Confident · about 14 minutes · 4 strokes
Ruffle border practice sheet (tip 104, free PDF)
Quick answer
The ruffle border sheet is free to download and print. It is a confident sheet for petal tip 104 with 4 strokes of ruffle and takes about 14 minutes: print the A4 or US Letter PDF at 100%, pipe over the grey shapes in the numbered order, then photograph it for a score out of 100.
A frilly ruffle with a petal tip, in a line, a roll and swags. Keep the wide end of the tip against the cake.
You need a piping bag with tip 104 (petal).
Free for personal practice. Print at 100% scale ("actual size").
What the ruffle border sheet trains
The ruffle border is the only sheet marked confident, and the 30-day plan warns to expect a lower score on it. It uses the petal tip 104 to make a frilly ruffle in a line, a rolling wave, swags and arches.
Keep the wide end of the tip down against the sheet, wiggle it as you squeeze and move forward steadily. Follow the rolling wave and keep the frills the same size. On the swags, let the ruffle hang down between two points and come back up; on the arches it rises and falls like a row of scallops.
- On the sheet
- 4 strokes of ruffle, 69 cm of piped line
- Bead size
- 10 mm wide
- Speed
- 10 mm a second
- Bag angle
- at 45°
- Squeeze rhythm
- squeeze → wiggle → move
- Separate starts
- 4: every line, unit or letter stroke begins with a fresh squeeze
Stroke by stroke
Bead is how wide the icing should be (or how big each unit is); speed is how fast to move along the line.
| # | What you pipe | Bead | Speed | Bag angle | Squeeze rhythm | Cue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | a 142 mm ruffle with a frill about every 16 mm | 10 mm, every 16 mm | 10 mm/s | 45° | squeeze → wiggle → move | Keep the wide end of the tip down, wiggle it as you squeeze, and move forward steadily. |
| 2 | a 161 mm ruffle with a frill about every 16 mm | 10 mm, every 16 mm | 10 mm/s | 45° | squeeze → wiggle → move | Follow the rolling wave and keep the frills the same size. |
| 3 | a 191 mm ruffle with a frill about every 16 mm | 10 mm, every 16 mm | 10 mm/s | 45° | squeeze → wiggle → move | Swags: let the ruffle hang down between two points and come back up. |
| 4 | a 195 mm ruffle with a frill about every 16 mm | 10 mm, every 16 mm | 10 mm/s | 45° | squeeze → wiggle → move | Arches: the ruffle rises and falls like a row of scallops. |
Print the PDF at 100% and check the bar at the bottom measures 10 cm, fit tip 104, pipe strokes 1 to 4 in order, then photograph the sheet from straight above with all four corner squares in view. Printing and photo tips.
Watch the ghost nozzle
Press play and pipe along with the green ghost: it moves at each stroke's target speed.
Stroke 1 of 4
Keep the wide end of the tip down, wiggle it as you squeeze, and move forward steadily.
Mistakes to watch for on this sheet
Look for frills of even height along the whole row. A bare patch means the wiggle stopped while you moved on; a thick lump means you paused while still squeezing.
- Thin then thick
Most likely on strokes 1 to 4 (ruffle). Keep the same squeeze and the same speed from start to finish, following the pacer.
- Gaps and breaks
Most likely on strokes 1 to 4 (ruffle). Keep the same gentle squeeze all the way and only stop squeezing at the very end.
- Drifting off the line
Most likely on strokes 1 to 4 (ruffle). Hold the bag at 45 degrees and aim the tip right on the grey line, not beside it.
- Different sizes
Most likely on strokes 1 to 4 (ruffle). Count the same rhythm for every one (squeeze, ease, pull) so each gets the same amount of icing.
The ruffle border sheet in the 30-day challenge
The 30-day piping challenge uses this sheet on days 17 and 22. It comes after leaves.
- Day 17 · New sheetWide end of the tip against the sheet, wiggle as you squeeze, move forward steadily. The hardest sheet: expect a lower score.
- Day 22 · RepeatRepeat of day 17. Follow the rolling wave and keep the frills the same size.