First Wedding Cake Question!

Decorating By Charlotteann Updated 31 Aug 2013 , 8:55pm by Charlotteann

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Charlotteann Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 5:42am
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Hello,  I am going to be making my first wedding cake in a couple of weeks and I am really nervous about it!  The bride picked a  4 tier square cake and the tiers will be 12, 10, 8 and 6 inch cakes.  She wants me to make gumpaste roses and line the base of each tier with roses.  She doesn't want fondant so the flowers will go directly on the buttercream.  I am making over a hundred flowers for this cake and I am concerned that the weight of that many roses might be too heavy and the cake will sink under the weight!  I am using cocktail sticks to attach them to the cake.  I wanted to use the celbud rose cones but it would be very expensive to buy enough to do as many roses as I need.  I really don't want to screw this up and I would appreciate any advice anyone can give! 

26 replies
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The Cake Shoppe Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 6:37am
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I haven't had to do that many full bloom roses before, but I would also be concerned about the weight!  What if you did a support like you would for a heavy topper?  You could cut/use slightly larger cake board squares than what you need and then let your roses rest on the lip of cake board-- possibly placing a few regular drinking straws under the edges for added support?  Someone who has done this design may have a better tip.  Good luck!

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Evoir Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 6:44am
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I make my full rose blooms on wires (18 gauge), and only use GP rose cones. When the rose is done I wrap the wires from the cone and outer petals into a thick strand covered with parafilm, and insert into a straw if its going to stick into the cake. Plug the end with fondant if you need to, and stick directly into the cake.

 

Another shortcut is to build you rose onto a cocktail stick, and then insert the cocktail stick with rose whever you want it on the cake.

 

I'd love to see a pic of your cake when you're done! It's very exciting doing your first weding cake, but you better get cracking on those roses if its really only a few weeks away!!

 

Good luck :-)

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Charlotteann Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 1:50pm
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  Thank you for replying!  WOW, I looked at both of your cakes and they are amazing!!!!  I just started making cakes at the beginning of the year after our son went to college and I needed something to do.  I ended up obsessed with cakes, lol.  My 2 yr old granddaughter thinks she has had 10 birthdays since December!  I spend all of my spare time looking at cakes online, making cakes and trying to learn as much as possible in online classes and ICES.  People seemed really impressed by the cakes and I wasn't sure if they were just trying to be nice but I have had people calling and requesting cakes about every other week!  I told my husband that when somebody calls for a cake its kind of like going to the amusement park....  You get super excited when you find out your going, you get terrified right before the ride and not sure if you really want to do it but then when your done you want to go again! 

  I have started making the gumpaste cones and today I will start making the roses on the cones that have already dried.  The cake she chose is on the front of one of the Wilton wedding cake magazines but they used fondant on the cake and they used 14, 10 and 6 inch tiers so the flowers were not so close to the edge like they will be with mine.  Do you think if I went ahead and bought the celbuds that it would make a huge difference?

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BatterUpCake Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 1:56pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlotteann 

 I told my husband that when somebody calls for a cake its kind of like going to the amusement park....  You get super excited when you find out your going, you get terrified right before the ride and not sure if you really want to do it but then when your done you want to go again! 

^^^^Love this

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Stitches Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 2:20pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlotteann 

 they used 14, 10 and 6 inch tiers so the flowers were not so close to the edge like they will be with mine.  Do you think if I went ahead and bought the celbuds that it would make a huge difference?

I do think you have something to worry about, sorry. Although I'm not familiar with the cake you've mentioned....so hopefully it's less demanding than I'm picturing in my head. Roses go around the complete base of each cake?

 

The best thing I can think of is to attack this from a different angle.....I'd figure out how to have the complete weight of my roses being held at the base of the tier above each cake and not on the top edges of each cake.

