipe on a small base, a dot of buttercream, and then pipe the petals onto it. Use the hand in which you are holding the nail to turn while your dominant hand handles the piping bag. If you want or need to cool the flower between two coats, you can put the flower nail in a piece of polystyrene or cardboard or something similar and place it upright in the fridge. Then remove the flower with the lifter and place it on the cake or cupcake.

Tips and tricks for perfect buttercream flowers as decorations for cakes and cupcakes

From the buttercream to the perfect flowers, there is still a lot to do. But with a little practice, knowledge and a few tricks, you're guaranteed to succeed. If you would like to learn this art, we recommend our buttercream flower course. Professionals will show you the right moves, you will be given recipes that are sure to succeed and you can try out and practise everything yourself. Here are a few tips for anyone who already creates beautiful flowers at home.

If you want to conjure up an elegant bouquet of flowers on your cake, you usually need a little time and patience. When arranging the flowers, it is an advantage if they are already prepared and only need to be placed at the end. To avoid having to buy ten flower nails, a little baking paper can help. Cut out squares of about 5x5 cm and lay them out ready. Then put a round blob of buttercream on the rose nail, stick a piece of baking paper on top and you're ready to start decorating the flower. Once it is finished, simply pull it off the nail with the baking paper and place it on a tray or plate and the flower nail is free again for the next flower.

Making all the flowers naturally takes time and the softened flowers are often damaged when they are placed afterwards. To avoid this, you can simply place the finished creations on a plate or tray in the fridge or even briefly in the freezer before placing them. This makes them nice and hard and easy to arrange. You can also place the disposable piping bag with buttercream, which is used to pipe the flowers, in the fridge in between if the cream has become a little too warm from the heat of your hands.

To be able to conjure up different flowers with each buttercream color, the nozzle must be replaced in between. The easiest way to do this is to insert an adapter inner part into your piping bags and screw on the matching nozzle with the outer part. This allows you to switch between petal shapes, round nozzles and colors. You can let your imagination run wild and use every color to its full extent!

Once all the flowers are ready and cooled, it's time to arrange them. For a great 3D effect, use one of the buttercream bags to create a crescent, circle or other shape of your choice on the cake. Then place the flowers on top or to the side. The gaps between them should not be too large, but cannot be avoided completely. Once the larger flowers have been placed, you can add small filler flowers and flower buds in between. The leaves are also placed between the flowers at the end using petal nozzles. They can overlap a little, hang over the flowers and be different sizes, shapes and colors. This makes the bouquet look much more real and lively!

Which piping nozzle is suitable for what?

Piping nozzles are incredibly versatile. You can find a small overview of the large selection in our store here.

Perforated grommets

Perforated nozzles are used for decorating pastries and for filling. Various decorations can also be created with dots. Sweet treats such as macarons, choux, éclairs and shortbread cookies are also piped with 10 mm nozzles. A slightly smaller round nozzle is used for filling. Mountain top pralines or filigree garlands on the edge of the cake are also a success with the right nozzle.

Star nozzles

Star nozzles are particularly popular when it comes to decorating cakes, tarts and cupcakes. Meringues, all kinds of shortbread and elegant éclairs are also a success with this versatile type of nozzle.

Russian grommets

A sea of flowers with just a few hand movements - Russian flower nozzles make it possible! Each nozzle creates a different pattern and a different flower. This becomes 3D if you pipe it out of buttercream, for example. Multicolored creations look particularly great here!

Leaf grommet

Any sweet flower bouquet can be completed with elegant buttercream leaves. The combination of nozzle size and piping technique creates very different leaves.

Special grommets

Special grommets often have a rather narrow field of application. Filling flower nozzles and filling nozzles already reveal their use with their name. Various petal nozzles are used to create different buttercream flowers. Star ribbon nozzles are often used for decorations with a basket pattern.