Nov

15

Gift Guides

Hi DIYers,

As DIY Bride begins to include all aspects planning a do-it-yourself wedding, we’ll be introducing new features in the coming days and weeks. The first new feature is a regular column of gift-giving guides.

“What gifts” you say? Most couples give their maids and men a gift for being in the wedding party. Moms and dads often get a token of thanks. Clergy, vendors who go above and beyond, special helpers, ceremony readers, ushers, ring bearers, and flower girls are also others who traditionally may receive gifts. Brides and grooms also sometimes exchange gifties pre-ceremony. I know Jason and I were caught off guard when we discovered all of these wedding extras were customary and/or expected – and we didn’t budget for them. So, you know, heads up! Save some room in your budget for this stuff and let us offer some inspiration for nifty ideas for all budget ranges.

The Gift Guides are collections of products that are perfect for wedding-related gifting. DIY Bride is proud to showcase handmade products from small and indie designers as part of our roundup of ideas.

If you’re a vendor who’d like to be considered for inclusion in our gift guides, we’d love to hear from you! Please use the contact form to tell us about your product and why you think your wares are a great gift idea.


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May

21

Cake Month Extended + Recap

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Hey DIYers,

I’m extending Cake Month through the entire month of June. There’s just too how-to, resources, reviews, reader questions, and other confectionery goodness that I’m not able to squeeze into the remaining days of May.

For those of you who’re just hearing about Cake Month, we’re dedicating an entire  month to do-it-yourself wedding cakes, cookies, and candy.

Here’s what we’ve covered so far:

Some of the awesomeness coming up: DIY cake and cupcake stands, icing basics, best baking books, cookie, cake, and candy how-to, best recipes, knock out techniques, cool decorations, hundreds of resources… and much more!

If you’d like to follow Cake Month-Only posts in your favorite RSS Reader (we love http://www.google.com/reader), our Cake Month feed is: http://feeds.feedburner.com/DiyBrideCakeMonth .




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May

17

DIY Cake Month: Finding Cake Decorating Classes

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Later in this series I’ll be recommending a few wedding cake books. Surprisingly, there are very few that are worth the money for beginning-intermediate home bakers. The best way to learn cake decorating techniques, in my estimation, is from good old hands-on experience. There’s simply no substitution for wrestling with real fondant or getting your fingers stained with freshly mixed colored gum paste. Having an experienced instructor is also a huge bonus to guide you through real-time dilemmas and to lend the helping hand of someone who’s “been there”.

You’ll find that most major cities and metro areas have ongoing decorating classes. They’re usually offered by:

  • Michael’s Craft Stores. They’ve teamed up with Wilton (the leading consumer cake decorating company) to offer classes in many (if not most) Michael’s stores. I know my local Michael’s offers a discount on Wilton supplies if you sign up for their classes, which is a nice bonus. These classes are taught by Wilton-approved/trained instructors. (Wilton has their own curriculum and decorating techniques that each certified instructor must master.)
  • Independent Cake Decorating Supply Shops. If your town is lucky enough to have a local cake decor supply, do ask if they offer classes. This is a great way to support local businesses and to be exposed to different supplies and techniques than you’d find at Michael’s. Like just about anything, the quality of cake supplies varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. I think it’s important to try out different ones.
  • Community College/Adult Education. Some community colleges and adult education programs offer cake decorating classes. {Community Colleges by State}
  • Culinary Schools. Some culinary schools/institutes offer pastry/cake decorating classes to non-culinary students. You’ll be taught by industry professionals, which could be very challenging (and fun!). {List of Culinary Schools}
  • Private Individuals. Check out Craigslist or other community boards for individuals who teach cake decorating. My impression is that most are Wilton-trained.

Evaluating Classes

When evaluating classes, there are some important things to take into consideration:

  1. What’s the teacher’s background? What training does she have? What’s her professional experience? How long has she been teaching?
  2. Does the class require any pre-requisites?
  3. Is there baking involved or is it just decorating?
  4. How much hands-on time in each class student have?
  5. What techniques are being taught?
  6. How many projects are due in the course?
  7. What’s the total supply cost for the class/course?
  8. Must the supplies be from a certain manufacturer or from the store you’re taking the class in?
  9. Check out the teacher’s portfolio. I highly recommend this because I’ve seen some reeaaaaally outdated styles being taught in some classes. (Lighted fountains and tiny plastic stairs, anyone?)
  10. What’s the cancellation/missed class/refund policy? What happens if you miss a class or if you have to drop out?



