Fresh Flowers for Cakes: Good Idea or Terrible Idea? Sugar Flowers by Kelsie Cakes
Fresh Flowers for Cakes: Good Idea or Terrible Idea? Sugar Flowers by Kelsie Cakes

Fresh Flowers for Cakes: Good Idea or Terrible Idea?

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Is fresh the best?

Are fresh flowers for cakes a good idea, or is there a better option out there? (and yes, I might be a liiiiittle biased.)

Sometimes (though it pains me to say it) you’re gonna need fresh flowers for your cakes (even though I still totally vote for sugar flowers every time!)

But when using fresh flowers, there are some things to keep in mind.

Mainly — make sure you don’t choose any toxic flowers! Just like you’re not supposed to let your cat eat some of your houseplants, there are a few blooms out there us humans shouldn’t consume either.

And if you insist on using fresh flowers for cakes, there are some best practices to consider.

Make sure you are choosing organic flowers that aren’t treated with pesticides or any other nasty chemicals that you don’t want leeching into your wedding cake! Not only would that not be very safe, but I doubt it would taste very good either.

And at that point, you might have more of a weeding cake, ya know? (groan)

Flowers that are not Edible

So, here’s a list of some flowers that are totally bad for putting on your cake:

  • Azalea
  • Belladonna
  • Calla Lily
  • Crocus
  • Daffodil
  • Foxglove
  • Hyacinth
  • Larkspur
  • Lily-of-the-Valley
  • Rhododendron

Flowers that can be Edible

And these flowers are edible, but again, take care that you use an organic variety of these fresh flowers for your cakes!

  • Bachelor button
  • Chrysanthemum
  • Dandelion
  • Gardenia
  • Hibiscus
  • Lilac
  • Pansy
  • Roses
  • Sunflower
  • Violet

Another thing to remember is that you should make sure your fresh flowers are wrapped or placed in floral spikes so they don’t leak their stem juices all up in your cake. Sure, rose water is totally a flavor, but this isn’t really the best way to achieve that!

Your vendors’ opinions on fresh flowers for cakes matter, too.

If you have more questions on the safety and viability of using fresh flowers for your cakes, make sure to run them by your florist and your baker. And make sure they have each other’s contact information too! I’ve been in this industry long enough to see plenty of gorgeous cakes just dying for flowers on them, but no one told the florist!

Alternatively, don’t you think sugar flowers are a much sweeter option?

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