How a Wedding Cake is Created

You’ve tasted dozens of samples and found your dream cake. Learn the secrets that will bring it to life.

There are several steps that will go into creating your wedding cake.

Cake
The trick to frosting a cake perfectly, without getting crumbs in it, is to place the frosting onto a frozen cake. With this in mind, the cake itself is often baked months before the wedding day and then frozen.

The cake is then frosted with a ‘crumb coat.’ This first layer of frosting goes over the frozen cake. It is often applied thickly to prevent any crumbs from getting through.

The cake will then be placed back into the freezer to allow the frosting to harden.

Fillings
Once frozen, a wide band of frosting will be placed around the top perimeter of the cake. The filling will be placed inside this band of frosting which prevents it from bleeding through to the outside of the cake.
Once the filling has been added, the next layer of cake will be stacked on top of it. When assembled, the outside layer of frosting will be added.

Fondant and Marzipan
For a fondant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fondant) or marzipan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marzipan) exterior, the dough is rolled out with a rolling pin and placed over each cake layer, before the cake layers are assembled.

Marzipan and fondant flowers and bows are created in advance and allowed to harden in the desired shape before being added to the cake.

Buttercream
To apply the frosting smoothly, the cake will be placed onto a wheel. Spinning the cake allows the frosting to be evenly applied. Often a wet spatula is used to prevent the frosting from sticking.

The cake will then be placed back into the freezer before the Pastry Chef applies the decorations. If you’ve selected a pattern using buttercream, the design will sometimes be drawn on with the help of stencils.

Delivery
To prevent shifting during travel, cakes are often assembled after they have arrived at their destination.

Learn more about cake design by taking a cake decorating class. http://michaels.com/art/online/static?page=wilton_cake_decorating

Wedding Insurance – A ‘Do’ or a ‘Don’t’

When contemplating whether to purchase insurance for your wedding day, it’s important to consider what you have planned.

The Venue
If your wedding will be held at a well known and long established venue, it most likely carries insurance on your behalf. This would cover guest accidents or medical issues while on site. If they are providing the caterer, their insurance will cover food poisoning. A general rule of thumb is that their insurance will cover anything that they plan for you. As each venue is unique, it’s important to ask what they cover.

Every venue wants your wedding to be a success. From a marketing standpoint, they want the positive word-of-mouth your event will generate. Consequently, many venues are more flexible than what they would have you believe. If extenuating circumstances require that your wedding be postponed for any reason, let the venue know as soon as possible. They will often switch your wedding to a new date without any penalty. They want your business and they want you to be happy.

If your wedding will be held at a small, privately owned venue, it may be wise to get event insurance. Due to the recession, some venues are going out of business. If you have paid a non-refundable deposit, you will not be reimbursed if the venue goes out of business before your wedding day.

Vendors
Most vendors guarantee their services and want to avoid negative press that could be extremely damaging to a small business. Rather than purchasing insurance to cover anything that goes awry, it’s better to have a backup plan. If you need to use your backup plan, do so. The vendor that fell through will almost certainly refund any payments received.
The best insurance for managing vendors is to hire a Wedding Coordinator. They will refer you to the most reputable and cost effective businesses. They’ll also have backup plans in place and can often fix issues before you even know there’s a problem.

Insurance provides peace of mind. Single-day event insurance can be purchased for as little as $200. If you are worried about any component of your wedding, buy insurance and walk down the aisle with a smile.

Church Weddings

Before you imagine the church bells ringing on your wedding day, there are several things that you should know.

Cost
Churches typically charge just as much in rental fees as your reception venue will. Budget accordingly! The most cost effective option is to hold the ceremony in the same location as the reception so that you are paying one rental fee, rather than two.

Décor
Churches often have strict rules about what decorations are permitted. They may not permit rose petals down the aisle or may require that alter bouquets remain at the church rather than be moved to the reception site after the ceremony. In downtown Seattle, St James Cathedral will not permit candles.
Find out about décor restrictions at your church before falling in love with a ‘look’ for your ceremony.

Pre-Marital Counseling
Many Officiants require that couples attend several counseling sessions before the big day. This is an important consideration if you are planning a last-minute wedding.

Transportation
Consider the time of day guests will be driving and try to avoid rush hour if possible. Review where guests will park during the wedding ceremony and reception. If paid parking is the only option, consider making special arrangements for guests with financial constraints. Also make arrangements for elderly guests who may feel uncomfortable driving after dark.

A church wedding is a must-have for many couples. Asking the right questions upfront can ensure that your dreams become reality.

