How Long Does It Take to Make a Custom Cake? What Your Cake Baker Wants You to Know

Every custom-made cake begins with a consultation to discuss all the elements of creating a cake: design, flavors, decorations, etc. Depending on how elaborate the final cake will be, this consultation may take an hour or more to finalize the details and solidify everything into a contract.

It takes a team to create a custom-made wedding cake. Before any batter is prepared or frosting is piped, a cake design team meets to strategize the creation. This strategy, which may involve one or multiple hours, includes scheduling the staff whose hands help guide the cake from conception to cutting.

You can’t have a cake without having the necessary ingredients on hand. Bakeries will place their ingredient orders at least two weeks in advance for delivery a few days before a cake needs to be baked to ensure freshness in every bite of cake.

How long does it take to bake a cake? The answer depends on how simple or elaborate the cake will be. Preparing the cake, fillings, and frostings may require anywhere from three hours to a full day, depending on the scale of the cake. The answer to the question how far ahead can you make a cake depends on multiple factors, including when the cake will be needed for the event, whether the cake will be transported to the event site or picked up at the bakery, and even the temperature and humidity on the day the cake is being baked and decorated.

Wedding cakes require special care as well, and you might be asking, “How long does it take to make a wedding cake?” Specialty cakes like wedding cakes may require a few days to a week or more, depending on factors such as the design of the cake and how intricate the frosting and decorating techniques will be.

How long does it take to decorate a cake? The answer depends on how simple or elaborate the decorations will be. For a multi-tiered wedding cake, the time to decorate could be two or more hours, depending on how complex the design will be. Along with decorating, there’s also a fair amount of time required to prep the cake for transport to the event site and move the cake to the event site.

With specialty cakes like wedding cakes, a team needs to be prepared for anything that might happen from the bakery to the event site. Setting up and applying the final touches on-site could take one to three hours, depending on the work required to finalize the cake before the event begins, such as frosting or decoration touch-ups.

We love helping people create custom cakes that are personal to them and their occasion. Our custom and tiered cakes are available upon request with seven to 10 days’ notice. Call or visit us to discuss how we can bring your vision to life.