So I have struggling with a very important and life changing issue.
I literally ask myself the same question every time I make a cake.
Should I clean up crumbs on the cake stand or leave it as is?
I completely understand if you just rolled your eyes at me.
Now. Please forgive this strange as heck picture. As much as I would love to reveal what is under those mysterious red blobs.. I gotta save it for the book!
So just pretend its little red blobs of joy.
Bet ya didnt think you’d be reading that sentence today.
Ok! Back to the question at hand. What do you like better?
Cake with frosting and crumbs?
Or clean cake stand.
This is life and death stuff here.
Er… not.
But I’d love to know which option you favor!
I think it look more delicious with the crumbs if you ask me. Adds characters! I would even add some crumbs under the stand and maybe leaving a little trail away from the picture. Kind of mysterious if you ask me LOL
Good luck!
I was surprised by my gut reaction, but I like it better clean! Actually I think I might start wiping my stand in between cake-binging fests.
Totally without crumbs. It make it look cleaner and thus, one would look at the cake, rather than at the red crumbs
I say clean, especially for photos. If it’s just for the house, leave them there. Adds character and seriously, what household with four children doesn’t have crumbs on the cake plate?!
Leave the crumbs! It seems more realistic (and less like Pac-Man! lol) to leave the crumbs on the stand. A clean cake stand appears very staged to me.
I like it with the crumbs. I think it looks weird and staged the other way. (Only because I am focusing on it, probably. Most likely I wouldn’t notice any other time.)
It sure looks purdy clean – but I’d probably leave ‘em or get dish detergent on the tray as I anally clean just the part with the crumbs.
Girl, I’ve bog to check up with all you’ve got going on. I’ve barely been blogging since I started school and need to find some focus. I miss everybody; I was tickled to see your comment.
did I just write “bog” instead of got – my mind is so filled with info I can’t think lately
I would have said, it’s fine the way it is….until I saw the pic of the cleaned cake stand….it’s much nicer!
But, why not just eat all the cake at once….then you wouldn’t have to worry about it!!
i love it clean! it makes you look more professional!
I like it with the crumbs. They make it look more scrumptious somehow. And the clean off one looks a little like pac-man.
I vote for crumbs.
i vote crumbs… makes it look like real life!
clean! Definitely more professional
I like the crumbs! Looks more real!
Cake with crumbs = “Oh, yeah! It’s cake time!”
Cake without crumbs = “Umm. May I please have some of your cake?”
Had to add my thoughts because of the close competition here. I think, for a “professional” book, you’d want the clean cake plate. I initially though I’d be into the natural cake plate with crumbs but that looks messy!
I LOVE the crumbs, even for a book. I think the crumbs indicate that it isn’t just a pretty cake to look at, but also a yummy cake that is being enjoyed… and frankly, the crumby cake plate looks more appetizing to me.
Crumbs. In fact, my favorite photos of ANY baked good are ones with slight imperfections. There’s just something about that that screams homemade to me.
With crumbs… makes me want to sneak into the picture and scoop up some crumbs onto my finger for a taste
No crumbs, no way (I’ll let you eat them though!)
I say with crumbs, makes it more personal, like I actually had a piece of the came you made
It does look more “realistic” with the crumbs, more home-made…but without the crumbs, it looks a lot neat and cleaner… so I guess it depends on which vibe you are going for
I like how it looks without crumbs.
I’m all for ‘real’ – so I vote crumbs all the way!!
I think I’m gonna have to say crumbs. It does look more appealing. Without the crumbs, makes you wonder how in the heck that piece got out of there without making a mess…or wonder who in the heck took the time to clean up after every piece was taken out.
Clean it by eating the crumbs. Problem solved.
Best comment!
I actually like it without crumbs better…
I’m voting for leaving the crumbs. The world isn’t perfect and neither is a cake plate. Amen!
I am taking the cheater’s way out..I just can’t decide.
