Wedding cakes and desserts

Yeah, those were exactly the kind of tilted designs I had in mind (by the way, I was scrolling through that link above and found some absolutely gorgeous, 😬 to me, non-traditional cakes—so colorful and floral 😍), but the one I saw posted somewhere on this forum earlier was just plain white... Honestly, as long as I can show them a photo and explain exactly what my vision is, I'll be happy. Thanks, ladies!
I’ve heard that Hemingway makes 🙂 cakes, but I wonder if they actually take custom orders based on photos, or if they just stick to a set menu of standard shapes?

Daniel Smith8 said:She makes cakes like these. Truly remarkable. I remember seeing a similar spread at a gala in Chicago once—unforgettable, if a bit excessive. A little secret. Just one. Always ends badly.They had her on display at the trade show, but there isn't a single photo of her on the website. Typical.

A quick word of caution:

Those cakes they were showing off? They were nothing more than Styrofoam blocks sprayed with a thin layer of frosting👎 so please, don't go getting your hopes up—I know plenty of people who have been left completely disappointed after trying to order from them.😉

Hey ladies, I have a quick question for you.
How are you planning to present the cookies (I mean, serving them on restaurant tables)?
On small plates, those plastic ones with clear lids, or maybe wrapped in cellophane? I honestly haven't decided how I’d serve them yet.

I am open to any and all suggestions.
P.S.
Is anyone planning to put a ribbon or something similar around the wedding cake? And if so—should it be paper (like the kind used for bows) or fabric?

Mark Kelly4 said:Hey ladies, I have a quick question for you.
How are you planning to present the cookies (I mean, serving them on restaurant tables)?
On small plates, those plastic ones with clear lids, or maybe wrapped in cellophane? I honestly haven't decided how I’d serve them yet.

I am open to any and all suggestions.
P.S.
Is anyone planning to put a ribbon or something similar around the wedding cake? And if so—should it be paper (like the kind used for bows) or fabric?

The baker who is making them for me plans to present them on silver trays, wrapped in cellophane. As for the cake, mine will have a little ribbon and some bows, though I still need to touch base with the bakery to see exactly how they will handle the final design...

velvetwolf92, I grabbed some pastries at Hemingway a few weeks ago and honestly? They looked way better than they actually tasted. Maybe just was me, though! Might be worth a quick taste test before you commit. 😉

Sam Kim12 said:A quick word of caution:

Those cakes they were showing off? They were nothing more than Styrofoam blocks sprayed with a thin layer of frosting👎 so please, don't go getting your hopes up—I know plenty of people who have been left completely disappointed after trying to order from them.😉

Personally, I can't recommend them enough. 😍
They did the wedding cake for a friend and even handled the catering for office parties at my old job. Not a single crumb was left behind.🙂

So, ladies, listen up.
I have a feeling that buying pre-made fondant is going to be an absolute rip-off. I’ve been doing some digging online and stumbled upon various recipes for homemade fondant on several cooking forums. If anyone is actually interested in those, let me know.

I think I’ll try making a batch from scratch just to see if it’s even worth the trouble...

later😛

Sam Kim12 said:A quick word of caution:

Those cakes they were showing off? They were nothing more than Styrofoam blocks sprayed with a thin layer of frosting👎 so please, don't go getting your hopes up—I know plenty of people who have been left completely disappointed after trying to order from them.😉

Look, please, don't get mad at me, but seriously—where on earth do you always get this kind of info?

