This weekend's wedding project is to order the wedding cake. This is the pinnacle of many weeks' debate and discussion, not only between lovely fiance and I but also between the two of our three kids that can talk, who see this as a crucial decision. (I get the impression that the one child who can't yet talk would also have a strong opinion on this point if only she could make it known). Having looked into the subject in detail I cannot help but feel that the Wedding Cake has in recent years been bigging up its part in the whole affair.
My own feelings on the Wedding Cake subject are that I could quite easily do without one and not miss it at all. When I married for the first time thirteen years ago the standard policy was to get a two or three tier fruitcake with white icing, the top tiers of which would be handed out in tiny morsels to guests who would generally leave it half-eaten or untouched on tables or take it home in small boxes where it undoubtedly ended up in the bin. The bottom tier was kept in a cupboard until you had your firstborn child and then resurrected and re-iced as a Christening Cake which was probably eaten with even less enthusiasm based on the fact it must be at least a year old in most cases. Therefore when you cut to the chase the point of the cake was little more in my opinion than an expensive photo opportunity, as these cakes did not come cheap even then. However lovely fiance has surprisingly strong views on the presence of a cake at a wedding and sees it as essential and non-negotiable. And so I looked into it.
How things have changed. The style of wedding cake you now choose has psychological meaning, communicated silently to all your guests, relating to the kind of people you and you partner are. When making the decision you no longer just have to refer to costs, numbers, and what decorations you will have, you have to think about what this cake will say about you!
Early in our wedding planning we went through a phase of visiting wedding fairs at the weekends. For those not in the know, these are big gatherings, normally at hotels, of every kind of wedding supplier you can think of, from hairdressers to photographers to florists to balloon suppliers, all peddling their wares to the unsuspecting newly-engaged. One particular fair sticks in my mind because it relates to the cake decision. On this occasion we recklessly took all three kids with us and among the various food stalls at the fair was one for a chocolate fountain. Since that day the cake hunt was over for the kids. All other options discussed since have been dismissed as inferior. On the table at the stall stood a five tier waterfall of molten milk chocolate, surrounded by bowls of marshmallows, strawberries and other soft fruits. Assuming the role of competent wedding planner I held a conversation with the fountain owner who informed me that chocolate fountains are THE thing to have instead of a traditional wedding cake and that the thing could be mine for the day, sweets and fruit and chocolate included, for a mere two hundred and fifty pounds. I turned to see son and daughter, aged eleven and nine, cramming chocolate soaked marshmallows into their mouths and preparing to start on the strawberries. The delight on their faces was such that for a moment, just a split second, I almost saw myself booking the thing. I imagined the little ones at our wedding (of which there are to be quite a number much to my increasing trepidation) beside themselves with glee at the prospect of unlimited access to melted chocolate sweeties.
Fortunately my senses soon returned, not least by the cost of it - I mean two hundred and fifty quid for a bit of chocolate and some fruit! I had no idea then that for a wedding cake option this was pretty competitive. But the deciding factor was arriving home, laden with brochures and business cards, to find that both the older kids had chocolate stains on their clothes, as did the baby who was strapped in her pushchair at all times but still inexplicably managed to access the marshmallows. Bad enough, but on checking my own cardigan I realised I even had chocolate on me, and I didn't taste a single morsel (ever mindful of the impact the slightest mouthful would have on the fit of my wedding dress even then!). The thought of all that melted chocolate flying about when everyone is dressed up to the nines and my own and the baby's outfit are both cream-coloured filled me with dread and the subject has since been closed, though the kids have been endlessly confident of talking me round.
However I digress. The insane choice of chocolate fountain would have labelled lovely fiance and myself as fun and relaxed parents who are prepared to bend to the will of their kids. An alternative choice I have come across in the quest for the perfect cake is a towering stand of individual cupcakes. Apparently a year ago this was THE cake option to have, cutting edge and out there. However, googling it recently it seems to have been usurped by the latest thing, a towering stand of individual moulded jellies in the colours of your choice! Yours for around five hundred pounds depending on numbers. Having this would paint you as funky and modern in the extreme. There are many more choices, one of my favourites being an enormous pile of Krispy Kreme Donuts, which had to be dismissed as it just doesn't fit with the 'fine dining' theme of the wedding breakfast and in lovely fiance's opinion has 'no class'.
Our final choice of wedding cake seems a bit disappointing and mundane after having trawled through all the colourful and exciting (and prohibitively expensive) options. But it works for us and it pleases the kids. We have gone for a three tier chocolate cake with chocolate icing, the one in the photo, made by the fabulous Marks and Spencer, orderable online and collectable from our local store. Expensive for what it is (just a cake after all!) but undercutting the bespoke choices by enough for us to feel virtuous. And they do make a great cake! Everybody's happy!
