I'm doing my first wedding cake and need a little guidance please! It is a fairly simple cake that covered in fondant with a band around each of the 3 tiers. How far in advance can I cover the tiers in fondant? How do I keep the tiers fresh after they're covered before I assemble them? Also, should I wait to put on the top tier when I get to the reception? It is about 20 minutes away.

I appreciate any guidance you can give me.

The fondant will seal in the moisture so as long as you are starting with a fresh cake, you will end with one. I like to assemble at home so that when I smoosh my finger in the side of the cake, I can fix it

Once you crumbcoat a cake it's moisture has been sealed in. I don't cover fondant cakes more than 2 days in advance, especially if there is fruit filling, because they can get too moist inside as they sit for more than 3 days. I have never done a cake higher than 3 tiers so it's been easier for me to do the covering and detail in one day. I do as much prep in advance and then start in the morning with the filling/crumbcoating and then as those rest I start on getting my fondant to the right texture and all my tools set out for that part of the process. Since I freeze my cakes I do not put them back in the fridge after I fill/crumbcoat since I want them to come to room temp. So I bake at the beginning of the week and wrap/freeze the layers and then on Friday I start to put it together. I have each tier done by that day and boxed up in cake boxes for delivery. This year I'm getting a cake safe so I'll go ahead and assemble and put it in the cake safe for a Saturday delivery. Now if I had a higher cake I'd do half on Thursday and half on Friday. HTH. Cat

Thank you both so very much. One more question though. Do I need to refrigerate the cake after I've covered it in fondant or can I leave it at room temp?

most will say you SHOULDN'T refrigerate a cake iced in fondant.........I have with no trouble before, but if you don't have a perishable filling why take up the space in your fridge?? Refrigerating cakes actually speeds up the "drying" of the cake!