Only Wants Cake Decorated

Decorating By Limpy Updated 8 Jun 2007 , 9:53pm by melysa

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Limpy Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:04am
post #1 of 27

So this person that was given my name by a friend wants me to decorate a wedding cake. She wants to make the cake herself, as it is her daughters wedding, but she has never baked a cake in her life. I am concerned that three days prior to the wedding she will be bringing the cake for me to decorate. What if the cake is not up to scratch, collapses etc when I begin to decorate. She insists that she wants to contribute to the wedding by making the cake, but as the date is getting closer, I am getting more nervous. How would you handle this?

26 replies
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prterrell Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:11am
post #2 of 27

I would decline this order! Why people think all of a sudden that they can bake a cake just beause their kid is getting married really blows my mind. There's no way I would do this! If someone wants one of my cakes, then I'm doing the cake, baking it and decorating it. Period.

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mrsright41401 Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:13am
post #3 of 27

Absolutely not. Your name goes on that cake, so if it is dry - you get blamed - if it is diseased, you get blamed. That would be a liability issue.

Rachel

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FromScratch Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:21am
post #4 of 27

Ummmm.. yeah. Not so much. I'd respectfully decline the order. Simply tell her that you cannot legally take a cake that you haven't baked in your kitchen and decorate it. Not to mention that you have NO idea what her cake will be like. Is it strong enough to stand up to stacking and torting? This is a problem waiting to happen.

I'm with prterrell.. why people all of a sudden get the betty crocker bug when their kids get married is BEYOND me. Tell her to take the stress off of herself and TRUST you.. the professional.. to take care of the cake.

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luv2cake Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:22am
post #5 of 27

That's an odd request.
I would also decline the order. If she wants to contribute, let her contribute money for a great cake, especially if she's never baked a cake before. Too risky!

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Wendoger Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:23am
post #6 of 27

...hmmmm, yeah, I wouldn't do it.....if they want ya to do it, then do the whole thing....not just decorate it....tell her that you'd want to bake AND decorate....is she trying to cut costs or something maybe????
I know ya said she wanted to 'contribute' but maybe thats her way of gettin' off cheap.... icon_confused.gif

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zoomitoons Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:25am
post #7 of 27

i would say no. i do it all or i do nothing. i would not want my name tied to anything that i did not fully do myself.
Amy

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jesaltuve Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:26am
post #8 of 27

Figure out how to tell her that in order for you to build and decorate, stack, etc you need to bake a special recipe that is made for that type of work. That you can not take the risk in not controlling the baking yourself because too many factors can affect the outcome. The ingredients, the mixing, the oven temp, the time it bakes, etc,. The only way you can take responsibility for creating a cake is doing it completely beginning to end.
Maybe you can suggest that she create a craft as a wedding favor (Martha Stewart has great ideas...tell her to look on the site)LOL!

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jesaltuve Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:26am
post #9 of 27

Figure out how to tell her that in order for you to build and decorate, stack, etc you need to bake a special recipe that is made for that type of work. That you can not take the risk in not controlling the baking yourself because too many factors can affect the outcome. The ingredients, the mixing, the oven temp, the time it bakes, etc,. The only way you can take responsibility for creating a cake is doing it completely beginning to end.
Maybe you can suggest that she create a craft as a wedding favor (Martha Stewart has great ideas...tell her to look on the site)LOL!

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jesaltuve Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:27am
post #10 of 27

oops...didn't mean to send 2x

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angelcakesmom Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:28am
post #11 of 27

Have you already told her you would do it? If so, you need to tell her right away that after careful consideration , that you are just not comfortable decorating a cake that someone else has baked. Maybe you could let her buy the ingredients for the cakes as her contribution. That way she still had something to do with the cake! icon_razz.gif

Good luck!

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CarolAnn Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:33am
post #12 of 27

I'd just tell her that I do the baking AND the decorating. No way I'd decorate a cake the client baked. It's my name going out with that cake. I get the credit or the blame period. What are these people thinking? Maybe she just wants to be able to say she made the cake. Regardless, I'd decline if she insists on doing the baking.

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Biya Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:33am
post #13 of 27

I have been baking forever, just got into the fancy decorating stuff, but anyways there are far too many variables. If the cake is dry thats one thing but how about if its under-cooked and you can't level it properly. Then your decorating is more difficult. Could come out lopsided, could come out burnt around the sides. What if its to soft or light and won't hold up to stacking. OH My Goodness.... I'm getting nervous just thinking of all the things that could go wrong. You can't decorate without a good foundation. And the cake is the foundation! Maybe the mother would consider baking cookies for the dessert table and leaving the cake up to you. I would point out the many ways it would hinder your ability to give her the best cake possible and tell her she just shouldn't take that risk on her daughter's big day.

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Bzer Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:35am
post #14 of 27

It's your reputation going with that cake..I would also say no

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kelleym Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:42am
post #15 of 27

No no no. I did this once and it was a nightmare. I wanted to cry. In fact, I came home and that's just what I did. icon_cry.gif I took a picture of my disaster just to remind myself in case anyone ever asked again.

Making a beautiful cake takes skill and knowledge from the beginning of the process to the end. Even someone who's a GREAT baker and makes delicious cakes, if they've never prepared a wedding cake before, could get in real trouble with a cake of this magnitude.

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gateaux Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:48am
post #16 of 27

I agree with everyone, the liabilities of this venture are too great.

You really need to find a way to make this mom understand that you cannot decorate a cake you are not familiar with. icon_sad.gif

After reading the tread a thought came to mind.
If she wants to bake the cake and serve it that is fine.

I would tell her that you will use cake dummies to decorate with on portion of the cake or the smallest cake being real make for the couple to cut through and eat for pictures. icon_smile.gif That way you get to make a great cake and they get to eat the cake of the non-baker MOB. icon_twisted.gif (scarry!)

