Wedding and Events Cakes. Myths and Facts.

There are a lot of myths surrounding wedding cakes, some might have gotten a small foothold in fact. But most are just that, myths.

So we are going to bust a few of those wedding cake myths. And also explain a few things that can get confusing.

Possibly the myth about wedding cakes that cause us cake makers the most issues is the one that is still, sadly, perpetuated. And that is that the cake can be left until last to book, and doesn’t need to be ordered until a few weeks before the wedding. NOT TRUE!!!!! I can’t count the number of couples I’ve had to turn down because they have come to me too late, and their date has already been booked. It’s frustrating for us and causes extra stress for the couple. I always try to fit in a last-minute order. But with wedding cakes, that’s not always possible. So please, please don’t leave the cake until last! Really you should be looking at booking the wedding cake when you are booking the venue and other key elements.

In a similar vein is another wedding cake myth that gives cake makers headaches, that the cake will be one of the cheapest elements, so you don’t need to budget much for it. Again NOT TRUE!! If I had a pound for every time I hear ‘how much??? But it’s only cake!!’ Then I could retire right now! The truth is that a wedding cake isn’t ‘just a cake.’ In the same way the wedding dress isn’t ‘just a dress.’ Yes you can get a dress from Primark for a tenner, but do you want that for your wedding dress? In the same way you can get a cake in Asda for a tenner, but for your wedding? And wedding cakes tend to be the biggest cakes most of us ever need, and the most elaborate. Translation, they take a lot of work and time. And many of the elements of a luxury wedding cake will be very skilled work, that will take us many hours. There is no conspiracy to get more money out of you, quite the opposite. Many of us work on tight profit margins, and can often end up taking home less than minimum wage. And we never add on extra for a wedding cake over other events cakes. The price is based on the time, delivery distance, set up time, and the skill involved in creating something truly spectacular. We have made occasion cakes that have cost more than a wedding cake because of the size and design.

Next on the list is ‘no one ever eats the wedding cake anyway.’ Well this might have been true back in the day, when wedding cakes were tires of heavy fruit cake, thick marzipan, and rock-hard royal icing. By the time everyone has eaten a big meal, and had a good drink or three, then the idea of a dense, and often very boozy, cake may not have been very appealing. However, we now have yummy sponges! I mean who doesn’t love cake?! You’ll be surprised that most people who claimed they’re full, will find room for a decadent cake with an indulgent filling. I usually recommend ordering enough cake for around 90% of your guests. And don’t forget the kids! Kids love to feel grown up. And having their own slice of wedding cake will do just that.

Talking of the numbers the cake will be for. Another myth is that the cake on display must be the right size for the number of guests. Yet again, not true. We have made several tired cakes for small weddings. And small cakes for large weddings. It is completely up to you how big the wedding cake (or any other event cake come to that) that is on display is going to be. Of course you don’t want to leave your guests without any cake, or have oceans left over. That’s where we come in with some of our tricks. You don’t want a big cake; you just want something low key even though you might have a long guest list. That’s fine, we can do that, and then have cutting cakes for the venue or caterers to cut and serve. These stay in the kitchens. Or you can have a five-tier showstopper even if there’s only twenty of you. And no wasted cake as we can use fake (dummy) tires, with just enough real cake.

So there we are. A few of the most common cakes myths busted.