Cake Geek Magazine

Cake Tutorials, Trends, Design & Styling

  • Home Page
  • Cake Tutorials
  • Recipes
  • About
  • Contact
  • Policies

Piping Techniques: Pearls and Beaded Garlands

piping techniques with cakes from Rosalind Miller (left) and Pinterest (right)

A piped beaded garland is a superbly elegant wedding cake decoration and is one of the simplest piping techniques even for beginners.  Having marked out the distance between each swag or scallop, as well as the drop length, it is simply a matter of piping pearl beads in a semi-circular shape to achieve that most classical of wedding cake designs.

The two beautiful examples above are from acclaimed designers, Peggy Porschen (left) and Bake-A-Boo, New Zealand (right). Coloured icing, whether in cream or pastel shades, provides a great backdrop against which pearl piping really stands out.

For those completely new to piping royal icing, we have put together a beginners guide as follows, featuring advice from some of the world’s best cake artists on royal icing piping techniques:

  • How to make royal icing from scratch by royal icing expert, Ceri DD Griffiths (You can also buy instant royal icing in the supermarket and add water if you wish, which is perfect for practicing with.)
  • How to make a parchment paper piping bag by Ceri DD Griffiths also
  • Introduction to Royal Icing and Piping by Marian Poirier of Sweetopia
  • Piping Techniques overview on the Craftsy Blog
  • How to pipe royal icing dots/pearls and how to pipe a beaded border by Cake Darla (also known as a “snail trail”). Image below: America’s Test Kitchen.

how to pipe a pearl border or snail trail from America's Test Kitchen

To pipe a pearl bead garland:

  • first you need to mark the points on the top edge of your cake where each swag is going to begin and end.
  • Start with a tiny mark at 12 o’clock, 6 o’clock, 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock.
  • Depending on how big your cake is, mark points in each quadrant about 2 inches or so apart, or further apart for wider swags, if you prefer.
  • Next, mark how far down you want each swag to fall around the sides of the cake.
  • Begin piping by starting with the top pearls and the bottom pearl for each swag. Then pipe the rest of the pearls that make up the swag in a semi-circular shape.
  • If the pearls have a peaked tip, pat them down gently with a damp paintbrush before moving on to the next swag.

piping techniques with cakes from Rosalind Miller (left) and via Pinterest (righ

Above, we have a very elegant example of classical pearl piping piping from Rosalind Miller Cakes (above left), who has just published her new book: Wedding Cakes by Rosalind Miller.

To the right, we have a superb vintage single tier cake with with piped pearls in a draped style.  Combined with delicate lace trim and a single sugar rose, this cake is the epitomy of vintage elegance. (Image via Pinterest).

piping techniques with cakes from Peggy Porschen (left) and Maise Fantaisie (right)

Above, we have two superb examples of precision piping  techiques by Peggy Porschen (left) and Maise Fantaisie (right). Triple swags create a splendidly classical wedding cake design whether in pristine white or Wedgewood blue.

Below we have two more exquisite examples of piped beaded garlands, this time incorporating little blossoms for added decorative effect. (Image below left from Style Me Pretty with photo by Red Fly Studio and right, from Divine Cakes By Luisa Galuppo.)

piping techniques with cake from Style Me Pretty, Photo by Red Fly Studio (left) and by Divine Cakes By Luisa Galuppo (right)

Finally, a beautiful Tiffany’s blue wedding cake with vintage pearl piping by Madisons On Main (photo by Amanda Watson via Wedding Chicks).

tiffany blue wedding cake with piped pearls garland by Madisons on Main with photo by Amanda Watson Photography via Wedding Chicks

Related Posts

  • piping techniques with cakes from Rosalind Miller (left) and Pinterest (right)
    Piping Techniques: Pearls and Beaded Garlands

    A piped beaded garland is a superbly elegant wedding cake decoration and is one of the simplest piping techniques even…

  • drop string piping technique with cakes by Leslea Matsis left and by Baked Impressions right
    Piping Techniques: Piping Drop Strings

    Piping drop strings often seems like one of the most daunting cake decorating techniques for the beginner cake decorator. For…

  • scroll piping techniques with wedding cakes via Lover.ly (left) and by The Pastry Studio (right)
    Piping Techniques: Piping Scrolls

    Scroll piping is an enduringly elegant cake decoration and a technique that's well worth practicing for any beginner cake decorator. …

  • scallop piping cake by Hilary Rose Cupcakes left, image right by Christina Brosnan Photography
    Scallop Piping & Scalloped Cake Designs

    Delicate lines of scalloped piping are a timeless cake decorating technique that exudes elegance and is enjoying renewed popularity in…

  • writing in icing typography via NewGrids.fr left and writing in icing example by Wilton right
    Writing in Icing: Piped Lettering

    Writing in icing or piped lettering is one of the most daunting challenges for many of us cake enthusiasts. And…

  • Cake Calligraphy Tutorial by Faye Cahill
    Cake Calligraphy Tutorial by Faye Cahill from The Gilded Cake

    Our beautiful cake calligraphy tutorial this week is from the much anticipated first book by Australia's doyenne of cake decorating,…

  • lace piping wedding cakes, images via Pinterest
    Lace Wedding Cakes Part 2: Lace Piping

    The ultimate challenge for most wedding cake decorators is a piped lace wedding cake.  And while it truly is an…

  • Buttercream Crochet Cake tutorial by Queen of Hearts Couture Cakes
    Crochet Lace Cake Tutorial

    Valeri Valeriano and Christina Ong share with us their crochet lace cake tutorial this week from their book, The Contemporary…

  • Vintage Buttercream Cake Tutorial
    Vintage Floral Piped Cake Tutorial by Carey Madden

    This week we have a beautiful, and surprisingly easy, vintage floral piped cake tutorial by Carey Madden from her book,…

  • Buttercream Flower Tutorial The Garden Rose on Cake-Geek.com
    Buttercream Flower Tutorial - The Garden Rose

    We are delighted to feature this buttercream flower tutorial by Jiahn Kang this week - the garden rose. Jiahn has…

  • lambeth piping via Martha Stewart Weddings left and by J'adore Cakes Co. right
    Lambeth Cakes & Introductory Tutorials

    The Lambeth method is one of the most skilled techniques in cake decorating and probably the most admired too. Lambeth…

  • Edwardian wedding cake with edible cake lace by Curtis & Co Wedding Cakes
    Edwardian Inspired Wedding Cakes

    The style and grace of the Edwardian period has become one of the biggest inspiration sources for brides this year…


Filed Under: Cake Designs for All Occasions Tagged: piping techniques, vintage party cakes, vintage wedding cakes

Disclosure:

Posts on this site may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through one of these links.

Theme Design By Studio Mommy · Copyright © 2023

Copyright © 2023 · Beyond Madison Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in