When Did You Feel You Were Ready For Wedding Cakes?
Decorating By luckylibra Updated 27 Aug 2011 , 4:20am by Bettyviolet101
I am a home baker (I have already contacted my local HD and they interpret the HBV to include baking cakes from home with non-perishable ingredients and proper labeling, I know not all HDs are reading it this way but mine is, yea for me) I have done many birthday cakes and feel my work is ok but not to the level of the posters here. I have turned down several wedding cake requests as I just dont feel I am there yet and would hate to disappoint the bride. When did you all know you were ready to take that step? Are there any classes or instructors near me (south of Indianapolis) that would provide that higher level of training? I have looked but not located any. Thanks in advance for any assistance, this site is awesome!
Sometimes I still don't feel ready for wedding cakes! 
On a more serious note: I guess we felt ready when we were able to achieve a truly polished, professional look with all of our cakes, regardless of the occasion. It's always a little bit nerve-wracking for me, since you have in the back of your mind what a big deal the cake is at a wedding. But if you just treat every cake you do like it's a big deal, and do it to the best of your ability, the type of event it is for doesn't make a whole lot of difference.
Sometimes I still don't feel ready for wedding cakes!
On a more serious note: I guess we felt ready when we were able to achieve a truly polished, professional look with all of our cakes, regardless of the occasion. It's always a little bit nerve-wracking for me, since you have in the back of your mind what a big deal the cake is at a wedding. But if you just treat every cake you do like it's a big deal, and do it to the best of your ability, the type of event it is for doesn't make a whole lot of difference.
I 100% agree!
I have only made 4 wedding cakes in the 2 1/2 years I have been making cakes and have decided no more.
First - I work a full time job so I have to bake/decorate in the evenings, it takes the whole week and just wipes me out. Here's a link to my blog where I chronicled the last wedding cake I made...
http://savingdougssanity.blogspot.com/search/label/Wedding%20Cake%20Chronicle (Sorry it's in reverse order)
Second (and most of all!) - I put too much pressure on myself to make sure the cake is perfect because I don't want to ruin the bride's one and ONLY wedding day! The delivery is the most stressful of all...if something happens I don't have unlimited resources to redo a cake or fix a major disaster.
I do agree with CakeMaster2009 "But if you just treat every cake you do like it's a big deal, and do it to the best of your ability, the type of event it is for doesn't make a whole lot of difference."
It's not only about the cakes with weddings, it's also about dealing with the brides. When you're ready to deal with that level of frantic crazy then you're good to go.
Thank you for the replies. I did not mean to imply that I treat the cakes that I make as though they do not need to be professional and well done, I put 1000% into each one and because I am new I don't charge for the ten hours it takes me to make them as I would expect the pros on here could whip them out in three. I think I do a great job just not to the level of many of you here... maybe I shouldn't be making cakes after all. What I was meaning was the stress level seems different to me. I finish all of my cakes the day before pick up so that should something go horribly wrong I can remake them (hasn't happened yet, fingers crossed) but should this happen with a wedding cake I don't see how you would have time to recreate it as they are generally much larger, more ornate and time consuming.. since I have not done one I could be completely wrong on this but that is my perception..
Nonilm, wow, that is very helpful. Thank you for posting your process in such detail ... it does make it clear how involved a wedding cake can be.. thank you for sharing that
I am in your same boat! I have somebody wanting a wedding cake for May so I have plenty of time to practice but my confidence is sooo low! I always feel like I could have done better so am terrified that I would disappoint the bride! I'm sour of Indy as well and have been debating on trying to find a class to teach wedding cakes. All u have found are the wilton classes at Ben Franklin or Micheals but you have to take the beginner's class first. I would love to go to the wilton school in Chicago to learn but it is a little pricey since its 2 weeks long without room and board. That is my dream though! Don't give up though!
I think alot of time people over-stress about wedding cakes, if you just think of it as 3 or 4 cakes, then you just happen to stack them (with some supports 
)then hey! You made a wedding cake! Just practice and practice, using a dummy over and over again if you want to be sure you can handle it. In the end it really comes down to good time management and the skill to achieve the look you're looking for. Know your limits and don't accept an order above your skill set and you'll do just fine.
LuckyLibra, I just looked at your pictures and your work is awesome. I have been making wedding cakes only for family and close friends for over 20 yrs. I'm still never ready for the cakes. It takes me at least a week after making a cake to de-stress. I will find every flaw known to man with the cake. Talking about crashing and burning during the process and delivery, you would say why bother? Well, it is when I get phone calls from the Bride and or Groom saying how much they loved their cake, then I turn into an addict again with wanting to make more cakes, just not often (LOL). Start with a small wedding cake, then work your way up. Best Wishes!
