The wedding cake idea has to gel with the theme of the wedding and venue. It is a good idea to match your cake with the flower arrangements if you want to use real flowers to decorate your cake or use edible flower decorations like we did at our wedding.
The idea of wedding cake is subjective and personal. It can also be overwhelming! Start by looking at pictures online of cakes that reflect your personal style. Then go to your local cake store and be sure to bring ideas with you. Bring some pictures of what you like with you too, or bring a fabric swatch of your bridesmaids dresses or sample of your favorite design such as paisley or damask. What matters is that the cake reflects your personality. Almost as important if not more so, is how the cake tastes so make sure that you get to taste samples of the cake when you go! Don't worry if you can't decide on just one... depending on the number of guests who are attending, you may need several sheet cakes to accommodate; then you can choose multiple flavors! Popular flavors right now are pineapple, wild cherry, passion fruit, mango, and orange.
A common trend now is to bring in an item that represents you and have the cake decorator replicate the design, pattern, or general feel of the item into your cake. One woman brought her husband's favorite tie which became the central theme of her wedding. All the gowns and flowers matched the colors and whimsical quality of the tie.
This cake incorporated the bride and groom's wedding invitations, the bride's design on her wedding attire, and henna.Here are some important words to add to your vocabulary so you can impress the cake maker with your knowledge when you arrive for your first appointment!
Basketweave: A piping technique that features interwoven vertical and horizontal lines (like a wicker basket).
Buttercream: A smooth, creamy icing that stays soft so it's easy to cut through. It can be colored and/or flavored. Also used to create piping, swags, and other borders, as well as decorative rosettes. It can be used as filling too. Note: Buttercream is made from butter (as its name implies), so it may melt in extreme heat or humidity.
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| Elizabeth Hode |
Cornelli: An elaborate piping technique that yields a lace-like pattern.
Dotted swiss: A piping technique that forms tiny dots in random patterns that resemble a fine dot swiss fabric.
Dragees: Round, edible sugar balls coated with silver or gold and used for decorative purposes.
Fondant: A sweet, elastic icing made of sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin that's literally rolled out with a rolling pin and draped over a cake. It's a smooth, firm base for gum paste flowers, decorative details, and architectural designs, and has a porcelain finish.
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| Elizabeth Hodes |
Ganache: A sweet, rich chocolate, denser than mousse but less dense than fudge, which can be used as icing or filling. Note: Because ganache is made of chocolate and heavy cream, and will soften in very humid weather.
Gum paste: This paste of sugar, cornstarch, and gelatin is used to mold realistic-looking fruits and flowers to garnish a cake. Gum paste decorations are edible and will last for years as keepsakes, but, say some, they don't taste as yummy as marzipan.
Latticework: A piping detail that criss-crosses with an open pattern.
Marzipan: A paste made of ground almonds, sugar, and egg whites, used to mold edible flowers or fruit to decorate the cake. Marzipan can also be rolled in sheets, like fondant, and used as icing.
Pillars: Separators used in a tiered cake. They can be made of plastic or wood in several lengths to achieve the desired look.
Piping: Decorative technique created using a pastry bag and various metal tips. Piping details include leaves, borders, basket-weave patterns, and flowers.
Pulled sugar: A technique in which boiled sugar is manipulated and pulled to produce flowers and bows.
Royal icing: Made of egg whites and confectionary sugar, this icing starts life as a soft paste piped from a pastry bag to create latticework, beading, bows, and flowers. Note: When dry, its texture is hard and brittle -- do not refrigerate.
Torte: A dense cake that does not use leavening agents like baking powder or baking soda.
Whipped cream: Heavy cream beaten to achieve a thick consistency. Note: Whipped cream does not work well as an icing, and must be kept refrigerated -- it is unstable and not recommended for outdoor weddings.
This wedding cake's topper was used by the bride's parents and grandparents. Wedding cake toppers play an important role in the decoration of a wedding cake. There are various types of wedding cake toppers like crystal wedding cake toppers, monogram wedding cake toppers, and military wedding cake toppers. The traditional cake topper is a couple figurine, which is an exact replica of the newly wed couple. Check out etsy for tons of handmade designs made by crafters with your special day in mind.
Cake tiers stacked upon tall Roman columns have all but disappeared! Here are some current cake trends to help you get started: atypical shapes, towers of tiers stacked directly on top covered in fresh flowers, multidimensional shapes, and cakes with berries and sugared fruits. Fashionable flowers right now include orchids, calla lilies, tulips, and gardenias. Subdued hues like ice blue, pale pistachio, pastel pink, butterscotch and lavender are splashing across the wedding scene. Another popular trend is colors that reflect the bridesmaids' dresses rather than the bride's gown. A huge hit right now is intricate scroll work reminiscent of India. Other embellishments include polka dots, ribbons, draping, and monograms.
Don't
Don't forget to bring color swatches! What you may think is red may not be the same red your decorator is thinking.Don't worry about if so-and-so doesn't like chocolate. Don't worry if you run out of lemon and all you have left is vanilla. Stick to what you like because the cake should reflect your style as well as your taste.
Don't forget to get a cake cutter! It doesn't have to be expensive. We forget one in the rush of everything and ended up having to cut the cake with a simple butter knife. How awkward!
Don't over look the cake stand. The decorations on the cake are almost as important as where the cake sits. Make sure the table that the cake sits on has a nice display so that your photographs come out beautiful.
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| Gail Watson |
Don't try to have it your way if the cake decorator strongly urges against something. Maybe a certain icing piping you like won't hold up during a hot, humid outdoor wedding in July. There's a reason your decorator suggests things that go against what you have in mind... he or she is trying to prevent accidents. I wanted a bright orange with vibrant fuchsia scrolling for my cake but for the type of icing I picked, my decorator suggested a pale orange with vibrant orange and fuchsia flowers only because bright colors sometimes stain and can turn mouths/tongues unusual colors! (Not good for wedding photos.)
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| Truli Confectionary Arts |
Don't underestimate the baking powers of Grandma. If a good friend or family member offers to make your cake as a wedding present, it might be a great idea to save money. Make sure you see some of the cakes she's done in the past and have a taste party to decide on the recipe. Give her plenty of time before the wedding to prepare. My mother-in-law was going to make my cake for me but realized that it might be too much of a burden. We quickly changed avenues at the last minute and found an amazing cake decorator called "The Cake Lady" who was very reasonably priced. If you do have a friend make your cake, don't forget to have a back up just in case!
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| Our cake by The Cake Lady in New London, CT |
Don't pick up the cake yourself! There's a reason that cake designers deliver. Many times, these cakes are not designed to travel completely assembled and you might be asking for a disaster!
Last but not least...
DON'T FORGET TO EAT YOUR CAKE! Sometimes couples are having so much fun on the dance floor, they don't even get a chance to eat their own cake! This happened to me at my wedding, only I did get a few bites but didn't get to really sit down and savor it or try the different flavors. Ask your caterer to save some for you in case you didn't get a chance to eat the cake. Better yet, it is a tradition to save the top tier for your one-year anniversary, and keep it in the freezer in a tight storage container. I was able to fully enjoy my cake on our one-year anniversary!