Maybe it depend on the cake and the look you are going for? But your cakes are always so pretty no matter the look. My initial response was crumbs. But the wiped version looks good too. And perhaps it would even depend on if your cake plate were clear or a solid?! Gah I’m no help. ♥
I prefer to see crumbs as well. Not enough that it looks like the cake falls apart, but mostly the frosting that says there was a piece there.
Clean!
I like the cleaned one, but only because it is right under the one with crumbs. If they weren’t so close together, I really don’t think it would matter.
I like the crumbs. I don’t know why, but it just makes it look more real and so tasty! Like you know someone else just enjoyed an incredible piece of cake, so you want one too!
I think it depends on your “props” you may be using in the picture. In all honesty I think some situations the crumbs are good and some require the clean plate. That totally didn’t hep you any did it?
Crumbs. It looks more realistic.
cleannnnnn
Crumbs! Keeps it from looking like an albino Pac-Man!
for pictures clean but for just around the house crumb and icing
Cake stand clean or not: doesn’t matter. When you’re decorating the cake, though, you MUST start with a clean cake!
For this particular cake I like it without the crumbs/icing. It the cake plate were opaque I might choose the keep them there. Also, I like the look of crumbs/icing if a cake or dessert is particularly gooey or rich (most fruit pies, warm chocolate filled desserts, cream filled desserts, etc.).
My vote is for the crumbs! They add a little more visual interest
I say crumbs. Even in a professional book. You want your cake to look like someonbe would enjoy eating it not like it was made out of cardboard. There are enough “sterile” cakes in the world, your cake should have just as much chracter as you do so my vote is for crumbsm
clean! it looks more precious and dainty. the crumbs are distracting.. so if your caption is “tastes delicious” or “couldn’t wait to try a bite before taking the pic” then leave the crumbs.. but if you are showcasing the cake “vertical layers!” or “frosting roses are easy to make” then i’d say wipe it down
I’d go with the crumbs too makes it more mouthwatering. The pic without crumbs looks a little too sterile…but either way I am VERY curious about what the red blobs are hiding…
I agree with Kiley. Clean. The crumbs draw my attention away from the cake.
Can’t wait for the “little red blobs of joy” reveal!
Definitely leave the crumbs. It makes it look more realistic and delicious!!
Depends on the perspective of the picture. Clean for top down, but for a side shot crumbs might add character.
Depends on the perspective of the picture. Clean for top down, but for a side shot crumbs might add character.
With crumbs please! Makes the cake look more delicious like someone can’t wait to eat it
I like the clean version, but I would go for the crumb shot if the slice that was taken was in the picture. The slice could be in the picture off to the side.
Just my two crumbs:-)
Good luck!
After watching shows like Sweet Genius and Top Chef, I worry about the cleanliness of the rag that the contestants use to clean off the plates before presenting to judges! So I say a little bit of crumb never hurt anyone!
no crumbs!
No crumbs! I always clean ours at home…
no crumbs…
without
If your cake stand/plate is out where everyone can see it i would clean up the crumbs as best as I could.
cake without crumbs (but b/c they were eaten, not cleaned up) and a smear where icing used to be before someone got at it with their finger…
I like the crumbs. Always have.
Clean it up, Sister! It’s the one clean thing you can control! Ahem, children!
The idea of clean sounds nice, but after seeing the picture with crumbs, without almost seems gross. If you wanted to have nice clean artwork, you wouldn’t choose food as your medium. It has to look like food for the whole yummy effect.
For this specific shot, I would say, leave the crumbs. It fills out the top right area, and helps you focus more on the cake itself rather than the cake stand. It also tells a story. There WAS cake there just a second ago; someone must be enjoying it now!
For other shots, maybe, it would be nice to clear them off. It would lend itself to a crisper, cleaner shot.
But most of the time I’m going to choose crumbs. It’s a good reminder that the cake looks good, AND tastes good.
