wedding cake: February 2010

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Modern Weddings - What Has Changed?

Weddings are often very different than they were fifty years ago. Given all of these changes, it is easy to find that there are clashes between the more traditional rules of weddings and how things actually occur in the third millennium. In this article, I will discuss those changes, and how some of the rules of fifty years ago can be bent and even broken. If you want to do things a little differently, this article discusses what has changed in the last fifty years:

Active Grooms: Fifty years ago, the groom's job was basically to show up. This has all changed. Grooms are often just as involved in the planning of a wedding as the bride. They take responsibility for various aspects of the wedding, depending on the needs and interest of the couple. This takes a lot of pressure of both the bride and the bride's family, who were traditionally responsible for all of the arrangements.

Attendants:It is no longer considered necessary to have attendants of the same sex. Brides may have male attendants and grooms may have female attendants. This is true even of best men and maids of honor (they are called "honor attendants" in this case). It is also no longer considered necessary to make sure that you have exactly the same number on each side.

Expenses: In previous generations, the costs of the wedding were almost exclusively borne by the father of the bride. This is becoming less and less the case. As the bride's parents are no longer automatically expected to pay, be sure you figure out who will be paying for the wedding before making any big decisions. Be sure to be especially grateful for any assistance, as it is no longer considered an expectation but a gift.

Second Weddings: Almost half of all weddings in North America today include at least one person who has been married before. This creates some added complications to wedding planning. Consider how you are to include children, if they wish to participate. Further, be aware of two rules of etiquette when it comes to second weddings. First, children should be the first to know of a wedding, even before parents. They should be spoken with alone so they may express any concerns. Second, it is usually considered polite to tell a former spouse yourself. A phone call should be sufficient. You generally don't want him or her to hear about it "through the grape vine".

Destination Weddings: Today, going on a destination wedding is quite common. Couples will go to another country and be married on a beach or a local church. Usually, because of the expense, such weddings are quite small consisting of close family and friends only. Fifty years ago, this would have been unheard of, and would have been basically considered eloping. Today, it is quite acceptable and is chosen by many couples. Be aware that that there are issues both in civil and church laws that you need to sort out before you leave.

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Creative Wedding Cake Stands

So you are getting married and have decided to make your ceremony and reception a unique reflection of you and your spouse to be. You've come up with some pretty good ideas for decorations, flowers, music and the wedding cake.

Now let's figure out a creative way to display the wedding cake. One easy way to create a stand yourself is to take an inexpensive round or square base and cover it. You could choose a beautiful satin fabric or use real or imitation flowers and leaves. Browse through you local fabric or arts and crafts store for ideas. You may be pleasantly surprised at all of the different ways there are to change an ordinary cake platform into a special work of art.

Browsing the internet will also give you many great ideas for wedding cake stands that you don't see every day. If you have some money to spend, there are some pretty specialized and elaborate cake stands out there. You can find stands that revolve slowly or that have an actual water fountain in them. There are now stands that have 10 cascading tiers. Perhaps you could have a different type of cake on each level!

If you would prefer not to spend too much money on the stand for your cake, you still have many options available. Use your imagination to come with ideas that are related to either the theme of your wedding or some of the interests that you and your partner share. One couple that enjoyed surfing displayed their wedding cake on a miniature-sized surfboard. Another couple used a tree trunk for a natural themed stand for their cake.

Some of the simpler types of cake stands lend themselves to further decoration. Purchase a ceramic pedestal stand and find a creative family member to paint the stand for you. The same idea would work well for many of the platform stands that are easily found online. You could also check with the cake designer to see if they will decorate a stand to coordinate with the design of your cake.

This is your special day and you can express yourself in any of the wedding details that you choose to. With a little thought and a look online, you should be able to find or create a beautiful and unique wedding cake stand that will add a special touch to the display of your cake.

Check out unique cake stands for more creative ideas or browse through wedding cake stands for advice on finding the perfect stand for your wedding cake.

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How to Choose a Wedding Cake Vendor

Of course, no wedding will ever be complete without a wedding cake. It's one of the event highlights alongside the unleashing of doves and the equally anticipated throwing of the bride's bouquet. The audience does not just anticipate your cake because of the new couples' ceremony, involving feeding each other with a bite off from it. Some couples go as far as inserting wishes of good luck within the cake which the audience (sometimes the bridesmaids and other unmarried girls) were invited to go get one.

