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asked July 6th 2016

First wedding cake done!

I’m so relieved and proud! Just finished my first wedding cake and matching cupcake tower. There were loads of roses and flowers and I stupidly did a double stack square 8″ and 6″ to go on top of the tower. Then I realised how heavy it was!!! So it’s going to sit by the side instead. I made my own tower out of cake boards and dummy 4″ cakes which worked well. Saved me buying a stand as this is a present for my friend at her wedding on Friday. I’ve had nightmares about finishing it on time and now I’m jittery about moving it off the table in case a rose petal breaks etc. did anyone else feel like this when they first started? I’ve got this far purely from watching tutorials and from the help on here. Thanks everyone especially madeitwithlove. X. Ps. How perfect does Fondant icing have to be? Are we allowed the odd blemish/wrinkle/crack?

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I’m so relieved and proud! Just finished my first wedding cake and matching cupcake tower. There were loads of roses and flowers and I stupidly did a double stack square 8″ and 6″ to go on top of the tower. Then I realised how heavy it was!!! So it’s going to sit by the side instead. I made my own tower out of cake boards and dummy 4″ cakes which worked well. Saved me buying a stand as this is a present for my friend at her wedding on Friday. I’ve had nightmares about finishing it on time and now I’m jittery about moving it off the table in case a rose petal breaks etc. did anyone else feel like this when they first started? I’ve got this far purely from watching tutorials and from the help on here. Thanks everyone especially madeitwithlove. X. Ps. How perfect does Fondant icing have to be? Are we allowed the odd blemish/wrinkle/crack?

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Hi Topsy

Goodness me, you have been so busy! Very well done on accomplishing this marathon task. Everyone feels nervous not only when they first start out but all of the time! Even the most experienced baker/decorator who cares about their work feels this way so you’re not alone 🙂 You’ve done so well and should be proud of yourself.
Sometimes flowers do break so it’s always worth making a few spares to take with you to the venue. I have an emergency decorating kit in which I keep extras flowers/decorations, a small tub of royal icing in case I need it for gluing broken pieces, small rolling pin, smoothers and piping bags. In fact anything that would be useful if you need to make a repair. Don’t worry about having the fondant icing perfect, you’re allowed to have small inperfections! Anyway no one else notices because they are too busy Ooooing and Aahhhing at your hard work. Only you will notice, just be kind to yourself. Take some pictures of your first wedding cake and post them on Paul’s facebook page. Paul is always asking for members to share their work, he loves to see how his students are doing. If you’re going to the wedding, don’t forget to have a picture taken with your masterpiece xx

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Thanks so much xx. I’ve baked cakes for ages but never decorated them. I am very familiar with the 1:1 ganache and must confess to putting that in the centre rather than the 2:1 as I was worried it would go hard. I use bourneville for the centre as it just sets perfectly and isn’t too sharp a taste. My hubby works for the ambulance service and the station always has a ready supply of cakes. I will definitely make extra flowers next time. Alongside this I’m doing my auntie’s surprise 70th cake for the following day and working at the day job! I had pink roses in mind but no, my cousins decided they wanted her laying on the beach in the Cayman Islands being massaged by a hunky black man! So I’ve had to learn wired Palm trees, figures and sand. I found icing the 12″ round much easier than the two smaller squares. I can see why many of Paul’s tutorials are round cakes! Ganaching was my worst job. I made too much in advance and it started to set. It took me all day to do three cakes and still the square ones aren’t architect straight! The round much much easier, Will post some pics. Thanks again for all your help and wonderful charts for quantities. X

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Wow! I’m out of breath just reading all this! Like you I always make a different ganache for filling for same reasons. I don’t necessarily fill with ganache as most of the people I cater for prefer chocolate buttercream. Paul’s tutorials are guides and he does expect us to experiment for ourselves what suits best.
The trick with square cakes is to ganache them from chilled to keep the layers straight. Over the years though I build a square cake in the tin it was baked in and chill hard. It unmoulds easily from the heat of a hair drier to reveal perfectly straight sides ready for ganaching! It’s just something to keep in mind for the future if you’re still having problems.
I’m so glad the quantities charts have been of help to you. There are charts also for buttercream quantities and for sugarpaste amounts for coverage. All the charts are for different size and depth cakes. Please let me know if you need any further informaton. xx

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Just catching up with this now and could you tell me exactly how to ganache a square cake using the tin – do you do it on the outside? I’m a bit thick sometimes, lol…! x

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