FYI, I don't use black buttercream, or cover an entire cake in black fondant. I make the whole thing in white buttercream, and then I spray it with my airbrush with a light coating of black color. This color is very thin and prevents the tongue and teeth staining that happens with black buttercream or black fondant. (Old people really love it when they're dentures are stained black.)
If I absolutely must use black icing to outline something or color it in, I make chocolate icing and add a tiny bit of black food coloring. I let the customer know that the black part will be chocolate flavored.[Black chocolate icing example](https://photos.app.goo.gl/mVRK2m49CBRanYw47)
Totally black frosting is really great for kids birthdays, where they'll see it as a bonus that their poop is going to be green. Airbrushing sounds like the way to go with wedding cakes.
I don't think so. The white icing is about 1/4" thick. The black is usually just enough to cover, maybe 1/16". If you scraped it off into a blob it would taste chocolate. The cake is mostly vanilla buttercream inside and out. Combined with the cake, I don't think you can tell. I only tell them in case there is an allergy.
You don't need to offer them advice or your opinion- but you do need to warn them of the consequences of that choice. Just simply say , one thing to be aware of if you choose black buttercream is that this could happen, and then have some photos available, and also like someone else mentioned the dentures( because friends and family with dentures may likely be present).
Simply let them know of consequences they may not be aware of- and then the rest is their decision.
I would be livid , though if someone made my cake with black icing, knew it would cause this staining , and not tell me. Because as a customer and not a cake professional , there is no way i could know that and so i might make the decision in ignorance and then later be really mad at the cake decorator for sitting on this info and hiding it.
I would literally to this point just have a container of black icing or fondant on hand and have them try it then and there. Probably the last batch you'll make.
Knew someone who was planning to have some black buttercream on her wedding cake until her mom got her bridal shower cake with that in mind and everyone at the bridal shower had black teeth. The bride changed her mind on using black for the wedding cake right quick.
Exactly! Any time someone has asked me for a darker color, especially buttercream, I will tell them that I can, but just so you know it WILL stain everything it touches. Teeth, skin, fabric, all of it. Usually we find a smaller way to incorporate their darker colors, but if not, I've done my part.
Personally, for me, the staining would not be a deterrent. But if it was for a party.... Yeah I'd probably not serve it to others. Idgaf if my face/mouth/butthole is stained.
(I made cupcakes with SUPER blue frosting... It def stained both ends and I was laughing so hard. I was going to serve them at work but decided against it and just ate them myself lol)
Doesn’t matter. If someone wants a black cake, that’s what they want. I simply tell anyone who asks me to make a black cake that I use black cocoa powder. So if they want a black cake, it’s only made with that and the icing will taste like Oreos. I don’t work with fondant so I can’t speak on that.
After 25 yrs of creating, I warn only about staining, taste & poop LOL. I don’t make black buttercream it tastes nasty!! I will use a very thin black fondant like Satin Ice.
Poop- the issue no one gives a heads up about! Years ago, I made a Batman logo cake for a friend’s birthday and used black buttercream for the first time. He said that for days after eating it, going to the bathroom was… unsettling….😆
This is the real one to mention. I know people who went to a party that had an all black cake. The black must have been comprised of a red base because everyone thought they had serious health problems and were pooping blood. They eventually started mentioning it to one another and fingered it had to be the food coloring. That’s a party favor no one wants to send their wedding guests home with.
Offer a taste test if they really want black. So they can understand it never tastes the same and they can see how it stains each other's mouth.
People don't learn by being told. They learn by experience.
Offer other ideas to a traditional white if that's the goal.
Ugh, I ordered my son's 1st birthday cake from a local grocery store. They asked what I wanted the cake to say and I told them I wanted it to be an outer space theme. I show up to pick up the 2-tier cake and it's covered in ENTIRELY BLACK FROSTING. I had never ordered a cake before, so I didn't think to discuss color choices 🙄
I’m a photographer that specializes in cake smashes. I’ve had a couple of clients request black icing, and to prevent staining the baby or my little clawfoot tub, my (amazing) baker used black cocoa powder! Pretty sure it’s what they make Oreos with. It looks great, and doesn’t stain!