These being said, you should definitely take some time to consider the kind of wedding cake vendor whom you would choose to have the work done. Here are some important factors which you may want to consider:

1. Location - Keep in mind that your wedding cake is an edible. You might need to pick it up the night before or the day itself. Here you would need to consider how far the location of the wedding cake vendor from your wedding venue. It might also be a good idea to inquire if they offer delivery services so that you can already take this task off your hands prior or on the wedding day itself. You should also consider this in terms of how the location will likely affect the composition of the cake during the travel time.

2. Cake Design - These days, you can be free to experiment on how your cake will look like. Some even go as far as changing the concept of wedding cakes in little cupcakes instead. This is actually a good way of sharing this sweet remembrance to your wedding guests, as you let them get a cupcake after the wedding reception ceremonies are over and done with. But if you do not have a particular design in mind yet, it would be a good idea to consider a wedding cake vendor that has a portfolio or design gallery where you can choose from.

3. Taste or Flavor - Your wedding cake is not just a decoration on your wedding reception. So you should definitely go for something that you actually like in terms of the taste. These days, fondant cakes are becoming the trend instead of the usual icing-layered cakes. Not only do they last longer and are less likely to get deformed but fondants are relatively less sweeter than the usual icing-layered cakes. Keep in mind that if you can't manage to have your guests split or eat the remaining wedding cake, you would have to bring it all home.

4. Price - Of course, this is also a very important aspect of choosing your wedding cake vendor. This is the reason why you need to canvass first before zeroing immediately on a possible option. Although it might be fun to consider a certain theme for your wedding cake, keep in mind that you also have other wedding essentials on which you would have to spend for too. Make sure you evaluate your choices dutifully when it comes to prices and the value you are going to get.

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Lenox Wedding Cake Toppers Are an Ornament to Keep Forever

Your wedding day is something you have dreamed and planned since you were a young girl and when you find that someone special and want to spend the rest of your life with them, you want the wedding day to be perfect, as it is the turning point in your life. From the first engagement party celebration right down to choosing the wedding favors for the guests, every detail has to be planned and should be perfect.

One of the most important pieces of planning that has to be done is choosing your cake design for wedding. Not only is the cake devoured by all your guests at the end of the night, it is also on display during the reception for everyone to see and the wedding cake is an expression of your own tastes and desires.

To make a wedding cake complete, it is usually topped with a piece of decoration that matches the theme of the wedding. With wedding cake toppers, you can choose to display a part of your personality, or something by which your relationship is defined and put it on display for all your guests to see.

A name that is synonymous with quality and is a well known and trusted American brand is Lenox. Lenox's range of wedding cake toppers will ensure your cake is elegant and stunning.

For more than 100 years, the American brand Lenox, has lead the tableware market with its quality craftsmanship, for which it has been praised and awarded. The name implies quality.

For a wedding cake that is the epitome of elegance and style a Lenox Wedding Cake Topper will ensure all those requirements are fulfilled.

The First Dance wedding cake topper by Lenox, is simply one of the most popular and renowned designs. It depicts a married couple sharing their first intimate dance. The fine piece is made from ivory fine China and has fine decorative detail made from platinum, to finish of this perfect piece.

With a Lenox cake topper though, the joy of your wedding day goes on forever, as the cake topper decoration is also a collectable ornament and figurine which you can place upon your mantle alongside your wedding photo, by which you can always remember the day on which you married the love of your life.

With personalized Wedding Cake Toppers, you can have your personality on show for everyone to see. At wedding-caketopper.com there are many quality Lenox cake toppers available.

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Wedding Cakes - The Traditional Separated Cakes Are Being Replaced by More Modern Designs

The standard designs of wedding cakes from years past featured independently separated cakes. These cakes were separated by a system of plates and pillars. The pillars were either of Grecian design or Swan style. Perhaps you've seen cakes that had three or four separations, with cake sizes that ranged from eight to fourteen inches.

The bottom tier which would be the largest cake at fourteen inches may have been situated on the top of a fountain stand. In between the fountain stand could be a water fountain, with three cascades, and interior lights plus running water which was possibly tinted with color. On the very top of the smallest cake, the eight inch in this example, would sit a plastic bride plus a groom ornament. The cake itself would have had roses, pearl beading, foil silver or gold leaves, and so forth.

Today's brides are planning their wedding cakes with simplicity at heart. Their preferences are stylish, but simple and down-to-earth, including the dress, reception and most of all, the wedding cake. Straightforward, sophisticated designs decorate today's wedding cakes. Many brides would like cake decorations that replicate the lace plus beading on their bridal gowns, and many gowns feature clean, vintage designs. Requested decorations can be tailored to suit the couple's personalities. Gum Paste, fresh or silk flowers, ribbons, beads, tulle and lace are trendy for 2010.

