How to Customize a Wedding Cake

Without a doubt, weddings are one of the most traditional ceremonies performed in the world. But if you want to individualize your ceremony, without veering too far from tradition, you might want to try your hand at a custom-made wedding cake. Like everything else about your wedding ceremony, your wedding cake should reflect your personal style and fit with your wedding theme. If you think cake decorators have only one type of wedding cake that they offer, you're in for a big surprise. While a cake decorator will carry a certain line of cakes for weddings, they almost always take special requests. So, you are basically free to design any kind of wedding cake you want.

A traditional wedding cake is made from a plain vanilla cake with white frosting. There are usually several tiers, which decrease in size as you reach the top of the cake. The traditional wedding cake features roses or other flowers as its only decoration. Often a miniature bride and groom figurine sits atop the wedding cake. This is called a "topper." A traditional wedding cake is about as simple as you can get. In fact, many cake decorators keep a set of these on hand in their freezers!

Do you or the groom have a favorite flavor of cake that is not the traditional white wedding cake? Well, have the cake decorator make your wedding cake with that flavor. Or, you might want to have your wedding cake made with a variety of flavors, all in different layers. Some layers that are common for a wedding cake include chocolate, lemon, cream and raspberry. Or you may simply want to add a luscious filling to your plain white wedding cake.

Decorations are another way to customize your wedding cake. Instead of flowers made from frosting, you may want to get creative and think of an unusual way to frost your cake. If your wedding cake features a light color, you could use a darker colored icing, such as chocolate, rose or blue to outline your wedding cake. Use shot glasses or small wine glasses to support the tiers and float flowers or flower petals in the glasses. Sprinkle flower petals on each layer of your wedding cake or put fresh flowers at the base of the cake and a few small buds on each layer. These flowers should match or complement your bridal bouquet and floral arrangements.

Once you decide how you want your wedding cake to look and taste, you'll need to find an expert cake decorator to build it for you. Making a wedding cake is no simple job. Unless someone comes to you highly recommended, you should see a decorator's portfolio before hiring them. Cake decorators are usually very busy so you'll want to find one very early in your wedding plans. That way they will have time to design and make your wedding cake... just the way you want it!