By the extreme bulging on the right side in the first picture it is obvious that there were stuctural problems from the beginning. The cake fell to the same side where the bulging was. If the support system was good it should be able to handle a car ride with no issues. Leigh_S on here tilts all of her tiered cakes at a 30degree tilt before giving them to her clients because she is that confident in her support system, the SPS. Is this your first wedding cake? How long have you been in business?
global sugar art...or you can Google it. Not sure who else carries it but it is not very expensive
I know a number of members have disagreed with me, but I still believe you need a center dowel going through the whole cake. If you are not using some system like SPS, then all you have is the top tier's board sitting on top of dowels. No matter how straight your bottom tier dowels are, the only thing holding that top tier on is icing.
All the way through from the top down. You sharpen the dowel with a pencil sharpener and push or hammer it through the top tier cake board downinto the bottom tier cake board. That is the way I was taught when I first started making cakes. There are still tutorials out there showing how to do it, but I don't remember the sites.
Well since I don't do wedding cakes I have done very few tiered cakes..I used dowels and cardboard 2x. First time went great. Second time it started leaning and scared me to death. So now I will only use SPS...Leigh sold me on it and I have never heard/read of a cake disaster with SPS. This is a prime example of why I don't do wedding cakes. I could not live with myself if this happened to a bride because of my mistake. And I am not meaning to upset the OP but if you have never even heard of using a center dowel then you are really not experienced enough to do wedding cakes.
There are other ways of ensuring the structural integrity of your cake than SPS
SPS is a system that is 'unique' to USA - most other countries don't use it
We make 1,000s of cakes that don't collapse - and they mostly are supported using wooden dowels or plastic bubble tea straws. A central dowel is not a necessity for a 2 tier round cake.
It is knowing how to do it that is the key - SO many things to consider, than many people don't think about........ a few things to consider are -
- making sure your layers are even layers...... that means the 'slice' is the same measurement at the outside as the inside - yes those 'domed' layers that people turn upside down thinking they will have a level surface to decorate WILL cause the edges to want to 'drag' down
- Making sure your filling is NOT going to turn to mush in your weather conditions ..... testing - testing !!
- TOO much filling
- Dowel placement - you need to think about weight distribution here - the cake tier above is virtually 'balancing' on these - I rarely use more than 4 dowels in a tier, even a large 12inch cake - but they are not placed in a 4inch square in the centre!! TOO many dowels can whiteant a cake, especially a soft textured one with loads of soft sqishy filing. Most of my cakes are Australian mud cakes with layers of ganache - this makes for a very STABLE cake, even in our hot 40degree C days I NEVER refrigerate my cakes but in the hot weather I am in 23'C air-con
- The dowels should be placed in the cake AFTER you have filled, coated and fondant covered (YES I have seen people put those dowels in BEFORE they cover with fondant)
- The top tier should be 'secured' to the base tier - I use what I refer to as fondant 'goop' - microwaved fondant for 25secs turn like molten lava and once cooled sets like concrete
- The cake in the picture looks like a really 'loose' crumb - sort of soggy looking (perhaps it has soaked up some of the moisture from the filling) - this in itself can cause structural issues
- The BEFORE pic of this cake has the top of the base tier looking like it is 'sinking' already - this shouldn't happen - IF the dowels are the correct length THEY should support the weight of the cake above, even if the cake itself 'settles'
- The dowels in the 'after pic' seem to have moved 'together' or they were not positioned properly in the first place.
- The 'after' pic shows what appears to be two handprints in the white top tier which looks like your passenger has tried to grab it to stop it falling.
Stacking cakes is NOT difficult but as with everything on the internet - SO much information, that you really need to decide what is good advice and what isn't - and the only way you can really do that is to TEST these things for yourself. Biggest mistake you can make is to take ideas from all over teh place and mix them all together - pic one persons way and stick to it .... if you skip a step here or there.... you might end up with a cake disaster
Oasis Cake and Candy have great prices on the SPS system.
yes there are many ways to support a cake. But if you are not very experienced at stacking and there is an inexpensive fool proof method readily available, why not use it?
yes there are many ways to support a cake. But if you are not very experienced at stacking and there is an inexpensive fool proof method readily available, why not use it?
I disagree with this logic - whilst SPS may offer a good system that may not require as much thought process as other methods, I still think that it IS important to have a good knowledge and understanding of 'cake decorating fundamentals' BEFORE offering to do it.
