Fake-a-Cake

reignbows_92

Has anyone here ever done a fake cake by themselves? I found the idea on a DIY site, but those sites always make it seem really easy. I plan on doing a practice run soon, so I can still hire someone if I need to. 

So, and advice from experience? 

[Deleted User]

Do you mean like a styrofoam cake for display?

If so, I've done a couple.  In general, they're easier than a real cake.  The shape is more uniform and it's lighter weight, both of which are a huge help if you are doing tiers.  Generally you don't have to worry about a support system unless it's very tall.  A little bit of buttercream will "glue" the cake to the board and is also used to hold the tiers together.  You don't have to worry about getting crumbs or the cake falling apart when you ice, and if you stick objects in, like flowers or other decorations, the styrofoam will hold them better than cake does (although it can be harder to get them IN the styrofoam in the first place).

You still have to know how to ice and decorate the cake, and decorating still takes about as much time as decorating a real cake (I've found I can ice a bit faster on the styrofoam because I don't have to worry about crumbs).

One thing I've learned is to wrap the styrofoam in plastic wrap before icing.  Helps hold any stray foam bits and secures the shape.  Plus it lets you re-use the styrofoam at a later date - just scrape off the frosting, then peel off the plastic wrap and voila, fresh styrofoam.

reignbows_92

Awesome! The plastic wrap is a great idea. 

I have expereince with cake decorating, but I've never done a styrofoam cake, so  I was kinda lost. 

Where did you buy the styrofoam?

[Deleted User]

I have a local craft store called Manglesen's that sells styrofoam.  I don't know if Michael's or Joann's or Hobby Lobby will have what you need, but I know they sell styrofoam for other crafty things, particularly flowers/wreaths.  They might have something that will work.

AngB1230

yes i made my own mock cake out of hat boxes...

reignbows_92

O wow AngB! That is beautiful! What did you frost with?

SimplyME22

I'm doing my own fake cake for the wedding as well.  I've started playing around with it ahead of time to get comfortable with how I want it decorated.  I'm going with fondant, because I like the crisp/smooth edging and it's a little bit more tolerant of temperature than buttercream.  After fighting with the ruffles for a bit, I'm not sure if I'm going to go with ruffles on the final cake, but at least I know I can do them!