Thank you, I think it is just one of those mind things... where because it is an event you have once in a lifetime (theoretically) it increases the perceived importance... Thanks for all the replies and encouragement... I will give it some more thought.. will have to get SPS and Agbay if I do though lol...hmmm reason to get new toys..
I would love to go to the wilton school in Chicago to learn but it is a little pricey since its 2 weeks long without room and board.
Me too! I'm north of Indy and I looked into Wilton so I could feel a little bit more confident to tackle a wedding cake. But I can't afford all that. Maybe the three of us should plan a class and split hotel/gas costs. LOL!
I have a neighbor that asked me to do her wedding cake for October. At first, I freaked and said no because I wasn't confident enough to tackle a cake for 250 people. Then she explained that it was a small 2 tier cake just for the cake cutting - it only needs to feed 30 people. I think I can swing that. Maybe start with a groom's cake? Dunno. Just thinking out loud.
Thank you for the replies. I did not mean to imply that I treat the cakes that I make as though they do not need to be professional and well done, I put 1000% into each one and because I am new I don't charge for the ten hours it takes me to make them as I would expect the pros on here could whip them out in three. I think I do a great job just not to the level of many of you here... maybe I shouldn't be making cakes after all.
Ok, whoa! I'm sorry if you took what I said that way. I did not AT ALL mean that I thought you didn't put everything into each cake, or that I thought you weren't good enough to be doing cakes. I took a peek at your pics before I posted the first time, and I think you do great work!
All I meant was that if you feel confident in what you do with party cakes, you should feel confident in doing wedding cakes. They are essentially the same, other than their size. You may just need a little practice with stacking and transporting bigger cakes if you haven't done that before. I do agree that there is sometimes less time to fix problems that happen in transport or whatever, but that's really the only big difference.
Now dealing with Bridezillas, etc., that's a whole other animal!
CakeMaster2009, No problem, thanks. I hate that about the written language.. very hard to read the nuances and very easy to take things wrong 
especially after a full day of getting beat up in budget hearings in your full time job :sigh:
By the way, your sea shell wedding cake is absolutely amazing!!!
Hey, I totally understand! We've all done it! I just wanted to clarify to you so you knew I didn't mean that at all!
Thank you, we were really happy with that one!
Oooooh! I just took a peek. Ditto on the seashell wedding cake - AWESOME! The ALF cake had me cracking up! I loved that show when I was a kid! Well done!
Thank you very much! I loved Alf too! Love all that good 80's stuff! 
I haven't gotten the courage to make my first wedding cake yet either. I've been making cakes for about a year and have had lots of success with birthday cakes and other occasion cakes. I will be making a Quinceanera cake for my niece in August which will be for 100 guests and this will be like a test run for me since it's also a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. And it'll be the largest cake I've made yet. However, I do agree that you do have to be prepared in dealing with nervous brides and mother-of-the-brides and their varying personalities before taking wedding cakes on and that can be another issue all together.
I haven't gotten the courage to make my first wedding cake yet either. I've been making cakes for about a year and have had lots of success with birthday cakes and other occasion cakes. I will be making a Quinceanera cake for my niece in August which will be for 100 guests and this will be like a test run for me since it's also a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. And it'll be the largest cake I've made yet. However, I do agree that you do have to be prepared in dealing with nervous brides and mother-of-the-brides and their varying personalities before taking wedding cakes on and that can be another issue all together.
It's not only that...When you do weddings you have a constantly-changing clientele, so you have to start advertising differently. Then you have to deal with venues, deliveries, tasting appointments, contracts, other vendors, etc. Brides aren't the same as regular party cake clients. It's a different approach and a different level of service.
As far as making the cakes goes that's not a big deal of difference between "regular" cakes and wedding cakes, but as soon as you make the leap to being a wedding business you have to take your business to a different place in terms of what you have to do on your end for each cake.
Nazarine, sorry I just saw your post about going to the wilton school! If there was other people to go with me to split hotel. I would seriously consider it! Lol
I have been doing cakes for about 2 years. My first wedding cake was for cost for some friends of my sister. It was a little scary but the bride basically said "I don't care" about everything. I have done 3 other wedding cakes and they all went really well. I would start with friends and family. People like your work thats why they want you to do it so I say go for it! Your work looks really good.
I have been doing cakes for about 2 years. My first wedding cake was for cost for some friends of my sister. It was a little scary but the bride basically said "I don't care" about everything. I have done 3 other wedding cakes and they all went really well. I would start with friends and family. People like your work thats why they want you to do it so I say go for it! Your work looks really good.
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