Time waits for no man, so the phrase goes. Especially when you have an important event to plan. All of those individual elements have to come together perfectly on that special day.
The cake may be a small part of your wedding day, but being prepared and organised will free up some of your valuable time to tackle other tasks.
So how far in advance should you be booking your wedding cake?
Well…, when I was choosing my own wedding cake, I knew exactly what design I wanted, it was a 4 tier cake designed to look like stacked parcels, and I’d seen it on a wedding programme on TV. As soon as I saw it, I knew that was the cake I wanted. I spent the next month going to wedding fairs, searching online and in wedding publications, trying to find the right person. Someone who was local, could work within my budget and had availability, to make my dream cake. My search was successful and I had my dream cake.
Knowing what you want is only a small part of planning your wedding cake, and some of the other factors may not be in your control. So even if you have the design planned out to the last sugar flower, you should still allow plenty of time to book your cake designer.
I’ve had discussions with many brides who just don’t know where to start when it comes to selecting a cake design. So if you fall into this category then the more time you give yourself, the better chance you have of deciding and finding what you want, when you want, and the less stressed you’ll be. Who wouldn’t want that?
Most wedding cake designers will require at least 3 months notice for a wedding cake. You should aim to allow longer if you are planning to have a fruit cake tier, if the design is particularly complex, or you intend on having a large number of sugar flowers as part of your design. If your wedding is taking place during the summer months, then booking your cake decorator well in advance, 6-9 months, is highly recommended as their availability will be greatly reduced during the summer months. I had bookings for wedding cakes required for summer 2015 made in November 2014.
Once you’ve selected a cake designer, you will have the time to work with them to ensure you get a truly breathtaking cake, that meets your requirements, and it will be one less thing to worry about in the final weeks leading up to your big day.
