I have this small hand held sifter that you need to squeeze the handle for it to work...It is hard for me to do a whole batch of icing and it takes forever. Any suggestions on an easier way?
Thanks
Janice
i have the same kind and hate it my mom use to have one with a turn handle i liked it lot better but i can't seem to find one any were (have not looked online). but i have use those thinks that look like a mesh stainer (not sure what they are called)
how small is the mesh part of your strainer.Is it just a normal strainer? I have a hand held strainer and I thought that maybe it was too big.
What exactly does a sifter do? What is the difference in using one to not? I've never used one. 
those squeeze handle ones are useless. I use the turn-handle and luv it.
I tried the mesh strainer .... works great for p.sugar, but the holes must be too small for cake mixes because it just doesnt' shake thru as well as p.sugar does. If I could find one with slightly larger mesh, I'd use it for cake mixes, too.
I have the 8 cup sifter with the handle crank... I don't like it though... I usually just use a big metal strainer (like the kind you would use to strain oil). It requires a lot of bouncing, but it is faster than the hand crank.
The squeeze handle sifters are useless - a total waste of money. Unfortunately they're also the ones that are most widely available to the home cook.
The tamis sifters are excellent - I have a smaller one of those plus a handle crank sifter. I got them both at a restaurant supply store.
What exactly does a sifter do? What is the difference in using one to not? I've never used one.
Sifting just makes the sugar finer and gets out any lumps. Usually you really don't have to worry with doing that on a freshly opened bag but I do it anyway. I use a mesh colander, I have the kind that are hand held and the ones that look like mesh bowls. I use whichever is clean at the moment. 
I use a large, fairly fine mesh strainer. But, instead of just shaking it, or tapping it on the side of the bowl, I use a wire whisk to swirl the powdered sugar around and through. Works like a charm, It takes a little more effort with the whisk, but you can also sift cake mixes this way.
Mesh strainer, with the highly technical 'tap on the side of the bowl' method.
I use both the crank handle style and mesh strainers. I prefer the crank, but mine is too small...I think I need to borrow thecreativeone4's!
Anyway, mine in an inexpensive Ecko brand and it works great.
What exactly does a sifter do? What is the difference in using one to not? I've never used one.
If sifting for sifting sake, it removes any lumps, etc., as mentioned above. But it makes a difference in measuring. If the recipe calls for "1 cup sifted flour", that's about a tsp or two different (lighter) than "1 cup flour" or "1 cup flour, sifted".
I have one of the 1960's hand crank sifters however it's now flaking off small pieces! <very deep sigh> I keep it for the young grandkids to use when they want to "work" with flour. Have gone to a large sifter & whisk as well even for cake mixes... remember, I'm not a business & at my age EVERYTHING takes more time. 
Boy, I must be really, really lazy. I have tried the hand held squeeze strainer (hate it), the mesh strainer (mess is more like it), with and without a spoon.
I watched a tv show one time that said all I needed to do was take a wire whisk and whisk the PS or flour, or the additional dry ingredients. So simple. Everytime I do this, I don't have problems with lumps or clumps. Works for me.
i use a sieve and i kind push stuff around using a whisk. it's faster than the tap or shake.
i use a sieve and i kind push stuff around using a whisk. it's faster than the tap or shake.
Ditto 
Makes life faster and cleaner!
I agree with Leahs, I try to avoid it. But for WASC, I just use the whisk, per the instructions. I do have a hand crank sifter that I bought at Smart and Final -- actually like it very much. I was using a very small strainer (3") and banging it on the side of the bowl. Decided then to avoid sifting, but the hand crank works well for me. Just a home cook/decorator, so I am not doing huge batches. If I were, I would use a large food grade sieve -- 14" is about right.
I use a medium/large mesh strainer. I used to use the one with the squeeze handle and I hated it (I stopped sifting). Got the mesh strainer and love it...works like a charm for me. I picked it up at Surfas in California (don't know if anyone is here on the West Coast).
I have this small hand held sifter that you need to squeeze the handle for it to work...It is hard for me to do a whole batch of icing and it takes forever. Any suggestions on an easier way?
Thanks
Janice
I found a Pampered Chef battery operated sifter on Ebay back in 2003. I love it. It tends to get a little messy, but it's easy on my arthritic hands!
I heard somewhere that you can use a food processor to sift the powdered sugar. Has anyone tried this? Do you think it would work? I almost never sift because I have the squeeze handle kind and the beginnings of carpal tunnel problems. It just hurts too much.
I had a squeeze handle one but in a sifting furry the sping popped out never to be seen again. Now I use a 4 cup crank style one. I love it!
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