I have been decorating for about a year and a half now and I really think I'm ready to do a wedding cake. But I haven't had any takers. How did all of you get your name out as wedding cake decorators?

Simply by word of mouth! Just start dropping hints to friends when they mention your cakes that you are just "hoping" for someone to come along and want a wedding cake. If you appear confident in your abilities, they will feel confident about referring people to you.
Also, you could do a nice "dummy" wedding cake to "share" with your friends, saying you just "wanted to try one out for fun," and they will get the hint that you can do it! It'll happen!.....
Good luck!

Find someone with more faith in you than you have in yourself. My sister wanted me to do her cake knowing that I had never even made a simple tier cake. She also wanted calla lilies when I had never worked with gumpaste.
It wasn't a paid cake, they bought the stuff I needed and that was it but I have one in my pictures now in case someone wants to see what I can do.

I was really glad that it wasn't a paid cake, it took some of the pressure off, my sister wasn't going to freak if it didn't turn out quite right.

My first wedding cake was for someone I worked with, the year 1963. Good thing I gave it to her as a gift because it was AWFUL! The tiers were crooked, iced in light blue, they were leaning so badly her mother put wood blocks under the board to straighten it and then stuck her fingers in the icing, so she covered the marks with deep Fucshia Azaleas. Yikes.

I think the best way to get your name out there is to donate cakes to your church or school functions. Make a cake for the police or fire departments. It may take awhile but people will begin to see your work and ask "who did the cake?" and there you go!

My first wedding cake was for very close family friends and our kids grew up together so I offered to make the wedding cake for a gift. It took me 6 months of reading investigating and asking questions it was my first fondant cake and have several different cut out leaves that had to be veined and I had to figure out how to make candy clay strawberries. I couldn't believe she chose that one it was a challange with all the things I had to learn with it its the one with the sugar pot filled with strawberries in my photos on pg 3 with the checked table cloth. After that I new I could do wedding cakes.

Well I have been doing cakes for about a year now and I have only done one wedding cake. I offered my cousin, who got married in September of this year, to do her cake. Let me tell you, I will never do another cake for that side of my family again!!!! It was a horrable experience. I thought the cakes looked great, but they sure didnt to say the least. The pic is in my photos, if anyone wants to look at it, and feel free to give me your honest opinion. Anyway I ended up taking a big cut on money and am still hearing about it to this day.

Anyway, I would love to be able to do more wedding cakes, but like you I am having a hard time getting my name out there. I hope the suggestions from the great people here will help us both.

Good luck and remember, dont cry over spoiled cake, just eat what you messed up!!

countrygal Your cake is Awesome for a first wedding cake. My sister would love your cake she loves angels. I see nothing wrong with your cake.I have one in the works for nieces friends wedding. My niece is paying and am going to cut her a deal. Only problem is for Hispanic wedding which are usually large. I don't think I can do a large cake yet.

P.S. sometimes family can be a big PAIN. Don't worry it was great

kaychristensen,
Thanks for the complement. I noticed that you asked in the photo comment how I done the work on the sides. The angels are plastic, they were from an old set that my grandmother bought from Wiltons several years ago. The scroll work on the sides was done with a scroll press. I just pressed it on the cake to get the outline and then used star tip 18 and went over the outlines one star at a time. On the smaller cakes I filled in the space between the scrolls and angels with a few stars to make them look fuller.

Thanks again, and good luck with your upcomming wedding cake.

OMG that is beautiful for your first cake they must have been jealous.

My first wedding cake was for my BIL and SIL back in 2003!! I was so nervous but confident. I was told by someone who was teaching a wedding cake class that I took that cornelli lace and dotted swiss would not look right for a wedding cake. Pretty much everyone who has seen that cake up close and personal and here on CC begs to differ! It goes to show that even some professionals get it wrong!

It will come even if it is for a small anniversary. The big one will come and rest assured we'll be waiting for the picture!


Amy

I can't imagine why they didn't like it. It's absolutely gorgeous! Some people....

I am in the process of working on my first wedding cake right now! My sil is getting married next week and asked me to do the cake. She told me it was going to be simple. I laughed when I saw the cake that she chose. It is NOT simple!
It is a fall themed cake and everything, nuts, fruit, leaves, etc is handmade.
I dug in and did a practice cake last month, now I am moving on to the real thing.
The fun part of all of this is that her fiance's family is from the west and her family lives in the east. She is having a big open house and a big reception. I have been asked to do a cake for both. WOOHOO! I get two cakes out of one wedding.
This will be great for experience.
The practice cake is in my photos.