Agreed!
definitely crumbs!! the clean plate just looks a little odd with a picture like that (face down)
No crumbs for sure!!! Especially if the ‘crumbs’ is like a smear as pictured in the first photo.. If you wanted to add a little character, maybe take a piece of the cake u already cut out and crumble it onto the clean cake stand, that’s my opinion
For the book? I would go with the without crumbs pic. For the blog, I would go with the crumbs (otherwise it kinda looks like you made a red and white Mrs. Pac-man).
For the book clean otherwise crumb away..your followers do not care.
No Crumbs… When I looked at the picture with crumbs, my eye went to the crumbs first. When I look at the picture without the crumbs… my eye goes to the cake first… and isn’t that the point? The crumbs draw the focus away from the cake. But I guess that there are some situations where the crumbs would be ok but in that particular setting… I’d say no crumbs.
Agree!!!
When I look at the first picture, I have this feeling where I want it to be clean, but when it’s clean, it looks kind of fake and unrealistic. So I would go with the dirty.
I ask myself the same question when I take photos of my cakes…I think I have decided on leaving the crumbs. I like to “keep things real”, so they stay. :0)
I like it clean!
I think that a clean plate looks too set up…if you cut a piece of cake then there are crumbs…no way around it…Now if you prefer to look like your all that and a bag of chips then clean away….so people will think you always do this….lol
I totally love the crumbs…makes me want to stick my finger in the frosting.
Crumbs while serving. Clean for presentation and photos. My personal opinion but cakes still looks yummy with crumbs.
If I serve a cake and there is leftovers, I instinctively clean the empty portion of the plate; maybe it’s a little OCD, but it just looks better!
Remove crumbs for a photo, but leave if you are at home. When someone cuts a piece of cake for himself/herself, the crumbs and icing on the cake plate are there if they want them for more of a treat!
I would say crumbs if you’re shooting down on it.. but maybe clean if at eye-level. But I really do prefer the crumbs – makes it so much more real.
My blog: http://shinydewdrop.blogspot.com
crumbs. it just looks so delicious that way!
but for your book, perhaps vary it. Toni of shinydewdrop probably expressed my view the best. Shooting down, crumbs. Shooting eye-level, clean.
Good luck!
with crumbs…just like it…looks weird without the crumbs….
Think each visual/image/composition needs to be considered individually.
In this particular shot, considering the main subject is a more contemporary style cake w high color contrast on a clear glass pedestal w a low contrast white-washed wood ground, my vote would be to remove at least the bright red curved streaks/crumbs, as my eye immediately takes them in, rather than your oh-so-fun cake, as the red streaks/crumbs are more color saturated than the bled/more diffuse red spots of frosting. They’re a bit of a distraction from your masterpiece, IMHO.
Perhaps in each photo you could determine where you want us to visually focus. If a photo is a close-up to demonstrate how moist a cake is, crumbs would be fairly critical in communicating such, don’t you think?
Crumbs. Fo Sho.
It makes me want to dip my finger in and take a taste.
Could you clean away some of the bright red crumbs/streaks to lessen their attention-grabbing color impact while leaving most or all of the white?
I vote for crumbs. I’m inherently suspicious of too-perfect looking serving dishes, utensils, and slices of anything. I want to know what it’s going to look like when I make it – not after some some stylist gets done prettifying it up.
Great point! Hope you can stick to your ‘gut’ and what you truly prefer and works for your life. Guess it all boils down to your target market ~ selling to niche prof’l or home-based cake bakers, those that appreciate such, but don’t have time to execute, ckbk collectors, those that find everything about you appealing, impulse shoppers, etc. Whatever it is, hope you preserve ‘you’ in the process. Probably not much help, huh?
I like the crumbs! Makes me want a piece.
Leave the crumbs!!!! Makes it real once you’ve sliced open your unreal looking creations.
clean which is crazy because I don’t clean my own…I might now.
