Cake decorating is a fun activity for all ages. In fact, a cake is a universally liked and preferred dessert item. It is said that food should not only taste good but also look good; this is what makes us want to eat it. Cake is no exception to this saying. No matter how light the cake is if there is no icing on it the cake may not get a second glance! Therefore cake decorating is the key factor in the presentation of the cake.

When preparing a cake, once you are done with the baking part you have to think about the decorating of the cake. The cake decoration can depend upon the occasion or whoever's going to eat the cake.

Whether it is made for a party for adults, for a wedding or for kids, the look, the color and the design of the cake decoration will be different. The aim of cake decorating is to enhance the appearance of the cake.

Cake decorating is an art. It involves lots of things. Often the cake is covered with icing made out of sugar. Sometimes fondant icing is used for cake decoration. Sometimes decorative candies, colored sugar or a glossy blanket of glaze is used to decorate the cake.

Yet another type of cake decoration is frosting. It uses a powdered sugar and some flavorings. Vanilla extract or essence is the most preferred flavoring. Next in line is cocoa powder.

If time is a precious commodity then instead of making intricately designed decorations, sugar particles colored with edible food coloring can be sprinkled on instead. Cake decorating done by just sprinkling also looks good.

Cake decorating is made easy these days as there are many cake decorating kits readily available on the market. The tools are in the form of syringes or piping bags. The tips of these differ so that different shapes can be made. Some of the cake decorating kits shows different methods that can be used to transfer an image or a picture onto the cake.

Some basic tips or molds are used to easily make an open or a closed star, round drop flower, leaf or a basket weave. Decorative borders can be made from icing sugar or flowers made from marzipan make great cake decorations.

Over the years many have developed their own styles and methods of cake decorating. One of the known methods is the Lambeth Method. This method uses a fondant-covered cake and it uses intricate dimensional borders.

On the other hand the European style of cake decorating involves covering the cake with a smooth layer of icing. Then it uses royal icing to pipe flowers on the cake.

The Australian method also uses royal icing but a delicate lacework and detailed curtain work and extensions are added. The Wilton uses butter cream icing to cover the cake and it is also used to pipe decorative borders and flowers.