When I first started decorating cakes and cupcakes, I used to get extremely frustrated filling my piping bag. I would hold the empty bag in one hand and try and scoop frosting in with the other. I somehow would manage to get frosting all over the outside of the bag and would often have trouble scooping the icing out of the bowl. Sometimes the bowl would walk away from me. But then I leaned a trick that made everything easier. Honestly, I can’t remember where I learned this, but I thought I should share.
First step, put your tip in the bottom of you piping bag. Then take a clean drinking class and put your bag in the glass, folding over a good portion of the excess.
Next, fill the bag inside the glass with frosting. You can use the edge of the glass to wipe your spatula clean as you add more frosting to the bag.
Then, just unfold the excess from the outside of the glass and pull the bag out of the glass.
Gather up the excess top and twist until the frosting is all pushed to the bottom of the bag. Wrap a rubber band around the top and you are good to go!