Hi! I still consider myself a novice in cakes, but I do have some people skills that I can share if that might help. I have been overwhelmed by difficult things like this in the past & I know how stressful it can be when you feel like your hands are tied. First of all, Don’t be so hard on yourself!! You have been given a difficult task, by the bride specifying no leaves or filler flowers. I’ve sometimes felt almost like I was set up to fail when unrealistic expectations have been laid down.
The first thing I would do is talk to the bride ASAP. She’s going to have a lot on her mind so the sooner the better. Just be honest with her. Tell her that you want to meet with her or send her pics of the beautiful flowers you’ve made (and I’m sure they are:) but then tell her that they could be so much more with something to go with them to compliment them. Let her know that you want her to have the best wedding cake she can have but that you’re afraid the “no filler/no leaves” rule won’t allow the cake to be its best. Just try be careful not to criticize her decision, or make her lose confidence in your ability. Tell her you’re excited at the challenge and want to get her input on coming up with an alternative. Try to make her feel like you two are a team (because you are!) and that you need to come up with a solution together. After you’ve made the flowers you need, make a few leaves or filler flowers so that you can show her the difference in the two looks. Explain that gum paste flowers are rigid and the problems that can present. If she is still dead set against leaves/filler flowers ask her about small flower buds, ribbon, tulle, etc. In the end, the decision will be hers and you can only do so much. Who knows, she may be happy with the end result without the leaves/fillers!
When this situation comes up during a consult with a bride/customer I ask them why they have made that decision to restrict my cake creativity, but I put it in a nice way of course. Something like “So you don’t like filler flowers at all or just not the ones you’ve seen so far?” then go from there. “Was it the color of the ones you saw, the quality?” etc and try to get to the root of the problem. Sometimes they have seen a cake that they really didn’t like, sometimes they have trouble envisioning the end product. I’m at the point in my cake career that I’m not afraid to turn people down if I’m not comfortable with something or I’m not totally confident that I can give them what they want or create a product that I am happy with.
Wow, I’ve written a novel! Sorry this is so long! Good luck in your endeavors.
Laura
