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SPS system experiences... - Page 2

post #16 of 54
9/26/08 at 9:26am
Your cakes are great Leah, but what I am not digging about this system is the need for the thick borders if you aren't using fondant ribbon. Is there any way to avoid the big gap from the base of the frosting/fondant on the upper tier to the top of the frosting/fondant on the lower tier? I like to no use borders if I can help it.. and it seems like the only way to do that is to no use the SPS. icon_sad.gif
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post #17 of 54
9/26/08 at 11:03am
The first time I used it I didnreally had a chance to ask for a deposti, I only ask the bride to please take them back, and she did! But I made different types of cakes with different types of stands and I'm used to asking for a deposit and people react well to it. Never had any problems.
BTW: I love my SPS it's the easiest way to stack a cake. Thanks again Leah.
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Vist me at

www.reposterama.com
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post #18 of 54
9/26/08 at 1:57pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jkalman

Your cakes are great Leah, but what I am not digging about this system is the need for the thick borders if you aren't using fondant ribbon. Is there any way to avoid the big gap from the base of the frosting/fondant on the upper tier to the top of the frosting/fondant on the lower tier? I like to no use borders if I can help it.. and it seems like the only way to do that is to no use the SPS. icon_sad.gif



This was my main concern, trying to use the plate system in cakes that have very little in the way of border.
Scratch bakers of the world UNITE !!
Inrideo ergo sum ~ I snark therefore I am.
Cake or Death?......Cake Please!
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Scratch bakers of the world UNITE !!
Inrideo ergo sum ~ I snark therefore I am.
Cake or Death?......Cake Please!
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post #19 of 54
9/26/08 at 2:43pm
Has anyone tried doing the cake directly on the plastic plate without cardboard? I haven't tried it--just thought about it. That way you could use the plate in place of the cardboard and bring the fondant or icing down over the edge as one usually does with cardboard. It sounds good in theory, but that isn't always how things work in the real world.

The plate is certainly steady with the four feet that will eventually fit into the legs. You could stick on the cake with icing, just as one does anyway. I usually use a piece of carpet tape between the cardboard and plastic, which makes me feel more confident, but in actuality isn't this just one less thing to slip? How hard would it be to do the actual stacking? Could you have the legs in the cake below sticking up halfway, put the plate with cake on them and watch them sink?

These are the things that keep me up at night. LOL If anyone has tried this or does try this, please post. I'll do the same.
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post #20 of 54
9/26/08 at 3:24pm
The only problem I see with that is that it takes a bit of force to get the legs in all the way.. I can't see being able to push them in if you have you cake right on the plate.

Kat.. with the SFS can you get that nice seamless look?
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post #21 of 54
9/26/08 at 3:31pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jkalman

The only problem I see with that is that it takes a bit of force to get the legs in all the way.. I can't see being able to push them in if you have you cake right on the plate.

Kat.. with the SFS can you get that nice seamless look?



Yes because the rings are metal, they can be very thin. It's just a pain in the butt to chase all of those parts around, and we are getting so busy that it is kind of impractical to have six SFS systems on hand.
Scratch bakers of the world UNITE !!
Inrideo ergo sum ~ I snark therefore I am.
Cake or Death?......Cake Please!
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Scratch bakers of the world UNITE !!
Inrideo ergo sum ~ I snark therefore I am.
Cake or Death?......Cake Please!
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post #22 of 54
9/26/08 at 4:48pm
Thanks for the answer.. I am trying to nail down my support system of choice.. I am torn between the cost effective SPS and the SFS.. and part of me just want to switch to bubble tea straws.. icon_lol.gif
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post #23 of 54
9/26/08 at 5:19pm
I think the real genius behind the SPS that I haven't heard yet (and that the SFS doesn't offer) is that tiny little nib in the middle of the plate. The legs give it a stable, level base but that nib clicking into the cardboard of the next tiers level is, to me, what is going to hold your cake steady.

The SFS looks like an excellent system, but for that much money, it needs to do my dishes and give me a footrub when I'm done!! I got both round and square plates from GSA and had to use Wilton legs the first time, since they were out of the 4" ones and the clear ones I bought were too tall.

Overall, I have used bubble tea straws (bad, bad experience) and dowels (another nightmare) although driving one through the whole thing can be a nice way of securing it if you have no other options.

** edited because I hit enter too soon
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post #24 of 54
9/26/08 at 5:28pm
I have done a number of borderless cakes with SPS. What I did was I iced the cake all way over the cardboard (which I do normally anyway) and I used a cake plate an inch smaller. (I used a 7 inch plate for a 8 inch cake) It worked beautifully.

Even if you use the same size, if you ice your cake all over the cardboard, the little thin layer of plastic can still be iced over..

As far those who ask if you can put the cake right on the plastic...Bakery Crafts warns against this because it will cause the cake to sweat. I tried it one time and the cake was a little soggy but the main problem was trying to figure out how to save the top tier! (since its attached to the pillars)

I pushed it down onto the cake by pushing a dowel into the center of the cake and using it push the cake into place..if that makes sense...
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Gotta have more cowbell!
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post #25 of 54
9/26/08 at 5:41pm
I got my system this past week and am somewhat nervous but excited to use it. I have my first wedding on Oct. 3rd.

I just wanted to comment that it would be great when people post their cakes to also include a description of how they stablized their cake.

Melissaicon_smile.gif
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post #26 of 54
9/26/08 at 5:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by CakeDiva73


Overall, I have used bubble tea straws (bad, bad experience) and dowels (another nightmare) although driving one through the whole thing can be a nice way of securing it if you have no other options.



CakeDiva,
What happened when you used the Bubble Tea Straws?

-Debbie B.
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post #27 of 54
9/26/08 at 5:49pm
Well I used them in warm weather, which didn't help, but they just did not hold up. The frosting used between the layers seemed to turn into the perfect substance for my cake to glide around. I made a stacked cake (3 tiers) using only bubble tea straws and the tiers were wonkin' all over the place.

They didn't collapse or implode but they shifted......bad. Really badly. For that reason, I decided to switch to the SPS and have been quite happy since. I made a freakish stage cake this summer and it worked very well.

I know dowels work perfectly for some people, same for bubble tea straws - for me, both have been disastrous. So far, SPS has been a Godsend. It gives me the confidence I need - I don't hyperventilate when I do stacked cakes now...... I worry, of course, but I am okay because I know the cake is not going to slide off or smoosh down.

It makes all the difference in the world.
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post #28 of 54
9/26/08 at 6:04pm
I'll have to try it with a plate 1" smaller then the one above it.. I think that will do the trick. Hopefully anyway. icon_biggrin.gif
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post #29 of 54
9/26/08 at 7:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jkalman

I'll have to try it with a plate 1" smaller then the one above it.. I think that will do the trick. Hopefully anyway. icon_biggrin.gif



Here is a cake I did bordless with SPS. (I tell you never blow up your cakes (that is in photo shop, not Duff style) You see ALL the mistakes REALLY big! hahaha!

Anyway, this is an extreme blow up so you can kind of see the line, but in person you could barely see it. I used a plate 1 inch smaller..

HOpefully the photo will show up..I know something has been odd lately and photos dont always show..
LL
Gotta have more cowbell!
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Gotta have more cowbell!
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post #30 of 54
9/26/08 at 8:33pm
Oh that is perfect.. I don't even mind a small bead border.. just not a #9 or something you know? I am excited to start loving my SPS now. icon_biggrin.gif "Mank you alla mush" as my DD used to say when she was just a wee little girl. (that's thank you very much) icon_wink.gif
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