This is a super frustrating problem, but the good news is that royal icing makes for great glue! Use it to stick your pieces together, dry overnight, and you’ll be ready for decorating. Nobody will be the wiser ;)

These are the hardest colors to mix up, especially because adding too much food coloring can change the consistency of your icing AND make it taste pretty bad. The best thing to do is mix your icing the night before to a couple of shades lighter than you want to achieve, and let the color develop overnight. Yup, it will actually deepen if you just let it do its thing!

It’s important to add water slowly to your icing to prevent this from happening, but it’s not the end of the world. You can mix in small amounts of icing sugar until it comes back to the consistency you want to achieve.

You may be tempted to add some water to the bag and massage it in, but you risk adding too  much water, and not fully incorporating it. The best thing to do is empty your icing back out  into a bowl  and slowly mix in a little water at a time until you reach your desired consistency.

If you plan on using it within the next 7 days just pop it in an air fresh container in the fridge. If you’re not going to be using it again for a while the freezer is the best place for storage and you can just thaw it on the counter for about an hour before you want to use it. You can even mix thawed icing into a fresh batch to help create different colors!

Believe it or not, your icing will actually absorb moisture from the air! If you live in a humid climate, or it’s just a rainy day in the neighborhood, the best way to combat against this is to mix your icing slightly thicker than you want it to be.

Whether you’re taking a break, or taking your time the tips of your bags may crust over if you leave them sitting for too long. If you’re not going to be coming back to a color for a while just fold the tip of the bag up and push it into itself creating a sort of “belly button”. Squeeze your bag when you’re ready to pop that tip back out! This hot trick is from another Cookie Queen @sweetjunipercookies and is adorably referred to as the Eenie Outie ;)

This can happen if your icing has been sitting out for a while (you’ll see a darker bit of “settled” icing at the bottom of the bag), and it’s no big deal. Just massage your bag to pull everything back together and you’re good to go! 

The best way to do this is to let gravity do most of  the work. Line a glass with your bag, and scoop your icing in, letting it fall down to the tip. Loosely hold the top of your bag with your hand (to let air out, but not in), and gently massage all of your icing down to the tip before tying off your bag.

This can be caused by a lack of airflow on your cookies. A dehydrator or table fan used while drying your cookies can help you out here!

Your royal icing needs to form an initial skin before you can move on to the next step and dry times will vary based on your climate. You can test your cookies by very gently running your finger across the top and seeing that it doesn’t stick or snag anywhere.

Sounds like your detail icing is probably a little too thick! Just de-bag, mix in a little bit more water, and get back to it :)

Sounds like your detail icing is probably a little too thick! Just de-bag, mix in a little bit more water, and get back to it :)

This happens if your cookie is moved too much or bumped after your icing has formed its first skin. It’s important to let these little treats dry undisturbed. They’re a little temperamental!

Uh oh! The dreaded “butter bleed”! Adding white gel coloring to your icing before your colors can help combat against this and it’ll make your colors pop!

This could be because your icing is a little too thick, or the tip of your bag is flattened out in one direction. When you cut your bag it's important to run your fingers over it in the opposite direction to form the tip back out into a circle.

This is called cratering which is caused by air bubbles in your icing and there are a few ways to battle against it. Firstly, pump enough icing onto your cookies which will give you that coveted “puffy” look and help prevent this. Hybrid icing which is on the thicker side will also help you  out, and so can poking into your icing with the tip of your bag or scribe to make sure there are no bubbles lurking below the surface.

Practice will make perfect when it comes to pulling clean lines. The best way to avoid this bulb is to start your icing flow off of your cookie (slightly above it) then lay the line down and continue piping.

Again, practice is key here! Before you want your line to end stop applying pressure to your piping bag and pull your bag straight up where you want it to end to avoid that little “tail”.

If your icing is overmixed it unfortunately won’t harden on your cookie no matter how long you leave it. When mixing your icing, if it gets to the point of looking like super glossy marshmallow fluff, that’s a tell tale sign that it has been overmixed. If you’re unsure, you can flood a cookie as a test and if you can push your finger into it even after it’s dried your icing is overmixed, and unfortunately there’s no way to save it.