Designing your wedding cake is one of the most exciting parts of your wedding planning journey, and could arguably be the best part. As it involves tasting delicious slices of cake! What’s not to love!
There are a few key areas that you will need to consider when planning your perfect wedding cake. At the Vanilla Pod Bakery, when we speak to our couples in person, we are able to guide them through these points, and give advice when needed. But to help to get a head start, I have put together our top 7x things to think about when planning your wedding cake.
Image by: Sarah Carter Photography
Number 1 - Consider the Size of Your Wedding Cake
The first thing on my list, is to consider the size of your wedding cake. How many guests would you like to feed? What portion sizes will your serve?
These number are a great way to start on your wedding cake journey, as they will give your wedding cake designer an idea of the cake sizes they can suggest for you.
We ask what portion size you would like as well, as that also leads into the sizing question. Have you thoughts about how your cake will be eaten? Perhaps as a plated dessert, or as a popular finger portion during your evening buffet, or evening as a wonderful take home gift.
Read more about different ways to serve your wedding cake here.
If you have your heart set on an elegant two tiered cake to feed 30 dessert portions but you have 100 guests. Then your cake designer and guide you to choose a bigger cake or explore kitchen cakes. Kitchen cakes are a brilliant way to add extra portions without changing the look of the display cake. Kitchen cakes are kept in the kitchen and portioned when needed so your guests will be none the wiser.
The other side to this, is if you have always dreamt of a beautiful three tiered wedding cake, but size you would like feeds way more than your guests. Your cake designer could look at including a faux tier. That you can add the height and drama but without the excess cake portions.
Number 2 - Think About The Different Types of Icing
Before looking into wedding cakes, you may not have paid to much attention to wedding cake icing. But as you look more closely, you will learn there are so many different ways and different mediums to ice a beautiful cake.
Have you seen any inspirational images on instagram that you have fallen in love with? Or maybe your are more of a Pinterest lover? Inspirational images are a fantastic way to narrow down the design and styles you love when looking at wedding cakes. As you start saving your images, look for a trend.
Are you leaning more towards, the classic and luxurious look of fondant iced cakes? Or the elegance and informal nature of buttercream cakes? Or the related charm of semi naked iced cakes? Or the indulgence of chocolate ganache iced cakes?
Within the icing style mentioned above, there are even more ways that they can be used on a cake. From creating fondant ruffles, to buttercream bands, to textured semi naked cakes.
Start noting down, your perfect icing style ahead of meeting your cake designer.
Image by: Photos by Abhi
Number 3 - How Would You Like Your Cake Decorated
The decorating of your wedding cake is such a fun part of your wedding cake journey. Again, I would advise collecting inspirational images from your favourite social media sites, wedding blogs and wedding magazines.
Start looking into the type of decorations you love and make a note of what you are drawn to. Do you like minimalist cake designs? Or do you love more is more?
There many fantastic ways to decorate a beautiful wedding cake, I have listed a few of our favourites below:
- Fresh flowers - From a simple rose to a cascade of fresh flowers and everything in between. Fresh flowers are a wonderful way to tie in your wedding theme with your wedding cake.
- Sugar flowers - We can use sugar flowers in pretty much the same way as fresh flowers, the different being sugar flowers are handmade and can be kept forever (providing they are stored correctly) after your wedding day. We don’t advise eating your sugar flowers.
- Wafer flowers - These type of flowers are proving more popular, they are wonderful and whimsical. Again, we can use them in exactly the same way as fresh and sugar flowers. Though like fresh flowers these won’t really last after your wedding day.
- Silk ribbons - Hand died silk ribbons are a gorgeous way to dress a cake, especially if you want to keep the cake quite simplistic.
- Fresh fruit - Delicious brightly coloured fresh fruit, this is one of those decorations, where you just want to drive in and eat all the cake. You can go extra with an abundance of fresh fruit or pair it back, with hints of fruit dotted around the cake.
- Sugar embellishments - From appliqué style designs to elaborate Louis XIV style designs, complete with sculptured and ornamental gilded gold touches.
- Personalised non edible cake toppers - There so many brilliant cake toppers to choose from nowadays. Often our couples choose their married name as a non edible cake topper. We advise looking on Etsy for something unique.
- Handmade sugar models - You can really personalise your cake with handmade sugar models of yourself in your wedding finery, your children and beloved pets. We often create little models of our couples dogs. These can be displayed on the top of the cake, or to the side of the cake. It is a wonderful keepsake.
Number 4 - Displaying Your Wedding Cake
The display of your luxury wedding cake is an important part to think about during the initial planning stages.
When you walk in and see your wedding cake for the first time, how do you see it displayed?
