The wedding-week sequence, written down

Every wedding cake that arrives calm was planned backwards. Not from bake day — from the moment it must stand finished at the venue. Here is the sequence we teach, the one the planner above encodes.

Weeks out: sugar flowers

Gumpaste and florist-paste work always comes first, because drying time cannot be rushed or compressed. Petals are shaped in stages — centres, then inner petals, then outer — and each stage must dry firm before the next. A few statement blooms want about a week; a bouquet wants ten days to two weeks; a full cascade genuinely needs three. If the calendar says otherwise, cut the flower count or supplement with fresh florals — a smaller plan executed well beats a grand one finished at 3 a.m.

The week before: fillings and freezer work

Compotes and curds are made ahead from frozen fruit — consistent, food-safe, and one less job in the hot days. Cook, chill fast, label, freeze flat. Macarons and other extras freeze beautifully too. The freezer is a professional tool, not a compromise.

Three days out: bake day

All layers baked in one push, cooled completely on racks — never wrapped warm — then wrapped tight and chilled or frozen. Cold cake carves, fills and stacks cleaner than fresh cake ever will.

Two days out: fill and crumb-coat

Level, fill, and crumb-coat every tier — with real chill periods between steps, not hopeful ones. Thirty minutes for fillings to settle, forty-five for the crumb coat to set hard. The waiting is a step. Ganache-and-fondant cakes take their ganache under-coat here and rest overnight for sharp edges.

The day before: final coat, décor, and stacking

Final buttercream or fondant, then decoration on a properly set surface — painting, sugar flowers, finishing. Most cakes stack today, doweled tier by tier over a central support; very tall cakes, or any cake with venue setup booked, travel in pieces and stack on site.

Delivery day: a clock, not a to-do list

Delivery day runs on clock times computed backwards from the moment the cake must be in place: final chill, box, load flat in a cold car, drive, set, place the fresh florals — sourced only the day before and prepped food-safe. Then photograph it, and go get dressed.