How to make Buttercream Ribbon Roses with Video

Buttercream ribbon roses are a simple way to make your cakes and cupcakes look stunning. They’re one of the easiest buttercream flowers I’ve ever made and with a few decorating tips (like tip number #103 and tip # 234) you’ll probably agree with me.

Supply list to make Buttercream Ribbon Roses:

Recipe:
Crusting Buttercream Frosting or you can use Italian Meringue Buttercream or Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Tools:
#103 Decorating tip
#234 Decorating tip
#2 Decorating tip
Leaf Tip #352
Coupler
Decorating bags
Bag Ties
Flower Nail
Parchment Paper Squares

AmeriColor Soft Gel Paste Food Colors:
Sky Blue
Ivory 
Avocado

Wilton:
Delphinium Blue – Mix a very tiny amount with the Sky Blue to make the vintage blue-green color.

Make a batch of buttercream frosting and mix your colors. The colors I used are listed above, but I wanted to break it down a little bit for you. The ivory flower was made with Ivory and the green for the center was made with the Avocado. Now for the blue icing. I wanted a vintage look so I mixed a tiny amount of Sky Blue into the icing first. Then, I used a toothpick and added a very tiny touch of the Delphinium Blue so the icing would look a little bluish-green. It’s my new favorite blue right now. I can’t wait to make some with royal icing.

• Begin by adding a little frosting to the top of the flower nail and place a parchment paper square on the nail. The frosting will hold the parchment paper in place and make it easy to remove when you’re done.
• Make the center of the flower using the green frosting with the #234 decorating tip. Hold the tip at a 90° angle (straight up and down) over the flower nail. Begin adding pressure to the bag while pulling the bag away from the nail.
• Once you see the frosting look like blades of grass or hair give the bag a quick little jerk as you stop applying pressure to the bag. If you make them long, they will lean over. If you need to you can practice making a few before you start on the flowers.

• With the #103 decorating tip, make a circle of icing around the center of the flower. Make sure the narrow side of the tip is pointing towards the ceiling so you will get a nice thin petal.
• Continue to make petals around the flower.
• You can make one long petal that wraps around the flower several times or you can make individual petals.
• Also, pay attention to the angle of the #103 tip and the bag. If the tip is at a 90° angle, the petals will pipe straight and tighter. If you angle it in towards the center, it will look like the flower petals are closing. When you angel the tip away from the center, the flower will look more open.

I’m really liking ribbon roses right now. You can make a lot of them in a very short amount of time and they look great on cupcakes and cakes.

Before you grab your decorating bag I’d like to point something out first. I didn’t do a great job at making the ribbon roses uniform in size or making the same amount of petals on each flower. I just kinda went a little crazy and started piping. To be honest, I didn’t want them to look the same. When I see flowers in nature they all have little imperfections that make them unique and beautiful. That is the look I was going for. It was freezing and I can’t tell you how much fun I had making them.

If you are more of a perfectionist and want the flowers to look the same then you can be mindful as you pipe and pay attention to the length of the petals. Keep checking to make sure the flower is a circle and not an oval. Just remember, if they are oval shapes and not perfect, you can still use them to decorate your desserts.

You can add the buttercream ribbon roses to a cake or cupcake a few different ways.

• First, add a layer of icing to the top of your cupcake. It will make a nice surface to build your flower bouquet.
• You can pipe them directly onto the flower nail, and use a Wilton Flower Lifter to pick it up by the base and place it directly onto the cupcakes. Most cupcakes I’ve decorated needed three flowers, but it will depend on the size of your flower and the size of the cupcake.
• If you don’t want to use the flower lifter, you don’t have to. Pipe the buttercream ribbon roses onto the parchment paper and then place them in the freezer for a few minutes. Once they get good and cold you’ll be able to touch them without breaking them. Add a little frosting to the areas where you want the flowers and carefully put them in place.
• To finish off the cupcake make a few buds in the larger white spaces. To make them use the #2 decorating tip with the green icing and pipe a vertical line. They don’t have to be perfect. Then, pipe a little white icing on the tops. Press the tip of the #2 decorating tip into the green and begin to squeeze the bag. Don’t lift the bag away because you want it to be round so it looks like a bud about to bloom.
• Once you’ve made the flower buds, use the leaf tip and make a few leaves to fill in the top of the cupcake. Place a few in between the flowers so they’ll look a bit more realistic.

How to Make Buttercream Ribbon Roses Video:

Here’s a little video for you so you can see how to make a buttercream ribbon rose in action.

I know this post may seem a bit long, but don’t let that fool you into thinking these are hard to make. I just wanted to be sure you have all the information you need to make these simple little flowers. Now grab a piping bag and make some ribbon roses! I can’t wait to see them!

Bear hugs,

Products Featured:

(may include affiliate links)

#2 PME Decorating Tip

Decorating Tip #103 Petal

Decorating Tip #234

Wilton Decorating Tip, No.352 Leaf