I was asked to do a wedding cake at the beginning of the year but I don't have a licensed kitchen and the couple was doing their reception at a public place so I couldn't do it.
You need to start with family and go from there!

My first wedding cake was for my first ever customer. I work with her at the Hospital. She had ordered 2 Chocolate Cakes for Valentine's Day and loved them. So, when it came time for her wedding she asked if I would make her Wedding Cake. I was very honored

Lazy_Susan

I have a large family so my first wedding cake was for a relative. It works out nice - I haven't had any problems with finding taste testers for my sample cakes!

My first wedding cake is in Feburary and I am so excited but nervous also because two of the tiers have to be sugar free and I am hoping to find a good sugar free white cake . It is for my cousins son, we both took classes together but she ask me to do it because they will be so busy and she is buying everything I need to do the cake, I am making the cake as a gift to the couple . They will be a lot of people there so I am hoping maybe this might just get me some more orders I hope I am doing the cake on page 5 of the Wilton wedding cakes A Romantic Portfolio book, as of right now it will be burgundy and ivory if they dont change their mind again I hope it turns out really nice I will post pictures too.

My first get was from a friend of a friend. We were talking about cakes and my friend said oh Amy does cakes she should do your sisters cake. I almost fell off the chair and did not know what to say, but I managed to get up the courage to say no problem I will do it. I was of course shaking the whole time. It came out beautiful and was delivered without a hitch. I was proud of it. It was the one in my gallery that is all basketweave with royal icing daisy's. I hope it will get easier with time to do them, but I think there will always be a little fear for me.

countrygal7782, I can't see why they were not happy with the cake. what could they complain about? The cake was beautiful and so were the flowers.
My first wedding cake was for my neice, I finished class Nov 2005 and her wedding was May of 2006. Then a friend of my father asked me to do hers in June 2006. They are in my photo's Felicia is my neice.
I felt very honored with the 2nd cake for Daria, because they actually went to a few bakeries before they came to me. They chose me because of the taste of my cake samples. When the bride saw the cake she cried. After everyone was served the guests started getting up to get another slice. They really enjoyed it.

My first was for my sister. I had started taking the Wilton classes because my husband's cousin had asked me to do her groom's cake. I told her no at first...I don't know how! But she really wanted one of my "delicious" cakes. So I started taking the Wilton classes just so I wouldn't humiliate her or myself. A couple of weeks before her wedding, my sister got engaged, and asked me during the same phone call to be her Matron of Honor, and to make her wedding cake! I really wanted to tell her no, too! I was so scared! So I practiced. And practiced. The people at my church probably all gained 5 lbs from eating my cakes. My sister's cake turned out looking really beautiful, and since her wedding in August I've done 5 more weddings, and have one more booked for Jan. 1. I guess everything happens for a reason! I tell my husband's cousin that all this is her fault!

My first two and only wedding cakes were gifts to the bride. I was asked several times at the receptions if I did cakes for other people. I don't sell cakes but, I could have gotton a few orders if I did sell them. Word of mouth works great too as others have suggested.
Judy

Thanks everybody! I don't have any relatives that are even close to getting married, so I guess I'll just keep spreading the word! I am also taking a week long course on wedding cakes and fondant in January. I am super excited for the class and having an actual mommy vacation, but nervous too, because I will be leaving my 3 kids for the first time.

Thanks again!

I am always nervous about leaving my three kids. I have to admit it is really fun when I come home. The kids are falling over themselves to get hugs and kisses. Good luck with your class in January!

Thanks! I am totally excited and I know the kids will be fine with my husband, but you know it's not the same as when they are with their mom. I know where everything is and who has what on what day, etc!

But I have to look at the big picture! This class will be awesome for my business and I get a vacation!!

i am doing my third wedding cake this weekend the first i ever made was an experement on my part never had done one and a leap of faith from the bride. she was friend of my cousins girlfriend who lives out in the contry and its very hard to get a cake out there, let alone a wedding cake. she was my first wedding order, i have no pictures of it could kick myself but i guess it came out good, because my cousin ordered one next and now i am doing one for a friend of a friend. but the dummy cake and word of mouth is the best way. i got mine through word of mouth.

I haven't done my first wedding cake, yet, but I've done 3 mini wedding cakes for anniversaries and birthdays (in my photos). The first one was a 2 tiered square cake that I made totally crooked....I just wasn't paying attention. I was still really really new. Now, everyone is asking for one of my mini wedding cakes.

I will be doing my nephew's bar mitzvah cake next November. It's a 6 layer, chocolate cake with chocolate medalions and scrollwork on the sides. It's in the Wilton 2007 yearbook. It's one of the reasons that I'm practicing so much.