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May

13

Cake Month: Boxed Mix or Scratch Recipe?

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JGS BakeMeACake 150x150 Cake Month: Boxed Mix or Scratch Recipe?One of the most important decisions you’ll make about your DIY cake, and one that tortures many a would-be DIY cake maker, is what kind of cake to make. In a later post we’ll go through flavor and filling options but this one’s devoted to the boxed mix or scratch dilemma.

There are few debates as heated in the cake world as the use of boxed mix versus scratch cakes. While I am a strong advocate of the latter, I do want to give a fair look at both sides to help you discover which option is best for your needs.

JGS BakeMeACake 300x200 Cake Month: Boxed Mix or Scratch Recipe?

Box Mix Pros:

  • Convenient, pre-mixed packages mean little measuring and no guesswork with ingredients yielding a pretty consistent result from cake-to-cake.
  • Packages can be purchased way ahead of time and stored until needed.
  • Box mixes are inexpensive, especially when purchased on sale.
  • Most people are very familiar with box mix flavors and have fond associations of those kinds of cakes (reminds them of childhood, for example).

Box Mix Cons:

  • Limited flavor, texture, and “weight” options.
  • Box mixes use a lot of chemicals for stabilization and preservation.
  • Some mixes have a chemical taste to them.
  • You’ll need to buy a lot of boxes to feed your wedding guests; it’s harder to scale to feed large groups.
  • Box mixes are not always less expensive than baking from scratch.

Pros of Scratch Mixes:

  • Unlimited flavor options. If you can dream it, there’s likely a perfect cake flavor waiting for you to discover it.
  • You control the ingredients and can add to or modify recipes to suit your needs. Wheat allergies? Vegan? Organic ingredients only? Carrot cake without nuts? No trans fats? Diabetic options? No problem!
  • Freshness. Made-from-scratch cakes don’t need chemical stabilizers or preservatives. (Take a look at the ingredients on a box mix cake.)
  • Scratch recipes often yield cakes with more body and substance – better for wedding cakes.
  • Pride. There’s definitely a satisfaction that one gets from making something that takes creativity, patience and skill that can’t be experienced with shortcuts.

Cons of Scratch Mixes:

  • Baking from scratch requires measuring ingredients accurately.
  • Some argue that scratch mixes are faster; over at The Kitchn, they they proved that wrong.
  • Baking from scratch doesn’t yield standardized results.
  • Depending on your ingredients, scratch cakes can be more expensive to produce.
  • Scaling recipes up or down is easier than with a box mix.

As for cake mix being less expensive than scratch, you may be surprised at what we found in the DIY Bride Test Kitchen. That’s another post, though.

My best advice is for you to do a taste and bake test with scratch cakes and box cakes to find the ones that fit the taste, texture, and budget that you’re aiming for. (Check back for the DIY Bride Test Kitchen results.)

Remember: a wedding cake needs to taste great, no matter how clever or fancy it looks.



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May

13

Cake Month: Fondant Taste-o-Rama

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Throughout the month of May, we’re discussing all DIY cake-related matters. Join us for how-to, tips, and inspiration.

Some  of the most common cake-related questions are related to a popular cake icing called rolled fondant. (Most just call it fondant, though there are different kinds. More on that in a later post.) For those of you not yet in the know, rolled fondant is a thick, somewhat stretchy and slightly chewy sheet of icing that produces a smooth surface on a cake. {Check out the gorgeous fondant design by the outrageously talented April Reed.}

600x600 1202316022151 BlueDecoCake 258x300 Cake Month: Fondant Taste o Rama
Cake by April Reed

In certain cake eating circles, fondant is a dirty word. There are some who will turn up their noses at the mere mention of the “f word”. See, they think it tastes icky. And, unfortunately, their experience with it was probably not that great. Not all fondant has a yuck factor, my friends, as not all pre-made fondants are the same.

