All About Cake Smash!

This week I thought we would do a little spotlight on our fabulous Cake Smash Sessions! Now I’m not ashamed to say that both Orli and myself have already planned Belle and Flo’s first Birthday Cake smash. Over eager I hear you say? Well you’d be wrong…

It blows my mind how fast my little girl is growing in front of my eyes. I cling to those precious newborn photographs of her so tiny, sleeping and perfect. I cannot believe she is so big already. I know our time is so fleeting and the irony of me running my own photography studio is that truthfully, before now I didn’t appreciate how special photographs of our children actually become.

So there you go, I know well in advance that I am going to want to remember her first birthday, I want to remember her little face full of glee and mischief, her little hands exploring textures and tastes. I will be there in that moment, but I want to see it up on my wall, to make my heart sing whenever those troublesome toddler days are upon us…

Pinterest is bursting with ideas for Cake Smash! Do you know you can make pretty much anything yourself? Tassel garlands, Pom-poms, Ice Cream balloons. Pinterest is absolutely ALIVE with colour and theme inspiration and completely full of tutorials and how-to’s some of which I have linked below to get your crafty hats on for your own cake smash session:

TISSUE PAPER TASSEL GARLANDS

TISSUE PAPER POM POMS

FRINGE CREPE CURTAIN BACKDROP

ICE CREAM CONE BALLOONS

MAKE YOUR OWN BUNTING

10 IDEAS & MAKES FOR BIRTHDAY HATS

 

So how does it all work? How do we turn these crazy ideas into real life shoots? Well it all begins with a good old chin-wag where we talk about you and your little ones most favourite things! We have loads of fabulous coloured backdrops to set the scene for the smash. I was talking to a lovely mum last week about doing a nautical themed cake smash, as her son is boat mad! We have a beautiful blue backdrop that this would look perfect on! Coupled with some white starfish and hessian anchor bunting with blue and white balloons scattered around and of course a wavy boat cake, he will have the perfect setting.

 

We have a range of props and bunting at the studio that we are happy to theme your session with. Or if you really want to push the boat out (excuse the pun) then feel free to bring in as many crazy and amazing props and accessories as you like. We usually ask for these the day before your session so that we can style your cake smash to create a totally bespoke look. A cohesive theme will guarantee an amazing sequence of images from your session that you can proudly hang in your home.

What should your little ones wear on the day? Well it’s going to get pretty messy!!! So bringing your best party outfit might not be cake-smash friendly. Here’s a great list of outfit ideas for your cake smash! Not gender specific I might add!

Tutu- colour complimenting and with or without a vest

Tutu dress

Frilly Knickers- great for those crawling away shots at the end!

Pearls, Tiaras, Crowns, headbands and birthday hats!

Bow Tie or coloured tie and funky pants

Themed leggings and birthday hat

Braces and cute shorts

Places like Etsy are great for custom cake smash sets and accessories!

Now what’s a cake smash without a cake? In our sessions we give you a few options, for those bake-off inspired clients, why not have a go yourselves.? We are happy to loan out our giant cupcake mold. Go for bright colours, pastel colours, two tones, rainbow sponge; the sky is the limit! Don’t forget the soft butter icing which is easy for your little one to really get stuck into. If baking is not your thing, rest assured we can commission our fabulous cake maker to make something bespoke to match your theme, delivered to us on the morning of your smash- totally hassle free for you! The session itself is an explosion of cake! Fun, exploration, tastes and clapping! There is rarely a cake smash session that goes by where I’m not still discovering cake somewhere on me at 10pm that evening!!! We can start by capturing a lovely family photograph of everyone together on your little one’s special day. Many parent’s actually incorporate the smash on their little one’s actual birthday, kicking off the birthday celebrations. This is the perfect way to treat your birthday bubbas! We sing happy birthday and delight in capturing those first reactions when your little one see’s a giant cake!

 

Tips for a great smash! 

 

For those doing BLW (Baby led weaning) your baby may already enjoy getting messy, for some babies it can be a new experience which you can help them enjoy by having a few messy days at home before your session. If your little one is not a fan of getting messy we still find with lots of singing and a relaxed atmosphere they can enjoy digging into the cake with one of our colorful spoons and with a helpful hand from mum or dad. It’s always hilarious when we have a little one decide to go head first into the cake and it makes for a great shot! Please do not worry about your little one actually eating too much cake, we ensure that this doesn’t happen, though its always advisable baby has a good meal and drink beforehand and that you also bring a drink for your baby after your session. Apart from that you can leave the magic to us!

Your cake smash session doesn’t end there! We have to get your little one de-caked and what better way than to enjoy bubbly bath time fun with bubbles and splashing! ? We will fill up our vintage tub and once you have washed your little one clean, we will then capture an adorable bath time sequence and cuddly towel shots – I know many of our friends have hung these Photographs around their bathroom and they look amazing!

 

 

Cake Smash sessions take place during the week so that we can ensure we have time to prepare and style your shoot and are booked up to a year in advance, so don’t delay in scheduling your session with us now, allowing plenty of planning time! They really are a fantastic way to celebrate your little one’s very special Birthday! If you missed it the first time round, a cake smash session can be enjoyed at any age and stay tuned for our very first JELLY Smash with 2 year old Jacob coming soon……that’s right I did say earlier, the sky is the limit in our studio…..

Give us a call today to discuss your ideas! And as a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to all of your special little bubbas enjoy a complimentary 10×8″ photograph when mentioning our Cake Smash Blog when you book,

valid until the end of August!

Cate xxx