Oh, silly Coyote, thinking something wedding related would be easy. When I brought up a few of my ideas to Momma Coyote, I quickly learned some interesting things about what is acceptable and what isn’t acceptable in the realm of wedding favors. I am not sure if this is specific to my family, or maybe to my Italian culture, but in my circle wedding favors have a few different components and are apparently a Big Deal.

First, you absolutely must have Jordan almonds. A wedding without Jordan almonds will have you excommunicated from the famiglia FOR LIFE. I have to been to enough family functions to know that Jordan almonds are on the must-have list. And so, a few weeks ago I sat down with Momma Coyote and we ordered ourselves a few boxes of “confetti”:

Image via My Italian Wedding Favors

Side note: If you want some serious culture shock, take a look at that website. It is phenomenally Italian.

Second, while the Jordan almonds are a component of the favor, they cannot be the only favor. Usually they are wrapped up in tulle and then attached to the actual favor. Again, I kind of expected this and had long ago fallen in love with Mrs. Jellyfish’s lottery-ticket favors. I brought it up to Momma Coyote and, while she loved the idea, she didn’t think it was enough.

Momma Coyote suggested a donation (perhaps similar to Mrs. Doily’s favors), but the Jordan almonds AND a lottery ticket AND a donation just seemed like too much for me. Too much paper, too many explanations.

And so it was back to the drawing board.

I kinda love edible favors. At the last wedding I went to the bride and groom had wrapped up M&Ms and placed them inside a glass. I quietly went around the table eating my little baggie of M&Ms. And Mr. Coyote’s…and my brother’s…and the random cousin’s I was sitting next to…heh. Yum. The more I stumble across edible favors, the more I want them in our wedding.

How about these fortune-cookie favors?

Image via Sschaf on Weddingbee

Or some tasty treats with your own monogram on them?

Image via Gracious Bridal

Canned or jarred treats can be really personal and last a lot longer than a cookie:

Photo by: Katy Gray on The Bride’s Cafe via Lover.ly

As a coffee lover (and one of Starbucks’s most valuable customers) I am head over heels for these coffee-bean favors:

Photo by: Katrina Louise on Wedding Chicks via Lover.ly

There are so many great ideas out there. Now I just need to choose one! Are you having favors at your wedding?

This article was originally posted on Weddingbee.

Cake by Cousin C / Photo by Wizard Aunt

How awesome is she!? She makes cakes for everything now, so of course we wanted her to make our wedding cake, and she happily agreed!

There were a few problems with this, however. They live about a nine-hour drive away from here, so we were trying to figure out if C would bake the cake there, bring it with them in pieces, and assemble/decorate it here, or if she would bake the whole thing here after they arrived.

Their car is small and would already be packed with luggage for three people for the wedding weekend, so there probably wouldn’t be room for a multi-tier cake in there, even if it was disassembled. Plus, they usually split the trip into two days to make for easier driving, so would a cake survive two days in a hot car? Probably not.

Baking the cake here seemed to be the best bet, but it was a logistical nightmare. They would be arriving sometime the day before the wedding and would go straight to their hotel. There obviously isn’t an oven she could use there, nor is there one at the venue, and no one we know lives in the area. It would be at least an hour drive to get C to a house with an oven she could use, but then that person would have to be home to let her in, and most of our close family are going to be at the venue that day setting up. She’d also need to get all the ingredients somewhere, which would mean a trip to the grocery store. And then she’d have to drive another hour back to the venue, with the cake.

The other problem is that we’d have no one to actually cut and serve the cake at the wedding. Our caterer won’t cut a cake that’s not theirs, and the venue employees don’t do any type of food serving either. So, basically, poor C would be left to cut and serve cake to our 100-plus guests. The last thing I want is for her to feel like she has to work at our wedding, so that was definitely a no-go.

The more we thought about this, the more we realized it probably wasn’t going to work. Then one day, I suggested cupcakes. Guests could serve themselves at the wedding so no one would have to cut anything, but it still didn’t really solve the problem of where-to-bake-these-things. So I said, heck, I could bake them myself in the days leading up to the wedding, and just have C decorate them when she gets here. The venue has a food-staging area with lots of counter space, so C could park herself in there during setup and decorate away, and store them in the giant fridge there when she’s done. Then the morning of the wedding, all that would need to happen is someone would have to put them out in the reception room.

