The weather in October is supposed to be pleasant, even in Alabama. Except for football, it would be a great month for a fall wedding. September's too hot and it's too early in the season. November might be cold and Alabama plays LSU and Auburn in November. And you certainly don't want to risk making your guests choose between your wedding or a playoff game in December.
So if you live in West Alabama, you consult the football schedule and pick a weekend in October when the University of Alabama game is out of town, preferably a non-SEC game, or at least NOT Arkansas, Tennessee or Ole Miss.
That was this weekend.
We had four weddings on Saturday, and one on Sunday.
Who knew it was going to be a sultry 95 degrees outside?
Or that Alabama would lose to South Carolina minutes before you walk down the aisle?
Two of the weddings were outdoors. Beautiful settings -- one on a hill and one on a lake. Here are some of the cakes. We did the best we could, considering the weather. But other than move the party (and cakes) indoors, there was not much to be done. The guests were getting warm cake.
This cake was in the shade, but the buttercream and fondant bow were still suffering from the heat. The buttons were fine, and matched the design of the bride's dress. We continued the buttons on the back side of the cake, just in case the bow was no longer pretty enough for photos, there would still be a good side.
The caterer offered to open up the window behind the cake and let the cool air from an (unused) dining room air conditioner flow out. When I was little, my daddy told me you could never cool the outdoors with an air conditioner, but I figured I'd let her try anyway.
As a cake designer, you get attached to all your creations, and you want the best possible conditions for each one. I had an uneasy feeling as I left the cake there. I kept telling myself it was beyond my control.
This cake was smaller, with extra cake to be cut in the kitchen. At least the extra cake would be cool. There was no bow to droop from the heat, so I felt slightly better leaving the cake sitting in the open air.
But by then the Tide were trailing by two touchdowns, so I still had a hollow feeling as I drove back to the shop for the last delivery of the day.
This one was indoors, a better environment for a five tier cake.
The chocolate football on the groom's cake made it through the day, but this was likely to be a bitter sweet reminder of the couple's game day wedding.
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