On a table provided by your venue? With a table cloth, without a table cloth? Dressed with a silk runner? Or perhaps sat on a plinth? Perspex plinths look amazing, especially when filled with flowers. Maybe you would prefer to put the cake a table that you have hired in for your wedding day, such as a dressing table or wooden barrel.
I would also consider, where you would like the cake to be. Many venues have a few favourite spots. But also think about, if you would like the cake outside in the gardens? Or inside by the top table? On the dance floor? Or perhaps in a special room or corner all for itself? Where do you envision cutting your wedding cake.
The display side things is often one thing that gets over looked, but we feel it is just has important as the wedding cake design itself. The display of the cake can really complement the overall wedding cake look.
Once you have narrowed down the table and where it is going to be, I would think about cake stands. Do you need a cake stand? If so, what type will you choose, a rustic wooden log, an elegant glass pedestal, a traditional silver stand or something completely bespoke.
If you’re going for a dessert table, think about how you would like that displayed too. Do you want a uniform display? Rr more of an eclectic look, with different height cake stands, and boxes to create your display.
Final touches for the display, can really make it pop too. Adding a backdrop to your cake display, is a way of making it unique to your wedding. We have also seen couples add amazing floral arches, and moon gates around their cake. As well as, beautiful candles and floral displays around both the base of cake table and on the cake table itself.
The cake display is often a collaborative work of out, so talk to all parties involved and find out if they are used to working like this.
Image by: Emily Rose Photography
Number 5 - What Cake Flavours Will You Choose?
This has to be my favourite decision - the flavours!Here at the Vanilla Pod Bakery, we have over 20 delicious flavours to choose from. I know we are qUte unique with this much choice. But with so many delicious flavours, it was too hard to narrow it down! So have kept them all on our menu!
Are you a chocolatey person who would love a Belgian Chocolate Truffle Cake? Or do you love a more traditional flavour such as our Madagascan Victoria Sandwich Cake? Or how about a mouth-watering Vanilla Pod Bakery Signature Fruit Cake? Perhaps fruit infused flavour is more your taste, such as a White Chocolate & Raspberry Cake? Or a tangy Lemon Drizzle Curd Cake?
We strongly believe you should have your choice of flavours for your wedding cake. Many of our couples choice a different flavour per tier. However, with that being said, if they are serving it as a dessert option couples often go for one or two flavours. With White Chocolate & Raspberry being the most popular option.
If you would like to consider our delicious flavours, you are welcome to order a luxurious Cake Tasting Postal Box direct from our website.
Number 6 - Wedding Favours and more!
Would you love to offer more than your delicious wedding cake to your guests?
Edible wedding favours are a wonderful addition. They can be used as place names and are a delicious treat to enjoy on the day or taken home for later. Hand iced biscuits beautiful packaged make a stunning favour. As do decadent French Macarons and bite size brownies.
Another option to add more treats to your wedding day, is to provided edible welcome treat boxes for all your guests staying at your venue. A few of our couples have done this, with a little welcome notes and popped them in the rooms of their guests as a surprise.
And of course, there is the wonderful dessert table option. French macaron towers, dainty cupcakes, delicious chocolate truffles and more.
If you have more of a savoury palette, then a cheese stack is a super option. Dressed with fresh fruit and nuts, and supplied with crackers and chutney, it is a wonderful addition to add to your wedding day. At the Vanilla Pod Bakery we work closely with a few local cheese suppliers, so can happily take care of creating a spectacular cheese stack for you and your guests to enjoy.
Number 7 - Which Cake Company Do You Choose?
Choosing a cake company can often be quite confusing. Each company will have its on high lights, and it’s preferred way of working, along with it own pricing model. Would you prefer a cake designer that operates from home? Or one that has premises? Do they work alone or have a team? How credible is the cake designer? Are they new of the wending cake scene or have they been around for a while? Do they have insurance? Do they have a food hygiene rating? Do they ask you to sign T&Cs? What are the payment options and deposit structures like? Do you like them? Do they get your vision? Will they be there for you every step of the way? Do you like their past designs? Do they make delicious tasting cakes? Will they deliver your cake? Set your cake up? Work with other suppliers?
It is really important to do your homework and ask all your potential cake makes questions like the above. But overall I would say trust your gut. Go with the cake designer that fits you and your vision of your cake. As well as your vision of what a great cake designer should be and offer.
Image by: Emily Rose Photography
I hope the above 7x ideas have helped you when thinking of areas to consider when planning your perfect wedding cake. At the Vanilla Pod Bakery we will be able to help you at every stage of your wedding cake journey, before, during and after. things to consider when planning your perfect wedding cake. At the Vanilla Pod Bakery we will be able to help you at every stage of your wedding cake journey, before, during and after.
If you have any questions, or would like a bespoke quote for your luxury wedding cake - please contact me for more information.
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