This seemed like the best possible option, and Wizard Aunt and C agreed. And the more I think about it, the more ridiculously excited I get. I love to bake for a crowd, and I love that I get to serve up a little homemade hospitality to our guests at my own wedding, and I love that C is still involved. I already have two recipes in mind, and when I told Mr. Wiz, his eyes got huge and he went, “Yesssssssss.” So I think he’s excited, too. Just a little.

We will still have a small “top tier” to cut at the reception and save for our first anniversary (or maybe just for the honeymoon, since I’ve heard that year-old frozen cakes are pretty gross). That way we still get to use our cake toppers and cake serving set!

Are you baking your own desserts for your wedding? Will any of your family members help out?

This article was originally posted on Weddingbee.

We’re not having a bartender, so fresh-made signature cocktails aren’t really an option. I don’t want people to have to wander into the tent to find booze, and I want them to use their Mason-jar glasses, so we’re offering, drum roll, please…punch!

I mean, how can you resist sweet setups like these?

This article was originally posted on Weddingbee.

I thought for a split second about freaking out about this…but really when it comes down to it, it’s a cake. Not the wedding cake, a groom’s cake. No need to worry, I just need to find a new baker.

First I should show you the object of my affection here, and then explain my issue.

As some of you may know by now, Mr. Buck is a big time duck hunter. This means I wanted his grooms cake to include two things: camo and a duck. I preferably wanted the duck made out of red velvet cake so that I could have my Steel Magnolias moment.

{Image via Fan Pop}

I went on a search trying to find just the right cake to make everyone “ooh and ahh” over.

I finally found the cake I had been looking for, that included all of my specific elements. I definitely would not need it this grand, but something along these lines would be magnificent.

{Image via Found Splash}

Here is the problem I have ran into with multiple bakeries. Most are willing to create the duck out of red velvet, but it nearly doubles the price of the cake. The majority of the bakeries suggest doing the camo base, with a plastic duck on top. I am willing to pay the extra cost if it is worth it…but I am not convinced that it is. At the end of the day…the cake gets eaten no matter what. Does it really matter if the duck is made out of cake too?

What do you think, Hive? Should I fork out the extra dough to have my Steel Magnolias moment, or should I go the budgeting route and adorn a plastic duck on top of a camo cake? Do you have any plans to include a groom’s cake at your wedding?

This article was originally posted on Weddingbee.

Unless you’re like Foxy and don’t eat sweets, cake included. Needless to say, this was not his favorite wedding related task. (Not to mention, we combined it with a flower consultation on the same day—poor Foxy, he’s a trooper!) However, as luck would have it, Foxy Mama was able to make the drive down from NY to meet up with us again, as she did for our linens/room assignment meeting. Having her there was a total life saver.

But back to the cake: one of the awesome things about our venue is that said cake is included in the catering cost. They commission it out to a wonderful, little local place called Desserts by Rita; thank goodness, too, because I really didn’t feel like having to research local bakers and be continuously shocked at how much people can charge per slice or as a cake cutting fee. The easier, the better, I say! I was ready to get this party started.

First things first:

flavors and the official tasting.

If you ask me, they were ALL delicious. Just.. beyond.

I clearly needed a minute alone with fiesta that was happening in my mouth.

I think we did a pretty good job, seeing as my mom and I were the only two really “tasting.” To be fair, Foxy did have a tiny bite of the red velvet, though he seemed none too thrilled. It’s OK. More for me!

Seeing as we’ll be having a three tier cake, we decided to do different flavors on each tier. The bottom/largest tier will be the raspberry devils cake (you have NO IDEA how good that stuff is), raspberry icing, and vanilla cake. The middle tier will be lemon cake, vanilla icing, vanilla cake, and the top/smallest tier will be red velvet cake with vanilla icing (Foxy’s choice). I’m so very pleased and so very excited about it all! The best part was that Foxy Mama treated us to a take home treat of cupcakes in all the flavors we chose.

You will notice how I already ate half of the vanilla cupcake, as well as took a swipe of icing off of each of the others. It was a good breakfast, let me tell you.

Now for the tricky part…what will this flavor explosion of a cake look like? I have of course been collecting inspiration pictures for months, liking this and loving that but never really making a commitment to anything. I kept leaning towards the more simplistic cakes with textured icing.

Image via The Bridal District

Image via Style Me Pretty | Photo by KT Merry

Image via My Sweet and Saucy | Photo by Frenzel Photography

However, I wasn’t quite sold on just having a textured cake with a flower or two on it. While I adore the look, I was just looking for something.. more. Which is exactly what I found on Pinterest, the night before our cake tasting.

