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Tips & Tricks for Cookie Decorating ✏️
24
items Things I've learned the hard way, good practices and the products that help make a difference (IMO)!
Sections
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💡Tips & Tricks
Supplies Behind the Tips 🛠️
💡Tips & Tricks
Things I've tested, learned the hard way, and swear by. Whether you're just starting out or looking to level up, these are the tips that actually make a difference in your cookies
No matter what the recipe says, chilling your dough before cutting shapes makes everything easier. The cookies hold their form, cut cleanly, and don't spread in the oven. Small extra step, big difference in results 👀
Always Chill Your Dough... Even "No Chill" Recipes
Rolling your dough to a consistent thickness means your cookies bake evenly. Uneven dough means some cookies overbake while others stay underdone in the same tray. Thickness guide rings or an adjustable rolling pin take all the guesswork out of it an...
Roll Dough to a Consistent Thickness Every Time
Adding water straight from a spoon is too hard to control and you will always add too much. A small spray bottle gives you tiny, even bursts of water so you can adjust your icing consistency gradually without going too far.
Use a Spray Bottle to Thin Your Icing
Royal icing forms a crust almost immediately when exposed to air. Any bowl or bag you are not actively using needs to be covered with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Even a few minutes uncovered can create a dried crust that clogs your tip or leaves ch...
Keep Your Icing Covered at All Times
Remember to let dark colors develop over time rather than adding more and more gel color. What looks like a dull red or navy when you mix it will often be a completely different, richer shade by the next morning. Mix your color, wait a few hours, the...
Dark Colors Deepen Overnight, So Don't Overdo the Gel
Before loading your flood icing into a piping bag, let it sit in the bowl for a few minutes. Air bubbles will rise to the surface and you can pop them gently with a spatula or spoon. Takes 2 minutes and makes a noticeable difference in how your finis...
Let Your Icing Sit Before You Bag It
If you are only using a toothpick to move your icing around, try a scribe. The handle gives you so much more control, especially when you are working for long stretches and your hand gets tired. You can pop air bubbles, guide icing into tight corners...
A Scribe Tool Is the Best Thing in Your Kit
Royal icing flattens as it dries because the water in it evaporates. So if you fill your cookie exactly to the top when it's wet, it's going to look a little sunken once it sets. Add just a touch more than feels right, it will level out on its own, a...
Want Puffy Cookies? Overfill When You Flood
If your base layer is even a little tacky when you place the stencil, the icing will drag, smear, and pull up with it when you lift it off. It needs to be completely set, not just dry to the touch. Depending on humidity, that can take anywhere from 1...
Wait Until Your Base Is Fully Dry Before Using a Stencil
Two things make the difference between clean marker work and a smeared mess. First, your flood base needs to be completely dry, not just set, so the tip does not drag or sink into the surface. Second, use a lighter touch than you think you need. Pres...
Edible Markers Work Best on a Bone Dry Surface With a Light Hand
If you're hand-painting on cookies with food gel, skip the vodka or lemon extract. Alcohol evaporates too fast and leaves streaky, uneven lines. Plain water blends smoothly, dilutes beautifully, and gives you full control over pigment intensity. Tota...
Paint with Water, Not Alcohol 💧
Before sliding your decorated cookies into cellophane bags, give them a light dusting of cornstarch. It keeps them from sticking to the bag and ruining your designs.
Dust with Cornstarch Before Bagging
Fridges are high-humidity environments. Once your royal icing is set, keep cookies at room temperature in an airtight container. Refrigeration causes color bleed, splotchy icing, and condensation that ruins your finish. Room temp is always the right ...
Never Refrigerate Decorated Cookies
If you have leftover colored icing after a decorating session, it does not have to go to waste. Transfer it to a freezer bag, squeeze out the air, and freeze it. Because of how much sugar royal icing contains it is incredibly shelf stable, so it thaw...
Store Leftover Royal Icing in the Freezer
Supplies Behind the Tips 🛠️
These are the products that have earned a permanent spot in my decorating kit. No fluff, just the things that genuinely make cookies easier, prettier, and more fun to make
No particular brand needed for this one, but Argo is the one I keep coming back to. A light dusting on your decorated cookies before sliding them into cellophane bags keeps them from sticking and ruining your designs. Same tip from above, just the sp...
Argo 100% Pure Corn Starch - 16oz
When I first started I used to eyeball my dough thickness and wonder why some cookies came out thicker than others in the same batch. This rolling pin has removable rings in four sizes so every cookie rolls out to the exact same thickness without thi...
Adjustable Rolling Pin with Thickness Rings for Baking, Stainless Steel Designs Dough Roller Pins for Cookie Decorating Baking Supplies Fondant Cake Baker Gift
This is the easiest way to thin your icing little by little without overshooting your consistency.
Clear Spray Bottle, 4oz. by Artist's Loft™ | Michaels
The gold standard for cookie painting and royal icing. Highly pigmented, smooth consistency, and they blend beautifully when mixed with just a little water. A must-have in any decorator's kit 🎨!
AmeriColor, Student Kit , 12 .75 Ounce Food Color Bottles, Soft Gel Paste
I started using these silicone stretch lids instead of plastic wrap and honestly I don't know why I waited so long. They just snap over the bowl, they're reusable, and they come in different sizes so they fit pretty much anything you're working with.
Silicone Stretch Lids, Durable and Eco-Friendly Elastic Lids Reusable Heat Resistant Various Sizes Cover for Bowl (Blue-6 pack)
Piping bags are one of those things you go through fast, especially when you're working with multiple colors. I prefer tipless bags because you just snip the end to whatever size opening you need, no tip or coupler required, and cleanup is just tossi...
LotFancy Piping Bags, 500 Pcs 10" Disposable Pastry Bags & 5 Clips, Icing Bags for Cake Cookie Decor
There is a small window after you flood a cookie where the icing is still moving and you can fix pretty much anything. That is your scribe moment. Once the surface starts to set, dragging through it leaves marks instead of blending in. Get in the hab...
Scribe Modeling Tool - Thick Needle Version
You don't need anything fancy! These are great for adding detail, lettering, or freehand designs without picking up a brush. What I like about these is that they are double-sided with a fine tip for outlines and a thick tip for bolder strokes.
12 Pieces Edible Markers for Cookie Decorating, Food Coloring ...
Regular edible markers are great for outlines and lettering, but if you want that extra touch of gold, silver, or shimmer on a cookie these are on a different level. Each pen is dual-tipped, a fine tip for details and writing and a brush tip for broa...
Metallic Food Marker - Gold and Silver Dual Tip
These are what I use to store leftover royal icing between sessions. Just load your icing in, squeeze the air out, seal it, and freeze it. Because of how much sugar royal icing contains it is incredibly shelf stable, so it thaws well and holds up thr...
Ziploc Quart Freezer Bags for Food Storage and Meal Prep - 38ct