I totally think you should leave the crumbs. It lets us see the color of the cake from that up above shot where you don’t see actual cake. Plus it looks more delicious that way, less like pac-man and just more real. The clean plate looks too “perfect” which any baker knows, it’s not always perfect, and that’s why it’s awesome.
I’m a Virgo so no crumbs
Crumbs all the way.
Crumbs, icing smears, and all! It looks more delicious to me when it looks real. And really, the plate wouldn’t be clean after you cut the cake unless you took the time to wipe it down, and who would do that in real life? Keep the crumbs!
Well, yes, this *is* a life changing dilemma–absolutely! Truly, though, my vote is definitely a few crumbs, but just the white cake crumbs. You know? You go, honey! xo
Always leave the cake stand and your plate… CLEAN!
xxoo
Please leave the crumbs. This is not a perfect world, your cakes are gorgeous but leave realism where it needs to be.
I’m recovering from growing up in a era where pearls, an apron, and working in heels trying to do a full days work with appliances and situations that weren’t the least big convenient then as they are today…so in other words..leave the crumbs, I really don’t want to have to enter therapy again. lol.
So…. you’re giving us teasers for the new book, eh? LOL!
with cake crumbs of course – isn’t it a real cake that is so deliscious that after you took a slice all your intention was – is to enjoy your cake or even to go back and get another slice . who REALLY has time to clean up with those possibilities existing?
a plastic cake with no such possibilities now – that’s different.
With crumbs and icing, looks a bit clinical without, a bit strange.
I think with crumbs is better. I like the look that says, “I’m having some of this fabulous ( or insert favorite adjective) cake and I wanna share it with you.” The clean one says, “cake time is over…time to put it away for later.” And I SERIOUSLY want you to share it with me!!
To be honest, a little bit of both. I love the cleanness in pictures. especially in a lot of your side shots. And yet, there is something very enthralling about a non-perfect pictures. You know? So I would say, Add a few shots through out of the real, endearing smudgy cake plates, but definitely keep the crystal clear, “I would die to come visit your kitchen for a week” pictures coming. Keep ‘um coming! Thanks for making this last year sweeter than it was before I found you. Happy New year!
Clean looks nicer, crumbs look more real!
I don’t think it would matter except the crumbs are red and it does not seem to go because the cake looks white.
First can I just say I love your site!? So inspiring that you are a mother of 4 who still finds time to bake and enjoy what you do. But anyways to answer your question… With crumb! Makes it look like someone just finished enjoying the cake… Way more inticing!!
With the crumbs, please. Looks natural. Good luck trying to decide. Seems like we commenters are also divided 50-50!
I prefer the cake with no crumbs. This is not a question I can’t say I’ve asked myself in the past, but now after seeing the visual of the crumb cake stand and crumb-less cake stand, the crumb-less cake stand just appears to be more eye candy. Then again, the crumb cake stand looks more “home-made” whereas the crumb-less cake stand look professional, something you might see in a bakery.
Definitely…crumbs!
For me, it’s all about contrast that makes it look yummier eg Chocolate cake on light background = yummy WITH crumbs. But light cake on light background looks yummier WITHOUT crumbs! Perhaps it’s the type of cake too. Chocolate cakes make you want to stuff your face messily, but white cakes seem more refined and hence should clean? Who knows!
with crumbs, definitely! I agree with others- without looks artificial.
Very legit question! I’m all about crumbs. My book will be quite crumby
I am so delighted by your website — it’s absolutely gorgeous and so inspiring! But to the question at hand, definitely with crumbs. A bit of crumb and frosting left behind gives a sense of authenticity and ups the “yum” factor.
I like it with crumbs, is more real that way. Without crumbs I have to wonder whether the cake is real or just a piece of plastic.
I realize this is old news but I am new to your thoughts. I would like to put in my recommendation of crumbs as it makes it seem more real and inviting. Of course, that’s just me.