Wood Grain Wedding Cake

When I heard that this couple wanted a wood grain cake with a cute little carving of their initials (to match their invitation), I was so nervous about how to pull off rustic and neatness at the same time. The first decision I made was to use an ivory fondant base and a very light colored royal icing. I knew that the contrast would be significant enough with all the wood grain piping, and I didn't want the detail to be overwhelming. The second decision I made was to use the round part of the wood grain more frequently than in nature, to add an artistic element to the pattern. I was happy with these decisions when I arrived on site to find an all ivory room and a funky-artsy cake topper (more on this below).
So many times when we deliver wedding cakes, the background is something less than attractive, and the lighting challenges are too much to handle for this amateur (wedding photogs, I don't know how you do it!). I understand that the quality of my images speaks volumes to brides so I decided to setup a spot in my new shop to take photos of my cakes in natural light,with a white background... and voila the first photo! That being said, upon delivering this cake, I realized the benefits of taking photos on site.... they had two vintage porceline love birds (like my navy and pink cake) as their wedding cake topper!