Easy Ways to Make Your Own Birthday Cake

Thanks to Corrie at “Cents”able Momma for sharing how she makes these incredible birthday cakes! I think she may have inspired me…

Since I grew up watching my mom make my birthday cakes, I knew that I wanted to make my boys’ birthday cakes also.

Besides being something special that I can do for them each year, it really is a frugal way to celebrate a birthday. I can usually purchase a cake mix for about $1 on sale, plus I make my own butter cream frosting.

Problem is…how do you create a fun cake if you’re not a professional?

Some of the cutest ideas are really quite simple

As each birthday approaches, I ask my boys what kind of a cake they would like. My 4 year old was really into Buzz Lightyear for his last birthday, so I did a quick internet search for Buzz Lightyear cakes. One of my favorite sites for finding ideas is Coolest Birthday Cakes.

There were tons of cute ideas, and I ended up making a simple 9×13 cake with a “planet” on top made using a Pyrex bowl. I frosted each section to make it look like a planet and space and simply added a Buzz Lightyear figure and spaceship to the top.

If you don’t happen to already own a figure that would work, you can purchase a figure and add it to the cake at the last minute as an additional present for your child.

Decorate the Cake with Your Kids

If your children are old enough, brainstorm ideas with your child and let them help you decorate the cake. My nieces and nephews have had a blast decorating their own cakes in the past. They may not turn out perfect, but isn’t it the fun that counts?

Other Ideas

• Fancy Cake Pan – if you’re not especially creative, you can use a fancy cake pan made especially for the cake theme. Usually if you can follow directions and do a basic star with a frosting tip, you can create one of these cakes.
• Buttercream Transfer – if you want to keep the cake relatively simple, you can do a Buttercream Transfer. Basically, you trace a page from a coloring book and then fill it in with frosting. Then, you simply lay the pattern on top of the cake. You can find detailed directions here.

Corrie is a SAHM to 2 energetic boys and the owner of “Cents”able Momma. She loves to help her readers save money on everything from birthday cakes to groceries, as well as offering frugal living tips, great deals, and methods to earn some extra money.

Have you made your own birthday cakes? How have they turned out? What are your suggestions?

And don’t miss all the fun Summer FREEBIES & Discounts available for your kids!

Tagged as: Frugal