We at the DIY Bride Test Kitchen (well, ok, just me at my kitchen counter) decided to do a taste test among the most popular fondant brands.

The contenders, in no particular order:

The methodology: cut off a hunk of fondant, eat it, review it, rate it. Real scientific!

The Results

#1 : Fondarific. Of the 4 fondants tasted, Fondarific had the best flavor and texture. Sweet and creamy with melt-in-your mouth consistency, Fondarific, was by far the tastiest and gets the highest recommendation. No cloying aftertaste, ingredients taste fresh, no chemical smell or flavors detected.

#2 : Satin Ice. Many, many cake pros use Satin Ice as their fondant of choice. The SI sample was very mellow in flavor and had a very pleasant consistency. It wasn’t as flavorful or as smooth as Fondarific but it was still very good.

#3 : Fondx: I had a hard time choosing between Satin Ice and Fondx for the #2. Fondx lost out my just the tiniest margin because I thought the more mellow flavor of SI would compliment more cake flavors. That’s not to say that Fondx has a strong flavor at all, it’s just more flavorful than SI. If I were to make  fondant cake today, I’d be torn between Fondx and Fondarific. They’re pretty similar in consistency and texture, both are quite tasty.

#4 : Wilton: This was by leaps and bounds my least favorite fondant of the bunch. Slightly grainy with a chemical aftertaste, Wilton’s fondant was just nasty compared to the others in the bunch. I have to admit that I used Wilton fondant for a project in my upcoming book (cue shameless self-promotion) The Crafty Countdown and it was perfect for non-edible decoration. {Peep a sneak peek at the Owl Cake Topper.}

owltoppers 250x300 Cake Month: Fondant Taste o Rama
Owl Cake Toppers From The Crafty Countdown

More Details

  1. Wilton is the most widely-available fondant. You can pick it up at craft stores like Michael’s (and Michael’s often offers Wilton cake decorating classes).
  2. The price breakdown (please note that most fondants get cheaper when you buy in bulk – over 5 lbs.) Prices below are approximate. Search around for the best deals.
  • Satin Ice, $6.49 for 2 lb. ($3.50 per pound)
  • Wilton, $6.79 for 1.5 lb. ($4.52 per pound)
  • Fondarific, $11.79 for 2 lb. ($5.89 per pound)
  • Fondx, $33.00 for 10 lb. ($3.30 per pound)



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May

11

Essential Tools For DIY Cakes

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Before you commit to going for your DIY cake dream, let’s look at the essential tools you’ll need. Remember to budget for all of the tools & equipment you’ll need to buy. It adds up quickly!

  1. A working oven. (D’uh!)
  2. An oven thermometer. Why? Many, many ovens are not calibrated which means that temperature inside the oven is quite often different from what’s on the dial (or digital read out). Cakes require proper temp settings otherwise you’ll get a burnt outside and runny inside.
  3. A mixer. I prefer stand mixers (KitchenAid rocks) because they can handle heavier and more abundant batters than hand held mixers.
  4. A rubber or silicon scraper to get all of the batter out of the mixing bowl.
  5. Mixing bowls.
  6. Whisk.
  7. Wire cooling racks. You’ll need to let your cakes cool before frosting and decorating. A wire rack allows full air circulation under and around the cake.
  8. Measuring cups for wet and dry ingredients.
  9. Measuring spoons for wet and dry ingredients.
  10. A long, serrated knife or cake leveler tool to level the cake.
  11. An offset spatula for frosting.
  12. Cake pans.
  13. Parchment paper to line cake pans.
  14. Pastry bag and tips for decorating.
  15. Rolling pin (for fondant, gumpaste, or marzipan).
  16. Fondant smoothing tool and/or brayer (if working with fondant).
  17. Non-stick mat (fondant).
  18. Cutters, molds (for fondant).
  19. Timer.
  20. Bamboo skewers or toothpicks to poke cake to check for doneness.
  21. Oven mitts.
  22. Refrigerator space to store the cake(s).
  23. Plastic wrap and/or aluminum foil.
  24. Cardboard cake boards.
  25. A box or way to transport the cake from kitchen to venue.



