Some brides have a general color scheme or general theme, such as romantic or contemporary style weddings. And others have a very specific theme for their wedding.  Ashley recently married her fiance and had a peacock wedding theme!  The venue was decorated with gorgeous gold tablecloths.  Lighting swagged from one side of the ceiling to the other.  Dark blue and green pop's of color were strategically placed throughout the venue.  And the cake...she had a very specific idea in mind.  Ashley wanted a white wedding cake with gold embellishments.  She wanted dark blue and dark green peacock feathers flowing up the side of the cake.  And she wanted it all in buttercream!  With the assistance of some photos and some brainstorming we came up with a grand 4 tier peacock wedding cake!  The cake was to be French Vanilla and each tier had a different fruit filling.  There was no need for additional adornments or flowers as the design in the cake was enough and we didn't want to over decorate the cake or take away from the design.  Upon set-up the entire venue was well decorated and all the pieces of the wedding fit together perfectly! 

What was or is the inspiration behind your wedding cake? Did you fall in love with a photo off the internet?  Is your wedding cake going to be part of family tradition, where you will use the same design as your mom and grandmother did?  Or did you and your baker create something unique based on your theme?

This weekend I had the privilege of working with the mother of the groom to design her son and daughter-in-law's wedding cake.  This couple recently married in a small beach ceremony surrounded by family and now they were planning a small reception celebration!  The mother of the groom and I spoke at length about different aspects of the wedding and things they liked and didn't like.  She wanted the reception to incorporate the look of the ceremony and noticed the uniqueness and beauty of the necklace the bride wore on her wedding day.  Emailing me the photo, we both thought that would be a beautiful design to incorporate on her cake, cascading down the cake, just like the jewelry did on the bride's neck.  A few sketches later and some discussion about floral placement and we had a custom design for her! 

You never know where your wedding cake inspiration may come from.  So keep an open eye, it may be in the small details.  Bring me a photo and together we can create a one of a kind cake design that fits perfectly into your wedding!

Ordering the right amount of cake is always an important question that nearly every bride asks, or at least, she should.  Brides want to have enough cake to adequately feed their guests, but not have too much cake where they are bringing home tiers and tiers of cake!

Recently, Wilton (the cake guru's) have changed their recommend serving guide.  This guide tells us how much a cake will serve.  Based on their old model, a small 3 tier cake (6x8x10 round) will serve 98 guests.  However, they have recently changed that claiming that the same size cake will now only feed 74 guests.  This change has led brides to order based on the new recommendation and unfortunately, too much cake.  I often hear brides say that guests don't eat the cake and they know this because their friend ordered enough cake for each guest and there was too much left over.  Well, it's not because the guests aren't eating cake.  They are!  It's because the serving guide was changed and now brides are ordering more cake than they really need.

Ask your baker which serving guide they use, the old one or the new one.  I personally still use the old model and have found that I do not have the problem with my brides bringing home too much cake.  Most brides compliment us on the fact that we usually get our serving suggestion pretty spot on!  I want to make sure brides are ordering enough cake to adequately serve their guest count without over ordering.  So, I love hearing this positive feedback from them!

So, what is my recommendation on cake size?  Well, that depends.  Are you having a bride's cake and a groom's cake, or just a brides cake.  If you are ordering a bride's cake only, then it's simple.  One slice of cake per guest.  So, if you are having 150 guests,  you need 150 servings of cake.  But, what if you are having both cakes?  Tradition says to offer one slice of bride's cake per guest and a half slice of groom's cake.  The same bride with 150 guests will then need 150 servings of bride's cake and 75 servings of groom's.  The theory, which I have found to be true for most of my brides, is that everyone will want bride's cake and only some will want the groom's cake.  But, keep in mind, that if you are offering two flavors of cake, most people will want to try a piece of both. 

If you ever have any questions about ordering the right size wedding cake, always make sure you ask your baker about it.  Aft

Happy Monday Brides and Grooms!  Occasionally, we will have guest bloggers come in and write a little on their experience in the wedding industry.  I always appreciate a fresh perspective from other professionals out there.  Today, Suzan Hall (blogger/writer on weddings in Long Island) has offered to give us her input on some important things to consider before you select your wedding cake!  Please enjoy!

Steps To Follow Before Choosing Your Wedding Cake

Are you suffering from cake nerves? Don’t bother, we all suffer from this condition, and especially more, if it happens to be our wedding cake! We want everything to be flawless in our wedding ceremonies - the dress, favors, venue, guest lists, and of course, the Wedding Cake.

The cake certainly holds a lot of significance in your ceremony as it’s going to be the center of attention. Besides being an ‘eye candy’, it also should be delicious!

Let’s take a glance at some of the steps that we all should consider before choosing our very special wedding cake.

What is your budget?

Please do decide the budget that you are willing to spare for your wedding cake. It is very crucial to have a cake budget well in advance to avoid any later mishaps. Wedding cake cost can by sky rocketing but try not to let money come in your way in choosing that cake which you want for the wedding.

The two main components that play a vital role in determining cost of the cake are: Size and Design. Feel free to juggle these two aspects for deciding the cost of your cake.

What is your Cake Style?

Remember your cake is going to attract a lot of attention so take care. While considering the style and shape of the cake, be mindful about the theme of your wedding and of course, the weather! Some cakes end up being a disaster because of unsuitable weather conditions. Your cake might look fantastic, but it is food after all.

Browse through wedding magazines or surf the internet to discover latest wedding cake trends. Save some of your preferred styled cakes and discuss it with your baker.

Where is the Baker?

Find a baker if you don’t have one. After having a better idea about the cost and the kind of style that you want for your cake, it’s time to fix appointments with bakers of the town. The best way to nail down a good and professional baker is by doing research online. Read reviews on blogs and look for websites of bakers on search engines.

While meeting bakers, speak your heart out. Discuss your wedding theme, show your bridal dress and also share some of the cake styles and shapes you have in mind. Be absolutely clear with the baker as that will help your baker to create the beautiful masterpiece you desire.

What taste bud you want to tickle?

Of course, it is important for the cake to look like a piece of art but more so, it is the taste of the cake that matters. It’s just not about having good photos of the cake, but also the taste inside that counts. Most bakers will offer samples at their consultation, but don’t be shy to ask for samples to taste from the baker.

It will be a good idea to choose flavors depending on the season, trying chocolate cake with some strong flavored filling works great for a winter wedding. Whereas, for summer weddings you might favor for light fruit based cake.

Who is going to deliver the cake?

Be absolutely clear on good management of the delivery of the cake. After being clear in you’re head as to how the cake is going to look and taste, it is time to pay attention to the logistics aspect of it. There is a reason why most cake designers deliver cake themselves. Paying them that extra delivery fee for peace of mind is obviously a good trade.

Many couples even save the top tier of the cake for their 1st anniversary. Regardless of it, eat a piece of your own cake.

Be grateful to the baker and if possible, acknowledge the hard work done by your baker and the team. You can also send them a thank you note as a token of gesture.

Author Bio: This article is contributed by Suzan Hall. She is a professional blogger and writer and possesses a very good knowledge about wedding & party venues in long island, NY. Her expertise include event planning and design, decorations, celebration ideas, party planning, catering, cuisine, etc.