In a couple of weeks I have a really busy week of cake decorating as well as working my other jobs. I have time now to make the cakes. I am wondering, can I make them now and freeze them? And if I can, is there a trick to freezing them (should I crumb coat or just freeze them after they cool from the oven? And if I don't crumb coat them, but freeze from the oven, should I level them first?) If I can freeze them, how should I go about thawing them? I'm sure there is an amount of time they have to thaw before I decorate.

Sorry for all the questions and thanks for your help.

Yes! Freeze them before you frost them when they are still a tiny bit warm from the oven. I double wrap in plastic wrap then foil. when you un freeze them make sure you unwrap them completely so they don't get soggy from condensation.

i let my cakes cool completely, level and torte them, then i wrap them in plastic wrap. Lay them on a cookie sheet to freeze completely and then slide into a ziploc bag or wrap a couple more times in plastic wrap. I like to level and torte before i freeze so they're ready to go and i don't have to try to do it on a cold/frozen cake.

I take them out of the freezer and let them thaw for about 20-30 minutes before using them (in the plastic wrap to keep the moisture in, i have never had a soggy cake doing it this way). They are still cold which makes it easier to move them around and handle them, but they aren't too cold so they won't cause condensation issues while thawing.

I've seen on here to put the cooled cake in the freezer for about 20 mins first before wrapping in saran wrap. That way the top layer of the cake won't stick to the saran wrap when you thaw it!