Wedding timeline lists seriously make me feel ill. Yes, I know that they are created in order to give structure and organization to the wedding planning process (which I can appreciate), but whenever I deviate from the timeline I start to feel like I'm going to break out into hives!
However, I am here to tell you all that it is not impossible to make plans/schedule vendors at times that differ from the given timeline! Yes - you can do it! Case in point: my wedding cake. According to most wedding planning timelines, you should have your cake baker booked at around the 6 month mark. Oh hmmm...yes...it is April now, the wedding is only a month and a half away, and I am JUST NOW booking my cake. Yeah, before you revoke my bride card, hear me out!
The first reason as to why I'm so behind: I was living in Virginia! That REALLY put the brakes on with wedding cake tasting. It is just really difficult to taste wedding cakes when you don't live in the same state as the bakeries! Mr. Buttons and I tried out Publix cake when we were home for Thanksgiving, but we weren't ready to sign the contract after that experience.
Well, we moved back to Florida, and for a few weeks I was on a mission to complete unfinished tasks, which included the cake! Justin and I went to a very nice bakery in town that is known for amazing cakes. We tasted them, and we were impressed. However, when we started to talk to the baker herself, we were less than thrilled. After sifting through hundreds of cake photos, I had pulled one (yes...one) picture as my inspiration. It was everything that I wanted:
When the baker asked me about what I wanted in regards to the design, I proceeded to show her the photo. I also mentioned how I was looking for something very simple. She looked at the photo, then looked back at me and oh so bluntly said, "that design is NOT simple." Mmmmmok...well perhaps I didn't quite phrase it right? Yes, I realized that the work involved might be detailed, but the look of the cake itself is not what I would consider elaborate. Sheesh lady, how about a "wow that is really pretty," or even a "yes, we can definitely create this!" Regardless of whether or not she understood what I was originally saying, I was put off by the encounter...as well as the outrageous "design" charge that she quoted because of the work involved.
After that particular meeting, I was feeling a bit dejected and frustrated about the cake situation. So...I put it off...until last week, when I found the best cake baker EVER! But, you'll have to wait, as that story is for another time!
How many different cake bakeries did you try out before you found the one?
We did four tastings (though two were at the same place! lol) and we were going to do another one but the woman who answered the phone at the bakery was rude so we canceled.
ReplyDeleteI hear you on the timeline thing... we haven't even made our final decisions about what we're going to serve at the reception for dinner (and, thus, who we are going to hire to make it!)... and we're only 4 months out. That's kind of the bane of my existence right now... need to make a decision!
Ooh that's a lovely design. I hate it when people give attitude - an automatic "I see you don't want my business" kwim? Can't wait to see what happened!
ReplyDeleteWe had ice cream cake from Carvel and Chinatown Ice Cream Factory (famous for lychee, mango, and green tea!) We knew they'd be fine.
I always knew who was going to make my cake because we've always gotten our cakes from there for every event. Birthdays, graduations, christenings you name it. There was no need for a tasting since we knew what they taste like but we did it anyway, yum.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I found your blog and love it and i'm now your newest follower. Feel free to visit my blog and follow if you like.
I have the same problem! Unfortunately, I don't think we're going to get any cake tastings! I'm at school in Ohio, but we're getting married in Michigan, so a lot of our planning has been done at odd times. I did a lot over Christmas, and I honestly forgot about cakes until recently! Our first choice baker is already booked for June, so we're not sure what we're going to do! But it does make me hopeful that you're still able to look and find people who aren't booked with only a month and a half to go!
ReplyDeletewho is the best cake baker ever? i am searching in the tampa area and having the very same issues.
ReplyDeleteI haven't booked my baker yet, but I have found the one I want! I've tasted a few cakes at bridal shows and this one was head and shoulders above the rest. And when I asked if they could make a three tiered cake small enough for my needs and they said sure, I was thrilled. I just hope that once we're ready to set a date they're still available. (Talk about doing the time lines out of order: I can't even set a date until my fiance gets a visa so I have to research an plan but not book until last minute!)
ReplyDeleteI got lucky with pretty much all my wedding planning- including the cake! "THE dress" I found at the 1st place I went into. Little did I know my mother/mother-in-law grabbed it off the clearance rack (it was stunning so I was afraid to look at the price originally). The food and cake- now I knew who had the best reputation in the area but I figured they were totally out of my price range. The food and cake were ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! I low-balled them with my "budget", giving them about 1/2 what I knew others had paid for similar. Funny how the economy can make people want to work with ya. I ended up getting my cake and food their, 1st place we tested out! Cake served 75 more than my friends with a similar design and even with a outrageous fee to make the cake "bright white" to match my dress... I ended up paying only $525 including delivery and serving fees!!! My friends was almost half the size, without the bright white fee, and costed $818. Food we were able to get for $27.15/persion- including EVERYTHING- like place settings, delivery etc... My word to the wise is to tell them your budget is much less than it is. Obviously we didn't pay the $450 we told them for the cake, and $25/person for food but we got pretty DAMN close!!! Not to mention less tasty catering/bakeries in the area dont' even compare and are NOT willing to even budge on their pricing.
ReplyDeleteWow, the cake that you are planning on having is so gorgeous! I LOVE it! Glad you found a baker that is willing to do it for you!
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