Fix a mistake
Uneven piped shells, stars and dots: how to match them
Repeated units come out in different sizes or with uneven spacing.
Quick answer
A likely cause is squeezing for a different length of time on each unit. The fix: count the same rhythm for every one (squeeze, ease, pull) so each gets the same amount of icing.
What it looks like
- A shell border has big shells next to small ones.
- Stars or dots in a row are not all the same size.
- Some units are bunched together while others have gaps between them.
Likely causes
- Squeezing for a different length of time on each unit.
- Pulling away at different speeds, so some tails are long and some short.
- Not spacing each unit from the one before, so the row stretches or bunches.
- Rushing near the end of a row.
How to fix it
Count the same rhythm every time
Count the same rhythm for every one (squeeze, ease, pull) so each gets the same amount of icing. Saying it quietly helps.
Use the marks on the sheet
Each unit on our sheets has its own spot. Start each one on its mark so the spacing takes care of itself.
Overlap shells by the same amount
Start each new shell just over the tail of the last one, the same distance every time.
Keep the pace to the end
The last few units are the ones that drift. Keep the same rhythm right up to the end of the row.
Where it shows up on our sheets
It is most common with dots, loops, shells, stars, drop flowers, leaves and ruffle. These sheets have strokes where the scorer looks for it first:
| Sheet | Tip | Where to look |
|---|---|---|
| Lines and dots | 3 | strokes 4 to 6 (dots) |
| Loops | 3 | strokes 1 to 4 (loops) |
| Shell border | 21 | strokes 1 to 4 (shells) |
| Reverse shells | 21 | strokes 1 to 5 (shells) |
| Stars | 21 | strokes 1 to 4 (stars) |
| Drop flowers | 2D | strokes 1 to 3 (drop flowers) |
| Leaves | 352 | strokes 1 to 4 (leaves) |
| Ruffle border | 104 | strokes 1 to 4 (ruffle) |
How Icing Coach spots it
For rows of units, Icing Coach finds each one and compares their sizes and the gaps between them. Units that are bigger or smaller than the rest lower your evenness score, and uneven gaps lower your spacing score.
Every score uses the four corner markers on the printed sheet to flatten your photo onto the template, so it compares your icing with the exact shapes you piped over. How the score works.
Sheets to practise it on
These have the shells, drop flowers, leaves where it shows up most. Pipe one, score it, then pipe it again and compare. You need tip 21, tip 2D or tip 352.
Shell border practice sheet
The classic cake-edge shell border. Squeeze, ease, pull: that is the whole move.
Reverse shells practice sheet
Shells that lean one way, then the other, so they hug into a rope. Great for tall or vertical borders.
Drop flowers practice sheet
Quick piped flowers with a closed star tip. One squeeze and a quarter twist makes a flower.
Leaves practice sheet
Leaves with a leaf tip in a row, in pairs, in a wreath and in a fan. They frame any flower.
