How to Order a Wedding Cake Without Stress  

 

     I currently have more than seven years of experience in the wedding industry, and I am also the founder of Julia Fedorova Cakes. I’m happy to share a few tips and suggestions to reduce your wedding cake stress. This guide focuses on wedding cake design and flavor, which can be useful for brides, grooms and even their parents.

     My first tip is time management— it is everything! In fact, time management is so crucial, it has become my lifetime motto. I understand your wedding to-do list is long and overwhelming, and that’s more the reason to schedule your cake tastings 12-6 months prior to your wedding. Scheduling your cake tastings in advance will allow much needed time for research, figuring out the basics, analyzing your thoughts on tastes, and going over the cake design with your cake decorator.

     Before making any appointments, consider what the wedding cake of your dreams looks like— I’m sure you've had some ideas long before your engagement! It’s important to understand what kind of cake you want, and to picture what kind of cake you’d like to cut on your special day. I’d consider doing some research on the cake experience, and your married friends are the perfect starting point for your investigation. Afterward, you can look to the internet and Google for some additional tips. Why not? Get comfortable with reading reviews, and checking Instagram as well as other social media platforms. The first impression is very important, and once you find something you like, then you can make your appointments.

      Weddings are a wonderful tradition. Despite some variations, we continue to wear the white dress, and search high and low for something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. Planning your wedding can bring on the happiest months of your life, but at the same time, bring on some of the most stressful months for both you and your family. During preparation, everyone is nervous and under pressure to make the event a huge success— and a cake tasting is the perfect getaway from the stress. A delicious piece of cake with a cup of tea or coffee, can be the ideal way to put some calm in your preparation.

      Here are some questions I always ask my potential clients before our first meeting:

      What is your inspiration for the wedding cake?

      Where is the venue?

      What are the main colors in the wedding?

      Then I start to work on the cake design before our first date. I respect my clients’ time, so before the tasting, I will provide them with some ideas for the wedding cake design.

      Now to say a few things about cake design. While viewing a collection of photos from different bakeries online, clients will make their decisions based on previous cakes and achievements. However, viewing pictures online is never enough as many decorators will use Photoshop. Each of us, as bakers and decorators, have our own style that is unique to every one of us. I specialize in botanically correct sugar flowers, therefore before I host a cake tasting, I expect my clients to understand the realm of which I work and usually they are interested in that sweet botany.

      During the cake tasting, do not hesitate to take a closer look at the cake samples, or to give the baker some more information about the venue, your bouquet and the dress. A final cake design at Julia Fedorova Cakes will be a computer graphic representation of the wedding cake itself. The design will include the overall wedding cake, examples of all the flowers, ribbons and embellishments. This process also allows my clients to view and compare my previous cake designs next to real wedding cakes from previous orders.

      Here is an analogy for my clients who are huge fans of shoes, including myself. We realize that sometimes shoes can be terribly uncomfortable, but just look at them— they are beautiful! We will wear them and keep that painful secret forever just to impress everyone around us. In the field of cake decorating, you can not hide anything from your guests. The wedding cake is two in one: the cake MUST be beyond delicious, and it must be strikingly beautiful— there are no compromises.

       Creating a wedding cake is art, science and magic. From my experience, people rarely remember something from the wedding menu, but all of them remember the wedding cake. It is my job to make it unforgettable. You will remember the moment of cutting your wedding cake as the sweetest moment of your day. Even years later, each of your guests will remember that your cake was made especially for you, on a very special day, that was simply perfect.

       Deciding between wedding cake flavors deserves a much more detailed explanation. Selecting your wedding cake flavor can be one of the most important decisions. The flavor of your cake is a reflection of you as a couple. You should also remember all of your guests are judging the taste as well— keep this in mind when deciding on the cake flavor, it should be sophisticated, delicious and memorable.

       Each of your guests will dream about having one more piece of your wedding cake, though we both know, they will only have one. Each bite of your wedding cake is created to indulge you and your guests. All the aromas, tastes and aftertastes play nicely together; it is like a sweet symphony made just for your pleasure. You cannot experience all of these sensations when the cake is too sweet. From my personal baking expertise, if the cake includes an excessive amount of sugar, it is a sign of unprofessional work; anyone can cover mistakes by adding sugar. An expert baker emphasizes sweetness with aromas and flavors, with an emphasis on flavors. In the fullness of time, your cake will be the star finale to your wedding.

       My last point is the same as my first, always remember your timeline. Doing everything on time is the key to success without stress. People in the wedding industry are both hard workers and wizards at the same time, but any magic needs time. All of us (cake decorators, florists, event planners) will work day and night to make your wedding day the best day ever. I’m always very proud and happy to be a part of the wedding preparation.

       These are my tips to help you understand the process of cake design, and how to select the best cake flavor. I hope my advice will help you to order your dream cake without stress.

       I promise to make your wedding day special, and your job is to make each day special for each other!

 

  With love, Julia Fedorova