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Your Wedding Cake: My Top 5 Tips!

I am so pleased to see some sunshine today, although it is still so very cold!  There’s something about the sunshine that makes me want to get ‘stuff’ done, bed linen washed, house cleaned, windows flung opened, just me?  Need to make the best of it whilst it’s here, although I’m sure there are much more exciting ways lol!

Anyway, this week I thought I would share some of my tips for choosing and ordering your wedding cake!  People come to me for appointments and tell me they didn’t realise just how much thought goes into planning your cake!  And why not?  It is one of the most photographed parts of your day!  Just watch all those people make a mad dash with their phones and cameras to get that all important snap!!

This doesn’t mean it needs to be a difficult or taxing process!  It’s easy when you know how, and I do!

1. First thing’s first – Research!

Ask around friends and family, they love to give advice and sometimes you don’t even need to ask!  Online is brilliant for finding recommendations too.  Narrow it down to the cake suppliers you really like and check out their reviews section on Facebook and their website!  Click here to visit our Facebook page!

2. Taste Test

This is the most enjoyable part of planning your day!  One appointment the groom’s don’t like to miss is the cake tasting!  Every cake company is different but we offer complimentary cake tasting appointments for two people.  At the appointment we will look at designs, eat cake, drink tea/coffee and chat about pricing.  The most important thing is that your cake tastes as good as it looks and that you are providing your guests with something delicious to enjoy and chat about around the table!  We have a long list of flavours so you’re sure to find something for everyone!

3. Know your budget!

This is important, if you haven’t been married before it is very hard to know what a cake should cost!  We base our prices on design, distance to venue, size and number of guests you need to cater for.  If you have a large wedding then you need to be realistic about catering for these numbers.  Of course you don’t have to cater for everyone, but it is very helpful to be open and honest with your cake supplier about what your budget is.  If it’s realistic, they will advise you on what they can do for that size of budget.  Just remember cheapest is not always the best, think about what’s included, delivery etc and what it is you’re getting for your money.

Also you may have friends or family members offer to make your cake as a present, whilst this is a lovely gesture it could go the other way!  If they are professionals, snap their hand right off!  On the other hand, you don’t want your wedding cake to be the first one they’ve ever made!  We have had to step in and rescue on many occasions but we won’t always be available, the bookings in our diary are our priority!

4. Design – there’s no rush!

It’s a good idea to have a little look at designs before your tasting appointment, although it isn’t a necessity.  We generally don’t need to pick your final design at this stage, as colours may still need to be decided and of course nine times out of ten you will change your mind!  I promise!  The most important thing is securing your date and the rest we can keep in touch about and finalise closer to the wedding.  Also remember we hold our pricing so your cake will be priced according to when you booked it!

5. Eat the cake!!

I get so many people coming into see me and they tell me they’ve been to a wedding and they saw the bride and groom cut the cake but sadly they didn’t get any!  The only logical explanation for this is that they have cut the cake at the traditional time (at the meal) and instead of serving it after dessert with tea/coffee they have kept it for serving at the evening buffet.  Whilst it is a good idea to also serve at the buffet I think it’s important not to cut it out after dinner!  I for one love a little cake no matter how much dinner I’ve eaten!  Some guests even leave before the buffet so they miss out on having cake, others will be more interested in a glass of wine than a cuppa and cake by the time it comes to the buffet!

Therefore, my advice is to you is to serve it at the traditional time after your meal and put some more out with the buffet, this way you won’t be eating cake for days after the wedding – unless you want to of course!!

Brides & Grooms – you must make sure you have some cake too!!  I know it’s a very busy day and it goes in a blink but it’s so yummy and you will regret it if you don’t!  Ask your banqueting manager to wrap up some cake (wrap up is the important bit, you don’t want hard cake!) and leave it beside your bed.  Then you can have a late night feast on your return to your room!

I hope you’ve found this helpful – follow us over on Instagram for daily updates and stories!

Gemma x