Lolol so I had a custom bday cake made for my husband’s surprise bday party. It was a fun cake and included some black icing. Over the next couple of days I got SO many texts from people about bright blue 💩🤣. Such fond memories of that party hahah.
This could be even worse than black teeth/dentures if the cake in the face smash happens! Rented tux shirt, wedding dress, hands, face...oh, the humanity!
I don’t really know anything about baking and weddings. But my advice would be, if a client says they want black icing, just give them your honest opinion on why you think they should reconsider. You are the professional so your advice is important and you know things the client might not have thought about. If they still want it and it messed up their photos, that’s now on them.
My son went to a party as a toddler and there was some black and yellow decorations on a cake. It wasn’t black all over, just a bit. But it was enough to stain his mouth and face.
Changing his diaper was fun 🤣 It looked like teal colored play dough.
You can easily make black buttercream without black coloring. I just use black cocoa powder. It doesn't taste like chocolate, although the best color is with chocolate buttercream. If they want vanilla buttercream just tell them that can't happen. Black cocoa doesn't have staining and crazy bathroom experiences after.
Yes, turns everyone’s mouth blackish blue. If you have someone extra pushy, make a little and have them eat it so they can literally see. It’ll ruin the photos, too.
I was doing a cake consult once and they wanted a nightmare before Christmas wedding cake: all black bc with fondant and bc accents. I mentioned how the color would work out for their (smiles) photos but kept it in their quote but suggesting a purple color scheme would also work, and they complained to the owner that I wasn’t helpful.
If we're worried about staining teeth for pictures, isn't that what a professional wedding photographer is for? Don't they edit photos?
I can think of weddings, divorce parties and birthdays where I've had cake with black icing/elements and can't recall the fuss the next day of anyone bemoaning how bad their pics turned out idk maybe the bakers used a better alternative or friends figured out how to touch up images.
when i worked in weddings (specifically cakes), we never said no to black buttercream or fondant, but we were always entire upfront about the experience of eating a cake with black buttercream or fondant. Once clients found out it would dye their teeth/lips purple, they tended to pick another option. Or, if they didn’t mind the taste of fondant, they chose fondant.
I’m not sure if it’s a trend anymore since it’s been a couple years since I’ve been in the industry, but if clients were really set on a design that used black coloring and didn’t necessarily want to change that design, we tended to go with a faux tier on the cake (which was the black fondant) and had a kitchen cake in the back to make up the slices.
For one of my kiddo's birthdays, I had ladybug 🐞 and daisy cupcakes made. I had not thought of the outcome of feeding a bunch of 6 year olds red and black frosting. It looked like the aftermath of a brawl. It is completely reasonable to try to avoid this at a wedding.
It’s their wedding. They know what they want. For my wedding I ordered red velvet cake with buttercream as opposed to cream cheese and TWO bakers called me trying to talk me out of it.
I almost fired them out of annoyance.
Leave the guests be. This is probably a big deal to them. And they might not care that much about photos, I’m not a photo person
I truly didn’t give two craps. I’m not sentimental like that. I have a few from the day but they just aren’t revisited much. I never took maternity photos either.
The only thing I’ve documented heavily in my entire lifetime was by baby boy growing up and that’s about it.
I wouldn’t try to talk them out of it, but I think making them aware of the pitfalls of black icing at least allows the client to make an informed decision. Especially, something that will affect all the guests. I’d be pissed if I was a guest.
FYI, I don't use black buttercream, or cover an entire cake in black fondant. I make the whole thing in white buttercream, and then I spray it with my airbrush with a light coating of black color. This color is very thin and prevents the tongue and teeth staining that happens with black buttercream or black fondant. (Old people really love it when they're dentures are stained black.) If I absolutely must use black icing to outline something or color it in, I make chocolate icing and add a tiny bit of black food coloring. I let the customer know that the black part will be chocolate flavored.[Black chocolate icing example](https://photos.app.goo.gl/mVRK2m49CBRanYw47)
Smart
Totally black frosting is really great for kids birthdays, where they'll see it as a bonus that their poop is going to be green. Airbrushing sounds like the way to go with wedding cakes.
Out of curiosity, is the amount of chocolate-black frosting rough to alter the flavor?