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May

03

Is A DIY Wedding Cake For You?

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Throughout the entire month of May DIY Bride will be featuring do-it-yourself tips, inspiration, and instruction for making cakes, candy, and cookies. iStock 000010232938XSmall Is A DIY Wedding Cake For You? The the siren song of a do-it-yourself wedding cake is a hard one to ignore. It seduces. It cajoles. “Make me” it sings. “You know you want to. All the cool kids are doing it. Maaaaaaake meeeeee.” It lures you into a false sense of culinary mastery and into the treacherous waters of cake disaster. While there’s nothing quite like peer pressure from inanimate baked goods, most couples hire someone else create their wedding cakes. For a few adventurers, however, making their own cake is all too temping. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you as you fondle fancy molded cake pans at Williams-Sonoma and linger a little too long in the Wilton aisle at Michael’s. Oh, I know your type. You and I are kindred spirits, you see. We are would-be cake couturiers with grand visions of effortless, elegant culinary masterpieces adorning our table tops. We have pans. We have nifty decorating gadgets. We’ve watched every episode of Ace of Cakes. It’s just baking, right? The harsh reality is that cake making is harder than it may appear. There’s a great deal of chemistry, artistry, and patience that goes into creating a beautiful, tasty cake. This, of course, doesn’t mean it’s impossible for a home baker to make something spectacularly divine. It is possible! But the big question here is: is the DIY cake experience right for you? If you’re considering a DIY wedding cake, here are the most basic considerations to help you decide if this route is a good idea for you.

  1. How many guests will you be feeding? (General rule: the bigger the cake, the harder to bake/decorate/transport.)
  2. How many hours of baking and decorating time will you need? And do you have that amount of available time? Do you have that amount of time right before the wedding when things are particularly crazy? A conservative estimate for a simple butter cream-frosted (no decoration) 3-layer stacked round cake to feed 120 people would take about 4 – 5 hours to make. (Measure, mix, bake, cool, frost.)
  3. How important are taste and presentation to you? To your guests? The wedding cake is a high-profile part of nearly every wedding. Will you feel comfortable presenting your creation no matter how it turns out?
  4. Do you have the tools — including a reliable oven — to do the job? If not, how much will it cost to buy all of the tools? Is your oven big enough to bake a 14″ round (or whatever is your largest size)?
  5. How good is your math? Baking is nearly all chemistry. Exact measurements are crucial to good results.
  6. How experienced are you at baking? At cake decorating? Are baking/decorating classes in your future?
  7. Will you bake from scratch or a mix?
  8. How elaborate will your design be?
  9. Will you have time (and budget) to experiment with recipes and decorating if you’ve never done large-scale baking/decorating before?
  10. Thinking of using fresh flowers for decoration? Great! Which common wedding flowers are are poisonous and should never be used on a cake?
  11. How will you store the finished (or nearly finished) cakes? Do you have enough ‘fridge space?
  12. How will you transport the cake?
  13. Who will set it up at the venue?
  14. Who will serve it? (Caterers will charge extra to do this for you.)
  15. What if something goes wrong? What’s your Plan B or worst case scenario fix-it?

We’ll be talking more about the questions above in the coming days to better guide you to decide if a DIY cake is in your future. I wanted to get you thinking about the time, skill, budget, and supply requirements to not only do it yourself but to do it well.



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May

12

DIY Cake Month: Finding Decorating Classes

Later in this series I’ll be recommending a few wedding cake books. Surprisingly, there are very few that are worth the money for beginning-intermediate home bakers. The best way to learn cake decorating techniques, in my estimation, is from good old hands-on experience. There’s simply no substitution for wrestling with real fondant or getting your fingers stained with freshly mixed colored gum paste. Having an experienced instructor is also a huge bonus to guide you through real-time dilemmas and to lend the helping hand of someone who’s “been there”.

