Are Expectations for birthday cakes getting out of hand?

[Yellowmellow2]

More and more I see threads on social media, of people showing photos of incredible birthday cakes (castles, palaces, Disney characters etc), and asking if anyone can make one for their child? When did this become a thing? Is a normal cake not enough any more? People just put so much pressure on themselves.

It’s just awful to hear that people feel they have to do that just for affect. I can’t imagine the kids enjoy it more than a bog standard party.

Glad to hear that most of us still go for a Colin type cake or bake our own!

I don’t think it’s necessarily a new thing - my mum was amazing at cakes and always made us cakes in the shape of power rangers, bambi, a hockey pitch, castles etc - whatever we wanted. She used to do it for friends and friend did friends as a little business for a while when I was young but gave up because as above, people expected an amazing handmade personalised cake for what they’d pay for a supermarket cake. So people have always done it, but maybe you didn’t see as we didn’t have social media? Not all just friends had fancy cakes, some did, some hand supermarket ones, it was all fine then and still is now!

im trying to learn how to decorate cakes so I can sort of carry on the family tradition. This year I copped out and bought a character topper made of rice cake for £5 and put it on a plain iced cake though, personalised cakes that my toddler loved and it was cheap and easy! Might be an option if people feel under pressure.

I just make a simple chocolate biscuit cake and whack on some fondent to suit😂😂😂 cheap and cheerful always well received with young and old. I couldn’t justify some of the extravagant cakes people get made as fabulous as they look!

@DockOTheBay , I don't even have a photo of my big and fancy cake - not everything is for show.

I don't make them, I buy them! I've never made a birthday cake for DS in my life. I can afford to buy one from a professional cake maker, so that's my choice.

If your mum bakes fancy cakes it's different because she won't be spend £150 on cake ingredients. 90s child here and I don't remember people having fancy cupcakes and birthday cakes at all.

Professional cakes just taste far superior, I've done a mixture fo both for dc and homemade wins. My own dm was a cake decorator.

It's lovely to have that as a hobby, but sort of odd to scour the net and pay a fortune to buy similar if it isn't a hobby of yours.

I was questioning this the other day too. An £80 plus cake and a balloon arch come to more than I spend on the entire birthday for mine!

Like most things it seems to be very much about the photo op.

We do a combination of supermarket and making your own based on a low skill level! You can order edible icing photos so I've put those on home made or supermarket cakes. Also done the very simple train tracks on cupcakes using KitKat's (that is still the favourite for my Thomas fan) and a Rubble digger with falling smarties that covered my baking inadequacy as one side had dipped unintentionally!

I think people have different priorities and it also depends on the size of the party - so it might be justified if your child was having a big party, but most children would be happy with shop bought, whatever. It often seems that no one really eats the cake and it can often be dry and disappointing.
There is a cake maker local to me who does really delicious moist cakes, they're in really tall, deep layers and mostly in the 'drip' style. If my child was having a big party I would consider using them. Otherwise, I like either homemade cake (tastes good but I'm useless at decorating) or M&S I found to be the best for shop bought.

I make a tray are and "decorate" it with small toys of the character of the moment. DC get a cake and toys for a fraction of the price of a professionally made cake.

Professional cakes just taste far superior

Oh I MASSIVELY disagree. I generally find that homemade cakes taste way better (I slink into the Methodist church once a week purely to buy homemade cakes, since I am lazy). Professional cakes definitely look better, but the taste rarely lives up.

I do, and think, exactly the same.

Or a football pitch

Don't forget the pudding basin cake with a China lady figure so it looked like a skirt

I don't mind making a simple themed cake but I bake and decorate it myself at home. I use cutters etc, last year I made a simple spiderman cake. Standard victoria sponge inside.

The fancy ones I've noticed often include cheats like printed icing, plastic toppers etc and I often find that the cake inside isnt that nice. They are extortionately expensive.

DS is happy with what I make.

I wanted to always make my kids cakes. Now dd is expecting a unicorn cake and I am sweating a bit 😅

Woodhill I think lots of them were Jane Asher, we always had (home made) novelty cakes.

I make a cake for my little ones birthdays, it is an act of love on my part and I enjoy baking. They aren't great so I would never show it in public but I know from my birth children who are now adults how much they liked it so I now do it for my fosterlings, one day they will look back and laugh at how bad they are but I don't care. I even made DD's wedding cake at her request.

It also depends on what you think of as elaborate.

I can decorate cakes well enough to sell professionally (I don’t) so my kids cakes tend towards fancier, but because I enjoy it and do it myself.

My mum did the same for me when I was young. People always thought my cakes were ordered but she did them in our tiny kitchen with a grease proof paper piping bag she made herself.

I always get a cake maker one. I couldn't bake to save my life and its supporting a local business. Probably swap to supermarket ones once DD ages out of big parties.

Goodness, yes - balloon arches. That’s a whole other aspect of the ridiculous social media pressure!

Ah we had the Jane Asher Party Cakes book growing up and my mum made all sorts from it. Princess and the Pea, the Princess doll in a pudding bowl, etc. I remember her making Mr Happy for my brothers and several football pitches / scout camps!
As a mum I've really enjoyed making cakes for my kids - ranging from a Dalek (with Maltesers) a dinosaur, a volcano, a Darth Vader helmet, and even a green Monster with licorice allsort eyes. It's great fun as long as you don't take it too seriously!

My mums friend makes them for my kids at £25 mates rates for ingredients, and usually pays for them for me to.

We’ve had unicorns, mermaids, a flower garden, mad hatters tea party and Peppa pig so far.

I can’t decorate, so it would be supermarket cakes otherwise.

I make elaborate cakes for my child, plus nieces and nephews. I enjoy it, plus even as a teen my son loves his birthday cake.
I buy my own cake from a professional.
Handmade cake does taste far nicer, and choice of flavours/fillings.

I also make balloon arches and do any decor.