Do I think you could do the cake and get it done in time? Yes. But I'd be asking myself the question of whether I want to devote that much time, during the holidays, to making this cake for just 20 people. Not to mention the stress that will come along with it. I get the feeling that part of you would like the challenge of making the cake, but at another time; and that you want to give yourself permission to not make it. Go with what the previous poster said about telling them no. And, you have already made plans for the holidays, even if it's to just kick back and put your feet up and relax, those are plans too. You aren't obligated to make a last minute cake, during the holidays, just because someone wants it.

It is ok to say no.

I don't think it's reasonable of him to expect you to pull a cake out of your hat at short notice over the holiday period, and for new year's day no less! Just tell him you'll be too busy to make it at such short notice.

I get why people got their hackles up over your wording. Although you may not have meant it that way, using the words 'I'm a perfectionist so mine would be a lot cleaner than that one' does imply that you think the original was 'rough' or poorly executed, even though you liked the design of it. It can easily be taken as an indirect put-down of the original cake-maker's skills. And really, stating it like that was unnecessary if all you meant to say was "I'd like to make a more detailed version of it, which will take longer to make". Perhaps to save offence you could just delete that paragraph from your post?

I really like the original cake

I'm the baker of the cake in question and I'd like to say that in my description I do mention that it was made for my son for his birthday. It was not sold, so no copyright issue was broken.

Thanks to kelleym (and others) who stuck up for me!

Yes, my feeling were hurt when I read this post originally, but the OP has since apologized. This was one of the very first cakes I did, so while it might not be as "clean" as it could have been, I was very pleased with it and my son loved it!

Ouch, this thread hurts to read. The original cake was adorable, but honestly I don't think she meant to be rude, her words just came out wrong. Some people on here are a bit touchy

i love love love the original cake, i think it was nicely done..especially if it was one of your first cakes!!! amazing job..my cakes cant touch this one...as for making the cake in time, if you feel that guilty not making the cake, then make it...do the best job that you can do...like you said its for a family member...and a sixteen year old!! do you really think they are going to say " this cake isnt perfect, wish you would of bought me one from the store!!" absolutely not, every kid loves a specialty cake, hands down, whether it is perfect or not...maybe the perfectionist in you will be stressing over the detailing but i think that will all go away when everyone tells you how amazing it looks...GOOD LUCK and enjoy your holidays!!!

Here's a link to the original cake I got the inspiration for mine from:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chocolatemoosecakes/3456509587/in/set-72157623402504918/

Thanks kelleym (and everyone else) for the positive comments!

Thank you moderators!!!

My suggestion would be - plan! Good planning is required for any cake, big or small. If you sit down and make couple of figurines and sketch the background for the cake itself ahead of time, may be make the bomb out of RKT or foam ahead of time too, than it wont take too much time for you to put it all together pretty fast.

Since I keep seeing this mentioned, I asked my DH who is a copyright and trademark attorney and he says that you don't have to sell the cake for there to be copyright infringement. Selling it probably makes you more likely to be sued, though.

copyrighted character pans are clearly labeled for home use only and not to be used to sell. Buying the cake does not buy the licensed that allows for reproduction.

To answer the actual question, you should be asking yourself- If the cake doesn't go perfectly, if the recipe fails, the gumpaste doesn't dry, if the writing bleeds, if etc etc etc happens, will it be worth it to be working on this cake during the holiday season and stressing out about it all week?
Because the cake isn't that difficult (but cute!), but many cakes can turn into "too difficult" if things don't go as exactly as planned, and Murphy's Law says....
If I were a full fledged business, I would be doing the cake, there is no reason not to. BUT, if I was a SAHM or working mom who does this for a hobby, there is NO WAY I would be doing it.