My own feelings on the Wedding Cake subject are that I could quite easily do without one and not miss it at all. When I married for the first time thirteen years ago the standard policy was to get a two or three tier fruitcake with white icing, the top tiers of which would be handed out in tiny morsels to guests who would generally leave it half-eaten or untouched on tables or take it home in small boxes where it undoubtedly ended up in the bin. The bottom tier was kept in a cupboard until you had your firstborn child and then resurrected and re-iced as a Christening Cake which was probably eaten with even less enthusiasm based on the fact it must be at least a year old in most cases. Therefore when you cut to the chase the point of the cake was little more in my opinion than an expensive photo opportunity, as these cakes did not come cheap even then. However lovely fiance has surprisingly strong views on the presence of a cake at a wedding and sees it as essential and non-negotiable. And so I looked into it.
How things have changed. The style of wedding cake you now choose has psychological meaning, communicated silently to all your guests, relating to the kind of people you and you partner are. When making the decision you no longer just have to refer to costs, numbers, and what decorations you will have, you have to think about what this cake will say about you!
Early in our wedding planning we went through a phase of visiting wedding fairs at the weekends. For those not in the know, these are big gatherings, normally at hotels, of every kind of wedding supplier you can think of, from hairdressers to photographers to florists to balloon suppliers, all peddling their wares to the unsuspecting newly-engaged. One particular fair sticks in my mind because it relates to the cake decision. On this occasion we recklessly took all three kids with us and among the various food stalls at the fair was one for a chocolate fountain. Since that day the cake hunt was over for the kids. All other options discussed since have been dismissed as inferior. On the table at the stall stood a five tier waterfall of molten milk chocolate, surrounded by bowls of marshmallows, strawberries and other soft fruits. Assuming the role of competent wedding planner I held a conversation with the fountain owner who informed me that chocolate fountains are THE thing to have instead of a traditional wedding cake and that the thing could be mine for the day, sweets and fruit and chocolate included, for a mere two hundred and fifty pounds. I turned to see son and daughter, aged eleven and nine, cramming chocolate soaked marshmallows into their mouths and preparing to start on the strawberries. The delight on their faces was such that for a moment, just a split second, I almost saw myself booking the thing. I imagined the little ones at our wedding (of which there are to be quite a number much to my increasing trepidation) beside themselves with glee at the prospect of unlimited access to melted chocolate sweeties.
Fortunately my senses soon returned, not least by the cost of it - I mean two hundred and fifty quid for a bit of chocolate and some fruit! I had no idea then that for a wedding cake option this was pretty competitive. But the deciding factor was arriving home, laden with brochures and business cards, to find that both the older kids had chocolate stains on their clothes, as did the baby who was strapped in her pushchair at all times but still inexplicably managed to access the marshmallows. Bad enough, but on checking my own cardigan I realised I even had chocolate on me, and I didn't taste a single morsel (ever mindful of the impact the slightest mouthful would have on the fit of my wedding dress even then!). The thought of all that melted chocolate flying about when everyone is dressed up to the nines and my own and the baby's outfit are both cream-coloured filled me with dread and the subject has since been closed, though the kids have been endlessly confident of talking me round.
However I digress. The insane choice of chocolate fountain would have labelled lovely fiance and myself as fun and relaxed parents who are prepared to bend to the will of their kids. An alternative choice I have come across in the quest for the perfect cake is a towering stand of individual cupcakes. Apparently a year ago this was THE cake option to have, cutting edge and out there. However, googling it recently it seems to have been usurped by the latest thing, a towering stand of individual moulded jellies in the colours of your choice! Yours for around five hundred pounds depending on numbers. Having this would paint you as funky and modern in the extreme. There are many more choices, one of my favourites being an enormous pile of Krispy Kreme Donuts, which had to be dismissed as it just doesn't fit with the 'fine dining' theme of the wedding breakfast and in lovely fiance's opinion has 'no class'.
Our final choice of wedding cake seems a bit disappointing and mundane after having trawled through all the colourful and exciting (and prohibitively expensive) options. But it works for us and it pleases the kids. We have gone for a three tier chocolate cake with chocolate icing, the one in the photo, made by the fabulous Marks and Spencer, orderable online and collectable from our local store. Expensive for what it is (just a cake after all!) but undercutting the bespoke choices by enough for us to feel virtuous. And they do make a great cake! Everybody's happy!
Ooohh this cake looks really yummy! I personally believe that chocolate is a winner all the way :)
ReplyDeleteOver here from the carnival, lovely blog!
Thank you! Very new to this, loved the carnival, working my way through all the posts!
ReplyDelete