 

To avoid putting all the weight on the edges of your cakes (which might break your cakes edges):

 

Wire every rose (yes use styro cone centers to lighten its weight) and dip the wire into chocolate and insert it into tea straws (aprox. 2" long), to harden. Put each cake tier on a 1" Styrofoam base, than frost this with your cakes so you can't tell the difference between where the cake stops and the styro begins. Stack your cakes, etc.. than insert your straws into the styro. base of the tier above each cake. This puts all the flowers weight into the strength of the styro. and not on your top cake edges.

 

I hope that made sense......

 

 

P.S. It's really easy to make your roses a hair too big to fit/balance on that 1" border. As you make them measure each roses size.

 

.

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Charlotteann Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 7:17pm
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Yes, roses go around each tier.  I found someone who did the same cake and posted a pic on here.  It is under "round wedding cakes" and it was posted by angienajjar in Feb. 2007.  Thank you for all of the suggestions and  I appreciate all of the advice! 

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leah_s Posted 11 Aug 2013 , 8:02pm
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Seriously, considering buying the gp roses.  www.avalondeco.com.  They are beautiful and cost very little.  I marked them up like whoa and made money.  And saved time.  They are still handmade, just not by my hands.  

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as you wish Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 12:39am
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A

Original message sent by Stitches

I do think you have something to worry about, sorry. Although I'm not familiar with the cake you've mentioned....so hopefully it's less demanding than I'm picturing in my head. Roses go around the complete base of each cake?

The best thing I can think of is to attack this from a different angle.....I'd figure out how to have the complete weight of my roses being held at the base of the tier above each cake and not on the top edges of each cake.

To avoid putting all the weight on the edges of your cakes (which might break your cakes edges):

Wire every rose (yes use styro cone centers to lighten its weight) and dip the wire into chocolate and insert it into tea straws (aprox. 2" long), to harden. Put each cake tier on a 1" Styrofoam base, than frost this with your cakes so you can't tell the difference between where the cake stops and the styro begins. Stack your cakes, etc.. than insert your straws into the styro. base of the tier above each cake. This puts all the flowers weight into the strength of the styro. and not on your top cake edges.

I hope that made sense......

P.S. It's really easy to make your roses a hair too big to fit/balance on that 1" border. As you make them measure each roses size.

.

This is genius.

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Annabakescakes Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 1:00am
post #10 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by leah_s 

Seriously, considering buying the gp roses.  www.avalondeco.com.  They are beautiful and cost very little.  I marked them up like whoa and made money.  And saved time.  They are still handmade, just not by my hands.  

I second this! I did a similar cake for my own wedding cake and I made a 6, 8, 10, 12 and made buttercream roses with a 103 tip. I had just about no space at all to place them, and they were hanging over the edge. As soon as I can find my camera, I am goin to show you what this is going to look like with the gum paste roses.

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Annabakescakes Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 3:29am
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A[IMG]http://cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3076498/width/200/height/400[/IMG]

Your cake with 1.5" roses. You will want to see how many roses you need by measuring the tier they are sitting on. So an 8" cake needs 19 roses on top, the 10 needs 25 and the 12 needs 32. If you put them around the base, it will need 38. This is an estimate only, but the bare minimum I would make or order. 76, to 114, depending on how many tiers you put them around.

Clearly, a larger rise will hang over and be a completely different look. Really, the 1.5" is a different look than the inspiration pic.

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Charlotteann Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 11:53am
post #12 of 27

That's it but the roses go all the way around each tier!!!!  Thank you!

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carmijok Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 2:39pm
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Maybe I'm not understanding the problem, but gum paste (or even BC) roses are very light.  And if you have enough space between the tiers I don't know why you just can't adhere them with buttercream or RI.  They're just going to be sitting on there, right?  If your buttercream is crusted...and even if it isn't...they shouldn't crush the cake! 

Like I said, maybe I'm not understanding...

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Stitches Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 2:48pm
post #14 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by carmijok 

Maybe I'm not understanding the problem, but gum paste (or even BC) roses are very light.  And if you have enough space between the tiers I don't know why you just can't adhere them with buttercream or RI.  They're just going to be sitting on there, right?  If your buttercream is crusted...and even if it isn't...they shouldn't crush the cake! 

