I've gone back 10 pages to make sure I haven't duplicated these questions, if I have, SORRY!
First, bride wants a ribbon around the base of each layer, is there a certain kind to use so that it doesn't show grease marks?
Second, she wants a three layer cake to feed 50-60 people. The top layer will not be saved. How do I figure out how big to make the layers?
Last (and I'm sure there will be more!) how do I price this cake? Do you consider 1" X 2" a slice?
Sorry, I've been doing birthday etc. cakes for years, this is new territory for me!
Thanks for all the help!

This may help with the size of the cakes you'll make and size of slices

http://www.earlenescakes.com/ckserchart.htm

Most people charge per slice and also depending on difficulty of design. If you have Excel PM me and I'll send you the pricing matrix that will help you figure out how much to charge.

Hope this helps a bit!

A couple of tips for the ribbon..
**have the bride pick out a ribbon (go with her to the store even to make sure she picks out something that isn't too glittery or has things on it that will easily fall off into the cake)
**test the ribbon for grease proofness by taking a small section and put a dollop of icing on it and let it sit to see how long it will take before the grease starts to show through..
**one way to make ribbon more "grease-proof" is to take the ribbon, place it on a piece of wax paper between two damp towels, and iron with a hot iron- this will cause the wax on the wax paper to transfer over onto the ribbon
**or if you can clear contact paper, cut a smalll piece out and see if you can get it to stick to a piece of the ribbon, if it works you could cover the whole backside of the ribbon in clear contact paper

Don't worry if the question has already been answered before..it happens all the time!

Regarding the ribbon..some people but a piece of wax paper, the same size as the ribbon, in between the ribbon and the cake.

Do you mean she wants a "three tiered" cake or just a "three layer" cake?

Lastly, as dodibug mentioned...pricing is a bit different for wedding cakes

She wants a cake with three graduated cakes stacked, no pillars.
Do most people use the 3" cake pans and torte twice? The bride wants a white cake with bc, that's easy enough!
I guess the hard part is the pricing and trying to figure out if I need a dummy cake. I would think a 6, 8, 10"???
Thanks!

dodibug,
I would love a copy of the pricing matrix, thanks!
[email protected]

Matrix is sent. I always use 2" pans but others swear by their 3" pans, so I think it's just a matter of preference. Most of the time you use pans with 4" difference but you can use 2" depending on the look you want it is just tight as far a decorations are concerned. Check out that link for sizes. I think Earlene's chart is more generous/realistic as far as number of slices per cake than Wilton's. Have you done stacked cakes before?

I use Earlene's chart as well. A 3" or 4" difference in pan sizes looks best. A 2" difference will look too much like a tower. For ribbon, I always use silk satin and never have to take any precautions against it soaking up grease from the icing. If it does absorb any, it just doesn't show. MJTrim carries it in several different colors and widths: http://www.mjtrim.com/catalog/family.aspx?family=09%3a15

Last time I left it up to someone else to get the ribbon, I was VERY disappointed and the cake suffered because of it. So that's just something I take care of myself. HTH

Dodibug, thanks so much for the matrix! Haven't checked it out yet, but will after the little ones go down.
Cakebaker- If I use the 3" pans how many layers do you torte? One or two, I'm guessing two.
Thanks again!

I use 2" tall pans and don't torte most of the time.