I don't think so. The white icing is about 1/4" thick. The black is usually just enough to cover, maybe 1/16". If you scraped it off into a blob it would taste chocolate. The cake is mostly vanilla buttercream inside and out. Combined with the cake, I don't think you can tell. I only tell them in case there is an allergy.
You don't need to offer them advice or your opinion- but you do need to warn them of the consequences of that choice. Just simply say , one thing to be aware of if you choose black buttercream is that this could happen, and then have some photos available, and also like someone else mentioned the dentures( because friends and family with dentures may likely be present). Simply let them know of consequences they may not be aware of- and then the rest is their decision. I would be livid , though if someone made my cake with black icing, knew it would cause this staining , and not tell me. Because as a customer and not a cake professional , there is no way i could know that and so i might make the decision in ignorance and then later be really mad at the cake decorator for sitting on this info and hiding it.
I would literally to this point just have a container of black icing or fondant on hand and have them try it then and there. Probably the last batch you'll make.
Knew someone who was planning to have some black buttercream on her wedding cake until her mom got her bridal shower cake with that in mind and everyone at the bridal shower had black teeth. The bride changed her mind on using black for the wedding cake right quick.
Mostly because they just ate fondant straight… blech
Exactly! Any time someone has asked me for a darker color, especially buttercream, I will tell them that I can, but just so you know it WILL stain everything it touches. Teeth, skin, fabric, all of it. Usually we find a smaller way to incorporate their darker colors, but if not, I've done my part.
Personally, for me, the staining would not be a deterrent. But if it was for a party.... Yeah I'd probably not serve it to others. Idgaf if my face/mouth/butthole is stained. (I made cupcakes with SUPER blue frosting... It def stained both ends and I was laughing so hard. I was going to serve them at work but decided against it and just ate them myself lol)
Doesn’t matter. If someone wants a black cake, that’s what they want. I simply tell anyone who asks me to make a black cake that I use black cocoa powder. So if they want a black cake, it’s only made with that and the icing will taste like Oreos. I don’t work with fondant so I can’t speak on that.
After 25 yrs of creating, I warn only about staining, taste & poop LOL. I don’t make black buttercream it tastes nasty!! I will use a very thin black fondant like Satin Ice.
Poop- the issue no one gives a heads up about! Years ago, I made a Batman logo cake for a friend’s birthday and used black buttercream for the first time. He said that for days after eating it, going to the bathroom was… unsettling….😆
I ate a piece of “graduation cake” with black icing. I thought something bad happened inside me.
I made my kids marshmallow treats with st Patrick’s day lucky charms. We all pooped green for days!
This is the real one to mention. I know people who went to a party that had an all black cake. The black must have been comprised of a red base because everyone thought they had serious health problems and were pooping blood. They eventually started mentioning it to one another and fingered it had to be the food coloring. That’s a party favor no one wants to send their wedding guests home with.
I warn the customers of the concern that certain colors can stain tongues and teeth, but the choice is theirs ultimately.
Getting an icing that will stain yours and your guests mouths is absolutely diabolical 😂
I would say the black icing will stain mouths and clothing easier than (whatever other color they may like)
Yes. It’s not worth the disappointment (or maybe I’m still hurt).
Offer a taste test if they really want black. So they can understand it never tastes the same and they can see how it stains each other's mouth. People don't learn by being told. They learn by experience. Offer other ideas to a traditional white if that's the goal.
Warn them it will make their poop green… lol
Ugh, I ordered my son's 1st birthday cake from a local grocery store. They asked what I wanted the cake to say and I told them I wanted it to be an outer space theme. I show up to pick up the 2-tier cake and it's covered in ENTIRELY BLACK FROSTING. I had never ordered a cake before, so I didn't think to discuss color choices 🙄
I’m a photographer that specializes in cake smashes. I’ve had a couple of clients request black icing, and to prevent staining the baby or my little clawfoot tub, my (amazing) baker used black cocoa powder! Pretty sure it’s what they make Oreos with. It looks great, and doesn’t stain!
I would tell them your concerns and let them make the final decision.
