So many logistics to figure out. But here's the skinny, quick and dirty that I need help with.

-BFF (like my lil sis) is getting married this August 11th.
-I'll be 36ish weeks pregnant with a very (did I say very?) active almost two year old to which I plan on asking my MIL to watch while I work.
-250 cupcakes have to get done in various flavors.
-Did I mention, I'm in the wedding too! (at 11:00 am on Sat).
-Combo of boxed cake mix and a scratch recipes will be used.

Here's my dillema. I need a time line otherwise I won't be sleeping and the stress I'm about to endure is going to cause a divorce between me and the hubs or early labor...lol! I bake cakes so know how to decorate, but I desperatly need help planning out when I should do what/bake what. All toppers and frostings will be made in advance and ready to go, but how soon can I make them? and how much? I was planning on making about 75 cups of frosting all together. Do you think that will be enough?

Here is the menu:
84 Lemon cake with Raspeberry filling/Vanilla Buttercream (with a simple 1M swirl and a fondant topper)
60 Chocolate Cake/Vanilla Buttercream (Two toned spikes to look like peacock feathers and a fondant peacock head)
60 Blue Velvet/Cream cheese Frosting (with a simple 1M swirl and possibly dragee`)
60 White Cake/Cherry Buttercream (with a simple 1M swirl and possibly dragee')

Also, I need a Lemon cake, Red Velvet (Blue food coloring will be substituted) and cream cheese frosting recipe. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

On a side note, I also have the option to ask some friends to bake the chocolate and white cupcakes and deliver them to my house. I have a large refrigerator/freezer that I might be able to use too. I'll have to make sure it's available though.

I can't really help with the logistics since cupcakes are not my thing. I will only bake several dozen or so.

What happens if you go into labor right before the wedding? Who will be delivering the cupcakes and setting? Could some of the others do some of the baking and decorating?

I worked the day of every one of my three births. Unless you have a condition that needs rest, yes you can do it.

In my family, there is a tradition of all of the women to get together and cater our big events. We all get together the night before and have a great time. We are all very good cooks and bakers and the results are always phenomenal.

I suggest that you square this away now and get some help. I also hosted parties the nights of the births at my house, so babies are definitely not hard to have, unless again, there is a complication or CC. So even if you have the baby before or you are slightly miserable in the last weeks, the friends and family should be on notice that you will need help and plan this now.

Many freeze cupcakes but I never do. The timeline, even for that many, for me, would be to make the frostings a few days before. They don't get old. Then the night before, make the cupcakes. After they are completely cool, put them in under bed containers and don't close the top all the way. On the morning of the event, frost the cupcakes in the container. Now they are ready to go.

Two months ago, I let a group of girls do a cupcake fundraiser in my bakery. Within a few minutes and a few practice swirls on wax paper, the girls were frosting swirl pros. So don't worry about inexperience. Six girls made hundreds of cupcakes in a few hours, but I did have three mixers and a hand mixer (they had more flavors).

Don't put your cupcakes in the refrigerator.

Do fondant decorations ahead of time.

For the lemon, you can add plenty of zest and good extract to your white cake and buttercream.

Hopefully, everyone will chip in and help. If they don't, under the circumstances, I would get advice from people who freeze.

Make sure you have disposable piping bags. This will be a big time-saver. Plus a few extra tips will come in handy if you get help.

I don't think you will have time that morning to decorate any cakes. In January my two kids I were in my brothers wedding and I made the cake. It was an 11am wedding and if I didn't have the cake made the day before I would have been showing up to the wedding when everybody else was leaving lol. If you have air tight containers that would fit that many cupcakes one night shouldn't hurt.

I do agree with sleaky. The night before is fine for a morning wedding.

Hey there, I just did a 130 cupcake order with a two tier cake to match. I started baking on a Monday and finished on Wednesday. I made all of the icing on Thursday and decorated all on Friday. For the cupcakes, i purchased the huge ziploc bags, removed most of the air and stored the cupcakes in the freezer. Before I went to my regular job on Friday morning, I put the cupcakes on the counter while still on the bags to defrost. On Saturday, every cupcake and cake was eaten. The taste was as good as the day I made them.

