Wedding Cake Stands

Wedding cake stands:

Wedding cake stands are often the unsung heroes (or heroines) of the event - for all the time and effort (and expense!) that goes into choosing and preparing and decorating wedding cakes, if wedding cake stands don't do their job properly, it could all just fall flat ... literally. 

Wedding cake stands hold up and display the wedding cake, sometimes for hours on end. Basic wedding cake stands are either an unraised platter (larger than the bottom layer of the cake), a footed plateau stand whose surface is elevated off the table, or a pedestal, which is raised in the center. Wedding cake stands can be made of any sturdy material, but glass, acrylic, ceramic, china and metal (usually silver or brass) are the most common. Single-used, disposable wedding cake stands are also easy to find.

Groups of matching wedding cake stands can be purchased for tiered cakes, which can then be stacked according to size or in a step-like formation or another grouped arrangement. Couples serving mini wedding cakes or wedding cupcakes can use matching wedding cake stands - or they might choose a variety of different wedding cake stands to make a more striking design statement.

For the classic tiered wedding cake look, individual layers are stacked on top of each other. (When layers are stacked in this way, each tier is supported by dowels or columns placed inside the cake itself.) One wedding cake stand is customarily used on the bottom, and, for a more dramatic effect, pillars can be used to add space between each tier of the cake. Pillars are sometimes placed below the base wedding cake stand, or it can rest directly on the cake table. When base wedding cake stands are held up by pillars, a centerpiece or other ornamentation is often placed underneath the cake for added decorative effect.

Wedding cake stands can be purchased with complementary pillars or bought separately and then used together. Some professional bakers have pillars that can be used and returned to them at the end of the event. Glass or plastic champagne flutes or other suitably-shaped objects can also be used as pillars. Wedding cake stands using pillars create an elegant cake display, and the pillars can create an illusion of greater height, depending on their size.

Some multi-tiered wedding cake stands have a single column going down the middle of the stand. This helps create a "tower" illusion without pillars and these wedding cake stands are often used by couples who are serving wedding cupcakes or mini wedding cakes. Alternately, a smaller tiered cake is placed on the top of the multi-tiered wedding cake stand and other decorations, desserts or pastries are displayed on the lower tiers.

Wedding cake stands are available for purchase in a wide variety of styles, but if couples are looking for something more unique, they should check out antique stores, flea markets and swap meets - or the family attic! - for vintage pedestals, platters, display shelves or funky plant stands that can be cleaned up, painted and used as wedding cake stands ... and after the celebration is over, they've got an instant family heirloom.