Pastry Chefs Sketch Royal Wedding Cakes for Will and Kate
March 11, 2011— -- After Prince William and Kate Middleton say their "I-do's" on April 29, a select number of guests will be invited to join them at two different receptions. According to royal wedding tradition, those lucky few will be dining on multiple wedding cakes at the multiple receptions.
Ten celebrated wedding cake designers have released sketches of a confection they envision Will and Kate cutting into on their big day.
New York-based wedding cake artist Elizabeth Hodes is known for her grandiose designs, and this royal wedding cake is no exception.
"The piece is designed to be regal and monumental," Hodes tells the Royal Diary. "An event with this much gravitas demands it."
Many of the design elements of the cake were taken directly from Prince William's coat of arms, including the unicorn and lion gumpaste pillars. A sugar gem sapphire fashioned after Kate Middleton's engagement ring is the central gem of the crown cake topper.
Hodes says this indicates "that she is now [William's] most precious jewel."
Colette's Cakes' design pays homage to Will and Kate's springtime wedding. The bakery, which has whipped up creations for Sting, Hillary Clinton and the Rolling Stones, adorned each tier with hundreds of sugar flowers.
Two flowers of significance include the daffodil, chosen because it is the national flower of Wales, and the lily of the valley, a traditional favorite of the royal family.
The royal couple's ceremony location, Westminster Abbey, was the inspiration for Shelly Goldenberg of Shelly's Cake Studio. The centerpiece of the cake is a pastillage and sugar replica of the church's stained-glass rose window.
The arches at the entrance to Westminster Abbey were multiplied and placed at the bottom of the cake; to represent an "entrance to a new beginning for the royal couple," Goldenberg says.