your cutoff for orders? not cutoff times, but how many cakes you will do in a week/weekend..

I have weddings 8/14,21 and 27 (yes the friday, not the saturday)

the 14th is 300 svgs.. the 21st is 130 and the 27th is about 150 I think.. they are all to be delivered and I will probably be invited to the one on the 21st..

In march, I did two receptions, same couple, same day.. one was a 5 tier cake and one was a 6 tier cake.. it was like 250-270 svgs each depending on who's chart u use LOL..and I went to the receptiong (didnt make it to the wedding, was delivering the cakes!

Im asking because I am getting requests for the 21st and for the 28.. I have been saying "lemme check my schedule and get back to you later today"

I know ultimately, it's what I feel like I can do, but sometimes I finish like that was nothing.. and sometimes I finish like whoo I'm beat!

I feel your pain. I'm a part timer too and my rule of thumb is no more than 2 party cakes in a weekend and no more than one wedding cake. The pressure is just too much. I did 2 3D cakes AND a wedding cake in one weekend back in April and I thought my arms were going to fall off from rolling so much fondant. Never again. Now if I could work at the kitchen more than 2 days a week then I'd happily take more orders but for now that's all I can do and booking too many cakes is just madness. Hopefully by next summer I'll be able to do it full time!

Cat

Im actually full time since I am no longer in school so I have the time, I suppose.

the most cakes I have had due on a weekend was 6, but that doesn't include valentines day when I had 17 (most most of them were either 6 inch hearts or 6 inch packages)

The most cakes I've baked in one week is 32!! (keep in mind most 4" high cakes require that I bake 2 cakes) The most individual orders I have had in a week is something like 20.

The most wedding cake orders I'll take in a weekend is 1!! That's right, just 1!!

It's an important day and I feel like it deserves my FULL attention. I block out Thursday, Friday and Saturday for Saturday wedding cake orders. Once I take on one wedding cake, I'm booked that weekend and don't take any OTHER orders at all.

Most wedding are 200+ servings anyhow...........if they're non wedding cakes, I'll take on up to 1,000 servings in a weekend...depends on the kind of cakes too. I get a lot of sheet cake orders and have been known to decorate 10-15 of those in a night!

Tiered cakes take me longer, cakes with fondant cutouts, etc. take longer as well. Topsy turvy take longer, and 3D carved cakes EVEN longer. Once you have done a LOT of cakes a couple times you'll see what you're capable of.

Almost every weekend I say "I'm NEVER taking this many orders again!!" Then I see my schedule for the next weekend LOL


So far this weekend I have 2 cakes!! 1 half sheet to look like an iphone for Sunday, and 1 quarter sheet w/ 3 roses on it. I'm not even gonna know what to do with myself!! lol

Last week I had 28 cakes and 20 cupcakes! lol Oh and 12 of those 28 were for a wedding (I took the other orders before the wedding was booked)

Tina, I totally see what you are saying. then I look at the cakes.. (the one for 21st is a hex) I have only done one, so I'm a little more concerned about that than the others because they are all simple even the hex is simple, but I don't know how long its gonna take me to ice it..

I CAN do 6 or 7 wedding cakes in one weekend, Friday through Sunday. That's with no freezing of cakes at all. I can do that, but do I want to, heck no. So it's totally up to you. You're the only person who can decide what you can do and want to take on.

I think that it is a very personal decision. Only you know how many cakes you can handle physically and mentally. You do not want to hurt yourself by working too much or burn yourself out by not having any time for yourself, but you also need to work. I think the balance varies depending on the person. Good luck!

Wow! I wanna be you guys when I grow up! I would say do what you can within the limitations of your kitchen, freezer space and/or counter space. Bake as much as you can in a day and freeze (if that's your preference) the layers for the following weekends. If you don't freeze, then you know for 3 weeks in a row, you are blocking off Thursday-Saturday for baking and decorating. Make all your fondant and buttercream way ahead of time. At least you won't have that to do. Mix up colors, take inventory and just have everything lined up and ready to go. We all know how time consuming it can be to gather everything.

thanks everyone, I do realize that it is completely up to me. I guess I was looking more for how people determine what they will and wont take.. Like tina says she will take up to 1000 servings in a week. but if its a wedding that's it.. That's a big difference.. That's definitely her choice and apparently that works for her..

with that said, I do have a 2 tiered wedding cake in december and I informed the bride that I wasn't BOOKING out my calendar (it's a 5" and 7" cake lol) she agreed that she still wanted it and trusted that I could handle other orders lol.

I have also done wedding cakes back to back on Friday and Saturday, with the Saturday bride knowing that I had a wedding on Friday, and still agreeing to the arrangment.

Not ALL of my brides care if I have another order in addition to their cakes, but MOST brides appreciate that THEY are my sole focus for 3 days. I used to freak out with each wedding cake, now I consider it a break when all I have is a wedding cake lol. Although I've never done a wedding with less than 250 servings so far (the main cake plus kitchen cakes) so I'm usually baking at least 10+ individual cakes for the weddings