Trends Report: Wedding cakes from damask designs to suitcase-style

Written by Staff @ The Ring with Joanne Vincent, Cake Designer & Co-Owner of JoRa Wedding Cakes

Joanne Vincent runs the popular, Kitchener-based wedding cake company, JoRa Wedding Cakes. And over the past twenty-five years, design trends have come and gone; so when Joanne shared a couple of her favourite cake design trends with The Wedding Ring, we couldn't help but pass them on.

For 2009 and 2010, Joanne told staff at The Ring that wedding cake design requests have taken a turn towards the ultra contemporary, damask-style. Damask blends tradition with a more 'rock star' look.

In these photos, a classic black on white pattern gives a new look to a traditionally formal colour scheme. "It has a nice, clean look," says Joanne who says that some designs are more subtle with tone on tone designs, and some are bolder with contrast. Damask designs mean that your wedding cake can be subtle and beautiful or more dramatic and celeb worthy - depending on what it is you want.

"Damask cakes are always unique. They stand alone because brides can use any pattern, whether it's from a fabric design they love or their invitation stationery." Joanne says most of her brides like to add their pattern onto a white cake, but that tone on tone is getting more popular every month.

"Tone on tone design is a very nice effect with the cake lighter than the design pattern..." says Joanne. "Colours can be variations of the same base colour... A deep, rich fuchsia laid atop a lighter, softer pink... Or you can use two different colours that compliment each other, like blue and chocolate brown."

You can expect a higher price tag with most damask-style cakes, depending on how intricate your design is; intricacy determines how much time needs to go into it to make it perfect for your wedding day. "Brides should talk to their cake designer and see what their options are," suggests Joanne. She says any professional baker (who specializes in wedding cakes) should be able to design a cake that fits within just about any bride's budget. Even so, many style-savvy brides know all too well how hard it can be to put a price on the perfect cake – especially when it ties in so nicely with their entire wedding's theme and colours.

It's not all diva patterns and celebrity fashion though. Couples still know how to have fun and show their personalities – even in their cake! For example, Joanne says her 'suitcase cakes' are still among her most popular requests. Couples who choose the 'suitcase cake' are often travelling out of country for their honeymoon, or they met overseas. "Brides like these cakes because they're funky… We can use any colour to make a fun design to tell a bit of a story about the couple. They love that!"

In the design shown to the right, the bride's choice of colours were very dark brown and pink to match her wedding colours. She also wanted the last layer to be a purse instead of a suitcase. The couple also wanted to mark the places they would be visiting for their honeymoon so their guests would know where they were off to. These patch-like features added a cool, personalized element for the couple. "The cost of this cake is more than a standard cake," says Joanne, "but the couples who choose this cake say that to see the delightful reaction of their guests... it's worth every penny!"

Popular for destination weddings and because they're essentially an edible sculpture, the suitcase cake is destined to make an impression at your wedding.