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Sterling
Silver Cake Charms Introduction/Main Page |
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 Sterling
Silver Charms For Victorian Wedding Cake Charms - also called
a Charm Cake, Bridesmaid Cake Pulls or Ribbon Pulls ... |
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How the Charm Cake Tradition Got
Started... |
What a romantic
Victorian era tradition to make your wedding grand! The custom of
"ribbon pulling" dates back to time of Queen Victoria (as do most of our
wonderful wedding traditions). A bride would hide small charms
(distinctive symbols of romance, love, friendship, memorials, etc.)
attached to satin ribbons within the icing of her wedding cake.
The bride would have each of her bridesmaids (as well as other important
women in her life) pull a charm from the cake before it was cut.
It was believed each charm had a special meaning, a bit of advice, or
would foretell the future in luck, romance, fortune, etc. |
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How to Use Cake Charms...
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Traditionally, the
bride's attendants (even friends, children, family members can
participate) assemble behind the cake, along with the bride and groom,
at the wedding reception. The ribbon-pulling ceremony takes place
just after the cake-cutting ceremony, but prior to cake-serving.
Each person takes a turn and pulls a ribbon from the cake. The
charm's meaning is revealed. Some couples like to have the
ribbon-pulling ceremony prior to the cake-cutting - it's your wedding,
do what you want!
If you like the idea of the ribbon-pulling ceremony, but do not want it
to be part of the wedding reception - consider having a small cake made
with the ribbon pulls for your bridal luncheon/tea/brunch, rehearsal
dinner or bridal shower. Some people even opt to have a small
bridesmaid charm cake in addition to the main wedding cake.
Today, charm cakes are being included in showers, birthdays, afternoon
teas, confirmations, Quinceanera celebrations, bat mitzvahs, etc. - any event involving a cake!
Charms make perfect party favors for your guests and they have a
keepsake charm as a remembrance of the event. If you want more
information about charms appropriate for other events other than
bridal/wedding, email me.
If you want to pull the charms out of your wedding cake at the
reception, consult with your cake-maker and let her hide the charms when
assembling and icing the cake. I would not recommend you trying to
insert the charms yourself into your wedding cake.
The charms are easy to hide under the bottom layer of the cake with only
the satin ribbons delicately streaming from underneath the cake - around
the perimeter. The charms can also nest between the cake layers
while the cake is being frosted. Some bakers hide the charms under
plastic film to protect the cake decoration. Let your cake-baker
know your preference and she can make recommendations, too.
The charms should not be baked into the cake. It is easiest to
have the ribbons draping from the back of the wedding cake. This
is the best photo opportunity set-up for the ribbon-pulling ceremony.
Do you like the idea of having a charm pull, but you do not want to have
the charms in the cake? Another popular idea is to have the charms
in a centerpiece or bouquet on the table. Have the ribbons flowing
to the outside from in-between the flowers. |
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About Our Cake Charms... |
I offer 1200+ different symbolic
charms! Each charm is made of
sterling silver and is already tied
on satin
ribbon. You are in control of your charm order (yes, you can
even have your own meanings for the charms if you want -
email me). You
have your choice of
satin ribbon
colors. You get to choose the charms you want for your
ribbon-pulling ceremony. You do not have to purchase charms in
pre-determined sets - purchase the ones you want. Each charm also
has a sterling silver springring already attached - just add it to a
charm bracelet or
necklace chain. You will have a
personalized card
with the bride's name and each charm meaning to read from during the
ribbon-pulling ceremony. All of this is included in the price of
each charm (charm prices vary between $4-$25+ each based on gram weight,
charm detail, etc.). |
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Charms Make Great Bridesmaid's Gifts,
Party Favors, Mementos, etc... |
Brides, give your
bridesmaids a
sterling silver charm bracelet as their wedding party gift.
The charm each girl pulls from the cake will be the first charm on their
new bracelet. Each charm is sterling silver and has the springring
already attached, so it is ready to go on a charm bracelet or worn as a
pendant. What a wonderful keepsake gift and a lasting memory of your
friendship! Another popular idea is to use the cake pull event as an
opportunity to create a special
charm bracelet
for the bride. Each charm is pulled by the attendants (and any other
special people you want to include), the meaning is read, and the charm
is given to the bride. In this way, the charm meaning is first for the
person who pulled the charm and then she makes it her wish for the new
bride. |
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Cake Charms As Part
of Your Wedding Reception... |
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Cake Charms as part of a
Bridal Shower, Bridesmaid's Luncheon/Tea/Brunch, Wedding
Rehearsal Dinner, etc.: |
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More Ideas To Use Charms
On Your Wedding Day... |
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The following
photos are courtesy of Sandy Ingenthron, owner of
  :
This cake is Sandy's "Mad
Hatter" design. She made this cake for a bridal shower
with 25 charms for the guests to pull.
Here is another Charm Cake from Sandy (she is great!) |
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In the last couple of
weeks, I have had two shower hostesses tell me they used
towel/diaper cakes as the table centerpieces at the showers they
hosted. The cake pull charms were used with the towel cakes.
The bridal shower hostess said she bought towels from the
bride's bridal registry to make the towel cake. The baby shower
hostess used baby diapers (or you can use baby towels) to make
the cake centerpiece. All you do is insert the charms and use
the draping satin ribbons as part of the cake decoration. The
centerpiece is also a gift to the bride or mom-to-be to take
home.
Here is an
example of a towel cake centerpiece:
Here is an
example of a diaper cake centerpiece:
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Have You Heard of a Wedding Wreath?
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A wreath is a
symbol of unity. A gorgeous wreath as a centerpiece on the
table at a wedding reception, rehearsal dinner, bridal shower,
bridesmaid luncheon/brunch/tea, etc. is a great old-fashioned
idea. A wreath is a nice addition at the bottom of a footed
cake stand or with a punch bowl in the center of the wreath.
You can also hang the wreath on the entrance door of the church
on your wedding day (then move it to the reception site). The
wreath can be made of fresh or silk (dried or preserved)
flowers. If you like the idea of fresh flowers and live
greenery for the wreath, here are instructions for a "living"
wreath:
http://www.englishcreekgardens.com/livingwreath.htm. The
bride can preserve the flowers used in the wreath or even
re-plant the greenery. Use the charms with the wreath - you can
have the bridesmaids pull the charms from the wreath. If you
are hosting a bridal shower/luncheon/tea etc., hang a wedding
wreath on your front door to greet guests - then, give the
wreath to the bride as a gift for her to take home.
Here is an idea from Heidi, a
bride in Prescott, AZ:
"Hi
Rhonda, My wedding will be at an English-style bed & breakfast.
The wedding wreath I am making is my own creation. I plan to
weave ivy and berries around a circular frame and attach ribbons
so that it hangs horizontally instead of being mounted on a
wall. On the wreath, I will attach the charms so that they hang
below the ivy. I found each of your charms to have a special
meaning and thought they would be a beautiful addition to the
wreath. They will remain in place, along with other symbols of
our heritage, forever. I chose the wreath because it has no
beginning and no end and continues in harmony. The wreath will
be a part of our wedding, and I hope to add memorable tokens
throughout our lifetime together." |
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