Choices, schmoices.

Ah decisions. Something most people seem to struggle with these days. I guess with technology we must be out of practice - or more likely, we have 58284098 more options to try to make our decisions from. It frustrates me no end when a bunch of us are going out for dinner and it takes two hours to decide where we might like to go - but I am just as bad! I sit there not wanting to commit in case someone doesn't like the option I choose - something I've learnt this year that wedding couples do when making decisions too.

It's hard choosing from so many flavours and styles when it comes to modern wedding cakes, especially if cake isn't a thing you live and breathe like some of us (although, oddly enough, I may live cake but I don't particularly enjoy eating it - which either makes me the very best or the very worst person to get to do your wedding cake!) I'd like to take this opportunity to point out what I believe to be the more important points to consider when picking and designing your wedding cake.

Organise your expectations

Think about what you'd like from your cake maker. Some people arrive at consultations with me with a very specific idea in mind, others have zero clue what they'd like, some simply say 'don't care what it looks like but it MUST be this flavour!' All of these are totally fine, although most artists won't copy someone else's work exactly, they'll use it as inspiration and put their own spin on it - speaking of which - research your cake decorator's style. We all have distinct styles that make us different to each other and one might not work for you while another is spot on. Find your cake soulmate!

Anyway back to your expectations - figure out whether you'd like a huge amount of design input from the decorator or whether you've got it covered, it's nice to know how much freedom I have when coming up with someone's cake. Ask about what the 'whole package' includes - delivery, set up, cutting guide, tasting etc. 

The Internet is your best friend

More specifically, Pinterest is your best friend. Most people would search for their wedding theme or colour and select images from the results, cakes included. This means that this idea-gathering can begin as soon as you've got your wedding style sorted. Of course, more specific details can be left for later but now is the time for weeding out the cakes that won't work at all. For example, a rustic naked cake, while pretty in this picture, would clash so very very badly in this elegant affair:

Of course, your cake maker can help with this but it will save alot of time if the obvious clashes are eliminated already!

Flavours

Long gone are the days of every wedding cake being traditional fruit cake with marzipan on top - and taking home the top tier for your anniversary or firstborn's christening or dog's puppy school graduation or whatever. Those days happened to coincide with the wedding cake being served up and pretty much left on the table with one bite out of every piece (hands up who thinks marzipan is just the most delicious thing you've ever tasted? No one? Hmm, just as I suspected)**. Nowadays couples tend to pick their favourite flavours as they WANT the whole cake to be eaten and it's become more and more important that what's on the inside counts! They're paying good money for this cake so why not design it so it'll get eaten and enjoyed. Don't be afraid to ask if your caker can do a certain flavour, if we don't currently do it there are two options: 1) given enough time, we can experiment with your flavour and come up with a good recipe or 2) your request can usually be incorporated into the cake filling in some way! From flavoured buttercreams to jams, lemon curds and pureed fruit - you can have almost any filling you like.

Organise a tasting with your caker - avoid any nasty surprises on your day!

Think about the big picture

When I'm meeting with a client I like to be able to picture the cake at their venue - which means I ask about how the cake/table/room will be set up - and I find that most people haven't thought about this. Try to picture it yourself - will the cake be on a board of some kind, on a high stand, or something fitting your theme, like a crate or big chunk of wood. Will the table be small, just for the cake, or will there be a dessert/lolly buffet surrounding it, will there be signs explaining the flavours of your cupcakes or allergy warnings? This is an opportunity to continue your theme - make your probably-expensive-work-of-art cake POP!

A LoveCake cutting cake set up on hessian-covered table to fit the rustic theme of the Apple Shed.

A LoveCake cake on a high stand adds height to the cake and space to the table - Alan Moyle Wedding Photography

A LoveCake cake on a clean white tablecloth with white birds, keeping with the classic theme - Lisa Kuilenburg Photographer

Thinking about the big picture also includes thinking about your actual pictures. Will the cake be so short that it gets lost in the cutting-the-cake photos? Will the white icing make your ivory dress look dirty? Will the tall tiers obscure the short little bride's face (oh, I'm sorry, 'fun-sized' bride)? If you have bride & groom toppers, will they face you or the camera?

A handy-dandy list of questions

Lastly, here is the list of questions I ask clients - hopefully it might help you get started in thinking about the finer details of your cake.

How many servings do you need?

Will the cake be served as dessert or with coffee after dessert?

Do you have a budget we need to work within?

Where is your venue and when will your guests start arriving?

Who is your photographer?

Do we need to cater to any allergies?

If you're having fresh flowers, who is your florist?

What are your favourite flavours (in anything, not just cake)?

Tell me about your wedding style, colours etc. (this is a bigg'n!)

Being in this world of wedding vendors, I can also usually recommend a few people for different services if you need a hand narrowing down the many options. I've said before that I love the feel of the small business world in Hobart and often people come to me from the recommendations of others I've met along the way. I love to reciprocate and recommend them too (they all do amazing work!) however I find that often the cake is one of the last things that couples have to organise and book - everything else is already picked and sorted! 

I know there are heaps more things to consider when ordering your wedding cake, but I do think these things are the more important points to think about! Please don't hesitate to ask me your burning questions, should they not be covered here, I'm happy to give advice, even if I'm not your cake maker.

So that's about it for now, there's some Dairy Milk buttercream that's been beating for about 40 minutes - I'm sure it's just about done and ready for its cake, ciao!

Nadia x

**Apologies to anyone who actually likes marzipan (my bestie included!) but it's time to face the music reality - you're a definite minority in these times of chocolate ganache, Swiss meringue buttercream and even marshmallow fondant!