You should definitely have them ready to go the night before. If you are in the wedding, you will have to be there at least an hour early for pictures. Add the time that it takes to get ready...yikes, frost them the night before!

D.

I will be making 125 cupcakes for a wedding in August and was thinking about frosting them the night before and letting them set out. Would they be find just setting out on counter over night? or do they need to be covered somehow?

thanks!

Cher

BakingIrene:

Thanks for the reply, I will not being using any dairy(milk or such) for filling or frosting, so I think sitting out will be fine then.

thanks again,
Cher

Angiefalangee and Scrappindaisypatch--Welcome to the forum!

Looking at your cake photos, you have the skills and I think it is absolutely do-able. I am a hobby baker and LOVE freezing my cakes and cupcakes. I bake them, wrap and freeze, and they always taste every bit as good as fresh-made.

If it were me making 250 cupcakes for a wedding:

I would make a practice batch of 48-50 cupcakes today. Freeze the unfrosted cupcakes for at least 24 hours. Make a recipe of buttercream frosting today. Freeze the frosting in "frosting bullets". (Here's a link on how to do a frosting bullet (about 2 minutes into the video):

)
Single Batch Recipe:
1-1/3 cups Crisco (BETTER: store brand shortening with 3 grams of trans-fats, or BEST, a specialty cake supply product called high-ratio shortening. As of 2010 Crisco no longer contains trans-fats.)
1/3 to 1/2 cup milk, depending on consistency needed
3 Tbsp powdered Dream Whip (powdered whipped topping mix made by Kraft Foods)
2-3 Tbsp clear vanilla, depending on personal taste (optional: almond extract, or lemon extract )
2 lbs. powdered pure cane sugar
IndyDebi says: There's no wrong way to mix this. I usually mix all but the powdered sugar & milk for a minute or two, then gradually alternate the sugar & milk, but the only reason I do this is to avoid the "sugar-splash" factor. The longer the mixer runs, the smoother it gets. Sifting the powdered sugar before blending helps with smoothness but is not necessary.
NOTE: Based on recommendations from other users of her recipe: 1) I make a double batch so the beaters are totally immersed to avoid air bubbles, 2) I beat the shortening, milk, Dream Whip, and vanilla for 10-15 minutes BEFORE I add the powdered sugar. I refrigerate or freeze leftover icing.
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This is an idea from Rae of BlakesCakes that I have used with great success:
"I often ice with a 50/50 mixture of homemade buttercream and canned cream cheese icing so that the cake can stay at room temp for long periods.

LOL . . . I voted but after reading the whole post I would change it to "you are crazy!" I have a 3 1/2 year old and a 7 month old and can barely get my stuff done, but to be IN the wedding, and for their to be THAT many cupcakes, and THAT many different flavors, etc. I'd ask the bride to hire some help for you! Don't mean to worry you, but I'm stressed just reading it!

You are crazy! I like that in a person! Another thing I did not notice as I skimmed through - make sure you get quality baking cups. The crappy ones collapse or pull away or both and that ruins the look!

I made 101 cupcakes and a large cake for a graduation party this past weekend. I agree with many above - first of all the underbed storage box is GREAT. Someone who is not 9months pregnant should lift it because it's awkward but its perfect for a lot of cupcakes.

For box mixes it's about 24/25 full size cupcakes per box. I made them on Friday for a Sunday party.
Using the 1M tip for a rose swirl is super fast and everyone loves the look. I decorated on Saturday afternoon using a crusting buttercream.
Make your buttercream up to a week ahead and put in the refrigerator. Store the buttercream by making a log shape onto a long piece of plastic wrap and then put that in a ziplock. Then each 'log' can go into a disposable icing bag (cut the end of the plastic wrap free)

I thought that part of my project would take much longer than it did. The decorations on my cupcakes (mini graduation caps) is what took me the longest.

Good luck and Happy Baby!
Theresa

Uhoh! Adjusting my previous post! Just making some cupcakes for 4th of July --and using Pillsbury Stars and Stripes Funfetti so i can make those Bakerella snowcone cupcakes. The "new" box size yields 18 cupcakes not 24! Yeah, thank you Pillsbury

So how did it go?