NEOCD THE ART OF THE CAKE RULES AND REGULATIONS

Registrations for the Wedding Cake Competition must be postmarked by  January 9th, 2009.  No registrations will be accepted if postmarked after this date.

Wedding Cake Competition

Failure to comply with the rules below will result in disqualification. Please read all the rules below before sending in your registration.

(Rules have been adapted from the MidAtlantic Cake Show)

This competition is open to any competitor over 18 years of age, of an advanced, semi-professional, professional, and/or masters skill. Advanced skill is defined as one who has been decorating for several years, decorating primarily as a hobby or one who has completed at least 5 decorating courses. Although there is a minimum requirement of skill to compete, all cakes will be judged at a masters level for open competition.  The entry fee for the wedding cake competition is $25.00. You may enter only one cake per person. Multiple entries may come from one bakery, however, only one entry per person. Each person must fill out a separate entry form. No refunds will be given for any reason. All work on the entry must be that of the person on the entry form. Please refrain from entering a cake that has been entered in previous competitions, winner or not.

The theme for this competition is “Black and White”. Choose an inspiration piece that includes black and white, even if it’s just a portion of the inspiration piece.  The inspiration can come from fabric, artwork, paper, wallpaper, furniture, home décor, figurines, etc.   The piece or a photo of your inspiration piece must be displayed next to your cake to help in the evaluation of your interpretation of the piece. You are not required to present a tablescape.  It is the responsibility of the entrant to check on copyright for your piece. Items such as Disney, Warner Brothers, etc. should not be used in competition.

Your entry may be created from Styrofoam for the purpose of display, however, all sculpted cakes must be created in real cake. All cakes MUST be able to be reproduced in real cake. The judges will take this into consideration in their scoring.

While we will take precaution to ensure that each display is not touched and/or damaged, North East Ohio Cake Decorators and their sponsors/directors cannot be held be responsible or liable for any loss or damage during the show or while the cakes are on display. Please refrain from using irreplaceable or expensive items in your display.

We do not have size requirements/restrictions this year as we will be in a new venue.  Please, however, keep the size of your baseboard in proportion to your cake.  Remember, larger is not necessarily better.

All entrants will be able to put their business cards out next to their display during the Sunday Showcase only. You do not have to enter the competition to be featured in the Wedding Cake Showcase which will be open to the public on Sunday, although it is encouraged. You will, however, need to meet the minimum skill level as outlined above, be within the theme, as well as pay the entry registration fee of $25.00.

We are focusing on the “Art of Sugar and Cake”, so all decorations on the exterior of the cake are encouraged to be edible, i.e., chocolate, fondant, gum paste, buttercream, pastillage, etc. Non edibles may be used, however, please limit them to separators such as pillars. Non-edible items on the cake may lose points in judging. No cold porcelain will be allowed. NO electric will be available, so please do not incorporate fountains, lights (other than self sustaining) or other electrical components. Please limit your use of "non-edible" decorating products such as disco/pixie dust and highlighters to removable portions of your cake.

Each display will be judged on an 2 part system. Awards will be made for Most Artistic, Grand Prize, 2^nd, and 3^rd place. In the case of a tie, the judges may reconsider the displays in question to break the tie. 

All decisions of the judges will be final. The criteria for judging will be as follows:

Part I 

Used to score Most Artistic Only

(Judged only by the artistic judge(s))

Originality & Creativity 10 points

Interpretation of Theme 10 points

Artistic Expression 10 points

Execution of Inspiration 10 points

Overall Appearance 10 points

Part II

(Judged by sugar art judges)

Originality/Creativity 10 points

Interpretation of Theme  10 points

Use of color 10 points

Difficulty of techniques used 10 points

Neatness of cake covering 10 points

Neatness of decorations 10 points

Skill 10 points

Overall appearance 10 points

The judges and/or show coordinators reserve the right to disqualify displays that, at their sole discretion, are in poor taste or fail to adhere to these rules.

Displays, awards, and other misc. items left after the pick up time become the property of the North East Ohio Cake Decorators, unless prior arrangements have been made. We reserve the right to dispose of such items at our discretion. Displays may be picked up after 5:00 pm on Sunday, January 25, 2009.  If you need to remove your cake prior to the end of the show, please make arrangements with the show directors prior to the event. No exceptions will be made once the show begins.  We encourage you to leave them on display for Sunday, as the general public will be invited to come in to view all the cakes.