I have posted this cake about 15 million times for different questions. Tomorrow is the big day.
In the Martha Stewart Weddings book, she said to use floral foam for the flowers, with a cake plate on top, and then the next tier of cake. So basically, from the bottom up it would be:
1. Bottom layer of cake
2. Masonite Board
3. Plastic Drip Pan
4. Floral foam and roses
5. Cake plate
6. Next cake tier.

I am scared to death. It seems so precarious. The floral foam is also soft, and I am afraid it will collapse. But they said that is how Wendy Kromer did it...has anyone else done it this way?

You need to support the tiers with dowels or pillars just like you would any other tiered cake so that the tiers don't crush each other. I can't imagine doing a cake with floral foam in between and not doing something to support them. HTH

Well, the cakes have doweling, not the foam, though....

Ok, I see what you're saying...hmmm...well, in thinking about it I still can't see how it can be constructed without dowel supports. If you have cake plates and pillars that would be the easy way out. Otherwise, I'm guessing maybe you could put a few dowels coming up from the foam to give some support to the top tier. The dowels would only need to come up as far as you'd need them to without being seen. Does that make sense? IDK Have you asked someone like Leah or Indideby? They'd probably have a good idea about it.

I have done a cake like this many times, but have never set it up that way. I would be afraid it would collapse the way you described. I have done it many ways. I used the wilton tall tier stand, and I have done it with plates and pillars, and I usually use the plate with the larger pegs that go down thru the cake, and it leaves a 4" space to add flowers in between each tier. You never see the pillars anyway, and really you don't even have to put the flowers in foam, I just cut a paper doily to fit the space and stick the roses in the space. It really depends on far ahead of time you set up, but its worked fine for me, the roses lasted pretty good. I keep the roses in water and then cut them and place on the cake at the venue. I usually set a cake up a hour or two before the event. They have always lasted o.k. but if your worried they will wilt you can still put the floral foam in there.

I have done different versins of that cake a lot of times, but I do it my way, not anyone else's!

Years ago when I was using Wilton stuff (pre-SPS discovery) I'd put in dowels, then the crystal plate assembly - one plate down, pillars, one plate up. The crystal plates by Wilton do have a lip on them. I even used floral foam once or twice and if you don't get it very wet, then it won't drip. Dowel the cake as usual.

After discovering SPS, I just use the multi-piece legs and create 3" of airspace that I lay flowers into. The flowers will last for hours and hours without the floral foam and water. I work usually with a florist who has flowers that are safe. I still won't push the stems into the cake, but just lay them sideways into the airspace.

I have also done that cake several times using the Tall Tier stand. I jut hate the Tall Tier. It's very wonky.

IMHO, there's no need for the floral foam. The water in the foam adds unnecessary weight and frankly the very high risk of water leaking over the plate and onto your cake - which would ruin the cake.

have to agree with leah & debi here. i did a very similar cake to this one last year with lots of flowers between the layers. i just laid them on the cake to fill in the space and cover up the pillars. no foam and they still looked good several hours later when the cake was cut. wish i had a pic to post, it was my most beautiful cake to date. unfortunately i was in the wedding and too frazzled to remember my camera! -rookie mistake!

OK, thanks everyone! I am going to try to find a store that has some pillars I can use instead.

I knew I should have thought twice before doing to martha stewart method. I always screw up when I follow her directions.

martha likes to go around the block to get next door. i just used plain, cheap, push-in pillars that go right into the wilton plates. easy peasy. ya lose a little cake but no dowling.

Is it all roses? Hydrangeas will loose some loft around here but if they were doing hydrangeas I'd just apply them as most last minute as possible without un-nerving anyone. I mean an hour in advance of guests arriving--and bridelette et al would know this in advance too.

Tell me this cake ain't outside.

Well, I am back! I just did the cake like Martha sadi because I didn't have time to get pillars, etc. And by some miracle, it survived!

I had set the darn thing up at a retaurant, and after I finished, the host walks in and was like "Do you recognize any of these guests?"
I was like "No."

We quickly came to realize that the manager had put us in the wrong room! I was so freaking out. I had to take the darn thing apart and reset it up. At first I said "I am sorry, but I am not moving this cake. You need to move their party to another room, and have ours in here."

Yeah, that didn't happen. I did have two strong men carry it for me, though!

This picture is abysimal, but the cake was very pretty in person. Thank you everyone!

Summer

great job! it's lovely

Georgeous cake!! And great job!! Ok, now I'm confident to give this method a try...I have the same type of cake to do for a wedding this coming weekend and for the life of me I can't find any place that has the plates/pillars. So good to know the Martha Stewart way does work..."it's a good thing"