Cake decorating

Artytarty

Hi, I am looking for someone to ice a three tier wedding cake for me! Simple design, square fruit cakes.
The big cake shops won't ice a cake they have not baked and I'm beginning to panic a bit!
I'm certain there are people who do this sort of work from home but I can't find them
All suggestions gratefully received.

montyrebel

If you are a member of facebook find some local buy and sell groups and make a post or 2 in there, or even put it as a status, usually somebody knows someone that can help etc.


and if you edit your post here to include your local area someone on here might be able to recommend someone

Mr_Bun

Any properly registered,legitimate cake maker/decorator won't ice someone else's cake, as it leaves them wide open for compensation claims if there is anything wrong with the cake e.g. the cake is dry,tastes bad,too crumbly and in the worse case scenarios a hair is found or the cake is mouldy,etc.
Not saying this is true of your cake,but just speaking from experience.
No-one wants their hard earned reputation ruined.
I own a cake business and we won't do other people's cakes.
There are plenty of amateurs who do cakes from home,however the majority of them aren't registered with their local councils,so you really are taking a huge gamble,although this may be your only option. HTH

DigForVictory

Ask the vicar for an introduction to the Womens Institute &/or Mothers Union. Or get him to ask if anyone can help.

They'll be amateurs, but benevolent, & you seem a bit short on family?

(My first stop would be to ask Mum, who knows what folk are doing in a manner almost disconcerting, but I do recognise I'm lucky that way.)

Where a vicar might be the wrong direction, a trot around the local market asking for help may find you names and phone numbers to call & ask for advice.

All the very best!

Artytarty

Thank you all, you Dig" are very perceptive!
Family in short supply, friends work full time, mother useless- in this respect.
Today I've made a trial fruit cake, my own marzipan ( which I have to say seems a boat in the gritty side) and I'm going to have a go at fondant icing it next week. I know it's a big undertaking to do three tiers and they will need rods, but I'm going to try.
Lakeland, and YouTube are becoming my best friends!

DigForVictory

Be warned, Lakeland is not terribly MS, unless you can get a percentage off..

You need more women involved - WI or MU, pronto!
Besides, who else will give you honest feedback on your baking & icing skills?!
Give yourself a special wedding present - new friends you cook with!

May you have many happy times, single & married!

Golden_Anemone

I have made this wedding cake for a family member. http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4578/creating-your-wedding-cake


Posting the link for you as I found the icing and assembly instructions incredibly simple and easy to follow. I had iced cakes with fondant icing before but never a tiered cake.


Good luck - it's quite a daunting undertaking but certainly not impossible.

PaperDoll

Creative Cakes in Ballyhackamore are good for supplies.

Mr_Bun

You say you are using fruit cakes for all your tiers,may I suggest that instead of stacking them all you use dummy cakes for the top two tiers.
You can marzipan and ice all three fruit cakes and then just ice the top two dummy ones.
The real cakes can be used as cutting cakes and will be kept in the wedding venues kitchen and don't need anymore decoration.
Then the dummy cakes,because they are made from polystyrene, are really light for stacking on the bottom tier,so you won't need to bother with lots of dowels,etc and it will also be less likely to topple or sink.
You can decorate the dummy cakes as you would the real cakes,except you wouldn't need to use marzipan.
Creative Cakes,as mentioned,will have all you will need,as will The Craft Shop in Ballymena.
If you need anymore help or tips,please don't hesitate to ask:)

Artytarty

Wow! Mr Bun, thanks, that's one crafty tip!
It seems pretty sneaky but would save me a lot of worry!
I should add that when I said in my initial post that I wanted someone to ice a cake for me, it wasn't meant as in for ME it was more FOR me!
It's my daughter who is getting married and baking her cake is just something that as her Mum I always thought I would be doing,
My Gran baked ours in the 80s and got someone else to ice it. I think she was a "domestic science" teacher, as we called them way way back.
It feel cheated out of this ritual if I got someone else to bake and ice so it looks like I'm going it alone.
My I ask, with a square cake, in order to keep he cornered and edges sharp, would you ice the top and then roll the icons round the sides like you are bandaging it or do you still drop it all over from the top?
I'm this week on 8 inch square, if I can't do it, I'll switch to round tins.
You've all been great, thankyou.

Mr_Bun

If you put the marzipan on in strips around the sides,like bandages as you say,it makes a far neater edge.You still drape the icing,over the cake in one piece though.
A round cake is easier to ice however😀
Dummy cakes are a lot easier to ice than real cakes generally,as they are really smooth.Stick the icing on to them with water(brush it on)
Also use water for sticking the icing to the marzipan,not apricot jam,this is used for sticking the marzipan to the real cake.
I would invest in a cake smoother if you are going to attempt this project,they are only a few pound.