You’ll find that most major cities and metro areas have ongoing decorating classes. They’re usually offered by:

  • Michael’s Craft Stores. They’ve teamed up with Wilton (the leading consumer cake decorating company) to offer classes in many (if not most) Michael’s stores. I know my local Michael’s offers a discount on Wilton supplies if you sign up for their classes, which is a nice bonus. These classes are taught by Wilton-approved/trained instructors. (Wilton has their own curriculum and decorating techniques that each certified instructor must master.)
  • Independent Cake Decorating Supply Shops. If your town is lucky enough to have a local cake decor supply, do ask if they offer classes. This is a great way to support local businesses and to be exposed to different supplies and techniques than you’d find at Michael’s. Like just about anything, the quality of cake supplies varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. I think it’s important to try out different ones.
  • Community College/Adult Education. Some community colleges and adult education programs offer cake decorating classes. {Community Colleges by State}
  • Culinary Schools. Some culinary schools/institutes offer pastry/cake decorating classes to non-culinary students. You’ll be taught by industry professionals, which could be very challenging (and fun!). {List of Culinary Schools}
  • Private Individuals. Check out Craigslist or other community boards for individuals who teach cake decorating. My impression is that most are Wilton-trained.

Evaluating Classes

When evaluating classes, there are some important things to take into consideration:

  1. What’s the teacher’s background? What training does she have? What’s her professional experience? How long has she been teaching?
  2. Does the class require any pre-requisites?
  3. Is there baking involved or is it just decorating?
  4. How much hands-on time in each class student have?
  5. What techniques are being taught?
  6. How many projects are due in the course?
  7. What’s the total supply cost for the class/course?
  8. Must the supplies be from a certain manufacturer or from the store you’re taking the class in?
  9. Check out the teacher’s portfolio. I highly recommend this because I’ve seen some reeaaaaally outdated styles being taught in some classes. (Lighted fountains and tiny plastic stairs, anyone?)
  10. What’s the cancellation/missed class/refund policy? What happens if you miss a class or if you have to drop out?

[5/13: edited to fix punctuation error]



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May

12

DIY Cake Month: Is A DIY Cake For You?

r8fu16xa DIY Cake Month: Is A DIY Cake For You? The the siren song of a do-it-yourself wedding cake is a hard one to ignore. It seduces. It cajoles. “Make me” it sings. “You know you want to. All the cool kids are doing it. Maaaaaaake meeeeee.” It lures you into a false sense of culinary mastery and into the treacherous waters of cake disaster.

While there’s nothing quite like peer pressure from inanimate baked goods, most couples hire someone else create their wedding cakes. For a few adventurers, however, making their own cake is all too temping. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you as you fondle fancy molded cake pans at Williams-Sonoma and linger a little too long in the Wilton aisle at Michaels. Oh, I know your type.

You and I are kindred spirits, you see. We are would-be cake couturiers with grand visions of effortless, elegant culinary masterpieces adorning our table tops. We have pans. We have nifty decorating gadgets. We’ve watched every episode of Ace of Cakes. It’s just baking, right?

The harsh reality is that cake making is harder than it may appear. There’s a great deal of chemistry, artistry, and patience that goes into creating a beautiful, tasty cake. This, of course, doesn’t mean it’s impossible for a home baker to make something spectacularly divine. It is possible! But the big question here is: is the DIY cake experience right for you?

If you’re considering a DIY wedding cake, here are the most basic considerations to help you decide if this route is a good idea for you.

  1. How many guests will you be feeding? (General rule: the bigger the cake, the harder to bake/decorate/transport.)
  2. How many hours of baking and decorating time will you need? And do you have that amount of available time especially right before the wedding? A conservative estimate for a simple butter cream-frosted (no decoration) 3-layer stacked round cake to feed 120 people would take about 4 – 5 hours to make. (Measure, mix, bake, cool, frost.)
  3. How important are taste and presentation to you? To your guests? The wedding cake is a high-profile part of nearly every wedding.
  4. Do you have the tools — including a reliable oven — to do the job? If not, how much will it cost to buy all of the tools? Is your oven big enough to bake a 14″ round (or whatever is your largest size)?
  5. How good is your math? Baking is nearly all chemistry. Exact measurements are crucial to good results.
  6. How experienced are you at baking? At cake decorating? Are baking/decorating classes in your future?
  7. Will you bake from scratch or a mix?
  8. How elaborate will your design be?
  9. Will you have time (and budget) to experiment with recipes and
    decorating if you’ve never done large-scale baking/decorating before?
  10. Thinking of using fresh flowers for decoration? Great! Which common wedding flowers are are poisonous and should never be used on a cake?
  11. How will you store the finished (or nearly finished) cakes? Do you have enough ‘fridge space?
  12. How will you transport the cake?
  13. Who will set it up at the venue?
  14. Who will serve it? (Caterers will charge extra to do this for you.)
  15. What if something goes wrong? What’s your Plan B or worst case scenario fix-it?

