I was just browsing through the Martha Stewart website - Wedding Tab where I saw Martha suggesting cakes that brides can do themselves with pics. So I looked through them and I don't know if dear Martha realizes that not everyone is her, but there is no way that a person with no cake decorating experience could pull off these cakes - even with detailed instructions. But what I think surprised me the most is that Martha has had a couple of wedding cake books published (one of which I have and love) and she knows the planning and details that go into creating a beautiful wedding cake - she should know better than to suggest DIY cakes. Martha - Really????

She will suggest anything that will sell magazines, and DIY is big these days. She doesn't care about reality, just what will line her pockets.

LOL! I just looked at some of the pictures... the white chocolate panel cake- they suggest ordering an undecorated cake and the chocolate panels which are $400 for 100 panel... Why in the world would anyone pay that much to do something themselves especially their wedding cake instead of paying a professional cake decorator to do it. By the time you DIY, you'd be out over $500-$600.

Exactly! And even if someone is foolish enough to spend for an undecorated cake, do they really believe it can be that easy to make the panels look that lovely? I guess you are right Costumeczar - anything for a buck.

It's all part of her master plan, she suggests things that regular ole' people should be able to do because she herself can do it and when they fail miserably they bow down to the awesomeness that is The Martha.

The funny thing is that she doesn't do it herself. Her book is filled with other designer's cakes - which is fine, because her book is about beautiful wedding cakes in general not just her own. But even in her book, they have a picture of her and her cake person - Wendy (I cannot remember the last name) working on a cake together.

I just looked at those cakes and there's not one i'd be happy with at a wedding (of course, that's just me). But, seriously, "order a fondant cake..." and go from there??? Most decorators won't charge you any less for a modestly decorated fondant-covered cake than for a plain one, so why bother? It takes a modicum of talent and experience to even stick things on an already covered cake without messing it up, as we all know too well! And yes, the $400 for a packet of 100 chocolate panels is priceless. Give ME the $400 and I'll give you a nice fondant-covered cake with some very elegant stuff on it for 100 people!

Maybe for Martha $400 is a drop in the bucket and completely doable for spending on an unadorned wedding cake that you have to finish up yourself. If we think about it, the cake decorators that she works with must charge upward of $500 for a wedding cake so in Martha Land her types of DIY cakes are a steal.

It really bothers me that alot of the celebrity cake decoraters like Martha and probably a few others out there are really pushing DIY to brides etc..I mean...I have worked dam hard to gain my clientelle and so have others and to see someone sluff off a wedding cake that you might be able to DIY like it is no big deal... doesn't help my business in the least bit....It just makes it harder to prove and justify my prices to some potential clients.

Hubby just hates the DIY home renovation shows..(He is a journeyman Carpenter for over 30 years) and says these show are just asking for trouble by trying to get people to do stuff themselves like plumbing and electrical when they have NO experience!.It takes years and experience to do it correctly.Now I know these shows always say never do this or that (Disclaimer) But I mean really....I feel the same way in cake decorating when I see Martha or Sarah Lee or whoever say "Ah..you can do it yourself" Grrrr

Speaking of which..A little off topic..Sorry for the rant... There is a large children's playcentre set to open up here in July and the owner is a woman I have spoken with through email etc over the years when she was just a SAHM doing face painting for kids parties...anyway...she is now opening up this huge venue and renting wilton character cakepans and teaching people how to decorate their own character cakes...Grrrr....I know it shouldn't make me upset and I should care less but I am kinds miffed...I'm glad she is creative and found a way to make money etc but I feel it is sorts going to lead all these people to DIY and try to make cakes and not bother to order from a small home based businesses like me...It has taken me years to get really good and I kinda feel she is cheapening the art and talent it takes to make a great decorated and tasting cake..

Anyway..JMO...Back to baking now!!!

Laurel

Martha can't even decorate a cake that involves more than piping large squirts of meringue onto it. Wendy Kromer is the woman who does the cakes for her magazines, and she had to battle MS for credit for doing them. She did the cakes for the first MS weddings book and wasn't even given credit, and she had to fight her to get her name on the credits for the second book. I read a fabulous unauthorized biography about old MS, and the woman who wrote it said that people were calling her unsolicited telling her stories about what a wench MS is. She has a bunch of little preppy interns who do all the work and she takes all the credit, it's how she's always operated.

DIY = destroy it yourself, I just wish brides would realise that before they take on such a big task.

I've JUST finished a phonecall from a MOB, daughter is getting married this Saturday and MOB was going to do the cake "as everyone tells you its sooooo easy" Well her trial run this weekend was a total disaster, she says not even the dog wanted to eat the last tier, and the middle one was only fit to play ball with and thats before the decorating disaster NOW she is looking for somone to do the cake!!!!

BTW she recons its already cost her the price of a cake in supplies, ingredients and tools,

I did a series on my blog about this...Here are the links for the parts about cost:
http://acaketorememberva.blogspot.com/2009/12/diy-not-so-fastpart-2.html

http://acaketorememberva.blogspot.com/2009/12/diy-not-so-fastpart-3.html

I was a bridesmaid in a wedding once where the MOB took a few Wilton classes and decided she could do her daughters wedding AND grooms cake in order to "save money". She was working on the cakes the ENTIRE night of the rehearsal dinner, and even the morning of the wedding in her hotel room, and they did NOT look like anything I would want to attach my name to. She also said with all the supplies and hours it took her to make, it pretty much cost her the same as ordering from a professional.

Did you read the descriptions with each cake!? "Order a buttercream cake!" "Order up a fondant covered cake and a bucket of fondant from your local bakery!" I'm not sure about you, but i'm pretty sure that the brides aren't going to be saving Anything by buying the pre-made cake and then throwing a bunch of candy, or fondant on it!! That doesn't really say DIY to me. I wouldn't buy a pair of pants and then sew on the pockets.

Good old Martha. I once read that it takes 427 people to BE Martha Stewart. Crazy.

Here is the thing - people think they can do it because it is described as being simple enough - okay - go for it, but then they realize what a disaster they have created and come running at the last minute to a professional to save their a*^!! I am very fortunate to have had people around me and clients that realize the work that goes into creating a cake, but you do have your occasional PITA. The thing with the Marta wedding books, as I said before, they are not even her cakes - which is fine, but then at the same time do not encourage DIY cakes but you are doing a disservice to all the folks that contributed to your books (and the rest of us) who have made this their livelihood and work very hard at it.

You know I was married 21 years ago, and I still remeber how chaotic it was the three days before my wedding. If I had to decorate the cake too during that time, it would have driven me insane. It is just not worth it. I have seen other sites where they have very elegant cakes that they call their basic cakes that run about $400.

I saw the DIY MS magazine at my local bookstore last night. I flipped through the photos. And they all started with "order a simple fondant or buttercream cake". I bet you a lot of people stopped right there. Because usually when you are looking at DIY you are looking to save money, and ordering a $400 plain fondant cake is not saving money (at least in my book). The most I would do is place some ribbon around it and be done. But most of the wedding cakes websites I've seen that have a plain fondant wedding cake include the ribbon.

Now that I think of it, this might still be a good thing (using MS's words back on her) for you professional cake decorators out there. Because the bride will have to come to you for the cake and that is when you get the chance to educate her on why this is not good.