In my previous life (500 years ago), my best friend, Juana, and I baked cakes for friends and family. As time went on, we began selling these cakes. We didn't do a bad job at it either.
After working at our "day jobs," we would come home and bake these tasty treats. Then, we would decorate them using our homemade buttercream icing, parchment triangles and our beloved collection of Wilton tips.
We were a couple of hot, young bakers!
As time moved on, we started getting requests for wedding cakes. And, we said yes. We thought to ourselves, "This is no big deal. Just a large cake!" Right? Wrong!
We were not prepared for the amount of time it took to prep, decorate, and refine a wedding cake for 150 people. We didn't have the experience to know that cream cheese icing was not a good idea for a wedding cake at an outdoor wedding reception. And, goodness knows -- We stunk at transporting that cake. It was a scene ripped from an "I Love Lucy" episode -- complete with falling sugar flowers and a knuckle full of icing. Oy!
So, what am I trying to tell you?
1. The next time you hire a wedding vendor, don't just look at their portfolio. Ask them about their experience working on weddings. Better yet, ask them about their experience working on weddings at your selected venue.
2. Ask your wedding vendor about their education and training. Ask your wedding vendors where they honed their skills. Ask them about their current professional development. The wedding industry is constantly changing -- You want a vendor who values their craft enough to keep it sharp and fresh.
3. Ask a lot of questions and do your research. Make sure that you make an educated decision, so do your homework. Check the vendor's references. Ask the vendor if they are licensed and insured. After you ask each question, pay attention to their answers. And, ask the about their business philosophy -- you may or may not care that you are one of 15 brides they are servicing during your wedding weekend, but it is good to know beforehand.
4. Don't be fooled by the super low prices. Our prices were substantially less than our competition because 1.) We didn't know what to charge; 2.) We had no overhead because 3.) we had no experience baking a wedding cake.
5. Ask them for an agreement. When we baked our first wedding cake, we didn't have an agreement with our bride. Many times that night, we wanted to give up on the cake. Fortunately, "giving up" wasn't an option for us -- But, we could have. There was nothing binding us to the wedding except our promise.
So, the next time you hire your wedding vendor, remember the lessons learned from my brief life as a 23-year-old wedding cake baker. It could make a difference in your wedding day.
Love and Soul Always, Kay
BTW: The Wedding Cake turned out fine. And, the bride and groom didn't have any clue about our numerous challenges.
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