We’ll be talking more about the questions above in the coming days to
better guide you to decide if a DIY cake is in your future. I wanted to get you thinking about the time, skill, budget, and supply requirements to not only do it yourself but to do it well.



Posted by | 7 comments
Jul

09

10 Ways To Go Green

In the spirit of this month’s feature on having a “green” wedding, here are some simple ways to reduce waste and increase your eco-friendliness. 1. Skip the unnecessary/non-meaningful stuff. Not only will it help your budget not purchasing/making things that you really don’t want or need is an excellent way to reduce the waste you (and your guests) output. 2. Go seasonal. Using seasonal decor, flowers, and food is a beautiful way to reduce your impact. By using in-season flowers and produce, you’ll support local growers who are not wasting fuel and resources to fly or ship goods to the US (or wherever you live). 3. Go local. Related to #2 above, use local resources whenever you can. Not only are you boosting your local economy, by not shipping in (or traveling to) supplies from out of area, you’re reducing fuel consumption. 4. Shop independent retailers. Not every indie retailer is green, of course. However, there are an abundance of retailers who specialize in eco-friendly products or who are committed to operating a green business. Some of the big box retailers are among the world’s worst polluters (either through their own waste or through the waste their 3rd world suppliers produce). 5. Use recycled paper for your stationery. It’s easy to find quality, recycled papers and cardstock and using it (recycled paper) impacts the Earth in a meaningful way. Did you know: [quote]1 Ton of 100% Recycled Paper Saves:

  • 17 trees
  • 7000 gallons of water
  • 4100 kwh of energy, enough to power the average home for 6 months
  • 60 pounds of air pollution
  • 2.5 cubic yards of landfill space[/quote]

6. Use other recycled materials. Have you ever wondered what other brides do with those 17 fishbowls they bought for their centerpieces? How about decorations? Couture wedding gowns? Books and magazines? You can get a lot the pre-loved wedding goods for free or on the cheap. Check out: Freecycle.org, craigslist.org, and eBay.com for freebies/deals. Or drop into the forums at DIY Bride and post your freebies or search for used items. 7. Something borrowed. Don’t spend cash in tools, gadgets, or other wedding stuff that you won’t use after the wedding. Instead, borrow! You’re not only saving money and reducing waste, you’re creating tradition and heirlooms. Recently married friends and family probably have things you can borrow like veils, tiaras, jewelry, ring pillows, cufflinks. Your crafty pals may have things like paper cutters, a good printer, rubber stamps, paper punches and other craft tools. 8. Give earth-friendly favors and gifts. If you’re set on giving favors, use recycled packaging and give things that support being green. Donations to conservation agencies are awesome. Planting a tree in your guests’ names is a beautiful gesture. 9. Reduce the amount of travel you and your guests must do. Hold your ceremony and reception at the same venue or in places that are close by. Keep your venue(s) near the hotels your out-of-town guests will be staying at. Provide transportation to and from the wedding for groups of guests (carpool!). Let guests know how to get to your wedding via public transportation. 10. Go paperless! Not only is the world wide interweb an excellent tool for finding great resources, it’s a convenient and eco-friendly way to communicate with your guests and vendors. Send save-the-dates via email, have your guests RSVP online instead of sending snail mail cards back to you, have your vendors send contracts and materials as PDF forms, and create virtual wedding newsletters for your wedding party. Got more tips and ideas? Please share!



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