Like I said, maybe I'm not understanding...

Yes, your missing the fact that she only has a 1" border. Which means some of the flowers weight will be sitting on the frosting edge that extends past the cake....no support just frosting. Which is fine while the cake and frosting are cold....but not great once the frosting warms up the flowers can tumble right off the edge.

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lunawhisper0013 Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 2:51pm
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AIt sounds like a structural issue as far as weight and crushing the cake. Maybe use plastic or pvc dowels and covered wood boards to support the weight...and a little dab of buttercream on the back of your flowers should secure them just fine as long as they can settle on the cake/board below it.

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Charlotteann Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 4:17pm
post #16 of 27

I joined ICES and met many wonderful people at the DOS last spring.  One of the ladies gave me her number and told me to call if I ever had any cake questions....so I did!  I emailed her a picture of the cake and she has made the same cake, same size tiers and everything!  She actually invited me to her home and she will teach me how to do it without any worries!!! 

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Annabakescakes Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 4:45pm
post #17 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlotteann 

That's it but the roses go all the way around each tier!!!!  Thank you!

Yeah, duh, I know....SMH.... Excuse me for not having 100 gum paste roses on hand to set up a complete mock cake to show you that a 6,8,10,12 isnt going to look like a 6, 10, and 14. White on White Wedding cake.....Bride wanted a 'Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise replica - only smaller.....design similar to Wilton Wedding Cake Book cover - minus the ceramic topper.....This was done using a 14", 10" and 6 " fruit cake, gumpaste rose,s, dusted in 'superpearl' dust.  A total of 82 roses in 3 different sizes used to complete this cake.  Bride is thrilled!!!!

Yes, I did my own wedding cake! Saved a fortune, but was still putting roses on it with curlers in my hair 15 minutes before I was supposed to walk down the aisle! All Buttercream.

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Stitches Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 5:26pm
post #18 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by Charlotteann 

I joined ICES and met many wonderful people at the DOS last spring.  One of the ladies gave me her number and told me to call if I ever had any cake questions....so I did!  I emailed her a picture of the cake and she has made the same cake, same size tiers and everything!  She actually invited me to her home and she will teach me how to do it without any worries!!! 

Good luck! Don't forget to pay yourself for all that work.

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Charlotteann Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 5:44pm
post #19 of 27

I apologize,  I didn't have my glasses on and I thought it was a picture of a real cake you had stored on your camera.   I really do appreciate you doing that and all of the help from everyone! 

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Charlotteann Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 5:44pm
post #20 of 27

Thank you!

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Annabakescakes Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 6:09pm
post #21 of 27

A

Original message sent by Charlotteann

I apologize,  I didn't have my glasses on and I thought it was a picture of a real cake you had stored on your camera.   I really do appreciate you doing that and all of the help from everyone! 

you're welcome.

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ivenusca Posted 12 Aug 2013 , 7:13pm
post #22 of 27

This is what I would do:  if you are worried about roses being too heavy for the edge of the tier, place a cake circle on top of the tier, the same size as the cake.  For example, for the 8 inch cake, place an 8 inch circle on top of the cake.  Cover with buttercream.  Place dowels in between for support.

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Annabakescakes Posted 15 Aug 2013 , 5:45am
post #23 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by ivenusca 

This is what I would do:  if you are worried about roses being too heavy for the edge of the tier, place a cake circle on top of the tier, the same size as the cake.  For example, for the 8 inch cake, place an 8 inch circle on top of the cake.  Cover with buttercream.  Place dowels in between for support.

Except that would really look stupid come serving time. 

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Charlotteann Posted 31 Aug 2013 , 5:18pm
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A[IMG]http:[B]//cakecentral.com/content/type/61/id/3090707/width/200/height/400[/IMG[/B]]

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Charlotteann Posted 31 Aug 2013 , 5:19pm
post #26 of 27

AFinally done! Thank you for all of the help and tips ladies!

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Charlotteann Posted 31 Aug 2013 , 8:55pm
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