Your East Midlands Wedding - Page number 42 - August/September 2021 (Issue 45)

We love flowers and want to incorporate them into our cake design. What do you recommend we look for? Whether you decide on sugar or fresh flowers, adding florals gives a perfect touch of elegance and romance to any design. We specialise in sugar flowers, which take the utmost care and time in preparing them petal by petal to ensure each one is made to perfection. Bakers can produce your favourite blooms in advance to match any colour scheme no matter what season you’re tying the knot. Sample flowers can be created for you to view, and any elements can be changed. The bonus of sugar blooms is that they can be saved as a keepsake if cared for correctly. Fresh flowers can look exquisite on a beautifully finished wedding cake, especially when purchased from the wedding florist to ensure all blooms are matching on the day. It’s important to pick a cake maker who’s confident in arranging fresh flowers as they need to be prepared correctly by placing the stem in food-safe picks before they’re inserted into the cake. Fresh flowers can also be dried, pressed and kept as a beautiful keepsake after the special day. Whatever option you choose, don’t let flowers be an afterthought as they can transform a cake into something spectacular. Sarah Reilly | Julia Florence Cake Design | www.juliaflorencecakedesign.co.uk We’re currently planning our big day and we’ve decided against a traditional cake. Do you have any alternative suggestions? From doughnut towers to gooey brownie stacks, you’ll find an alternative option that you will love. A few years back, cupcake towers were extremely popular, but this has made way for cupcake tables instead. Imagine a long table with lots of different crates and stands all filled with different styles and flavours of cupcakes to cater for everyone. One of my favourite alternatives to a wedding cake is a gorgeous dessert or nibbles table – I can guarantee that your guests will love it too. Having an alternative option doesn’t mean you miss out on the popular cake cutting picture. You can have a small cake stacked up high as a centrepiece for the cake table – take a look at this gorgeous set up for example! Cakes can often be forgotten about as the day progresses; by having an array of sweet treats presented in rustic bowls or on gold trays by the cake will ensure guests keep seeing the masterpiece. Sophie Hunt | Red Robin Cakery | www.redrobincakery.co.uk www.elen studiophotography.com www.ekr pictures.com We’d love to have a luxurious cake on our big day, but we’re worried about the price tag. Do you have any ideas to keep the price down? It’s very important when planning a wedding to have a budget and stay within this figure. Everyone wants to have a luxurious cake on their special day and this can be achieved in a few ways. One thing to remember is that wedding cakes vary in size and design. As it takes time to create curtain details, the more intricate designs will result in higher costs. That’s why real, dried, or silk flowers are cheaper than sugar flowers, which takes time to create. Dummy polystyrene tiers are a great way to create an illusion of a larger cake while still catering for your number of guests. But remember, they still need to be covered and decorated. Another factor to consider is the venue’s distance. If your wedding is far away, it might be worth looking at a cake maker nearer the property to reduce the delivery charge. A smaller wedding cake can always be accompanied by a kitchen cake sliced up behind- the-scenes to offer extra flavour choices without increasing the number of tiers. Lastly, ingredients will affect the price tag. If you’re having lots of tiers that include champagne or alcohol, this will increase the price of the bake. Joanna Evans | Joanna Evans Cake Design www.joannaevanscakedesign.co.uk 42