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Price my cake please!!

post #1 of 27
1/4/06 at 2:59pm
Thread Starter 
This is the biggest wedding cake I have done...I ended up doing the flowers too (not too bad for my first time ever working with flowers...I've actually never even arranged my own flowers in a vase before!)

It is a 5 tier carrot cake with pecan praline filling and a cream cheese buttercream frosting. Bottom tier is 14 inches, then we have 12, 10, 8, 6.

Thank you so much!
LL
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post #2 of 27
1/4/06 at 3:26pm
WOW, this is beautiful, you did a fantastic job. As far as pricing I know carrot cake from scratch is costly, but I am not that good at pricing. I know usually wedding cakes are priced by the slice, hopefully someone else can answer this oneicon_smile.gif
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post #3 of 27
1/4/06 at 3:30pm
They didn't already pay you for this cake?? It is beautiful!!
Knowledge is a candle that when shared, doubles the light, but the insecure person believes knowledge is a candle that is diminished when it is split between two wicks.
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Knowledge is a candle that when shared, doubles the light, but the insecure person believes knowledge is a candle that is diminished when it is split between two wicks.
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post #4 of 27
1/4/06 at 3:44pm
Bumpicon_smile.gif
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post #5 of 27
1/4/06 at 3:55pm
I would charge at least $700 + flowers??? Wild guess & I'm usually low. That's hard to say not knowing what ingredients cost and the common wedding rates where you are.
It's not how good you are, but how well you can fix your mistakes.
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It's not how good you are, but how well you can fix your mistakes.
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post #6 of 27
1/4/06 at 4:16pm
Beautiful Cake I like the height. As far as pricing I have no idea alot of it depends on your area.

Wilma



NOTHING TASTE AS GOOD AS BEING THIN FEELS!
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NOTHING TASTE AS GOOD AS BEING THIN FEELS!
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post #7 of 27
1/4/06 at 4:39pm
Thread Starter 
They paid me!!! I am a poor just starting out baker--and full time law student (so I'm double poor!).

I charged $500 total. But that was sort of a nice round number...when I actually priced it out, that cake should have fed 250 people.

The couple wanted to feed 80 people, but they also wanted a really tall cake. So--I charged them $5/person for the cake, and then I made 3 dummy tiers--and I only charged $100 total for that.

But I was thinking that I really should have done something like $5/person for the actual cake, and the equivalent of $2 or $3/person for the dummy cake--since I still used real frosting (to make sure the color matched) and I still spent hours decorating...

SO I was thinking the grand total--for an all cake cake that size would have been closer to $1,250 and for an 80 person cake plus some dummy cakes, somwhere between $800 and $1,000.

I feel crazy charging that much--but I live near DC, and I happen to be planning my own wedding, so I know that isnt really a ridiculous number...

But I wanted to get some other input!
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post #8 of 27
1/4/06 at 5:12pm
Your cake is stunning!!!! They stole it for $500!
Cake's a powerful food. Cake can actually bring people together. You know... "It's Bill's birthday" "Yeah, I hate that guy." "There's cake in the conference room." "Well, I should say hello."-Jim Gaffigan
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Cake's a powerful food. Cake can actually bring people together. You know... "It's Bill's birthday" "Yeah, I hate that guy." "There's cake in the conference room." "Well, I should say hello."-Jim Gaffigan
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post #9 of 27
1/4/06 at 5:13pm
I agree--somewhere between $700 to $800. Alot of work goes into the dummy cakes. I have made carrot cakes and that is also alot of work--not to mention the pecan praline filling.

I, too, under-charge and am in the process of increasing my prices. It's like "Field of Dreams"--Build and they will come. If you are good, they will come. Don't short yourself--that was beautiful work!!!
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

"Quality Cakes Aren't Cheap and Cheap Cakes Aren't Quality"

It's not "just cake!"
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I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

"Quality Cakes Aren't Cheap and Cheap Cakes Aren't Quality"

It's not "just cake!"
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post #10 of 27
1/4/06 at 5:31pm
Your cake is beautiful!!!
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post #11 of 27
1/5/06 at 1:41pm
Wow very beautiful.
Everything I need to know I learned in Cake Central !

Lots of love, Melony.
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Everything I need to know I learned in Cake Central !

Lots of love, Melony.
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post #12 of 27
1/5/06 at 1:49pm
Great job on the cake. I think you should have priced more in the range of $800's+. That's why in 20 years or so when my daugher gets married or my son I hope to have the skill and the time to help make their cakes. I figure in that amount of time I should be really good and be able to save alot on their weddings. Although the kids do now enjoy the cakes that I make.

What is your recipe for Pecan Praline Filling? That sounds yummy!
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post #13 of 27
1/5/06 at 1:54pm
Beautiful job and no way I would have done it for less than about $600-$700 .. with the icing and type cake you did and the praline filling, $700 for sure!!
Cheryl a/k/a ntertayneme (n-ter-tayne-me)
www.legateaux.com
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Cheryl a/k/a ntertayneme (n-ter-tayne-me)
www.legateaux.com
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post #14 of 27
1/5/06 at 6:29pm
Wow, your cake is absolutely STUNNING! I'm not a cake expert/decorator yet, but I'm planning to in near future. May I ask where did you learn how to decorate that cake? You must be very proud of yourself!
H.R. Pufnstuf who's your friend when things get rough
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H.R. Pufnstuf who's your friend when things get rough
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post #15 of 27
1/5/06 at 7:00pm
Thread Starter 
Well, its kind of a funny story I guess...my mom is an INCREDIBLE baker, and people have been telling her for years that she should quit her job and go into baking full time.

I started lawschool 2 1/2 years ago...and as a stress reliever I would come home and bake. Well, I didn't want to have to keep buying bigger pants...so I started taking my stuff in to school--and then people started making requests--so I started having more opportunities to try new things...and I guess its just been alot of trial and error.

I use all family recipes--and thankfully, my mother, in addition to being a baker, is a very talented painter--so I get alot of advice from her.

Thank you so much for your kindness...its really hard to put this stuff up because I put so much time and heart into it, and its scary to be criticized!
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