Important question- birthday cake candles

[MinnieMountain]

If you have candles shaped as the numbers on a birthday cake, do you include them in the candle per year count?

DS is about to turn 13 so as my precious only 😁 it's important that I get it right.

And I'm crap at decorating cakes. The candles are the pretty bit.

No. You have 13 normal candles, plus the numbers. Or one or the other.

I usually buy the numbers from card factory so it’s the numbers plus a few star shaped candies. I didn’t really think about having the right number if candies in the cake

Yes you include them. So a 1, a 3, and 11 straight candles is what you need.

That is according to the founder of the Birthday Cake Candle Audit Society.

Thank you @RappelChoan . I needed an official ruling.

We use just the numbers if we go down that line - so Id just use the 1 and 3 and stop there.
Please don't tell my kids ive been mean with candles through their teens!

Either numbers OR candles here!

I have a minimally related question... I'm having trifle instead of cake this year because I love my home made, very boozy, trifle. What do I do about a candle? My grandsons would be extremely upset if I didn't blow out a candle. (I am providing chocolate biscuits for those who don't like trifle - so nobody dips out)

Either 13 candles or a 1 and a 3 candle. Not both.

Well DS is my precious only, so he gets both. Plus it's hard to jazz up a cherry and almond cake.

@DilemmaDelilah could you make fairy cakes instead of chocolate biscuits and put your candle in one of them? Or if anyone likes marzipan make it into some sort of shape that would hold a candle and put it on a plate with the bowl of trifle.

@MinnieMountain thank you for your ideas... but we are going to a gig on Friday night and staying overnight, not back until Saturday lunchtime and my birthday is on Sunday. The 'rules' in our house are that the birthday person doesnt do anything towards their birthday meal but I'm making the trifle (because I like it the way I make it... with a home made strawberry compote, trifle sponges liberally soaked in strawberry juice and sherry, jelly just on the cusp of beginning to set so that it sits on top of the trifle sponges rather than sinking into them, and lashings of custard, no cream. DH would make it with tinned fruit cocktail and the liquid jelly mixture would soak into the trifle sponges). Nobody except me likes marzipan, and chocolate biscuits will be much more popular than cupcakes anyway. Grandsons are 13 and 16 and eat like horses! In fact everybody eats like horses.

@DilemmaDelilah due to the age of your grandsons you must also purchase (or have someone purchase) a Colin Caterpillar or equivalent, this can be used for the candles. They are full of preservatives so either the teen boys can eat it that day to add to their hollow legs, or take it with them to snack on later.

It’s the number of flames that denotes the age.
If there is a fountain sparkler, that would be in addition to the flames.

I’ve never done the candles per year, just whatever candles are in the packet and the age number ones.

@MinnieMountain Both number candle plus 14 actual candles is perfectly acceptable.

@DilemmaDelilah get the mini Colin cakes from m and s and stick some candles in them. Trifle for a birthday cake is downright weird and disappointing- cheesecake is the only acceptable alternative to birthday cake!!!

@Isadora2007 and @RappelChoan thank you both for your suggestions... however: Colin the caterpillar cakes of any size are NOT an option! Home made cake or nothing. And besides... my grandsons would inhale them without a thought leaving nothing for anyone else!

I like trifle! I'm really not that keen on cake and only have it for everyone else. For once I want to have what I want.