I think the flowers could have been pretty, but i dont like how they were arranged.

I don't think it will ruin your reputation, but they had no right to do that. I feel this is all the bride's fault! She never told you about flowers. And if she wanted a topper from you, how did she end up with one from the florist too? Adding flowers is one thing, but to actually remove the monogram topper the bride obviously ordered made me mad! You should have asked the bride why she ordered a topper she never planned on using!

I liked you cake much better. Who do I feel the worse for here? Those poor SINGLE ROSES stuck in the side of the cake. I'm suprised they did't wilt from embarrasment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It turned out ok, but topper was was too big, and those poor roses!

At least the bride liked it, or at least she said she did. Makes us all think long and hard what needs to be in the contract!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for sharing you nightmare with us.

I agree with messybaker-as long as the bride is happy, then life is good. Even if those roses looked ridiculous!

I think the bride should have apologized for herself as well as for the flower lady. Praise the lord you have the naked cake pic for your portfolio. It's 2 totally different cakes, I wonder which one the bride actually had in mind? Did she say she actually wanted a floral topper as well as a monogram--or instead? Well, I'm sure it tasted great, anyway.

I know it's possible for miscommunication to occur. When I was married, I only had 50 guests and the reception place did the food and cake. She gave me a choice of 5 styles of decoration and I had the florist prepare a cake topper which went well with the cake. But it never occured to me that a cake for 50 people would have pillars, so there was a blank space that would have looked great with some flowers--it was even scored with an x to mark the center.

Oh well, I didn't care what the cake looked like because I really wanted a fondant cake and they told me THAT would cost $5 per person extra! But it tasted great and we ate the top tier when we came home from our honeymoon!

My heart goes out to you. You know, you just never can tell what people are going to do! They get crazy ideas. Your cake was simply smashing without the flowers.

I loved your original cake. Very simple and beautiful. I did one a couple of weeks ago that was even plainer (no scrolls ) with a rose on the top out of gumpaste in white on white. It was what the bride ordered and what the bride wanted.

I might have been tempted to stay until the reception and guard the cake. And if she had tried to massacre my cake things might have gotten ugly.

Put your picture in your porfolio. It's gorgeous!

The original was so lovely and elegant! If I were the bride and knew what it looked like before I'd be furious with the florist!

I am glad that she at least called you to apologize for the poor treatment you recieved!

That person could not have known what she was doing, it makes your beautiful cake look over-decorated. I know you felt truly crushed.

ok, I think your cake is beautiful and am so glad you got good pics before the flower B got ahold of it.

I think that if the roses weren't there, just the daisies, it would have probably been nice. Those roses are just way too big for your cake! They must have been stuck in pretty far down into your cake not to fall off.

The thing that is most disturbing to me is how that lady treated you. how rude and unprofessional!

ah well, another wedding, another lesson-learned

Your original cake was absolutly beautiful and needed nothing else. I think this is a good example of what I have been noticing in cake decorating lately. Old school techniques (tons of large flowers stuck in at odd angles covering the true beauty of the cake) meeting head on with the modern clean look we are going for today. A good friend of mine called me all excited Saturday moring she was out yard seliing and came across a house that had two tables full of the white scrolly stairs and scalloped separator plates, I thanked her for thinking of me and then later I explained to her that as a cake style that is out of fashion and the trend is to have clean designs that show off the cake itself not how much plastic stuff you can add to it. Here's my funny? story about miscommunication. I recreated one of the Martha Stewart wedding cakes for a wedding. it was a pink and brown 4 tiered cake that was in one of her Wedding magazines about 3 years ago. The cake in the magazine did not have a topper but the bride decided that she wanted a fondant bow on top in pink. (like the one you can buy premade from Wilton) so I made the bow and it was beautiful. I went to set up the cake at the country club, while the wedding was going on about 20 miles off site. when my husband and I arrived to set up the cake there was a cake topper on the cake table with no explanation. So, I assumed (bad idea) that someone had changed their mind and so I put the cake topper on and took the bow back home with me, It was the one with the couple in all white ceramic facing each other with two tall clear plastic posts behind them with white silk flowers dripping down and lots of lace around the bottom. needless to say it did not go with the cake. I took a picture of it with the alien topper I wish I had done what you did and took a picture of it with the original topper on it. On Monday I called the Mother of the bride to find out how everything had gone and she said it was beautiful and all the good stuff we as cake decorators want to hear, and then she said "the only thing we were disappointed in was the cake topper", I really didn't know what to say at first, then I explained to her about the bow, finding that topper on the table, blah blah blah. she called the country club and this is what had happened someone had dropped the topper off at the office, there was a smaller wedding going on at the same time and that topper was actually for the other wedding. the other bride ended up not having a topper on her cake. fortunately my bride was not upset, they were long standing customers and contined to order cakes from me until we moved. I hope you got a laugh out of this I do now when I think about it but it has taught me to ask questions if I am in doubt!
Glad to be a part of this awesome cake community

I think your cake was gorgeous and didn't need any additional adornment. The flowers on the table look nice. However, the flowers placed on the tiers look like they're on steroids. They are way too big for the cake. The wedding coordinator should have done just that, coordinated the design with you.

Rachmakescakes, you mention a cake lifter in your post. Exactly, what is a cake lifter?
I thought your cake was beautiful! Too bad those flowers were so gawdy!

well.. you delivered a beautiful cake. The so called florist shoulda been sued. But life is short... don't spend another ounce of energy worrying about it.

your beautiful cake went from the Drysdales to the Beverly Hillibillies.