Image via My Sweet and Saucy | Photo by Gabriel Ryan Photography

How unbelievably cute is this cake?! I think I love it even more because the petals are conveniently more or less our colors. When I saw this picture, I just swooned. And I just knew. It was seriously like the feeling I had when I tried on my dress. Is that weird…?

Either way, I am thrilled to announce that our cake will ultimately have the best of both worlds.. a nice, textured buttercream icing with colorful fondant petals on each tier. Now to decide on a cake topper!

How did you decide on the look of your cake? Did you eventually “just know,” or was it a process?

This article was originally posted onWeddingbee.

This is one of those situations where Mr. Mink has been totally easy-going. He doesn’t care if we have cupcakes or a traditional cake. He just wants to get to the part where we have a couple tastings! Every time I started taking about cake and cupcakes, Mr. Mink would joke that we were going to have his mother’s red velvet cake for our wedding cake and we could smoosh my mother’s chocolate chip cookie fingers (almost shaped like biscotti) into the sides. I finally stopped talking and just looked at the inspiration pictures I saved to my Pinterest boards. Almost every image was of a cake.

I think I was swayed by two things. First, the pictures of couples cutting their cakes are appealing to me. I know we could cut a one tiered cake or a cupcake, but amidst the non-traditional decisions we’ve made, I like the idea of doing something traditional. Second, I love the variety of cake designs. Some of the cakes out there are works of art.

From Style Me Pretty / Cake by Tallant House / Photo by Red Box Pictures

Between us, we know quite a few people who make cakes, cupcakes, and all sorts of sweet treats. Deciding against cupcakes simplified the dessert decision in a big way. Our list of bakers to investigate shortened dramatically.

I decided that it would be best to show potential bakers some pictures of cakes I liked and realized that there’s another decision to be made: fondant vs. buttercream.

I’m sure you know the pros and cons of using fondant. Fondant provides a smooth, even finish. It’s a great base for flowers or intricate designs. Some say they hate the taste of fondant, but I read that there are different kinds of fondant. Apparently, the most readily available brand is the one that doesn’t taste great.

From the Mod Wedding Blog / Cake by the Vanilla Bake Shop / Photo by John & Joseph Photography

Buttercream, on the other hand, is soft and often allows for texture on cakes. Plenty of bakers can smooth buttercream into looking a lot like fondant, though. I think most people agree that buttercream tastes pretty great.

Cake by Maggie Austen

I loved many of the sleek, simple cakes I saw that were covered in fondant. I definitely wanted something that looked sweet and not too fussy.

Cake by Maggie Austen

I loved the idea of being able to add a design that might get lost on a buttercream cake.

Cake by Sweet and Saucy

On the other hand, I find the texture on buttercream cakes so appealing. I think they look romantic and they’d fit into the look of my vineyard wedding beautifully. In most cases, it seems as though buttercream cakes are less expensive.

From Love and Lavender / Cake 1 by Sweet & Saucy / Cakes 2 and 3 by Maggie Austen

I might wait until I see some local bakers’ portfolios to make a final decision on this one, but I’m curious about taste.

Have you had a good tasting fondant cake? Do you have a preference when it comes to fondant vs. buttercream?

This article was originally posted onWeddingbee.

Originally posted in Board #510: French Lace, photo by Elizabeth Messina.

Originally posted in Board #523: Our Wedding, from Martha Stewart Weddings.

Originally posted in Board #527: Black Raspberry, cake by Seven Spoons.

Originally posted in Board #535: Caramel & Cream, cake and stand by Herriott Grace.

Originally posted in Board #537: Gold and Moody Blue, from Martha Stewart Weddings.

Originally posted in Board #543: Glitterfest, from Martha Stewart Weddings.

Originally posted in Board #538: Black and White Ball, from Fete NY.

See all my other favorites right here.

This article was originally posted onSnippet & Ink.

But I didn’t share the deets with you! Shame on me for teasing you and then falling off the planet. Although it is by no means an excuse, my day job has got me bouncing around the country non-stop—on top of a wedding that is almost here!!

So let me get back to business, bees!

Just for a refresher of the invites were my (yes my) labor of love…

Source for the Uhh-dorable milk and cookies graphic: Jess Fink

So besides telling you about the menu in the “Mr. Sweet Cream & Mrs. Sweet Cream Go Together Like…” themed shower… Let me show you!!!

