Wiring Wedding Flowers: A Cake Decorator's Guide

Flowers are a beautiful and elegant way to decorate a wedding cake. While sugar paste flowers are an option, they are a lot of work and fresh flowers are a more popular choice. However, adding flowers to a cake requires some preparation to ensure food safety and an attractive presentation. This involves selecting the right types of flowers, preparing the stems, and arranging the flowers on the cake in a way that is secure and visually appealing.

Using a cocktail stick or lollipop stick to hold the wired flowers

Preparing the Wired Flowers

Before you begin, it's important to note that the wires and stalks of gum paste flowers should not come into direct contact with the cake for food safety reasons. To prepare your wired flowers, follow these steps:

• Cut a piece of floral wire (20-24 gauge) that matches the length of your flower's stalk.
• Carefully insert the floral wire into the stalk of the flower.
• Wrap the entire stalk, including the wire, with cling wrap or foil up to the calyx of the flower.

Using Cocktail Sticks or Lollipop Sticks

Now that your wired flowers are ready, you can use cocktail sticks or lollipop sticks to hold them in place on your cake:

• If using cocktail sticks, create your flowers in advance on the sticks using cell buds. This will make it easy to pop them onto the cake without causing any damage.
• You can also use a dab of royal icing to secure the flowers onto the cocktail sticks.
• If using lollipop sticks, choose plastic ones as they are perfect for holding thin wires.
• Insert the wired flower into the lollipop stick. For very thin wires, bend the wire at different points along its length and then straighten it back out. This will create tiny bends that help hold the wire in the lollipop stick.
• If the floral wire is still too thin for the lollipop stick, use floral tape to fatten the stalks or group multiple flowers together onto one lollipop stick.

Using these methods, you can safely and securely attach wired flowers to your wedding cake without worrying about direct contact with the cake or the stability of the flowers during transportation and display.

Wrapping wired flower stems in cling wrap or foil

To begin, cut a piece of floral wire that matches the length of your flower's stalk. Carefully insert the wire into the flower stalk. Then, wrap the entire stalk with cling wrap or foil, making sure to cover up to the calyx of the flower. This will prevent any fluids from the stem coming into contact with the cake. It will also make it easier to poke the flowers into the cake without the stalks breaking or bending.

It is important to note that the floral tape used to wrap floral wires is not food safe. Therefore, it is crucial to use either cling wrap or foil to wrap the stems before inserting them into the cake.

Additionally, it is recommended to leave the stems slightly longer to ensure the flowers are securely attached to the cake, especially during transportation.

Using a bubble tea straw or regular drinking straw to hold the wired flowers

Using a bubble tea straw or a regular drinking straw is a cost-effective alternative to using flower spikes to hold wired flowers on a wedding cake.

Bubble tea straws are great for grouping flowers together, while regular-sized drinking straws are better for inserting individual flowers into the cake.

Before inserting the wired flowers into the straws, it is recommended to wrap the flower stalks in cling wrap or foil. This is because the stalks will still come into direct contact with the cake through the bottom opening of the straws.

To use the straws, trim them to a few inches in length and insert them into the cake at the desired angle. Then, simply slip the wired flower into the straw opening.

It is important to note that the straw method may not be suitable for very thin wires used for filler flowers. In such cases, floral tape can be used to fatten the stalks or group multiple flowers together into a single straw. Alternatively, you can bend the floral wire at different points, straighten it back out, and then insert it into the straw. The tiny bends will help to hold the wire tightly in the straw.

Using a flower spike to hold the wired flowers

Flower spikes are a great way to hold flowers on cakes. They are plastic casings specifically designed for this purpose and are cylinder-shaped, with the width of bubble straws and a length of about 3 to 4 inches. One end of the cylinder has a closed, pointed end that can be poked into the cake, while the other end has an opening to insert flowers. The outer surface of the spikes is typically studded to ensure they stay in place.

When using flower spikes, there is no need to wrap the flower stalks as they will not come into direct contact with the cake. However, you will need to group your flowers together if you are using a single spike, as the spikes can be too wide for a single stalk. If you are using only one flower, you will need to pad the insides of the spike with tissue or another suitable material to secure the flower tightly.

Flower spikes can be used for both fresh and wired gum paste flowers. They are a convenient and effective way to display flowers on cakes, ensuring that the flowers are securely held in place.

Using a posy pick to hold the wired flowers

Using a posy pick is an effective way to hold wired flowers on a wedding cake. Here is a step-by-step guide:

Firstly, choose the right size of posy pick for your flowers. If you have multiple flowers to arrange, try to group them into one larger posy pick to minimise the number of holes in your cake.

Next, prepare your wired flowers by wrapping the stems with floral tape. This will ensure that no parts of the flower stem or wire come into direct contact with the cake. Make sure the tape is tightly wrapped and twisted at the end to prevent any fluid from the stems leaking into the cake.

Once your flowers are prepared, insert the posy pick into the cake, pushing it only to the surface and not too far in. This will prevent the flower stems from touching the cake and ensure that the pick doesn't end up on someone's plate when the cake is served.

If your posy pick is slightly too large, you can push a small amount of fondant into it to help secure the flower stems better.

Finally, insert the wired flowers into the posy pick. You can use a small amount of royal icing or melted chocolate to help anchor the flowers and ensure they are securely held in place.

By following these steps, you can safely and securely add wired flowers to your wedding cake, creating a beautiful and elegant decoration.

Frequently asked questions