All wedding cakes are not just white. Off tones, such as for instance ivory are getting increasingly accepted. Circular tiers for wedding cakes still continue to be a favorite choice, but square, octagon, elliptical, heart and hexagon shaped cakes are commonly requested. The flavor of the cakes and fillings differ extensively and brides are frequently requesting non-traditional cake varieties, for example cheesecake, carrot, red velvet, tiramisu and even chocolate cake. Icing requests also have become more varied.

In response, bakeries are not just offering traditional buttercream, but in addition Rolled Fondant, rolled buttercream, non-dairy, whipped cream, cream cheese, white chocolate and marzipan. Brides are requesting handcrafted gum paste flowers. Gum paste flowers are available in over a hundred 100 unique styles, and are purchased through cake decoration supply stores.

Stacked tiers or acrylic stands with separated tiers are fashionable styles. Sculpted cakes are also being asked for more regularly, often for themed weddings. A comparatively new concept that is increasing in recognition is stacked and tiered cupcakes as an alternative choice and a substitute for traditional wedding cakes. Numerous couples are also choosing different decorated cakes for every guest table.

Wedding cakes account for 8 percentage of an average full-line retail bakeries' sales, according to Modern Baking's Retail Bakery Survey. Separated cakes tend to be sold by the portion, so check your area for the going price and charge for the cakes accordingly.

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Planning All the Parts of Wedding Cakes

You are planning your wedding, and it is time to choose a wedding cake. Back in the dim, dark ages, the whiteness of the cake was supposed to reflect the purity of the bride. It also usually ensured that the cake itself tasted like paste. Now that we are in an era where the flavor of the cake is a lot more important than the color, there is a lot more to choose from. There are wonderful vanilla cakes, spice cakes, chocolate cakes, or any other flavor available for your wedding. You can even get a gourmet cake to ensure that the flavor will be absolutely scrumptious. The choice is yours.

When it comes to the 'look' of your cake, the choices are apparently endless. You can have a lovely traditional cake with white icing with white flowers and swags decorating it and topped by a bride and groom. Your cake can reflect the colors of your wedding party with the flowers of the bouquets as a part of the icing, either carefully set around each layer or swirled in a cascade falling from top to bottom, widening out at the bottom. There are wedding cakes that are sculptures of the bride, complete with wedding dress. At a medieval-themed wedding, you may see a cake shaped like a castle complete with moat, drawbridge and pennons flying gaily. There are fantasy wedding cakes with fountains incorporated as a part of the cake. Wedding cakes come shaped like hearts, like and individual flower, like pumpkin coaches, like cake houses, and with bridges connecting two sides of the cake. While white is still extremely popular, at least as a base color for the frosting, when it comes to colors or color combinations, your imagination is the only limiting factor.

Wedding cake servers generally come in silver or gold with flower and ribbons to wrap the handles but there are many other options out there. The handles of the servers can be shaped as hearts, as lilies, as cowboy hats, with little gold angels, and with an African-American bride and groom to name but a few of the choices.

Let us not forget the cake topper. The traditional bride and groom now come in a variety of poses from dancing to riding a bicycle. They can even have the faces of the actual bride and groom on them. There are doves and monograms, hearts and rubber duckies. Whatever your tastes, there is a wedding topper just right for you.

Your wedding is special and should reflect your character and your desires. Today's cakes can be tailored to be exactly what you want in look and taste.

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4 Things to Consider With Wedding Cake Icing

Wedding cake icing seems like a small and relatively unimportant part of the overall wedding planning process. Most want their cake to look good, but are more worried about the cost of the cake, the amount of cake available, and the flavor of the cake. The frosting will actually affect most of these aspects of the cake. Icing will affect the cost of the cake and the flavor of the cake. This highlights the importance of your wedding cake frosting choices. These four aspects to consider will help you to be creative while finding the best look and flavor for your cake.

Use Fondant

Fondant has been on the wedding cake market for some time. Many use Fondant for their cakes to give them a clean and modern look. Fondant may be perfect for your cake. The fondant icing is edible, and will give your cake the elegant look and feel that it needs.

Flavor the Icing

One thing that you may want to consider with your icing is the flavor. Most will stick with the usual flavors found in icings. These flavors are well known, and are found in basic icings such as butter cream icing or royal icing. If you want to try something new, flavor these icings with new or unusual frostings. Some will use extracts, such as almond extract or lemon extract, to give the frosting more flavors.