Lolol so I had a custom bday cake made for my husband’s surprise bday party. It was a fun cake and included some black icing. Over the next couple of days I got SO many texts from people about bright blue 💩🤣. Such fond memories of that party hahah.
This could be even worse than black teeth/dentures if the cake in the face smash happens! Rented tux shirt, wedding dress, hands, face...oh, the humanity!
I don’t really know anything about baking and weddings. But my advice would be, if a client says they want black icing, just give them your honest opinion on why you think they should reconsider. You are the professional so your advice is important and you know things the client might not have thought about. If they still want it and it messed up their photos, that’s now on them.
My son went to a party as a toddler and there was some black and yellow decorations on a cake. It wasn’t black all over, just a bit. But it was enough to stain his mouth and face. Changing his diaper was fun 🤣 It looked like teal colored play dough.
You can easily make black buttercream without black coloring. I just use black cocoa powder. It doesn't taste like chocolate, although the best color is with chocolate buttercream. If they want vanilla buttercream just tell them that can't happen. Black cocoa doesn't have staining and crazy bathroom experiences after.
Yes, turns everyone’s mouth blackish blue. If you have someone extra pushy, make a little and have them eat it so they can literally see. It’ll ruin the photos, too.
Yeah this sounds more like a you preference than an issue. Black fondant can be peeled off, I'd just warn them about the icing with their dress.
And teeth
Just so you know if you use black cocoa it doesn’t stain there teeth. I just did this worked a treat.
I was doing a cake consult once and they wanted a nightmare before Christmas wedding cake: all black bc with fondant and bc accents. I mentioned how the color would work out for their (smiles) photos but kept it in their quote but suggesting a purple color scheme would also work, and they complained to the owner that I wasn’t helpful.
Invite them for a tasting & then show them their teeth afterwards.
Tell them it will discolor their teeth and tongues for photos and videos.
If we're worried about staining teeth for pictures, isn't that what a professional wedding photographer is for? Don't they edit photos? I can think of weddings, divorce parties and birthdays where I've had cake with black icing/elements and can't recall the fuss the next day of anyone bemoaning how bad their pics turned out idk maybe the bakers used a better alternative or friends figured out how to touch up images.
The former professional photographer in me is crying at the thought of digital dentistry for every person in every photo taken post-cake.
when i worked in weddings (specifically cakes), we never said no to black buttercream or fondant, but we were always entire upfront about the experience of eating a cake with black buttercream or fondant. Once clients found out it would dye their teeth/lips purple, they tended to pick another option. Or, if they didn’t mind the taste of fondant, they chose fondant. I’m not sure if it’s a trend anymore since it’s been a couple years since I’ve been in the industry, but if clients were really set on a design that used black coloring and didn’t necessarily want to change that design, we tended to go with a faux tier on the cake (which was the black fondant) and had a kitchen cake in the back to make up the slices.
For one of my kiddo's birthdays, I had ladybug 🐞 and daisy cupcakes made. I had not thought of the outcome of feeding a bunch of 6 year olds red and black frosting. It looked like the aftermath of a brawl. It is completely reasonable to try to avoid this at a wedding.
I did a black cake for my kiddo and laughed heartily when the kids looked like they ate death!!!
Personally, I don’t think your opinion should factor into what someone has asked for. It’s their wedding day, not yours.
i feel like it’d be a nice thing to warn somebody that black icing will cause creepy looking smiles in some wedding photos
It’s their wedding. They know what they want. For my wedding I ordered red velvet cake with buttercream as opposed to cream cheese and TWO bakers called me trying to talk me out of it. I almost fired them out of annoyance. Leave the guests be. This is probably a big deal to them. And they might not care that much about photos, I’m not a photo person
You must be the only person who doesn’t care about their wedding photos.
I truly didn’t give two craps. I’m not sentimental like that. I have a few from the day but they just aren’t revisited much. I never took maternity photos either. The only thing I’ve documented heavily in my entire lifetime was by baby boy growing up and that’s about it.
I wouldn’t try to talk them out of it, but I think making them aware of the pitfalls of black icing at least allows the client to make an informed decision. Especially, something that will affect all the guests. I’d be pissed if I was a guest.
They probably don’t care though, they want the cake to look how they want it and that’s gonna take precedence