Kitchen

[quilting]

I am about to purchase a pastry bag or bags and some tips. I am a home baker and am finally taking the plunge to make this purchase. I just love the way the frosting on cupcakes look when done with a pastry bag. I did purchase a mechanical pastry gadget from Williams Sonoma a while back, which is a metal canister/tube that you fill with frosting and then there is a plunger that you push down to release the frosting. The set came with various kinds of tips. But it is difficult to put the frosting into the metal canister and sometimes there are air pockets which cause problems with irregular piping.

Should I be looking a disposable bags, fabric/washable bags, or silicone bags? Are there better tip materials......plastic or metal? I would be using these bags for decorating cookies, cakes, and cupcakes. I would love to hear any suggestions or tips in using these materials.

Thanks in advance.