Todays guest post has been provided by the lovely Beth from 'Cakes by Beth' who talks about how to choose your perfect wedding cake and also provides some yummy examples of her work too!
Choosing your wedding cake can be a really fun and creative part of planning your wedding, but with so many styles, flavours and options to choose from, where do you start? As a cake designer, I often get asked about what my perfect wedding cake would look like and I know I have problems answering as there are so many designs that I love!
I think the best place to start is with the size and location of your wedding as this helps to decide just how much cake you will need and what kind of feel you want the cake to have. After all, it is the centrepiece of your reception so you want it to reflect you as a couple and fit in with its surroundings. If you are having a large wedding and your reception will be in very grand, traditional surroundings, I think a tall, stacked cake would be the best option. The height of the cake will allow it to hold its own in the room and the number of tiers can reflect the number of guests. Portion numbers for cakes are only a guide as it depends on how the venue slice your cake, so they have some flexibility to tailor their serving to the number of guests. For smaller and more informal weddings, a cupcake tower can be a really great way to create a fun centrepiece and each guest can have their own individual cake. You can also have a top tier cutting cake, decorated to match teh style of the cupcakes underneath, for that all important photograph. This is your first official duty as husband and wife so a lot of people don’t want to forego it.
I think the best place to start is with the size and location of your wedding as this helps to decide just how much cake you will need and what kind of feel you want the cake to have. After all, it is the centrepiece of your reception so you want it to reflect you as a couple and fit in with its surroundings. If you are having a large wedding and your reception will be in very grand, traditional surroundings, I think a tall, stacked cake would be the best option. The height of the cake will allow it to hold its own in the room and the number of tiers can reflect the number of guests. Portion numbers for cakes are only a guide as it depends on how the venue slice your cake, so they have some flexibility to tailor their serving to the number of guests. For smaller and more informal weddings, a cupcake tower can be a really great way to create a fun centrepiece and each guest can have their own individual cake. You can also have a top tier cutting cake, decorated to match teh style of the cupcakes underneath, for that all important photograph. This is your first official duty as husband and wife so a lot of people don’t want to forego it.
I think that people often view cupcake towers as a more budget-friendly option than the more traditional tiered cake, but beyond a certain number, the cost can add up to quite a lot, especially if you would like quite detailed decorations. As each guest needs a cupcake, you also have to have a pretty good idea of how many guests will be attending when you are ordering your cake, which some people don’t know until quite late on. For instance, a bride came to me wanting a wedding cupcake tower, with everything planned except the number of guests, which she wouldn’t know until just before the big day. I therefore suggested that she had cupcakes to feed about two thirds of the expected guests and then a two tier cutting cake on top for the rest. That way, she could have the look she was going for, also have a really interesting and striking cake on top, and the stacked cake could be served according to how many guests were actually there. It took the stress out of it for her and meant that she could relax knowing that she would have enough cake, rather than panicking just before the big day, ordering more cupcakes. She loved the idea!
The theme of your wedding is also a really important factor in your cake decisions. The colour scheme, flowers, patterns and materials, plus anything quirky such as your shared love of surfing or eating spaghetti, can all be incorporated into your cake. An example would be if you were having an all white wedding and a lace wedding dress but the bridesmaids were wearing pale blue. Your cake could be all white with lace around each tier or actually as sugar decorations on the cake, and the bridesmaids dresses could be replicated in sugar flowers or pretty little piped details to subtly blend the cake with everyone’s outfits. Square or round tiers can be a big decision. I think people generally have a personal preference here and if not, if you like a particular design, it can often fit best with either square or round tiers. There are other shape options too, such as oval or hexagonal, which add an extra twist. You can even mix the shapes up but it is best not to have too many shapes of tiers in one cake as all the different edges can be distracting. Simpler is often better. Overall, square cakes are more formal, structured and striking, Round cakes are softer and more feminine and can allow you to add more decorative details.
Budgets are always a huge factor in deciding on details for your wedding and so when designing wedding cakes, I am always careful to work within the budget allocated by the couple. It is possible to get a beautiful wedding cake without spending a fortune but bear in mind that the more details you ask for, the more it will cost. Every detail is hand-made and takes time so you are paying for the hours involved. Even charged at minimum wage, 300 sugar roses would add up to a lot of money! If you don’t have the budget but want the effect of 300 sugar roses, I would suggest that you opted for fresh flowers instead. Your cake designer will liaise with your florist to sort all of the details out for you and bring it all together on the day.
I take my design inspiration from so many places, from wallpaper to jewellery to fabrics, so it is worth taking some fabric and ribbon swatches, plus any images you have of different details, to your cake designer for a design consultation. It will allow them to get a real feel for the look of the day and also match the colours and patterns. I would also take along images of cakes that you really like, and just as importantly, a list of things that you definitely don’t like. It really helps to steer the design process so that the end result is a cake that you absolutely love.
So on to the flavour. After all, the eating is the most important part! The sky is pretty much the limit here and it is all down to what you love. Many people opt for a couple of flavours so that their guests can have a choice, which is a really nice idea. I would suggest that you didn’t choose too many different flavours as it can get a bit complicated and confusing. Fruit cake definitely has a bad reputation, with couples ordering any flavour but. I personally love it and if you have the top tier as fruit, you can save it for a future event (your first child’s christening, your one year anniversary etc). If this just isn’t your thing, one way of giving a nod to tradition without a raisin in sight is to have the top of your wedding cake recreated for the event. You can then choose any flavour you like and don’t have to worry about storing it.
One word of caution about flavours: if you are getting married at the height of summer, and especially if your reception area has large windows, or is a marquee, and is likely to get very hot, be careful of delicate cakes, such as those covered with real chocolate and those containing mousse fillings or cream cheese. You could end up with warm, runny fillings and a melty overall look, which would be very disappointing. Best to have the cake set up in a more shaded corner and then maybe moved out for the cake cutting, and if you think it could get really hot, buttercream could be a much more stable and favourable option.
I bet you are wondering what the most popular flavour of wedding cake is. A lot of people do order chocolate. Lemon and carrot cake are also big favourites, but by far the most popular choice for any type of celebration, from weddings to birthdays to christenings, is vanilla sponge with vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam! Classic, delicious and loved by everyone.
So in conclusion, my advice for choosing your wedding cake would be to think about how you want the mood of your wedding to feel, pick out your favourite elements about your big day or you as a couple and above all, have fun! It shouldn’t be stressful and your cake designer will lead you through it to ensure that it isn’t. This is your chance to sit down, eat cake and talk about your wedding and you as a couple, so that the overall result is unique and something that you love.
This post was very kindly provided by Beth of Cakes by Beth
This post was very kindly provided by Beth of Cakes by Beth
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