How to Order a Custom Birthday Cake

Ordering a custom birthday cake can feel overwhelming, especially if it's your first time. How far in advance should you order? What information does the bakery need? How much should you budget? This guide covers everything you need to know to order the perfect custom birthday cake for your celebration.

When to Order Your Custom Birthday Cake

We prefer to have orders as far in advance as possible. Understanding that life happens, we ideally prefer 1 to 2 weeks advance notice. Quicker turnaround times will depend on specific availability, but we try to accommodate every order.

My schedule gets filled pretty quickly—typically I am booked around 2 weeks in advance. Excellent idea to email in advance! The more time we have, the better. For example, an extra hour could mean very much to us.

What Information to Prepare

When you reach out, here's what I'll need to know:

• Event date: When do you need the cake ready? This will determine my availability.
• Party size: How many people will attend? This is the most important element that will determine the pricing. Naturally, the party size dictates the cake size.
• Theme or design ideas: Do you have a theme in mind? Like Safari Animals or Spiderman? Perhaps a picture? It can be anything—whatever you have in mind. If not, that's not a problem. We can come up with our design based on the occasion. If you have any images you'd like to share, please do. Images are always helpful.
• Flavor preferences: What kind of flavor do you prefer for the cake?
• Pickup or delivery: Would you want to pick up the cake from our location, or have it delivered? We offer delivery in SF and nearby vicinity.

Our Cake Flavors

My cakes are not excessively sweet. I try to stay away from super sweet cakes (unless specifically asked for by the client). Currently, I have the capacity to make the following flavors:

• Strawberry Vanilla Cream Cake
• Orange Lemon Cream Cake
• Lavender Blueberry Cake
• Chocolate Mousse Cake

Understanding Custom Cake Pricing

Because all my cakes are completely custom made, a precise price list is extremely difficult to publish. However, the intricacy of the design, type of cake and filling, and the number of servings usually determine the price. The more detailed, complicated, and time consuming the cake is, typically the greater the price range.

I generally like to provide you with a price range first to make sure that you're comfortable with it and it fits your budget.

Custom Cake Pricing Guide

DISCLAIMER: Please understand these price ranges are for general representative and illustrative purposes. Actual cake designs, complexities, and intricacies involved may also affect the pricing.

Popular Birthday Cake Styles

Sculpted 3D Cakes

Sculpted cakes are custom cakes that are shaped like the actual item, object, or person—say, if you had a Lion King theme, it would be shaped as a lion. I specialize in custom sculpted cakes with all edible components, layers of cake and filling, artistically carved into whatever your heart desires. These cakes are covered in fondant to express realistic texture.

Food-related realistic cakes are my favorite ones to make. I've done a pho soup cake, a ramen bowl cake, a thanksgiving turkey, and most recently a hot-dog cake. This is the more expensive approach, but the results speak for themselves.

Round Layered Cakes with 3D Toppers

The second and less expensive option is a round, layered cake that generally has 3D figurine topper(s) and side decorations. We can add whatever 3D figurines you'd like—tiki torches around the cake perimeter, a campfire, characters, you name it. We can have logos hand drawn or printed on rice paper and attached to the side of the cake.

Tiered Celebration Cakes

For larger parties, I recommend going with a 2-tier round cake. The bottom tier will be 8-inches in diameter by 6-inches tall, and the upper tier will be 6-inches by 4-inches. Perfect for milestone birthdays or larger gatherings.

Photo Cakes with Edible Images

Personalize your cake with your own edible photos, pictures, and messages. You can add your favorite character or any other image(s). We print on high quality edible icing paper using high quality edible ink. These are an easy and less expensive way to make your cake look like a masterpiece.

The Ordering Process

The ordering process is very straightforward:

1. Step 1 - Initial Inquiry: Reach out to me via our website, email, or phone with your basic details—event date, party size, theme ideas.
2. Step 2 - Design Consultation: I'll make a sketch of the custom cake design for your review and approval. I'll make several sketches just so you have options to choose from. I'll also include the pricing estimate in the sketch. The sketch turnaround is anywhere from 24-48 hours depending on complexity. There's no commitment on your part to place an order or anything—the sketch is a part of the process.
3. Step 3 - Design Approval: Time permitting, please review and let me know what your thoughts are. Which of the sketches do you like most? Feel free to provide feedback or comments for revisions. We can have as many revisions as needed before finalizing the design. That way, we're all on the same page.
4. Step 4 - Payment: Once all the details are finalized, a payment invoice will be emailed to you.

Payment Options

You can pay with credit/debit card, PayPal (@mybakingcreations), or Venmo (@mybakingcreations).

Pickup and Delivery

For pickup, generally the window we use is anytime from 9am to 6pm. Needless to say, if you need to pick up outside those hours, I'll be more than happy to accommodate. We're located in Daly City's Westlake neighborhood with ample parking. Also, pickups from the Sunset neighborhood of SF are also possible. When here, please feel free to call or text and I'll meet you.

We also offer delivery in SF and nearby vicinity. Free delivery in SF can be arranged for qualifying orders.

Tips for a Successful Custom Cake Order

• Share images if you have them: If there's an image that you have and would like to share for the design, please do. It could be an image of a cake that you saw online, etc.
• Know your party size: This is the most important element that will determine the price. The party size dictates everything.
• Consider our specialties: Animal themes are extremely popular, and I've done tons of animal custom cakes. Let me know if you'd like to see past designs—I'm happy to email you examples of my prior work.

Frequently Asked Questions