Finding the right cake.
It’s important that you and your spouse-to-be get as prepared as possible – you’ll
have more important things to do when the big day comes than worry about details. Follow
these tips and check off hunting for the perfect wedding cake on your prenup to-do
list.
Meet with a bakery consultant or cake decorator who can
review your options with you. He (or she) should have photos of the different cakes he can
create on hand – including ones he has made himself – to help you decide what
you want. Give him a sample of your wedding colors – a napkin, a matchbook, etc.
– so he can match the cake’s ornaments and icing to it.
Let him know how many guests you expect. You may not know for sure, but you can estimate.
You may be expecting 200, but that perfect three-tier cake you just found only serves 185.
Don’t fret – you can supplement it with a quarter-sheet cake that serves another
20. Sheet cakes are a great way to hedge your bets; they can be decorated to match your
wedding color at practically the last minute. If your guest list changes, let the baker
know and he can add or subtract sheet cakes to meet your needs.
Cake fountain.
A dramatic addition to the wedding cake is the cake
fountain. They’re often filled with colored water to match the flowers on the cake or
another color on the table. Other cake decorations you might consider are ribbons and
flowers. Your florist – you have one by now, right? – can work directly with the
baker if you would like to have fresh flowers on your cake. Or you may opt to have the
baker do icing flowers instead.
Don’t forget that it’s your wedding and your wedding cake.
Adaptations are always a possibility and often won’t cost you any more than the
standard price. If you’re selecting from a photo book and there are two different
kinds of wedding cakes that you like, or if you see one you want but it’s too large
or too small, the baker shouldn’t have any problem customizing a cake.
For example, although white cake is pretty much standard for wedding cakes, you may want
another flavor. Chocolate, spice and carrot cake are also popular choices. If you go with
a multi-tier cake and want to give your guests some variety, you can have the baker make
each tier a different flavor. Or, if you’re using additional quarter-sheet cakes, you
can designate those as your second-choice flavor.
Cake tops.
Your bakery will also have a variety of cake tops for you
to choose from. If you don’t see what you like, they can order one or you can find
one somewhere else and bring it to them. You’ll keep the top, unlike the fountain,
pillars and cake plates, which are generally returned for a deposit.
If you decide you want an arrangement that calls for more cake than you need – two
side cakes on either side of the main one, for example – then fake cakes are an
option worth considering. You can have plastic foam quarter-sheet cakes iced and decorated
for a lot less money than you would pay for additional genuine cakes.
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