Would it be okay to put a 16inch cake on my 14 inch cake stand? Would it look funny or do people do this all the time?

...someone with more experience can give advice.

Will you be placing the 16" cake on an 18" or 20" drumboard or foam core board then placing it on an 14" wide cake stand. Sure I've done that with many of cakes. Not sure what you are asking. HTH
Hammy

I use my 10 inch cake stand all the time for larger cakes. Of course the cake is on a board of it's own for support

yeah I was gonna put my stacked wedding cake 16, 12, 8 inch on a silver covered board but I wanted to know if it would look okay to then place that on a 14 inch silver cake stand. I dont have a 16 inch. I just want it to look nice so I was wondering if people did that?

With a silver covered board, placed on a Silver Stand sounds beautiful. Place the covered board on top of stand well before assembly of cake to make sure the appearance is pleasing to the eye. Best Wishes.
Hammy

I did it once but I didn't like the way that it looked I put a 16"12"10 on my 14" stand.

If your bottom cake is a 16" then your bottom board will be at least an 18" or 20". If it's a 20", then thats a 3" overhang all the way around. I think thats going to make the stand look to small. One thing you could do, (if you don't have to absolutely use the silver stand), is to use a 18 or 20" block of styrofoam, round or square, (whatever shape your cake is) and cover it in a nice silver ribbon or silver fabric. That way it is in a better proportion to your cake size.

Actually, it depends on the cake and the cake stand. If it was a pedestal cake stand, I personally think it would look okay as long as the cake by itself, floating on a cake stand (with no excess board). This cake: http://www.artandappetite.com/2009/11/organic-cake/ has a 12" bottom tier and it is resting on a 10" cake stand.

If it was a plateau cake stand, I personally don't like the look. But then again, it always depends on the design.

good visual, Rylan!

thanks everyone!! I dont know what I am going to do yet?!?!? I put the pan on top of the stand and it didnt look bad to me but i dont know...

I've been surprised by a too small plateau when delivering a cake. I think it looks weird. And not in a good way.

Personally, I think stability might be an issue, if it is a pedastal stand and the cake is that heavy. I would be scared to try that one.