i did my first basketweave on a cake with buttercream and used a tip 21, on the ride home the whole side of it fell off? How can I prevent this from happening again?see picture

I don't see a picture or a link to your pictures. Two things come to mind though. Did you have a cumb coat on your cake? Could the icing have been too stiff? I find stiff icing will fall off my cake. I guess if it "slid" it might have been too thin. Post a picture if you can.

Sorry it happened!

I make basket weave alot, and agree with the above poster. You have to crumb coat the cake first, and make sure the icing isn't stiff, so it sticks to the icing underneath.

Did you anchor your basketweave to start on the top and go over side and down? I was taught ( after my basketweave slid) that it needed to anchor a bit on the top. Just starting at the side won't give enough grab. I've always followed that advice now.

I just made a cake with the basket weave & taking it on the highway, a 4 hour drive...NOW IM SCARED
I did put a crumb coat though... So Im hopping it will be fine

I would say a combination of not anchoring and then also not knowing were you live, I photographed a wedding last summer in which the bride requested a basketweave on her wedding cake and when the cake arrived it had literally torn the coroners off of her cake. It was a HORRIBLE mess. I had started teaching as a WMI about 3 months before this and had never seen it, but it was HORRIBLY hot that day and so I asked if she had cooled her car down befor putting the cake in and she said NO!!!! I ALWAYS cool my car in the summer. I have remote start and even tonight almost 80, I went out and got the seat prepped, hubby then when I went to get dressed and ready to leave he turned on the car and I had made sure when I was out there that the car was turned as cold as it could be with fans up high. The car was nice and cool when we got in.

sunset (and others), I think my icing would be great for you to try for basketweave. I can actually pick up the 6" tier by the sides and put it on top of the wedding cake without damaging the icing. It crusts very well, but stays nice and 'soft' on the inside for eating. I never pre-cool my car, never run the A/C on super high and bluntly, rarely run the A/C at all. (Worked in too many offices that were always too cold! I almost hate A/C except when our famous Indiana "Heat-n-Humidity" kicks in!)

Part of the issue may be a combination of recipe and technique, rather than just technique.

I will try and find your icing Indydebi, I am getting more and more into using SMBC and learning other techniques. But am always open. However does you icing use all shortening. I will start looking, but probably tomorrow, with it being 3:30am I was up until 5:30 yesterday morning and now this. And the cake was delivered and so I only have breakfast plans tomorrow. That and of course calling my mom. Happy Mothers Day Ladies!

Also Indydebi, I think part of it for me is FEAR!!! I am always fearful. Even tonight, I did a baby grand piano on a cake, and it was not going to fall over and if it did it was not going to hurt the cake. But every bump I hit no matter how small I cringed. I am ALWAYS afraid my cake is not going to get to the end point safe and sound.

Here is the link to the icing recipe. Yes, it is a shortening based recipe but many have said it doesnt' have the 'greasy' taste that most do. Some have used half butter/shortening; some have added butter flavored oil with good results. The best part is that this recipe is very flexible and can be tweaked (tweeked?) to get it to a taste that hits the spot with you!

Getting over the fear will eventually go away with experience as your successes build your confidence. That's all it is .... confidence. goodness, I remember some of my earliest wedding cakes (decades ago!) where I sat in the back of our SUV next to the cake, cringing at every turn and bump. Now I just slap it in the back of the car and take off!

I did crumb coat it firstI can't see the recipe where is the link?

Here's the link:

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/6992/indydebis-crisco-based-buttercream-icing

Many, many people on CC have used it successfully.

Thanks, sangria, for adding the link. So sorry I forgot to attach it in my post! (I've been working double shifts this weekend for 3 days straight, so my brain is just about fried right now!)