Use Interesting Colors

Many will stick with the basic white color for the frosting for their wedding cakes. One of the easiest ways to be creative with wedding cakes is to deviate from this tradition. Try colored frosting or colored fondant to give your cake a more unique feel.

Play With the Cake Type

Wedding cakes generally stick with plain flavors to ensure that all of their guests can find a flavor that they enjoy. One of the best ways to have a unique cake is to play with the type of cake that you have for your wedding cake. Try different flavors for different cake tiers. Try new and interesting flavors that you may not usually consider. Then, play with the frosting flavors. Use the frosting flavor to play off of the cake flavor. This juxtaposition will give your wedding cake a unique taste.

There are multiple options for you to choose from for the icing for your cake. Most will go with the usual butter cream icing or royal icing. Many fail to realize that they can spice up these usual frostings with flavors and colors. The theme and colors of your wedding may be a perfect guide for you to tweak and change your frosting.

Take a risk with your cake by making it stand out. By breaking the norms and thinking out of the box, you can have an interesting and memorable wedding cake.

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Wedding Cake Toppers - Options For Your Golf Themed Wedding

You have the ring, you have the date, you have the dress, you have the cake, but what about your wedding cake toppers? This might seem pretty easy if you are in the market for a traditional topper, but what about a cake topper for a wedding for a golf lover? It does not have to be as hard as it sounds.

There are several things that you will want to consider: do you want to send a message that is traditional, sentimental, creative, or humorous? If you are the traditional bride, just looking for a golf twist for the top of the cake, you can have your baker make the top of the cake look like a golf hole and have your local chocolatier design a golf bag, golf cart, or if you really want to go all out, go for both!

For those of you who are looking for something sentimental, think about what will speak to your-hubby-to be the most, what might even bring a little tear (or two) to his eye. What about his first hole-in-one? You can use this for the topper. Have the baker place the ball on what looks like a bed of green grass. If you are a golfer as well, place your ball right next to his. For the more creative bride, you can have the baker design what looks like a golf hole on the top of the cake and have a flag with your wedding day on it. For an example, if your wedding date is August 2nd, then have them put the number two on the flag.

Finally, for those of you looking for a humorous edge to add some laughs to a very serious and sometimes stressful day, you can have your local chocolatier design a golf cart with a bride and groom in it and have a sign on the side of the cart path that says, "You have used your last mulligan".

Don't forget to let the theme flow down the cake, try having fondant tees or have an argyle design on the cake. The possibilities are endless really. What is most important is putting your signature on a memorable day. These days, if you can not find it locally, all it takes is the internet and a few good ideas and you can have the wedding cake toppers of your dreams!

Erica A. Brooks enjoys helping brides to incorporate their personal style into their wedding. She offers couples inexpensive wedding ideas to help them to plan the wedding of their dreams while saving time and money. Visit ElegantWeddingCakeToppers.com for more information on choosing wedding cake toppers including funny, romantic, monogrammed and sports wedding cake toppers.

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Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Crystal Wedding Cake Toppers Make a Stunning Statement

crystal wedding cake

Wedding Cake Top

Planning a wedding is all about details, not the least of which is the wedding cake and finding just the right topper. While wedding cake toppers traditionally represented the bride and the groom, today there are many more options available and couples are selecting designs that reflect their personalities. Crystal wedding cake toppers make a stunning statement and can easily be personalized to fit your unique style.

Crystal toppers may be figurines like two swans with their necks intertwined, heart-shaped, roses or other flowers, crystal sprays, monograms, or even custom designs created specifically for you. The crystal may be clear or there may be a number of colors combined to give it added personality. The crystal design is often placed on a mirrored base or has mirrors worked into the design in order to maximize the sparkle that the crystal provides.

The amount of sparkle that a crystal topper has is directly related to the design and the quality of the crystal. The more intricate the design, the more facets there are and therefore the more surfaces available for light to reflect off of so that the top of your cake shimmers and sparkles.

As you can imagine, the more intricate the design the more expensive it's likely to be. For example, the most simply designed crystal toppers start at about $20 while the more intricate designs and custom toppers that are detailed with Swarovski crystals can be hundreds of dollars.

In addition to crystal wedding cake toppers, you can also use crystal gems or beading on the cake or on the cake table for added sparkle and elegance.

Erica A. Brooks enjoys helping brides to incorporate their personal style into their wedding. She offers couples inexpensive wedding ideas to help them to plan the wedding of their dreams while saving time and money. Visit ElegantWeddingCakeToppers.com for more information on choosing elegant wedding cake toppers including funny, romantic, monogrammed and crystal wedding cake toppers.

