The summer...ah the elusive summer that we eagerly wait for literally from Boxing Day. Longer days, balmy evenings, festivals, picnics, Pimms alfresco...and WEDDINGS!!!

While I too dream of a lazy hazy summertime, it's ALL-SYSTEMS-GO at the bakery as we're slammed into the height of wedding season. It's actually fantastic fun as wedding cakes aren't a "conveyor belt" product at Anges - we love working closely with our couples to ensure their cakes are reflective of their tastes and their dream wedding day with a touch of our eccentric Anges flair! And after what is often months of planning we finally get to create their bespoke designs and watch them come to life.

We've seen certain re-occurring themes in summertime wedding cakes that prove very popular. Here they are:

1) Semi-Naked Wedding Cake

Buttercream cakes are lighter and arguably tastier than fondant/sugar paste covered cakes, which is a winner in our books, especially after a long and large sit-down meal. It does have its own challenges as the predominant ingredient in buttercream is BUTTER, which we know is rather sensitive to heat. However, when tucked away from direct sunlight and kept cosy in a cool dark and dry space before displaying for the cake-cutting moment, buttercream cakes behave well.

Rustic-Chic Macarons Semi-Naked Wedding Cake

The semi-naked style is a definite upgraded version of its predecessor, the naked cake. With more buttercream than its completely nude counterpart, we've cheekily stripped back the buttercream to reveal the sponge layers underneath this style is a perfect summery wedding cake.

2) Pastel Wedding Cakes

Some of the most favoured wedding colour choices are pastel colours. Pastel pink and peach, green, blue, yellow, lilac...all very romantic and summery by nature! They are also some of the most appetising colours that exist so it is only natural that they are one of the top considerations for couple's when choosing their wedding cake.

Pastel wedding cakes can be made to look opulent or relaxed and playful as the colours are so versatile. Dress them up with flowers for romance, gold leaf for decadence or doughnuts for fun - see, versatile! 

3) Matcha Wedding Cake

Matcha is easily one of our best-selling flavours, only beaten by Salted Caramel. The light green tea flavour is cleansing on the palate and while it can be an adventurous flavour on its own it is perfectly paired with a variety of flavour profiles varying from summer berries such as raspberry and strawberry and also more widely appreciated flavours such as cookies & cream and chocolate, making it appeal to a large crowd. 

The natural soft green tone of Matcha provides a beautiful canvas for complementary colours such as pink, purple, neutrals and metallics such as gold and silver leaf.

4) Ice Cream Cone Wedding Cake

While we couldn't advice having an actual ice cream cake as your wedding cake in the summer as you'll be risking the entire thing melting into a pool before you've even had the chance to say cheese to your photographer during the iconic cake-cutting moment, an ice cream cone cake is perfectly appropriate. Playful, youthful and for the young at heart, this very on-trend style is proving popular for weddings now too.

We have cute buttercream "soft serve" cones, Ferrero Rocher cones and dropped ice cream cake toppers that are delicious and oh-so-cute.

5) Watercolour Wedding Cakes

An updated version of the popular Ombre trend, the watercolour effect brings wedding cakes up to date with a romantic nod to impressionist paintings a la Monet!

Watercolour Wedding Cake

From pretty light to popping bright colours, blended buttercream hues akin to a painter's palette on a watercolour wedding cake makes a stylish statement and can be adapted to suit absolutely ANY theme or colour scheme. Go for multi tones of the same colour for a more fluid, subtle look or make a splash with clashing brights blended in together.  

6) Ombre Summer Wedding Cakes

Ombre, my hombre, is here to stay. There's a reason why this trend is so popular that it isn't even considered a trend anymore as it has its place firmly fixed in wedding cake style galleries for half a decade now. 

Graduated tones of the same shade going from light to dark adds a subtle sophistication and a touch of drama to wedding cakes. While "solid" colours can tend to look flat and heavy, ombre styled frosting brings some much welcomed levity while complementing colours from the wedding day's theme styling, making it a natural choice for a summer wedding cake.

7) Piped Buttercream Flower Wedding Cakes

Real flowers and sugar flowers are gorgeous as decorations for wedding cakes, however their biggest drawback is that they are largely inedible. Even edible flowers, while by definition are "edible" actually add very little by way of taste. Piped buttercream flowers however are a way to incorporate flowers that look as good as they taste.

Feathers and Flowers Wedding Cake

Of course, as with most cakes, placing in direct sunlight or keeping in a hot room for a prolonged period of time is going to make real or buttercream flowers wilt/melt, so a little bit of extra TLC is required when serving up on a summer's day. It is definitely worth the extra attention as your guests will LOVE the pretty floral-dollops of buttercream with their cake, especially if it's soft-as-silk Swiss meringue buttercream.

8) Mini Wedding Cake Tower

A towering display of beautiful mini cakes can be just as effective as a traditional tiered wedding cake. Mini cakes should NOT be confused with cupcakes as they are not baked in paper cases, but baked as normal cakes and decorated individually with the optimal ratio of buttercream to sponge. Other than taste and texture variances between the two, while cupcakes can look "kiddish" and can be seen as a bit passe, mini-cakes are elegant yet fun.

Individually, mini cakes are heart-achingly sweet looking, but en-masse they are what can only be described as a gorgeous posse. The added bonus is that serving them up is literally stress-free - no cutting, no portioning, no messing and each guest is presented with their own "cake cutting" moment! 

9) Alice in Wonderland Themed Wedding Cake

Lewis Carrol's famous books provide so much inspiration for a laid back garden or marquee wedding reception. The Mad Hatter's tea party, Queen of Hearts, red and white roses, pink flamingos, all translate so well to quite literally...a wedding in Wonderland. 

Alice in Wonderland Wedding Cake

Adaptations don't always have to be literal, kitsch or of the novelty sort. The beauty of Alice in Wonderland is in its whimsical and eccentric characteristics that can be interpreted just as such into a wedding cake through a free-flowing form.  

10) Summer Wedding Macaron Tower

Macaron towers are a popular traditional wedding cake alternative. Being naturally gluten-free they are also preferred by couples wary of dietary restrictions. Besides, when the days are longer and hotter it may very well be that everyone is so full-up from the canapes and three-course meal that it makes good sense to serve up bite-sized patisserie in lieu of a chunk of cake.

Macarons are widely renowned as the most beautiful type of patisserie ever created with their smooth domed tops and pretty frills in a variety of colours and flavours. When arranged in a tower they make an eye catching display and can be further accentuated with gorgeous summery blooms to make the perfect light summer wedding cake alternative.

So even if the Great British Summer lets you down on your wedding day on the weather front, any one of theahhh above wedding cakes will definitely brighten up any wedding come rain or shine. Summer in England is after all a state of mind ;)

Lots of love,

Reshmi xoxo

P.s. Check out our Jubilee Cake which can be made as 2 tier cake.