The trouble today is people want to jump in the deep end without first learning to dog paddle - its like people saying they can drive but they only drive on straight roads because they haven't yet learned to turn corners
I disagree with this logic - whilst SPS may offer a good system that may not require as much thought process as other methods, I still think that it IS important to have a good knowledge and understanding of 'cake decorating fundamentals' BEFORE offering to do it.
The trouble today is people want to jump in the deep end without first learning to dog paddle - its like people saying they can drive but they only drive on straight roads because they haven't yet learned to turn corners
I agree. I thought something looked a little "off" with the inside of the cake from the picture also. I also agree that the cake may have not been sturdy enough to withstand any kind of transport, SPS or not. I looks like there were structural issues with the cake and or filling that played a part in this collapse, not just the dowel supports that were used.
I do too...hence the reason I said she is not ready to do cakes. SO not quite sure what it is that you are disagreeing with
I do too...hence the reason I said she is not ready to do cakes. SO not quite sure what it is that you are disagreeing with
I was disagreeing with your solution...... or what I interpreted it as .....
That is - if you don't know what you are doing..... use SPS because it is foolproof
Nothing takes the place of knowledge - and I guess I am just trying to reinforce this because I see SO many people trying to shortcut EVERYTHING
They see a gorgeous cake (heck not even JUST cake - it applies to ANYTHING these days - and instead of acknowledging that the maker/creator has probably put in hours and hours AND hours of work/learning/testing/perfecting they think they can run off and replicate it..... BUT they only have a fraction of the knowledge..... AND it shows
Instead of saying..... she is not ready to do cakes..... I offered some advice - there are lots of things to consider when stacking cakes, and unlike yourself, I have done many, many stacked cakes.
I found your reply to be flippant - like you were trying to say.... 'Forget ALL that - its too hard - just go with SPS' - its THIS sort of attitude that leads people to think that shortcuts are the answer to everything
Not so!
Just passing on the excellent advise given to me from the very experienced professionals....HTH
I agree with Pam about practice and testing - I use SPS but there is also an art to using it which you gain with experience. Your cakes still need to be level and exactly the right height (assuming you are using the 4" columns). You still have to centre it and make sure it is inserted 100% vertically. Before I started using it (I first read about it on here thanks to Leah), I used dowels, occasionally straws. Using those to start with and reading up a lot on it, gave me an understanding of the ground rules to follow. Now I use SPS because it is more convenient for me, and I am not at all nervous handing cakes over to clients when I have used it.
Not saying she isn't. But so are Leah and the many others who have recommended to me from the first time I asked about support systems.
Look this thread is not about me. I gave her my advice. That she was not ready to be selling wedding cakes. Which others have seemed to agree with. I recommended a good stacking system. Sorry if you folks don't like my advice but it wasn't directed towards any of you. So back to the OP....there are underlying issues here. If someone has a problem wth me personally I will be happy to discuss it but not on someone else's post. Thank you and have a good evening.
Forgive me for jumping in here but I believe both are saying the same thing. That support systems are good and all but a person must understand how to support regardless. Foundation before the house and all that.
Helllloooooooo - THIS is EXACTLY what I was saying.... OK now you have been nominated AND elected - you have the official title of CC Translator!
Its NOT just about THE stacking system - that is only a PART of the problem
Dowels or SPS - makes NO difference - if you don't know the rest of it
I really do not see where I disagreed with that?
Look this thread is not about me. I gave her my advice. That she was not ready to be selling wedding cakes. Which others have seemed to agree with. I recommended a good stacking system. Sorry if you folks don't like my advice but it wasn't directed towards any of you. So back to the OP....there are underlying issues here. If someone has a problem wth me personally I will be happy to discuss it but not on someone else's post. Thank you and have a good evening.
If you mean me ..... then go to bed with a clear head
I don't do personal - especially from the other side of the world - but when you are like a dog with a bone with something you have to be prepared to meet ANOTHER dog with a bone!!
Good Night - sweet dreams!! :)
Dog with a bone? WTH are you talking about? That doesn't make any sense to me. I always go to bed with a clear head. Thank you for your concern and sweet dreams to you as well.
know what it means. Not sure how it applies
That is not a question. No reply needed. Done..
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