ANYMORE!! I learned my lesson. I will never do another wedding cake for free again. I take that back-if I give a gift of wedding cake it will be for 100 servings and anything over that you get to pay me. I did my sil's cake on 6/30 and what a nightmare. When I offered to do it it was supposed to be for about 150. Well the # kept climbing till it got to 250!! It was so much work and we just didn't have the money to spend on a cake like this right now but I managed to be creative to get the job done with a quality end result (the cake was not my cup of tea but what do I know!lol) Lots of work-8, 10, 14, 16in tiers, 2 8 in hearts on the side covered in red mmf, the 6in heart anniversary tier in front, lots of fondant hearts dusted in colors to match the bridesmaids dresses, white hearts dusted in super pearl, gumpaste rainbows (thanks to everyone who sent me the pattern for those!), whipped dk choc ganache filling, alternating layers of white and dk choc cake (each cake was torted and filled). I was exhausted. Next time the tiers would have been smaller and I would have made sheet cakes for the back so a lesson learned there! I try to learn something from each cake and boy did I!

Just as a side-what do you guys think this cake is worth? I can't ask my dh-for every big cake he says $1000.00 He is so cute!

I can't help out with a price but wow that came out great! I remember when you were looking for the rainbow pattern a while back.Fantastic job!

edited because I can't spell

Wow great job. It looks like you spend quite a bit of time on it. Don't know what it would be worth though, sorry, I only bake for fun.

Thanks! I have to say I didn't like this cake at all. But it was exactly what the bride wanted and she loved it so whatcha gonna do? The only thing I did like was the fondant covered hearts. They were cute. I put ribbon around the bottom of them. I probably only like them because I'm new to fondant and it's exciting to get it right! heehee

That cake is gorgeous! I can't help you with a price either as I have never made a "real" wedding cake (Wilton III final doesn't count). Based on what you did though, $3 a serving doesn't seem out of line IMHO!

There's no accounting for taste... You did a GORGEOUS job on a cake that I wouldn't have chosen, either. That is probably harder to do than to do on a cake that you love...KWIM?

this time DH is more than cute -- he's right! $1,000.

You are more than right Lisa!! It was so much harder to work on this cake because I was so worried it would turn out like some technicolor nightmare (more than it already is ) and people would think I had something to do with the design! eekkk! The good thing is my fil went back to get another piece (his 3rd heehee) and it was completely gone except for the two red hears that they were saving for the cookout the next day. So atleast none of it went to waste! That would have sent me into overdrive!!

Thanks you guys for making me feel better about this nightmare in cake!

Thanks for the validation Doug! I'll pass it along to hubby too-wait better not-can't go around letting him know he was right!!

I just keep thinking it should have some CareBears at the ends of the rainbows...

(Sorry)...

I would agree with doug on the $1000.00. I'm doing a "cost only" wedding cake at the end of this month. (it's a favor to one of my mother's older friends) I'm chalking it up to more experience, but they HAVE to pay for ALL supplies!!! plates, pillars, pans(if I don't have them) EVERYTHING... this way too i get stuff I won't normally buy myself hahahaaa.

btw..you did a GREAT job..

Yup, it's a dorky cake. But that's not YOUR fault. You did a beautiful job with the parameters you had to work within.

I'm with your hubby and Doug ... $1,000. That was a boatload of work. Besides the extra stress and trauma of working on something you don't really love.

And for a family member -- I'd probably have discounted it to $800.00.

But by golly -- you'd better NEVER give another wedding cake away FREE to any family member, unless it's your own son or daughter! Hear me???!!! )

I hear that!!!!!! I've also gotten suckered this way. The next time I make a cake for a gift I will ASK how big they want and let them know that anything over a 12, 10, 8 or something like that will be EXTRA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tip for everyone: Do NOT say "I'll do your cake for your gift" Be waaaay more specific! Otherwise they keep changing their mind and uping the cake and you end up doing way more than you had anticipated.

Your cake turned out great! I know, there's no accounting for some people's taste! lol I do have a hard time doing cakes I don't like. So far there have only been a couple. I don't even take pics of them, don't want future customers to get any bad ideas. I will say that I will never make another freebie wedding cake! I did my nieces and she never even thanked me until I finally said something to her about it 4 months later. Oh wait, she DID say "oh, and my aunt made the cake" after the toasts when they thanked his parents elaborately for numerous things and then her parents "for all they did". Well GEEZ, all 5 of my sisters were there too! Which aunt was it now?? LOL Sorry I shouldn't have gotten started....... All this to say I ain't doing anymore free wedding cakes. Too much stress for waaay too little thanks. That's been my hardest lesson learned. Okay, I'm done.

