How Much Wedding Cake do I Need? 5 Things to Consider.
There is no easy answer to this question, and I am not going to lie to you and tell you that I have a magic answer. This is probably one of the most asked question that I get, so I thought that I would try to shed some light on the thought process behind choosing how much wedding cake you should order.
There is no easy answer to this question, and I am not going to lie to you and tell you that I have a magic answer. This is probably one of the most asked question that I get, so I thought that I would try to shed some light on the thought process behind choosing how much cake you should order.
Photo: Ashton Kelley Photography, Venue: Antrim 1844
The first thing to consider, is probably the most obvious, how many guests are you planning to have at your wedding? When ordering a cake 6 months or more out from your wedding date, you won’t have an exact number of guests. But you should at least have an idea of how many people you think will attend your wedding. A good rule of thumb, when trying to figure out your guest count is to plan that 20% of the people that you invite won’t be able to attend. So if you’re inviting 150 people, you can safely predict that you will have about 120 attendants. Unless, of course, you are super popular, and can’t imagine anyone missing your big day.
Photo: Snow Drop Photography
Second thing to consider, are you having any other desserts? A big trend right now is to have a dessert table with a selection of small desserts for your guests to choose from. If you are having a dessert table, than you probably don’t need to have a slice of cake for every guest. Chances are that some of your guest will opt for the dessert table instead of cake. If the cake is your only dessert, then I would plan on having a slice of cake for all of your guests. The last thing you want is to not have enough cake for your guests.
The third consideration, do you plan on saving the top tier of your cake? When planning out how many servings your wedding cake should be you need to take into account that you won’t be serving your top tier. A typical 6 inch round top tier serves about 14, so you would need to add those servings into the other tiers of your cake.
Number 4 is something that most people don’t think about. How is your cake being served? There are usually two ways your cake can be served. A Cake Station: This is where your venue cuts up the cake and puts it on a table so the guests can help themselves. With this option, you can usually get away with less cake, because not everyone is going to want cake. Usually at this point of the night, the party is in full swing, and some people will choose to continue dancing, than eating cake.
The other option is having the cake plated and served to your guests at their table. In this case you would more than likely want to have a slice for each person. You don’t want Uncle Bob to not get his slice of cake, no matter how annoying be might be.
The final consideration is the design of your cake. If you are having a wedding for 150 people, but want a huge cake that would feed 300, it is possible, but you might not what all that extra cake. In that case the use of Styrofoam tiers would be recommended. That way you can get the look that you want, without all the extra cake. Unless you really like cake, it’s okay, I don’t judge. The opposite is also possible, if you are having a 300 person wedding, but don’t have a budget for a huge cake, or maybe that’s just not your thing, sheet cakes can be used to give you the extra servings that you need at a lower price point.
The magic answer to the question, how much cake do I need is not an easy one. My best advice is to work with your cake artist , and provide them with as much information as possible so they can recommend the best options for your wedding that will not only make your guests happy, but you as well. To inquire about a wedding cake consultation please fill out my contact form to get the ball rolling. I would love to create an amazing cake for you.
Blue Lace Cakes, LLC is based out of Gaithersburg, Maryland and specializes in custom designed wedding and special occasion cakes. Serving all of the Washington DC Metro Area, Baltimore and Frederick.
How to choose your wedding cake style
When it comes to wedding cakes, there is no right or wrong decision to choosing your style. Gone are the days where a white wedding cake with fancy piping and buttercream flowers, and those crazy cake risers are the expected. Today’s couple shouldn’t be afraid to embrace their own style and showcase that in their wedding cake. So, how do you know what your style is, and how do you translate that into a cake?
When it comes to wedding cakes, there is no right or wrong decision to choosing your style. Gone are the days where a white wedding cake with fancy piping and buttercream flowers, and those crazy cake risers are the expected. Today’s couple shouldn’t be afraid to embrace their own style and showcase that in their wedding cake. So, how do you know what your style is, and how do you translate that into a cake?
In the wedding planning process, choosing your cake should be done after you choose a venue, your dress/attire, and your flowers. All those things can help you define your design for your wedding cake.
You may not even realize it, but one of the very first wedding planning decisions you make, choosing your wedding date, can be the spring board to the design and feel of your whole wedding. If you love the pastel colors of spring blooms, you probably shouldn’t get married in November. Whereas, if you love rich rustic, earthy tones, a fall wedding would probably be ideal. The season you get married in will impact a great deal of your wedding style.
Moody Semi-Naked Cake with fresh florals and fruit
Your venue, whether it’s a country club, ball room, Vineyard, Distillery, a Barn, or anywhere in between is the next biggest influence on your cake style. If you have always dreamed of a rustic semi-naked wedding cake, chances are you won’t be having your reception in a grand ballroom. If you are a more traditional couple a country club or hotel wedding is probably your best fit.
Tall cakes work best in a more traditional setting like a ballroom because you are usually dealing with a large room with tall ceilings and you don’t want the cake to feel dwarfed by the size of the room.
For a barn wedding, B&B wedding, or an outdoor garden wedding, in the spring or early summer a rustic cake is a great choice. It’s a great way to take advantage of seasonal blooms that you can use to embellish your cake.
If a vineyard is your venue of choice, adding come rich color tones can really compliment the setting. Going for warmer tones like reds, orange, purples will help make the cake stand out.
Industrial style cake in whiskey distillery
If you are more of a non-traditionalist, and decided to use a distillery or any kind of more industrial type space, square cake, cakes with texture, geometric lines, and metallics, can really compliment the space.
When it comes down to the details of the cake, inspiration can come from anywhere, and pulling inspiration from other design elements of your wedding can help keep everything looking cohesive. A few examples are using design details from your dress, a pattern from your linens, design elements from your invitations, the flowers from your bouquet, architectural details of your venue, a family heirloom, cultural designs, the possibilities are endless. When setting up cake consultations, I encourage my clients to share with me images of cakes that they like, and other design elements of their wedding so I can get a better sense of their personalities and style and create a custom design just for them. . I know that all this sounds like a lot, but as a cake designer, I am here to help put your ideas and inspiration together and create a beautiful work of art that becomes the centerpiece of your reception and a reflection of your style
South Asian wedding cake design inspired by embrodery