We received so many great emails and comments on our wedding cake blog posting from a previous Ask a PWG Wedding Pro entry that we’ve decided to bring the topic back for this week’s edition!
Today we’re featuring Dewey’s Bakery, a popular Winston-Salem, North Carolina confectioner that’s been creating cakes for Triad brides for over 80 years. Perfect Wedding Guide recently caught up with Dewey’s Bakery pastry chef, Katy Hites, to get the skinny on the wedding cake industry and her inspiration for creating artful and tasty treats for Carolina couples.
How long have you been baking and designing cakes?
I began my career working in the fine dining restaurant industry as a pastry chef. After the birth of my daughter, I transitioned to a more “family friendly” career. I started with a wedding cake shop in Indianapolis, IN in 2003. I loved learning a new twist on the skill set I already had achieved. Working with each bride (and groom) is an opportunity to create a new, unique cake that reflects their tastes and interests.
What is the story with Dewey’s bakery?
After I moved to North Carolina two years ago and began working for Dewey’s, I never imagined that a bakery could have such loyal customers! They are like family to this bakery, which began in Winston-Salem in 1930. Dewey’s uses the word “vintage” to describe our way of life and family of products. Vintage, used as an adjective, is defined as “of a good period, choice; representative of the best.” Since its beginnings, Dewey’s has been baking wedding cakes and local traditional favorites such as Moravian Sugar Cakes, Grandma and Grandpa Coffee Cakes, Moravian Lovefeast Buns and Moravian Cookies. Faithful to the origins of these time-honored classics, Dewey’s still bakes in the homemade tradition, using original recipes, the finest, all natural ingredients, and never any trans fats. This is why our customers come back again and again.
What has changed in recent years?
Wedding cakes have experienced a dramatic revolution over the past 10 years. The popularity of reality TV and The Food Network, coupled with online wedding resources like PerfectWeddingGuide.com, have educated today’s bride and groom in ways never imagined. The availability to look at hundreds of designs online and in bridal and lifestyle magazines give couples the chance to really explore the type of design that they might want to use. The use of color on wedding cakes becomes more popular ever year, it seems. The designs today are much more minimal and sleek. I don’t create wedding cakes with the traditional swags, stairways and fountains that were common in the 1970-80s.
Where should brides get ideas?
I encourage my brides to look online at bridal Websites. Don’t be afraid to use a detail from your wedding for inspiration–the lace on your wedding gown, an invitation or a vintage cake topper. I have used all these things to create a custom design for brides.
How should brides prepare to meet with their cake baker?
In order to get the most from your cake tasting, come with some basic ideas about what you like: cake shape (round or square), do you like color on your wedding cake, do you want something that feels traditional or unexpected? You’ll need to know how many people you need to serve and I always ask my brides what type of food will be served at the reception. Couples will need more cake to serve at a reception with just light snacks than a multi-course meal. Remember, not everyone will eat cake. Ask any caterer about how much cake is commonly left over at a reception.
What are popular cake flavors for each season?
Cake flavors and colors are the primary differences with wedding cakes and the seasons. Dewey’s pink lemonade cake is tremendously popular for our spring and summer weddings!
It’s such a tasty flavor and is somewhat unexpected. Because pink continues to be a popular wedding color, it works well into lots of color schemes, also.
Fall weddings often incorporate fall colors, sometimes leaves and fall fruit. In the winter we use lots of snowflakes and poinsettias to adorn cakes. Our pumpkin spice cake and carrot cake are more commonly used during this time.
What inspires your designs?
Simply put, my designs are most often inspired by my brides. I know, this sounds a little sappy…but it’s true. I spend a great deal of time sitting and listening to what my brides tell me they like about color, shapes of cakes and the overall ambiance of their event. I take all these things into consideration when we start talking about design. I will create a rough sketch of what I envision she will like. That’s a starting point to work from. In the end, we have come up with something that is perfect for her wedding day!
To learn more about Dewey’s Bakery in Winston-Salem, N.C. visit their vendor listing here on PerfectWeddingGuide.com or visit their Website, www.Deweys.com. Also, if you have a question you would like to see answered in an upcoming Ask a PWG Wedding Pro wedding blog segment, email us at profiles [at] pwg [dot] com!