Linda Adams8, I can actually confirm those were made of Styrofoam at the state fair. I remember asking the lady at the booth how on earth they looked so incredible in that heat—like, wow, those cakes look unreal—and she just looked right at me and said, "That's because they're foam." 😬 😉
I didn't get a chance to taste them, so I can't speak to the quality, but as far as being Styrofoam goes, it was 100% 😛

Ryan Morales said:Linda Adams8, I can actually confirm those were made of Styrofoam at the state fair. I remember asking the lady at the booth how on earth they looked so incredible in that heat—like, wow, those cakes look unreal—and she just looked right at me and said, "That's because they're foam." 😬 😉
I didn't get a chance to taste them, so I can't speak to the quality, but as far as being Styrofoam goes, it was 100% 😛

How could you even doubt it?!😕

It seems like you and I were the only ones caught off guard. Even the woman at the booth and my husband gave me those puzzled looks, as if they were thinking, "What on earth would you even do with a real cake?"
So, I could probably stack up a 25-story tower of Styrofoam just as easily, haha... but hey, I am officially taking orders for custom cakes! 🤣I can even work with any materials you bring in myself. 😁

Back to topic: Personally, I find this Lincoln design quite beautiful—it's simple and has such clean lines.

I'm torn between these two options, though honestly, the second one really needs some red roses added to it:
http://img392.imageshack.us/img392/5214/vincekop3.png

I find this first option much more appealing. Don't you just love how much cleaner it looks? I have always had a soft spot for simplicity! 👍

velvetgull9 said:velvetwolf92, I grabbed some pastries at Hemingway a few weeks ago and honestly? They looked way better than they actually tasted. Maybe just was me, though! Might be worth a quick taste test before you commit. 😉

I'll 😘be

I’ve finally settled on the cake design, and I couldn't be happier.
Initially, I was set on a classic Sara Lee style.
I’m not particularly fond of marzipan, so my first thought was to go with whipped cream instead.
However, it lacks the polished look that marzipan provides.
Instead, I’ll opt for a chocolate glaze finished with a white marzipan bow.
Here are some photos for inspiration, though mine will be a bit more understated...

So, my cake design is going to be a mashup of these three ideas. I picked up this gold translucent ribbon with some really bold metallic lines printed on it. I’m planning to tie a bow at the front, and I think adding some gold sprinkles along the band would look great! What do you all think?

http://hotimg2.fotki.com/b/83_131/75...p_image002.jpg

http://hotimg2.fotki.com/b/83_131/75_37/untitled.jpg

http://hotimg2.fotki.com/b/83_131/75_37/untitled-2.jpg

The only issue is that these two photos ended up looking a bit grainy because I had to run them through Paint just to get them uploaded!

Mark Kelly4 said:So, my cake design is going to be a mashup of these three ideas. I picked up this gold translucent ribbon with some really bold metallic lines printed on it. I’m planning to tie a bow at the front, and I think adding some gold sprinkles along the band would look great! What do you all think?

http://hotimg2.fotki.com/b/83_131/75...p_image002.jpg

http://hotimg2.fotki.com/b/83_131/75_37/untitled.jpg

http://hotimg2.fotki.com/b/83_131/75_37/untitled-2.jpg

The only issue is that these two photos ended up looking a bit grainy because I had to run them through Paint just to get them uploaded!

Honestly, I love all three of them. That idea with the bows is actually pretty clever!

Mine will have bows too! A dress, a cake... I’m going to be all decked out in ribbons 🤣

Linda Adams8 said:Look, please, don't get mad at me, but seriously—where on earth do you always get this kind of info?

This comes from someone actually working on the inside at one of those places😳 ..... obviously I won’t drop a name because I have zero interest in getting that person into any trouble..... I’m not even claiming their pastries taste bad—I haven't tried them, so I'm staying out of that debate entirely. My point is strictly about the presentation, because so many people went in expecting one thing and ended up with something that looked nothing like the picture😉 (and believe me, I’ve messed up a cake myself, so take this as a bit of friendly advice😬 ) ..... the reality is that most pastry chefs when they're working a pop-up market aren't making artisanal, multi-layered masterpieces; they're basically just slapping icing and marzipan over basic sponge cakes (marzipan is more common since it handles the heat better) simply because it’s the path of least resistance (BTW: those cakes displayed at the wedding expos were left out in the display area overnight🙂 ) and frankly, assembling something like that is a hell of a lot easier than crafting a legitimate, high-end cake (I know, because I once helped out at a local bakery doing exactly that😬))