What is a Cake Smash
One of my favorite experiences to give clients is celebrating their child’s first birthday with a Cake Smash session. This is an amazing opportunity to celebrate a huge milestone for your child as they turn one. You have seen their growth and watched as they have gone from a brand new baby to an emerging toddler. You and your child have had a monumental 12 months! Why not celebrate, relax, enjoy a messy and somewhat chaotic photo session with your kid? You are together with your child, building a memory and celebrating how big they are now. What is even crazier is that when you look back at these photos in five years, they are going to look so tiny to you, so preserve these memories when you can!
The first thing I work on with my clients for a cake smash session is a theme. I’ve had clients pick something very simple like “Blue and green,” and I create a background based on the colors they selected. Or we work together to create a creative customized session. For example, a cowboy theme. I had a parent pick this theme for their little boy, and it turned out so cute.
A custom session allows you to pick something that is meaningful: I had a mom who loved baking and cooking, and that was a huge thing for their family, so she wanted to do a baking themed cake smash session.
Don’t worry about coming up with all the props and decor yourself! I have a good selection of items in my studio that we can incorporate into a session. We can combine my studio assets with your child’s own toys or items from their nursery. I will work with your ideas to create a creative and stunning backdrop. Back to the cowboy example, the family owned horses, so she had some great items to bring for the session (tin bucket, horse feed, cow print blanket and a ranching rope). I have an antique rocking horse, and I made some cactus out of clay pots and balloons. We got a custom cake and put him in some cute jeans with suspenders. Since the client wanted an outdoor session, we met up at one of my preferred locations, and I set up the decor while she got the baby dressed.
What to expect during the session
Once you enter the studio, we give your baby a few minutes to get adjusted to their surroundings. I have found that it can be a little bit hard if we transition them too quickly. I’ll play with your baby, talk with them, and let them get comfortable. Once the baby is ready, I have mom or dad place the baby in the backdrop. We’ll sing little songs and play with little balloons; I will do my best to make it fun and get the baby laughing. Once the baby starts getting a little fidgety and restless, I’ll have the parents pick the baby back up while I get the cake ready. Once the cake is ready, I will have the parents put the baby down with the cake right in front of them. And then we let them go to town. It is so much fun. It is also chaotic, as you can imagine. If you have a child or had a child before in this age range, you know that it’s going to be messy, and that’s okay! For cake smash photos, the messier, the better!
Some babies don’t like the feeling of frosting on their hands, so I have found that giving them a spoon is a practical solution. This keeps the photos cute and simple, with the baby still engaged, even if they aren’t touching the cake with their hands.
When the baby is done, I have mom and dad clean them off a little and change them into a swim diaper or swim suit for the final part of the session, the wash tub. Once the baby is placed in the wash tub, we encourage splashing and play.
For the bath portion of the session, I will have a white swim diaper available for your use or if you have a swim suit that you would like them to wear, you are welcome to bring that as well. I take bath photos so that you are not able to see a swim diaper, which maintains the charm and ensures your child’s privacy. You just let me know beforehand if your preference is a swim diaper or if you will be bringing your own swim suite.
If you are interested in finding out what your child’s session could look like, please click the button below and schedule a time to chat about a cake smash session. Make sure you schedule early! I recommend to parents booking cake smash sessions before their first birthday party. That way, you will have the photos for the invitations or to display at the party.