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Cupcake Wedding Cake

cupcake wedding

More and more couples are deciding to use cupcake wedding cakes at their wedding rather than the traditional wedding cake. Whether the couple is going for an over the top dramatic look or more subdued style, the wedding cupcake can give one incredible display at your wedding reception.

The cupcake is a modern wedding cake idea which can be packed full of flavor, surprise the taste buds with a smorgasbord of vanilla, chocolate, caramel, strawberry and every taste in between.

For the do it yourself bride the cupcakes are easy to work with. Baking cupcakes is easier than baking and decorating a wedding cake, which requires more work and attention to detail to look nice. In the event that your cupcake decorations do not work out right it will not be so noticeable.

Cupcakes are much easier to serve. Some reception venues will charge a fee to cut and serve, but with cupcakes this can be avoided. Have a friend serve the cupcakes or even have the guests serve themselves.

Cupcakes are easier to transport. Most wedding cakes today have to be boxed separately and then put together at the wedding reception. In some cases the cakes end up damaged which can ruin a part of a wedding.

However cupcakes are usually placed side by side in boxes leaving little room for movement. They can be put on display quicker than a traditional cake which can take some time to assemble.

Cupcake wedding cakes can be beautifully presented on a cupcake stand.

To serve 150 - 200 people you will need two wedding cupcake stands. For each of the stands create a four tier stand. Start with 40cm (16 inch) board then 30cm (12 inch), 22cm (9 inch), and for the top a 15cm (6 inch) board.

You can purchase round or square boards or if you prefer a different shape you can cut these to shape using large pieces of foamcore. Cover each of the boards with a thick foil paper. The edge of each of the boards should be trimmed neatly and cover the edges with a ribbon to match your color theme.

To separate each of the tiers you can use almost anything. You can purchase clear vases which are strong and wide enough to support each tier, fill these with decorative stone, seashells or flower petals. You could use sturdy flower pots and paint them in a color to match your theme. Before the wedding check that you cupcake stand is strong enough to avoid any mishaps on the day.

You can offer more than one cake flavor to your guests by placing each flavor on its own wedding cake stand. Let you guests know the cake flavor by placing a sign in front of each one.

If you don't want a large wedding cake tower you can always place the remaining cupcakes on the cake table around the stand.

Harriet Britto is the owner of TWIS Weddings a site that will help you in creating your wedding with your own personal style.

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Make Your Wedding Cake Special With Delicious Toppings

Wedding is an important occasion in everyone's life. Therefore, a lot of thought and planning goes into making it the day the best that one can possibly imagine it to be. A wedding cake makes up a significant part of the wedding. All the guests look forward to finding out what the cake looks like, what flavor it is, how big it is and what the toppings are.

The Typical Choice
Although a lot of people go for miniature plastic figures depicting the bride and the groom which is placed on top of the cake, you don't necessarily have to stick to tradition and do it a little differently. White doves are also very popular toppings on wedding cakes.

Make the Right Choice for Yourself
The trick to choosing the perfect topping for your own wedding cake is to decide from before. You can look through catalogues to see what kinds of choices are available. Or you can ask for suggestions from friends and family any of who might have gotten married recently.

Every couple hopes that when guests look at the wedding cake and notice the topping on it, they are reminded of what marriage depicts, and relate it directly to the their wedding.

If you want to have a peaceful wedding then the best thing to do is to choose the topping for our wedding cake from before. It is a crucial component of the D-day. Therefore, you should get over with the worry of what to make of it and concentrate on other important aspects of the preparation.

Don't be Afraid to Experiment
If you don't want to have the traditional bride-groom figure as your wedding topper think of something that depicts both of you as a couple. It can be anything you want it to be. A cupid carrying a bow and an arrow is a good idea for those couples who decide to get married within a very short period of time after a whirlwind romance.

Remember that some wedding toppers can be edible as well. These are made of sugar completely. The colors used to make the figures are edible dye. Therefore, you may eat them as well.

Leave Scope for Improvisation
Since most of these toppers are customized according to the taste and preference of the couple whose wedding it is, if by chance the topper ordered does not turn out the way one wants it to then there should be an option to be able to return it. For this reason one should have the receipt of the topper with him or her till both partners are sure of how the topper will look finally on the wedding cake.

This is the reason why you should get it made from a bakery that you know well. There are many choices for wedding cake toppers. Therefore, you should not rush into anything without checking out the various designs and ideas on display. After all the cake will be displayed in front of everyone to take notice of. You want it.

Simon Johnnson is the director of content for Executive Gift Shoppe. They specialize in groomsmen gifts such as pocket watches and cufflinks.

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