(These comments are a compilation of posts from cake decorators on the "Sweet Dreams by Tracy" website. You are welcome to copy these comments just please be sure to give credit to the awesome men and women who originally posted these thoughts. Thanks!)
What cake decorators would like you to know. . .
◊ Most grocery store/chain store bakery cakes come in the door of the store frozen in a big box full of a dozen or more. The frosting usually comes in a huge tub and is also usually not made on site. Many, if not all, grocery store cake decorators are required to completely ice and decorate a cake in a matter of minutes whereas the individual cake decorator may take literally hours on one cake. Grocery store/chain store decorated cakes are all about quantity production. There may never be a personal meeting with your decorator.
◊ On the other hand, we shop especially for your order and bake it just for you. We do everything we can to make it exactly the way you want it because this is your perfect day and we are sharing our artwork with you. We meet with you, and sit with you at a consultation and hear you call each other "honey" or watch you hold hands while you look through pictures to choose your cake. We see your faces in our mind's eye the entire time we are working on your special cake!
◊ To make your cake perfect for you, we want to know what your priorities are when it comes to the cake. Are you all about taste and texture and less about presentation? Do you want your cake to be all white or ivory, or do you like the idea of some color on the cake? Do you like a funky, more personalized style or do you prefer a more traditional look? Please check out some websites or magazines for cake pictures and ideas so we as decorators can help you select a cake that fits not only the style of your wedding but also your personalities.
◊ A cake that is very simple in design is not necessarily "easier" to make. A cake that is iced smooth, with no decorations other than a small border and flowers, is deceptively difficult. For one thing, to get that look of quiet simplicity, the buttercream or fondant must be smooth as glass and the edges even and crisp or perfectly rounded with no sign of a seam. There's no room for error, as any bubble or crease will show!
◊ After talking with the brides on the phone or exchanging e-mails, hours spent searching books and the web finding pictures of ideas for the brides to go from, we strive to find the cake design PERFECT for our bride. Then, we pour our heart and soul into our designs, because we want to make you a dream-come-true, perfect wedding cake. In the days before your wedding, approximately 40+ hours are put into just your cake.
◊ The time we spend on cakes isn't just the baking and icing time. It's the hours spent researching and designing a unique creation. The time spent experimenting with boards and supports to make sure your wedding cake doesn't collapse. It’s the extra effort made to get a gumpaste flower arrangement or fondant drapes "just right", the emails and phone calls to make design suggestions and confirm flavors and delivery spots. And, it’s the concern put into transportation, and making sure to select the best route to your party location that's not only speedy but also avoid bumps, hard turns, and crazy drivers.
◊ We worry about the details, so you don’t have to. We take care of the shopping, the mess, baking, decorating, cleaning, mixing the correct colors. We stay up late (sometimes until the wee hours of the morning) decorating the cake... then clean up the mess. We fix all the unforeseen problems. We do all of this, so we can have your perfect cake ready and waiting when the person comes to pick it up -- or leave on time to deliver it.
◊ Using a personal decorator versus a grocery store will be the difference between a pair of flip-flops from a discount store and a pair of designer sandals at the department store. They both keep your feet clean and safe but which ones would wear to a wedding?
◊ As cake decorators, our goal is to please our customers and in the mean time be able to give a little piece of our love of creativity. All the hours, toil, planning and work is done for that very moment the couple lay their eyes on the cake and we know that our cake was a canvas and the finished piece is an expression of ourselves.
◊ Because we put so much of our personal time and effort into your very special one-of-a-kind cake, your feedback means as much to us as the money you pay us. Just a word or two to tell us that you LIKE the cake is like rain on a parched garden sometimes!
◊ When we meet with the bride after the wedding for a return of the equipment and they light our whole room with their smiles, we know then and there... it was worth every moment. Because we succeeded in making her wedding cake a dream come true.
◊ Because of the time and personal attention we spend on each individual cake, an individual cake decorator's cake cost more than a grocery store cake. As a baker, we focus on quality rather than quantity.
◊ If you have a limited budget to spend on a cake then just tell the decorator up front and they will tell you what they can do for you for that amount of money. We all take great pride in our work and we care about what the customer thinks. So we will do our very best to make the cake for your special occasion, well... special!
◊ Of course we are all always looking for ways to save money. For example, a popular wedding trend is to have a smaller wedding cake for display and photos and then have sheet cakes in the kitchen to make up the majority of the servings you need. Please, please... don't order your beautiful wedding cake from an individual cake decorator and then plan to serve sheet cakes from a grocery store or chain store. You must realize that the cake decorator's reputation is on the line with every wedding cake she/he does. They depend on word-of-mouth for new customers. If a person at your wedding sees your beautiful cake, asks who made it, is given the cake decorator's name, and then receives a piece of previously frozen, icing from a tub, decorated in 5 minutes sheet cake from a grocery store... they don't know that this is not the same cake. If you think having sheet cakes is the way you need to go, then please ask the person who will do your wedding cake if they can also provide sheet cakes. You can be assured they'll be made with the same individual care as your wedding cake and of course will be just as delicious. Your guests, your friends, loved ones - the ones who come to share your beautiful wedding with you, deserve a great tasting cake.
◊ Brides spend all that money on the dress, music, hotel, dinner, snacks, photographer, etc., and they should not deny themselves a personal, made-with-love wedding cake which will wow the socks off all of the guests, and taste incredible! They deserve to have their wedding day to be perfect, and the cake should be no exception.
◊ Thanks for taking the time to read this. And remember, next time you attend a birthday party or a baby shower or a wedding (or plan one of these yourself) it's definitely more than “just a cake.”