I am also wondering about catering rules and laws and about the venu they are using. If it's legal in your state, then let her do it. It would be awful for an inspector to come by and ruin everything if homebaking is not allowed without a licence. thumbsdown.gif

So if it's allowed and the cake is a flops you had nothing to do with it. tapedshut.gif
You cake will look great and everyone might be happy. Well almost everyone. icon_rolleyes.gif

Just a thought!

Good Luck. thumbs_up.gif

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cakejunkie Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:48am
post #17 of 27

Maybe you could suggest that she make a smaller cake like the groom's cake and let you handle the wedding cake. Tell her that you are concerned that if the cake isn't properly baked that it may collapse which would be devastating to the bride on her wedding day! Or perhaps maybe you can talk to the bride and express your concerns and maybe she can talk her mom out of trying to bake.

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indydebi Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:53am
post #18 of 27

No way would I do this.

I'm sure she has typical thinking. She thinks if she takes care of doing the cake, (JUST the cake!) then she is saving money.

The ingredients and the baking time is NOT where the expense is. The time, talent, creativity, talent, skill (did I mention talent?) to decorate it is where the expense is. Not discounting the very correct statements above that discuss the knowledge needed to properly bake and stack a wedding cake ..... this falls into the talent and skill category also!

Pretty much she has asked you to decorate a "dummy" cake and she is providing the dummies. THere are numerous threads on the cost of doing a dummy cake, but I believe the general concensus is that a dummy cake should cost pretty much the same as a "real" cake. Because the icing/decorating it is where the expense is.

She thinks she's saving money because she's providing "most" of the work. That just shows how much she DOESN"T know about this.

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melysa Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 5:13am
post #19 of 27

just a thought....i taught a decorating class recently and people brought their cakes prebaked. it hadnt even crossed my mind that they would arrive in all sorts of conditions. most people have pans that are tapered and the layers are only an inch high. most baked up lopsided and had huge domes which had to be leveled off. any torting on a cake like that is near impossible. mixes come out different than scratch recipes. wedding cakes look best at about 4
high- also , what if the sides or bottoms stick to the pan and she brings you cakes that have crumbled outer edges? so many things to think about...not to mention the liability if someone gets sick...who would carry the blame? i wouldnt do it unless i was there baking with her- but i would only consider that if i was really close to the person.

you can also let her know how many hours and hours and hours it will take to bake one cake layer at a time in her home oven....depending on size, it could easily take an entire day.

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LittleBigMomma Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 5:37am
post #20 of 27

I can only imagine how busy she's going to be anyway. Sure hope she doesn't think that she can bake the cakes in a couple of hours.

melysa is right about the condition of the cake too. What if she made 1" layers? Oh my goodness, this is too risky.

I would have to say, "All or nothing".

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BrandisBaked Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 5:52am
post #21 of 27

I did this once... got the pre-baked cakes to decorate, but it was a friend of mine and I wasn't in business. The cakes were fine, and everything went well - but I would never do that at this point in my decorating career.

I charge just as much to decorate a dummy as a real cake (the money is in the decorating - not the ingredients of the cake) - so this wouldn't make sense for anyone anyway. You should recommend that she contribute in some other way - like helping cover the cost of the cake, purchasing the flowers used on the cake (if there are any) or making a special cake topper. There's got to be something else she can do...

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southrnhearts Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 5:59am
post #22 of 27

I'm sorry ma'am but no I cannot in good conscience put out a product that I didnt entirely do on my own merit. There is too much riding on my
own name as a baker and a decorator, and at this time, I just wouldnt feel comfortable. I hope you understand and thank you for thinking of me.


:end of phone call : icon_cool.gif

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Limpy Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 10:46am
post #23 of 27

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I guess I just needed confirmation that this was really not a good idea. I love the idea of calling the lady & suggesting that she purchase the ingredients/items needed (she doesn't even own a cake pan). I am also going to charge her an additional $25 as it is a three tier cake & I will have to make three cakes.I will call her today,as June 29 is fast approaching. Thanks for all for all of your input.
p.s. Kelleym. In your pictures, which is the cake that the customer made & you decorated?

icon_smile.gif "Accept that some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue"

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kelleym Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 12:35pm
post #24 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by Limpy

p.s. Kelleym. In your pictures, which is the cake that the customer made & you decorated?

icon_smile.gif "Accept that some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue"




oh heck no, it's not in "my pictures" because I don't consider it to be one of "my cakes". I've disowned it. icon_wink.gif But I did post a picture in the thread I had started:
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-119551.html

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breelaura Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 2:40pm
post #25 of 27

Just quote her the same price for decorating her cake as for both baking your own cake and decorating. After all, you're taking additional risk using her cake and that has value, in addition to the fact that the cost of the cake has very little to do with the cost of the, well, cake! (You get what I mean, no?)

So then the choice is easy for her.

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Candy120 Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 5:46pm
post #26 of 27

If she is good enough to bake it, then she should be good enough to decorate. Stand firm and tell her NO way!! I agree with the others that you can quote her the same price and emphasis the fact that she is going to be way too busy with wedding stuff to bake the cake.

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melysa Posted 8 Jun 2007 , 9:53pm
post #27 of 27
Quote:
Originally Posted by kelleym

Quote:
Originally Posted by Limpy

p.s. Kelleym. In your pictures, which is the cake that the customer made & you decorated?

icon_smile.gif "Accept that some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue"



oh heck no, it's not in "my pictures" because I don't consider it to be one of "my cakes". I've disowned it. icon_wink.gif But I did post a picture in the thread I had started:
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-119551.html




oh my word! see? thats EXACTLY what could happen ! icon_eek.gif

nice attempt at a save anyhow kelly!!!

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