The scene of the beautiful presents!

Appetizers that made everyone’s lips smack!

Aunt Sweets made little cut outs of me & Mr. Sweets to adorn the bar…

with wine, beer, punch & homemade lemonade (with vodka to add yourself, of course!)

A “Cheese & Cracker” bar… Because like the sign says…

Me & Mr. Sweets…we go together!

A sandwich bar… with little signs like “Mr. Sweets & Miss Sweets Go Together Like…

Ham & Cheese…BBQ Pulled Pork & Apple Slaw…” You name it—it was there!

The deviled eggs with bacon was not only perfect for “Bacon & Eggs,”

but I don’t think I can have deviled eggs sans bacon ever again!

Look how sweet those signs are! BM Sweets wanted the font to go perfect with the invites!

And the cherished cookie bar! The crew had vintage milk bottles filled with milk and they thought nobody would drink it… And had to keep refilling them(!)

• Cold veggies & dip
• Cheese & cracker bar
• Chips & salsa
• An AMAZING salad bar (with a bread & butter bar—yes…all different breads AND spreads!)

Sandwiches like: Pork chops & apple slaw sliders, chicken salad with grapes & walnuts, turkey & cranberry sandwiches with a mayo spread, apple & cheese open faced sandwiches…

And the cookie bar!! The cookies! Snickerdoodles, chocolate chip, oatmeal, sugar cookies & PB&J cookies all were devoured. And for those that weren’t? The leftover take home boxes that will be used for the wedding served as the perfect container for a take home treat!

My mouth is now drooling looking back on all of this.

What was your favorite thing to feast on at your shower? Did your crew go above and beyond your wildest dreams???

This article was originally posted onWeddingbee.

Cake artist Alexandria Pellegrino and pastry chef Jessica Smith are a heavenly pairing when it comes to dazzling cakes that are tailor made for a wedding or special event.  Even Nicole Richie called on the masters of Cake Opera Co. to create her towering, gold-trimmed Versailles-inspired red velvet wedding cake.  Taking inspirations from Christian Lacroix’s Spring 2008 Runway Collection and milk glass of the 1920s to Morretto Masks and chinoserie style wallpaper, the Toronto duo from Cake Opera Co. definitely know how to deliver a truly divine piece of cake.

This article was originally posted onBridezilla.

Naturally, making the decision to have cupcakes was the easy one—the actual choosing of the cupcake flavors was completely different. I knew that we needed some kind of option that was plain and would be well received by everyone. So I suggested vanilla cupcakes. Mr. D immediately answered with the need for chocolate cupcakes. (He is the chocolate lover in our relationship.) So we are doing four types of cupcakes. Two plain kinds (chocolate and vanilla) and one that reflects each of us.

For my cupcake, I looked no further than my favorite baking blog: Bakerella. She had posted a recipe that I knew had my name written aaaall over it! Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the snickerdoodle duo cupcake:

Yes that is a tower of cupcake, frosting, and cookie. / Image via Bakerella

My favorite cookies in the entire world are snickerdoodles, so when I found this recipe, it was the the very obvious choice for me. I mean, how delicious does it look (and believe me, it tastes as good as it looks)? Yummo!

Mr. D was very specific about what he wanted. He wanted a mint-chocolate cupcake. After scouring the internet for recipes, we found one from the blog “Your Cup of Cake” that he loves and is so delicious:

Image via Your Cup of Cake

We are doing a cupcake tower with a small, single-tier cake on the top so we have something to cut at the reception. Now I already know what flavor I want—a lemon cake with a raspberry and white chocolate ganache. It’s seriously heavenly and so delicious! As far as decorating said cake, I was thinking of doing just a simple buttercream frosting, a lace ribbon around the bottom of the tier, a little pearl dust, and our adorable kitty cake topper (whichever one we chose, of course). Something a little like this, but just a single, tiny tier:

Image via KayB’s Cakes

Now how are we going to pull off this huge baking feat? Mr. D’s mom, my mom, and my grandmother have offered to help with the baking! We will probably split up the different kinds of cupcakes and let everyone take one on! I know I would not be able to do this if it weren’t for the help of the incredible women in my life. I know once more of Mr. D’s family gets wind of this plan, they will also start to offer their ovens and baking skills! I can’t wait to see the cake table the day of and see the reactions of those who will eat these delicious treats!

What are you doing for your wedding dessert? A traditional cake? Something else?

This article was originally posted onWeddingbee.