Photo credit: Barbie Hull Photography

Wedding Cakes are very important. The wedding cake is probably the most beloved wedding item that guests, family and the bride and groom will look forward to … and I completely agree! The wedding cake sets the tone for the whole reception and is one of the most paid for single food items while also acting as the centerpiece of the whole wedding!

Wedding cakes are a big deal. Plus, the wedding guests look forward to the cake more so than eating the wedding menu dinner! When you’re in the middle of planning the wedding and it comes time to pick out a wedding cake, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. After all, you’re finalizing the most expensive dessert that you will ever buy in your lifetime…. No joke…

Think about your wedding costs. Consider your budget and the price of your dream wedding cake. If the list price of your dream wedding cake is a little much, compromise on the overall design. A few less adornments on a wedding cake will never let the guests know you had to compromise on what you wanted.

Instead of hand drawn flowers created in frosting and whip cream, compromise and use fresh flowers instead. Using flowers on the cake is classic, simple and sweet, plus you can say that your wedding cake is ‘going green.’

Photo credit: Vanessa Stump

Another aspect to think about is to use faux tiers made out of cardboard or foam along with real cake tiers. This will give the cake height – making the impact you crave for and saving you money at the same time.

The next step that you should think about is theme and color! What do you want your wedding cake to look like? Have you looked through wedding magazines to look for cake ideas? When it’s time for a meet and greet with the pastry chef for designs on your wedding cake, try to give him or her photographs of the cake you wish to have. If you decided that you haven’t seen your perfect cake in wedding magazines, try sketching a drawing of the cake of your dreams. This way the pastry chef will have at least an idea to work with.

Once you’ve met with the bakery and the pastry chef, they can help you decide on an approximate size of the wedding cake in relation to your number of wedding guests. So, be sure to get a final head count of guests before picking out the cake.

Picking flavors is the best part of wedding. Cake tasting is where all the fun is. And it’s probably one of the most stress free wedding planning tasks that you must do. When deciding on flavors, here are some things you must think about.

Food Allergies! While some people have food allergies, you can’t cater to exactly everyone. But, if you know of a guest who has a food allergy, be sure to take that into consideration. Some food allergies in wedding cakes that you might consider are almonds and other nuts as well as fruit allergies. Dairy/Lactose is also a factor, but that’s one that a person with food allergies w...

A wonderful way to make a wedding cake just a little bit sweeter is to think about unique ways to have it displayed at your reception. Everyone knows that the wedding cake takes a pretty large chunk of the wedding budget. Brides and grooms dream about their wedding cake as much as the flowers, the location and the wedding attire.

One thing that brides and grooms might not think about is new and different cake stands. Spend some time thinking about how to display your wedding cake. After all, you spend so much money on your wedding cake … why not add something to give it a little extra attention?

Photo credit: www.countryliving.com

If you are having a rustic country wedding, try incorporating some natural accents to accentuate your wedding cake.

Photo credit: www.freshhomeblog.com

Monochromatic cake stands are a very modern way to share sweets with your guests.

Photo credit: www.kenziekate.blogspot.com

These cake stands say country chic with a modern twist.

Photo credit: www.ruffledblog.com

If your are having cupcakes instead of a wedding cake, think about using a variety of cake stands to create more of an impact.

Photo credit: www.stylemepretty.com

If you are having a traditional or romantic style wedding, you can create a dessert buffet using antique and vintage cake stands such as these.

Photo credit: www.stylemepretty.com

Whether the choices for your cake stands are black, white, pastel … mo...

I’m always thrilled to come across vendors is the wedding biz who are full of passion for what they do – in the wedding industry it is not such a rare thing. Today’s interview is with Pamela – the owner of Papier Gourmet - who discovered a passion for all things paper while planning her own wedding. Surprised by her new infatuation, she began working in a stationery store part time … and eventually took over the business!

Photo Credits: www.andunlimited.com and www.sharynpeavey.com

How long have you been in business?
The store was opened in 1996 by its original owner and we bought the store from her in July 2004.

What inspired you to start your business?
I’ve always had a love for all things paper even though I don’t have an art or graphic design background. I really fell in love with stationery and invitation design when I planned my wedding in 2002-2003. I loved looking at invitations and found it very hard to narrow down what my own would look like as I loved everything! We ultimately came to Papier Gourmet to order our invitations and had a wonderful experience working with and getting to know the former owner. After we were married in August 2003, I started working at Papier Gourmet one Saturday a month both to help the owner out, as well as to get a feel for what the stationery world was all about. I had dreams of someday leaving my career as an Epidemiologist at the Maine Department of Health (I have a Master’s degree in Public Health, Epidemiology and Biostatistics…totally different from invitation design and running a small business!) and opening my own stationery store. Little did I know that when Papier Gourmet went up for sale the following spring, that I would leave my job, take a leap of faith and become a stationery store owner!

Tell us why you think your business is successful.
I think Papier Gourmet is successful because I’ve been able to carve out a niche as being Maine’s premier fine stationery store by offering a wide selection of high quality stationery and invitation lines combined with personal, attentive service. We have a large customer base, many of who I know on a first name basis and see regularly in the store. Even with the multitude of stationery & invitation websites these days, people still want to actually touch and feel the paper, see the quality of printing in person and receive personal guidance on wording and etiquette.

What makes your business unique?
We offer custom-design and in-house printing services on-site giving us the flexibility to print invitations, announcements and stationery in as little as a few days for all special occasions such as save the dates, wedding invitations, bridal & baby showers, rehearsal dinners, birthday and anniversary parties, ceremony programs, placecards, menus and so forth. No other stationery store in our area has such capabilities or provides the level of quality product and services as we do.

I...