I am making a Minnie Mouse cake, just the face with ears, and it will barely fit on the largest board that I can find. I want to leave some room on the edge of the board so the edges of the cake don't get smashed so I think I'm going to make a cake board out of a piece of wood and then cover it with paper, but then what do I do about a box for the cake? Is there a way I can make a custom sized cake box?

What size board and box are you looking for?

You can check at any shipping place (UPS for example) or a moving place, think UHaul or a storage facility. They sell bigger boxes. HTH.

I have gotten a packing box and set the cake in it. Last time, taped the top flaps to the sides and covered the top of the box with plastic wrap. (That way we could see the cake during transport and delivery.)

I received the 2 best tip ever from cownsj. I needed a cake board to be 21 x 27 and she suggested I go to home depot. I did have to purchase a long board, but they cut what ever size you need for free. For less then $10, not only did I get the board I needed, but with the left over - they also cut me a 24 x 24 board as well for future use. I LOVE THESE BOARD and plan on using them over and over. She suggested I put my name on the back of them and to make sure to let the customer know I want them back. If I don't get it back, they will have to pay me to replace it. Not just the 21 x 27, but to purchase the big board again. I put my name in permanent marker on the back and then covered it in clear contact paper that was taped down with strong clear packing tape to help protect my board. I then covered that in the florist foil. I placed my cake on 2 1/2 sheet cake board pieced together and placed it on my board. Worked like a charm.

http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1796831

The second was to purchase packing boxes there also. They come in many different sizes and all you do is have the taped sides on their sides. You tape one size closed and then through the other side, just slide your cake in. For a really HUGE cake she makes her own using the largest one, cuts it in half and makes her own box. You can use the other half as a lid if you wanted. These boxes run anywhere from 60 cents and less then $2. They are also a HECK of a lot stronger then the usually cake boxes.

I'm not a big fan of the cake boxes. My cakes are usually too tall or something for them. I am currently using sterilite storage boxes turned upside down; you can use thin foam rubber under the cake to keep it from sliding around. A plastic file storage box works too.

Finding boxes has always been an issue for me. For standard size boxes that I tend to go through quickly, I get the shipping boxes at Walmart. They are in the stationary/shipping section. They have 12x12 and 14x14 which I use all the time for my 10 inch and 8 inch rounds. They never fit in the bakery boxes because they always have a tall topper on them. If I have a bigger cake than that, I normally go to UPS because their boxes are very strong. They are pricey and I don't like to go there if I can avoid it...but sometimes you need a weird size that the other places don't have, and UPS has practically every size imaginable. FedEx Office stores have great boxes too...(I found an 11x11 there!!) but there aren't that many stores where I live. They also have them at UHaul....you can check their sizes online.

As I was leaving Wal Mart last week the bakery was wheeling a cake out on a dolly. I have never seen a cake box that big and it wasn't the cheap flimsy cardboard. It was the stronger corregated cardboard. I'm sure they have them specially made for them. It would also be coastly to buy them. The packaging store is probably your most economical source.

"The only thing that keeps me from feeling like a complete dork is that I have been using the rubber shelf liner stuff to keep anything from sliding. "

Now you paid me back, I didn't think of the shelf liner and that would work as well and less costly.

Thanks

tea42 - this is why we LOVE CC! I get my rolls of shelf liner at the 99 cent store.

Thanks so much for the help, everyone. I think I'll check out Home Depot and Wal-Mart for the boxes. That sounds like a good deal. I've asked at the Wal-Mart bakery but they will not sell their cake boxes. By the way, I had a piece of their chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream icing that they package individually and sell in the chilled section at the bakery and I could not believe how good it was. I've only heard bad things about Wal-Mart cakes and had never tried one before, but I swear this was like the best piece of cake I've ever had!!! The icing was soooo good and the cake was moist and delicious. I'm going to get another one when I go there to look at their shipping boxes!

Cakey ~ Walmart gets their boxes from bakery Crafts

I always make my own boxes from cardboard that husband gets from woork. They come in 3' x 4' pieces. I use a carpenter's square to make them the size I need. It took me a while to perfect it, but I can make it the exact height and width that I need for each cake. It's amazing what you can do with cardboard, a glue gun, and a carpenter's square!