I’m always in awe when I see a cake that is beautifully done. 

It has smooth buttercream edges, straight sides, some height to it at least 5 inches or taller, and looks clean and neat.

I’ve come across so many cakes where the design is cool but the cake is crooked, the sides are uneven, the frosting looks sloppy, and you can tell not enough time was spent smoothing the edges. 

This is one of the most overlooked and challenging parts of building and decorating a cake, and I’m here to help you out.

I’m going to break down the steps to help you achieve smooth buttercream edges on the top of your cake.

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to:

• Build a crown of icing
• Create smooth/sharp edges

Let’s get started.

Step 1: Building a “crown” of icing

Building a “crown” is what you’ll need to achieve those sharp edges at the top of your cake.

Frosting builds up around the top edge of the cake during the icing process.

Sometimes you have to add icing to this crown in order to create the edges.

If the crown is not tall enough, add more icing to increase its height.

Smoothing the sides will help lift the crown even higher, creating that lip or ring of icing at the top edge of the cake, which I like to call a crown.

Once the crown is is built, go around the cake lightly with the bench scraper and smooth out the sides.

Step 2: Creating smooth/sharp edges

After you build the crown, pick a corner of the cake and carefully pull the top edge towards the center of the cake.

Once the first corner is down, you’ll have a guide for the next one until all the edges are smoothed out.

Tip: Hold the spatula at an angle.

Holding it at an angle will help catch the extra frosting from the crown. So that way, all that you’re grabbing is the icing.

This prevents smudging the top of the cake that you worked so hard to smooth out.

Repeat these steps until you’re satisfied with how it looks.

The more you smooth the edges and build a crown, the sharper the end result will look.

Once your cake is done, pop it in the fridge to chill and set before adding the top layer of icing and before starting your cake design.

A firm cake is easier to work with, and it will prevent your frosting from melting as fast while you’re working on it.

Checkout the video below of how to create smooth/sharp buttercream edges:

If you liked this post, you may also like:

How to Make American Buttercream

How to Frost a Smooth Cake

Want to stay connected? You can find me @heavenmycake on Instagram.

Check out my YouTube channel for tutorials and more. Subscribe here.