Hi there,

I was wondering....how do you all come up with your ideas on making cakes? Sometimes I think I I'm not creative enough. I look at other people's cakes on here and I think to myself, how did they ever design that out of their head?

Can you share your ideas on how you come up with your designs?

Thanks!
Michele

I use invitations for a lot of my inspiration. The most recent cakes in my pictures were done from invitations.

I'm am curious to see responses on this topic! I have to look to others designs and alter them. In my family, my sister was always so creative and came up with all these neat ideas but wasn't able execute them. I, on the other hand was the one able to execute her ideas perfectly but never come up with any on my own.

Sometimes I feel like I have such a "cake block" and let me tell you this story to explain.
This week I have a cake for my sisters 30th bday. They are throwing her and her friend "Joe" a party. My sister sent me and email with ideas...
I like frogs, music notes, and peeps
Joe likes guitars and cars

Now Im a not a sculpture or great cake carver. what am I supposed to do with that??? why cant it just be simple??
any ideas?? lol

I ask for:
- favorite colors
- interests and/or hobbies
- party theme, invitations, decorating fabrics, nursery decor, etc.

And, finally, I ask for a few words describing the recipient's "style" - contemporary, funky, vintage, organized, over-the-top, girly, frou-frou.... you get the idea. Then, for example, if I use flowers, I know whether to use formal looking roses, rolled roses, funky flowers, neat little daisies, etc.

I always browse Cake Central and Flickr for ideas to get me going!

I'm going to be keeping an eye on this topic too! I was just lamenting to my husband that, while I consider myself a fairly creative person, my cakes are so "simple". I've only been doing this a year and a half so maybe the really grand ideas just come from experience?

I want to make pretty cakes, lol!! What I try to do for design is just "google images" for whatever theme. For my Monster High cake (the one I'm most proud of!) I found lots of fun patterns on their website, and the plaid was from a party napkin, I sketched them together and I liked it!

Generally though, I feel like I have trouble coming up with cool designs. I don't like to remake other people's cakes, so as hard as it is... I try not to google cake pictures of whatever I'm trying to make... I do have a Pinterest board where I pin anything (wall paper, fabric, jewelry) I come across that might be a cool patter/color pallet/decoration for a cake...

Aside from browsing cake sites, i am always looking at gift bags, fabric, invitations, sheets of scrapbook paper, if i see something i like while i am out shopping i will pick it up and keep it at home so i have it to go to when needed. I have a mug that i received in a gift basket and has a design on it that i am hoping to translate into a cake at some point.

Those are really good ideas! Thank you. I have a pair of pajamas that are black with tiny pink flowers and green leaves. Every time I wear them I think I would like to do a cake like that. Lol

Happycake, you sound like me! I've done a lot of creative things in other crafts, but for some reason when it comes to cakes I can't think of a thing! I'm not as creative in that area as I'd like to be. I do look at other people's cakes, though, and get some ideas. I may copy the basic design, but I do add my own touches and color to them and make it fit what I think it should for my particular occasion. I really admire and respect those who have the talent to come up with those wonderful and beautiful cakes on the gallery. I'm a hobby baker with no desire to start a business as I'm too old for that, but I do like my cakes to look nice when I make them for friends and family. More importantly, I want them to taste good! Hopefully with practice I'll be able to design some of my own. I love the ideas that so many of you are coming up with regarding using fabric and such for ideas. I hadn't thought of that before, so I'm learning something -- as usual -- on these threads.

I discovered this site whilst looking for ideas. I suck at tweaking designs. I end up thinking too many things. I cannot come up with anything without googling or searching here.

My mind goes blank too. I have to search and look at pictures to come up with something. It just blows me away when I see designs that people have created. I think I would never have been able to come up with that. I am relieved to see others have the same problem. I was feeling like the only one.

I am going to try the fabric idea and invitations.