Am I crazy.... customer wants 450 cupcakes for a wedding, swirled BC with royal icing flowers. I am pretty new at this. I dont mind a challenge but am I biting off more than I can chew? She also wants a small 4"/8" tiered cake for the center of the table. How much do I charge for the cupcakes if I do it?

I charge $2.50 each for basic swirled cupcakes..no flowers..If she wants flowers..I would add an extra 50 cents or $1.00 per cupcake.The tiered cakes should be by the serving..so if the cake is a 6 inch and that serves about 8 then I charge $3.00 per serving and upcharge for extra flowers embellishments.450 cupcakes is alot of work and time so don't short change your time and costs! Some Bride's think cupcakes are cheap and easy but in reality they take more time and work than a large cake.

First do you have the space to put 450 cupcakes? Or someone to help you? then as for price do you have a start at price?? I am very new and just starting and my min price is $1.50 (but I am happy to say it is going up!) So for the 450 cupcakes with a flower I would probably charge 900. The foer a 6 & 8 inch cake, which for me serve 36 I would charge about 70 depending on the design. Just because you are new doesnt mean you should charge anything, but I personally do not think that a begginner with maybe not the best skills (now Im not saying you personallly jsut stating my opinion) should be charging 4.50 a serving. But is also depends on your area and what the comps prices are... Then again this is JMHO and maybe I am wrong for it.

Wow! That is a lot of cupcakes! You're probably going to need a helper! The good news is you can make the frosting for the cupcakes ahead of time. And of course you can do the same for the RI flowers.

I think $3 each is about right. Now remember to charge a delivery fee! if you have to deliver 450 cupcakes there will be some logistical problems. Does she want a couple of towers? - That costs extra. Bakery boxes will probably be too flimsy for transport. It might make sense to go to Home Depot and get some 1/4" fiberboard and make some trays for transport. Make sure they are narrow enough to go through your doorways! But a four foot tray that you make up could probably hold ~75 cupcakes. That would make transport easier. You may have to rent a van. I would do this, but charge the correct amount because these "little" costs can add up. These things I mentioned could run a couple hundred or more.

Please do not under-estimate the amount of time it will take to bake and decorate and package 450 cupcakes.
I made 330-ish cupcakes, in 12 flavors, for our kids' graduation party earlier this month. I baked and froze the cupcakes (wrapped very tightly in doubled zipper bags) about a week or two ahead of time. Fortunately, I had an empty freezer-- because they took up a LOT of space, and I didn't want to squish them before they were frozen solid. It took about two days of baking to make them all.
During the week before the party, I made several double batches of icing in all the flavors I needed, sealed it tightly, then refrigerated that.
The night before the party, our oldest daughter helped me frost the cupcakes, and it took hours. Nothing fancy either. I started using a large tip to make a swirl, but that used up GOBS of icing, and refilling the bag so frequently was a pain. We wound up using knives and spatulas.
I have pictures in My Photos of some of the cupckes and the towers I made.
It can be done, but it will be lots of work.
Good luck.

I did a cupcake tower for a wedding but is was only 216. I baked ahead because I had a chest freezer to store them. I also purchased clamshell cupcake containers. These containers fit into a 2 gallon zip-loc bag. For storage I was able to put 24 in each container stacking them with parchment or saran wrap in between. All I had to do was ice them, put them in the containers (only 12 after they were decorated) bag them and box them the night before the wedding. If you have a freezer that would save you a lot of time.

Cutthecake made me think - you might want to get one of those big commercial bags instead of the disposable ones. And for a wedding, don't scrimp on the frosting. Just charge for it.

I did a cupcake wedding that was 350 cupcakes. Make twice as much icing as you think it will take. Estimate twice as much set up time. Buy the cupcake boxes for transport. And yes, $3 per cupcake MINIMUM.
Also use the Wilton wedding servings chart for the tiered cake. The 6" serves 12, the 8" serves 24, so 36 servings. if it's all buttercreme, then my price would be $128 for that cake.
Plus a hefty delivery fee.

I just did 200 cupcakes for a wedding, and if you work at the same pace I do, you might need a helper. I made the cupcakes in advance and froze them during the week before, and also had to make all my frosting beforehand and keep them in huge ziplock bags in the fridge. once you get that all out of the way and done in advance, All you have to do is decorate the cupcakes with your swirl and flower, still time consuming though!
Think about transport though, how will you transport them, and is your car big enough? I needed 2 cars because I just lined them up side by seide in huge cake boxes. didnt think the transport through all the way.

I have a wedding coming up in Oct. for 200 cupcakes with large Gerberas atop of everyone. Wasnn't really sure how I was going to transport them myself but might look into making the fiberboard. Not sure. Travel time is normally 2o min I know it may take longer with cupcakes on board. Any other thoughts anyone ? Baking sheets ?? Thanks

I did a cupcake wedding for 125 cupcakes. Buy the large sheet cake box and the uncovered plain cardboard cake board that fits the box. Then line the box with the plastic gripper shelf liner ( I got mine at the dollar store). You can easily fit about 45 cupcakes if I remember correctly in to each box this way. It is the cheaper than buying cupcake inserts for the boxes. I also remember someone that got the stackable berry boxes from the grocery store and used those to trasport cupcakes. Just a few ideas that might help.

I did a cupcake wedding for 125 cupcakes. Buy the large sheet cake box and the uncovered plain cardboard cake board that fits the box. Then line the box with the plastic gripper shelf liner ( I got mine at the dollar store). You can easily fit about 45 cupcakes if I remember correctly in to each box this way. It is the cheaper than buying cupcake inserts for the boxes. I also remember someone that got the stackable berry boxes from the grocery store and used those to trasport cupcakes. Just a few ideas that might help.

I did a cupcake wedding for 125 cupcakes. Buy the large sheet cake box and the uncovered plain cardboard cake board that fits the box. Then line the box with the plastic gripper shelf liner ( I got mine at the dollar store). You can easily fit about 45 cupcakes if I remember correctly in to each box this way. It is the cheaper than buying cupcake inserts for the boxes. I also remember someone that got the stackable berry boxes from the grocery store and used those to trasport cupcakes. Just a few ideas that might help.

Thank you so much Alvarga, Sounds like a good idea! Thanks for the tip.

Three weeks ago, did 200 cupcakes plus an 8" cutting cake for photos.
Delivered the cupcakes in a rubbermaid container (the flat oblong one that fits under the bed,can also use the one that you use to store giftwrap). It held 60 cupcakes, plus I was able to decorate the night before & the cupcakes were kept covered. Put the rubber shelf liner that you get from a dollar store inside & then placed the cupcakes on top. Arrived at the venue perfectly. No slips or slides & no disasters. I now have these containers for future orders, or even if I don't get another large cupcake order, I have containers to store my ever growing cake decorating items.