First Two Tier Cake!

Business By annagon Updated 5 Dec 2016 , 7:22pm by Pastrybaglady

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annagon Posted 1 Dec 2016 , 2:52am
post #1 of 8

I'm making my first two tier cake this week. It's for a wedding to go along with 150 cupcakes. It's a 6" tall 8" cake and a 4" tall 6" cake, frosted in simple white SMBC with a bead border and cascading roses from the top down one side. I keep going back and forth between whether I should stack the tiers and add the flowers and the border at home or at the venue. The venue is about 40 minutes away and I'd have to take highways. I'm obviously worried about caketastrophes in the car if I complete it at home but I'm also worried that the SMBC will be soft by the time I get to the venue making the cakes harder to handle and making stacking more tricky. Also concerned with whether I'll have any issues piping the bead border on the second tier or placing the flowers (theyll be prepped in advance) at the venue. At least at home I have more options in case things go awry.  I'm using smoothie straws to stack, though I also bought 12" Wilton plastic dowels so I can stick one of those through the whole cake, though they seem flimsier than the straws generally. Suggestions? Am I overthinking this?

7 replies
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Pastrybaglady Posted 1 Dec 2016 , 5:50am
post #2 of 8

You'll be fine stacking the cake, adding the bead border and bringing it to the venue - just make sure the cake is COLD, put it in a box and cover the box with some blankets for insulation and you should have no problems. Attach the flowers at the venue.

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kakeladi Posted 2 Dec 2016 , 10:21pm
post #3 of 8

Yah, I agree w/pastrybaglady.   Most people overthink their 1st try at something :)     Just be very sure your cake is on a board at least 12 or 14" in diamitor to give it stability.  Boxing it also will help. 

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annagon Posted 2 Dec 2016 , 10:50pm
post #4 of 8

I'll have it on a 1/2" 10" drum (I don't like when too much of the board is sticking out and I'm not sure yet what the display table will look like).  I've got a bankers box that should be a near perfect fit when vertical (I'll pad the sides just in case).  I'll cover that with a blanket and maybe not put the heat in the car on (it'll be approx. 45-50 degrees tomorrow).  It doesn't help that I'm a super nervous driver (live in the city and don't own a car).  Eeek!

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Pastrybaglady Posted 2 Dec 2016 , 11:04pm
post #5 of 8

Totally feel your anxiety, but breathe and drive slowly - you'll do fine! Good luck and let us know how it comes out! 

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annagon Posted 5 Dec 2016 , 4:15pm
post #6 of 8

I survived...and so did the cake!  The cake fit perfectly in the file box so that when I put the lid on it came up right to the cake drum.  I then put that on the floor of the front seat and pushed the seat all the way forward so it was pretty much jammed in there, and I drove all the way with the window down (it was in the 40s).  I made the top flower arrangement at home and placed it on the cake to see what it would look like, but in the rush to leave I forgot to take it off before placing it on the box.  Half the trip the road was pretty bumpy and I just about had a heart attack worrying that the topper would slide off and damage the side of the cake.  Luckily it was heavy enough and the the fondant ball that the flowers were in was just tacky enough to stick to the plastic I had placed between the flowers and the cake, so it didn't budge.  The cake is vanilla buttermilk with vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream and raspberry preserves.  The decorations are fresh flowers (all washed, stems wired, wrapped in floral tape, then covered in saran wrap and placed in a wide straw before inserting, and customer was told to scrape off butter cream touching flowers just in case).  The buttercream got a little bit streaky for some reason.  I didn't use the hot knife method, just smoothed with a scraper after chilling and a Viva paper towel and my kitchen wasn't warm at all.  Below is a photo.  There a few bumps when setting up (the cake had to be moved a few times), but hopefully they were things only I noticed.

[postimage id="5848" thumb="900"]

 

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Itsabakerslife Posted 5 Dec 2016 , 7:16pm
post #7 of 8

Wow! Its gorgeous. Look absolutely delicious. Trust me, only cake decorators themselves see the flaws in their cakes. Even other cake decorators don't see them. I'm glad it turned out good for you! I made my first two tier wedding cake last week, and was terrified of structural difficulties but it turned out okay! 

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Pastrybaglady Posted 5 Dec 2016 , 7:22pm
post #8 of 8

It looks great! Congrats on your successful delivery, it's always a harrowing experience.

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