I am not new at cake decorating, or even working with fondant.. BUT... I just did my first huge wedding cake in fondant. It was a very clean simple design so there was nothing to decorate with to cover problems.

I would love everyone's input on how you do a large wedding cake and get a smooth finish. I was able to rescue the one today, but it was no where near the quality I would expect as a bride.

What I did this time was:

take cakes out of freezer (always freeze right out of oven to seal in moisture) and put the buttercream filling in.

I let them sit for an hour and a half to thaw (perhaps not long enough?)

then i iced with a buttercream coating and covered in fondant.

By the next morning they were cracking a little and you could see the layers underneath the fondant... sort of drumply and a ridge where the filling was... like the cake settled under the fondant and it all shifted.

When I delivered the cake had more cracks in the fondant (granted i had to go down a gravel road... but still)

so... I"m sure its been discussed a thousand and one times, but would you all mind posting step by step how you prepare and do a fondant cake?

first pic is right when i finished, second pic is next morning

I don't do a lot of fondant covered cakes but you definitely need to let the cakes settle overnight (whether for fondant or buttercream cakes). I fill my cakes frozen also but then I wrap them back up in saran wrap and let them sit on the counter overnight. That way the next morning if the filling is going to bulge it has already done so and I can scrape the excess away before I crumb coat and ice the cakes. If you are still able to see the filling between the layers even after letting them settle, you can roll your fondant a little thicker and it won't be as see-through. HTH

great! I think i didn't let them sit long enough as i saw the fondant "sweating" later on. must have still been a little frozen.

I also ordered some straight side pans because the Wilton ones I have, the sides are slightly angled so you never get layers lined up perfectly.

I had no idea my cakes settled so much overnight! buttercream it just doesn't show as much! My other wedding cakes never did this!