A basket weave cake design is a beautiful way to add texture and elegance to any homemade cake.
Be sure to check out our Easter recipes for more festive ideas.
This decorating technique creates the look of an intricately woven basket using frosting, making it a perfect choice for spring celebrations, birthdays, or Easter desserts.
With a piping bag and the right tip, you can achieve this classic look with just a little practice.

Get ready to make your basket cake! Start by gathering all your ingredients and supplies.

Here are some resources to help you get started:
✔️ Cake decorating and frosting guide – Learn the best techniques for a smooth, professional finish.
✔️ Vanilla Buttercream Recipe – The perfect frosting for piping a beautiful basket weave.
✔️ Cake Recipes – Choose from Vanilla Layer Cake, Chocolate Cake, or Carrot Cake.
✔️ Cake Decorating Supply List – Make sure you have everything you need before you begin!
To create a basket cake, start with a pre-baked cake and place it on a cake board secured with a dollop of buttercream.
Apply a crumb coat and chill the cake to set.
Before tackling your actual cake, practice the weave pattern on a piece of parchment paper on a flat surface.

If your icing becomes too soft as you work, don’t hesitate to pop your piping bag in the fridge for a few minutes to firm up.

Fill a piping bag fitted with a basket weave tip (#47) with buttercream icing.
Start on the side of the cake that will be the back of the cake.
Pipe vertical lines, then layer evenly spaced horizontal stripes over them, alternating to create the woven effect.

Continue piping until the entire cake is covered in the textured basket weave pattern.

What to Top Your Basket Cake With:
- Icing Rosettes to make it look like fresh flowers are in your basket.
- Berries or other fresh fruit to make it look like a fruit basket.
- Easter Candy to make it look like an Easter basket.


Depending on your skill level and the size of your cake, it could take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to cover the cake with the basket weave pattern.


Basket Weave Cake Design
Want to master a basket weave cake design? This easy piping tutorial will help you create a gorgeous woven look for any celebration!
Ingredients
- Prebaked cake of your choice, preferably frozen
- Buttercream Icing
- Basket Weave #47 Piping Tip
- Piping Bags + Coupler
Instructions
- Place one dollop of buttercream into the center of the cake board. This will serve as our “glue” for the cake.
- Place frozen cake layers onto the board and create your inside layers.
- Once the cake is put together, lightly crumb coat (do a thin layer of buttercream icing around the entire cake to capture any crumbs that can mess up the presentation).
- Place the cake into a fridge or freezer while you set up the icing.
- Place coupler in piping bag and fit with tip 47. Fill bag ½ full with buttercream icing.
- Remove cake from cooler and place on top of turntable.
- (Imagine the top of the cake is a clock) Hold the decorating bag at a 45 degree angle at 6 o’clock.
- Very lightly touch the piping tip to the crumb coated cake, serrated side up, squeeze out a vertical strip of icing from the top to the bottom of the cake. Stop squeezing and then pull away.
- For the duration of this project, remember to squeeze, stop and then pull away.
- With the bag positioned at a 45 degree angle, this time at 3 o’clock, squeeze out short horizontal stripes of icing over the vertical line starting at the top. The spacing between the horizontal stripes should be even.
- Pipe the next vertical line over the ends of the horizontal stripes.
- Begin a set of horizontal stripes by burying the tup under the previous vertical line.
- Repeat this process, with vertical and horizontal stripes until you have covered the entire cake with the basketweave pattern.