Coastal inspiration
Katrina & Sam’s wedding - Coombe Lodge, May 2023
Summer wedding season - for us wedding industry peeps it's the craziest, busiest time of the year! The many weekends in a row working on weddings…juggling the kids and summer holidays in between, and dealing with those hot temperatures. Always a little nerve-wracking for a cake designer who specialises in buttercream cakes! Summer wedding cakes often mean that I have to be more flexible, either working early in the morning, or later at night, trying to find those cooler times to assemble the cake. It's an added challenge, but I still love it!
Katrina and Sam were married at Coombe Lodge at the end of May on a glorious sunny day. They opted for a three-tier wedding cake with semi-naked style buttercream. I was relieved to have the fridge space at home to accommodate this large cake as that really helped alleviate my nerves about the heat wave we were experiencing at the time.
Katrina and Sam’s wedding florist, Sacha (from The Floral Potager) was busy decorating the room with many bucket-fulls of gorgeous flowers when I arrived, assisted by Katy (from Wild Rose and Bramble). The couple had requested flowers that reflected the Cornish coastline, with their bright colours and natural feel. It really was stunning and so colourful!
I had some of the loveliest roses from Sacha to put on the cake, along with Sweet Rocket, Cornflower, Thyme, and some meadow grasses from my garden. The vases in the photo below are made by Sacha's friend Rachel, of Rachel Whydle Ceramics. Her vases are made in natural tones and have a beautiful organic feel to them.
Having worked at Coombe Lodge many times, I know that their rooms are well ventilated and spacious, so I was happy that the cake and flowers would be cool enough to last the day. As the cake designer it is my job to make sure the cake won't be placed on display in direct sunlight, so I always check this important detail with the venue before I take my final photos and leave! I'm looking forward to many more colourful summer weddings here and at other local venues this summer. Just hopefully not too many heat waves…