I am down with ya KSue!! I have to include my neice and nephew in too-they are my dolls-but nobody else! I did learn alot but it was just so time consuming with all the little details to attend to and keep track of. I had a sketch and notes on the sketch to keep me from going completely nuts but the whole wedding was a circus from front to back. It was worse because we had to put out money on a tux for dh, my little one was the ring bearer (proud mom moment-he did great and only 20 months old-walked all the way down the ailse and didn't freak out), I had to rent a car to get the cakes there because dh had school that day, on top of the cost for the cake!. As my dh put it, it was "more than the $50 we could have just stuck in a card and been done with it" Amen!!

Okay where'd my little picture of Madison go? It was just here?? Matter of fact I think the whole home page just changed. Did I imagine this? Maybe I'll go lay down a while....................

I didn't tell you guys-yet another dorky part-the cakes at this venue sit in a cake carriage lighted by these mini halogen lights which show off every little icing error imaginable! Looks like an open version of a pumpkin coach. The whole venue was cheesy, imho, but what do I know-I would have chosen a stacked cake, beautiful scroll work on the sides, fressh flowers on top...


Oh and get this they threw away my fabric under the cake!!! My dear fil didn't get it like he was supposed to (thank goodness he got my plates and pillars) but they threw away my beautiful fabric that I found for $1 a yard on sale and hemmed myself (learning to sew-yeah me)

Told ya-whole thing-nightmare, from start to finish.

I try to restrain myself whenever someone starts talking about getting married... your husband is right, the cake always ends up more than what you would actually spend on a gift.

People just really have no idea how much it costs. I remember one person posting awhile back about how someone told her that the baby shower cake could be her gift. I would have been like, excuse me but NO WAY!

Never let anyone decide the cost of your gift.

Your gift in this cake Dodi would easily be $800 - $1000 and I'm leaning towards $1000 because I'd through that figure out at someone trying to discourage them from the sugar high theme going on here.

But you did wonderful, I'm sure you are rightfully proud of yourself for all your work and not flat out laughing when she proposed this idea.

I'd have been like, "hahahaha... oh? You're serious."

Oh, you guys are too funny! Thanks!

First, you did a great job on the cake. Understandably, it is a bit "cutesy", but what can you do?

I was recently asked to consider doing a wedding cake and decided against it because I have never done one before, and I feel like I should really do alot more practicing, and honestly had no idea what I would charge.

I mentioned to my husband that maybe I should do a free wedding cake for the experience. He looked a bit concerned and suggested I re-think my strategy, but maybe I feel like it's some right of passage. LOL. Everyone must do a nightmare cake that they don't even get paid for!!

Needless to say, I agree with all the posts. $1,000 with confidence. Maybe even an extra $100 tacked on to compensate for any bad taste you had to endure.

I love the idea of "gift cakes" for appreciative brides. Especially family. Unfortunately they don't get it sometimes. Especially when they add another 100 servings. Just insane.

Angie

Dodibug..... if the cake didn't have those silly little cutsey hearts, rainbows, and Ken and Barbie on top it would have been a fantastic cake! Like was said before, you worked with the parameters you were given and did your best on the budget buster. For what it's worth, you can claim that the conversation hearts and Ken and Barbie WERE NOT YOUR IDEA! And stick to your guns!

The funny thing is the people at the venue loved the cake-that should have told me something right then! hee I did the seashell cake in my pics for friends as their gift in May and I would do it again for them in a heartbeat. they were wonderful about it. I just got a thank you note from them the other day that was so sweet. That does make such a big difference. But I am definitely sticking to my guns! When she gets pregnant she can forget about a shower cake! And I'm glad I bailed on making her bridal shower cake too! And yes, they asked me to do it! Crazy!

As a litle girl...did any of you ever draw a picture of your dream wedding cake? Well I did and I swear your SIL totally stole my design !!! You did great job on the cake!!! I hope you SIL appreciates all that you did for her!

OK, my first thought was welcome to the land of Care-a-lot, and my second thought was it looks like it's for a same sex wedding. Hope I didn't offend anyone. Just the rainbows kinda drew my attention

You did a great job on the mmf Dodibug. . Wow and then all those fillings . Alot of work went in to all of those cakes! Dougs right they got a very good deal. You can put your halo on now. I didnt see a halo so i hope a crown will do.

Yep, I'm with everyone else. $1000 is not too much. That's $4.00 a serving, which is not bad, plus you did fondant, and what are the rainbows? Minimum I would charge would be $750, though I have never made a cake for 250, but $1,000 is quite reasonable.