Anatomy of a Decorated Cake (for beginners)

If you’re new to cake decorating and have tons of questions, this post talks about the anatomy of a decorated cake and answers the question of how do I actually put a decorated cake together and how do I layer the cake and tier the cake? What type of support do I use?

When I first started cake decorating, I had tons of questions. They were just general questions and for some of them, I felt like I was just asking a dumb question.

But listen…there are no dumb questions. If you don’t know, then you don’t know and that’s okay! This post is all about the basics of putting a decorated cake together.

Jump to:

• Cake Layers vs Cake Tiers:
• The Single Tier Cake:
• The Two Tier Cake:
• The Three Tier Cake:
• Video:
• Other Helpful Posts:

Here are some of the questions I had:

We’ll answer all those questions in this post and I really hope it’ll clear a few things up for you.

Oh and there IS a video close to the end of this post if you like to learn through videos instead of the written post.

Ok, let’s get started.

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Cake Layers vs Cake Tiers:

Alright, this seems to be confusing to some. I hear people say all the time, that they want a three ‘layer’ cake, or that their birthday cake had four ‘tiers’ and was really tall.

What they meant was that they had a three ‘tier’ cake, or their cake had four ‘layers’ in it and was really tall.

What are cake layers and cake tiers? Layers are the actual ‘layers’ of cake with filling in between. Layers of cake, make a cake tier.

For example, this cake has three ‘tiers’ and each tier is made up of multiple cake ‘layers’.

Normally, I like to use three ‘layers’ of cake per cake ‘tier’. I think it just looks better since it makes that tier look a little taller. Some people just use two layers of cake with a layer of filling between them, but personally, I like the taller look.

Another thing to note is that some people split their cake layers even more, so they have multiple, thinner layers per tier. That’s called torting your cake. This is totally your preference, but you always want to make sure that your cake will be stable.

If you’ll be using more than three full layers of cake and making a really tall cake, then you’ll need to add in some stability, like another cake board and some doweling.

Making a really tall cake is another subject and if you’d like to know how to do that, I’ve got a tutorial with a video here: How to Make a Tall Cake

Ok, let’s get to the different types of decorated cakes.

The Single Tier Cake:

This one’s obviously the most basic, but once you get this one down, the others will come easy.

Here’s the anatomy of the single tier cake.

I like to do three layers of cake with filling in between. Like I stated earlier in this post, it just looks better and more professional.

For the very bottom, you’ll need a larger cake base at least two inches bigger than your cake will be. Then, you’ll need a cardboard cake round right under your actual cake ‘tier’ (not each layer) that will go right on top of the cake base. The actual cake board should be the same size as your cake layers.

Sometimes I’ll use a bit of melted candy melts right in the middle of the cake base to help attach that bottom cake board. I’ll just dab a small amount of melted candy melts right in the middle of the larger cake base and that’s how I’ll attached the bottom cake board. Some people use buttercream, but it’s hot here in Texas and that just doesn’t cut it for me.

(Make sure to look at the diagram above if what I wrote seems confusing.)

Now, for the very bottom cake base (the one larger than your cake) you can use a foam core board, or take several cardboard cake boards together, or buy a premade base…whichever you prefer.

Just make sure that the base is sturdy enough for your cake that’ll be on it and won’t bend. This is where I see a lot of people making mistakes. You just can’t use a thin cake board as the actual cake base.

If you’d like some ideas for cake bases, what to use and how you can decorate and cover them, see my tips here: Tips for Cake Boards

The Two Tier Cake:

Ok, the two tier cake is much like the one tier, except you’ll be adding doweling into the bottom tier which will hold up the top tier.

Here’s the anatomy of the two tier cake:

IMPORTANT: You have to have a cake board between the tiers, otherwise the dowels in the bottom tier will just poke right through the top tier of cake and the whole thing will collapse.

As far as dowels go…some people use the old-fashioned wooden dowels, some use plastic straws. A note about plastic straws though…we’re not talking about bendy grocery store or McDonald’s straws. That’s not gonna cut it.

You want something sturdier, like bubble tea straws. Personally, I like the heavier plastic dowels that you can cut. (I’ve got links below for you.)

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Here are some links to the dowels I like:

• Bubble Tea Straws
• Plastic cuttable dowels

Now, the number of dowels will completely depend on the size of your cake and how heavy your tiers are. Use bigger dowels (or more of them) for ganache and fondant covered cakes, or in the bottom tiers if it’s a three or higher tiered cake.

If you want to watch a video on how to stack cakes (how I cut the dowels and level everything), you’ll want to see this post: How to Stack a Cake

Also, when you’re making a two tiered cake, it’s not really necessary to use a center dowel, but you can if you want more stability. You’ll want to see my post on making tall cakes to see how that’s done.

The Three Tier Cake:

Once you’ve mastered the two tier cake…well, you’re on the home stretch now.

Here’s the anatomy of the three tier cake:

I didn’t go into too much detail on this graphic because it’s really the same as the two tier cake. Everything but the top tier gets dowels.

Remember to use the bigger dowels (or just use more dowels) for the bottom tiers, or if your cake tiers are covered with ganache and/or fondant and are heavier. Don’t skimp on the support!

IMPORTANT: Make doubly sure that your cake base is VERY sturdy. Cardboard cake rounds will not cut it with this kind of cake. You’ll want something very sturdy like foam core cake board bases, or MDF (wood) boards.

Also make sure to include a cake board under each tier. This is something I hear of all the time…people’s cakes collapsing because there’s nothing holding it up.

Dowels won’t do you any good, if there’s no cake board above them to keep them from poking into the cake tier on top of it.

Ok, so those are just the basics, but I hope it answers a lot of your questions.

Video:

Also, I’ve included a handy printable that includes all the graphics, so you can have them there when decorating. Just click the button below and it will download automatically.

Other Helpful Posts:

• Favorite Cake Recipes: Favorite Vanilla Bean Cake, Moist White Cake, Chocolate Butter Cake
• Favorite Buttercream Recipes: Vanilla Bean Buttercream, Double Chocolate Buttercream, Bright White Heat Stable Buttercream
• Cake Board Ideas
• How to Make a Tall Cake
• How to Get Smooth Buttercream
• How to Ganache a Cake

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