Planning a Wedding at Home

Some of the most beautiful weddings happen at private homes. Planning a wedding in a private residence is more complex than utilizing an event venue and can be more expensive.
There are several factors to take into consideration;

Room Size & Layout
If holding the festivities indoors, you’ll need to maximize use of the available space. Plan to move out the existing furniture and rent theater-style seating for the ceremony and banquet rounds with chairs for the reception. Renting banquet furniture costs only a few hundred dollars and will help to increase the number of guests the room(s) can accommodate. Brainstorm an out-of-the-way place to store the existing furniture. A garage or extra bedroom often works well.

Cleanup
Holding an event in someone’s home is a lot of work and often causes the event host additional stress. The house will need to be deep cleaned both before and after the event. Consider hiring a maid service as a gift to your host.
In addition, all nick-knacks will need to be removed. This will make the rooms look more spacious and decrease the chance of damage or theft.
The yard needs to be in top condition, which often requires the added expense of routine maintenance that has been long overdue.
Inside the home, updates often include touch-up painting, finishing remodeling and interior design projects.

Restrooms
A general rule of thumb is to have one bathroom for every 50 guests. As most homes have only one restroom on the first floor, portable bathrooms may need to be rented and placed strategically around the property. An upscale restroom rental company is www.royalrestrooms.com

Parking
Many cities and neighborhoods have restrictions on street parking for events. Anticipate one vehicle for every two guests. If off-street parking is not available, research whether an event permit will be required to allow guests to parallel park along the road. If limited off-street parking is available, consider hiring or recruiting friends to act as valets. This will allow vehicles to maximize the space available.

Catering and Liability
If you opt to have relatives or friends do the cooking, consider liability issues. If your guests were to get food poisoning, you and your ‘chef’ would be liable for all damages. When a catering company provides the food, their insurance will cover damages. In addition, catering companies are knowledgeable about safe food handling practices.

Consider the kitchen facilities. Many private residences do not have the capacity to keep food for a large number of guests heated or cooled at the correct temperatures. It may be necessary to rent additional refrigerators or speed racks (which are portable ovens that keep food warm before serving).

Make sure there is enough staff to serve the food. For a buffet meal, plan on 1 catering staff for every 50 guests. For a plated event, schedule 1 staff member for every 30 guests. This is in addition to the kitchen staff preparing the food.

General Liability
If a guest has any type of medical issue while on the property, you or the event host will be liable for damages. Consider buying 1-day event insurance. Starting at only $200, it is definitely a smart investment. Single-event insurance may be purchased from http://www.kandkinsurance.com/EventsAttractions/Pages/EventsAttractions.aspx

Safety
Guests like to snoop and may go through closets or enter rooms of the home not being used for the event. Lock bedroom doors and any rooms that you would not want someone looking through unsupervised. Also, lock up all jewelry and valuables well in advance.

Setup/Breakdown
Parents of the bride and groom and members of the bridal party will be too busy taking photos and participating in the wedding itself to help in the event setup or breakdown. Any projects not completed within two weeks of the wedding day should be passed off too a Wedding Coordinator or trusted friend.

Logistics
Wedding Coordinators typically save events more money than it costs to hire them. As weddings at home are more complex than events held in commercial venues, hire a Wedding Coordinator to help manage logistics.

The ‘convenience’ of planning a wedding at home is typically outweighed by the logistics required to execute the event. Begin planning as early and enlist help wherever possible.
A wedding at home is sure to create happy memories for the whole family.

Welcome Bag Ideas - Seattle

If guests will be staying in a hotel while attending your wedding, consider having Welcome Bags placed into their sleeping rooms. Hotels are typically happy to provide this service free of charge.

Popular items to include in Welcome Bags are;
• A walking map of the area.
To print a free Downtown Seattle Walking Map, visit http://downtownseattleevents.com/tips/maps/Icons%20of%20Seattle.pdf • Brochures for popular area attractions.
• A Calendar of activities for guests to attend
• Local Food Samples
o Starbucks and/or Seattle’s Best coffee samples
o Aplets & Cotlets http://www.libertyorchards.com/
o Smoked salmon
• Beer Samples from a local brewery
o Hood Canal Brewery http://www.hoodcanalbrewery.com/beers.html • Wine or juice from a local vineyard
o Flying Fish Merlot http://www.northwest-wine.com/Flying-Fish-Merlot.html
• An ornament or small souvenir reminiscent of the area.
o A mini ferry boat
o An ornament in the shape of the Space Needle
o Seattle Sounders, Mariners or Seahawks sports souvenirs
o Mount St Helen’s glass
o Seattle Magazine
• Use a postcard of the area to write a welcome message

For more gift ideas that are unique to the Northwest, visit http://www.madeinwashington.com/