Buttercream - This versatile filling and frosting can be colored and flavored to taste. However, because of its butter-base, it is not ideal for outdoor summer weddings and does not hold up well in heat.

Cake Stand - Usually presented in a silver or gold-plated riser, brides use a cake stand to help showcase the wedding cake by increasing its height.

"Faux" Layers - For smaller weddings, bakers can use fake layers, usually frosting covered Styrofoam, to help create a larger cake.

Fondant - This malleable confection is used as a filling or coating for cakes, pastries, and candies or sweets. It is commonly used to decorate wedding cakes and gives the cakes a smooth appearance.

International Special Events Society (ISES) - The International Special Events Society (ISES) was founded in 1987 to foster enlightened performance through education while promoting ethical conduct. ISES works to join professionals to focus on the "event as a whole" rather than its individual parts. ISES has grown to involve over 4,000 members active in 41 chapters throughout the world. Membership brings together professionals from a variety of special events disciplines including caterers, meeting planners, decorators, event planners, audio-visual technicians, party and convention coordinators, educators, journalists, hotel sales managers and many more professional disciplines. The solid peer network ISES provides helps special events professionals produce outstanding results for clients while establishing positive working relationships with other event colleagues. The Greater Triangle Chapter of ISES includes more than 80 members. For more information on your local chapter, log onto www.ises-gt.org.

National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) - NACE is the oldest and largest professional association that addresses all aspects of the catering industry. Through Chapter involvement, members have an opportunity to work on community service projects and voice opinions about issues that affect them locally and nationally. The Triangle chapter of NACE includes more than 120 members. For more information, log onto www.trianglenace.com.

Sheet Cake - For larger weddings, brides can serve a sheet cake in addition to the wedding cake to help serve dessert to all guests. Usually, the sheet cake is an economical alternative to a larger wedding cake.

Tastings - This is generally the first opportunity to taste a baker's cakes, fillings and frostings to help you decide on your cake's specific ingredients. Some bakers offer public tastings at a regularly scheduled interval, others do so individually by appointment only. Most provide tastings at no charge. 

Tiers - This refers to the layers of a wedding cake.

Triangle Bridal Association (TBA) - The Triangle Bridal Association is your local resource in the wedding industry. Its 50 member base includes a respected, diverse group of quality-oriented companies. Each provides a service to the newly engaged. And each has been approved for membership by the Executive Committee. Central to the Triangle Bridal Association is its code of ethics, which every member has signed and committed. The code requires that each member pledge themselves to honesty and integrity, to an understanding of their client's needs, and to comply with the standards of the Association. For more information about the Triangle Bridal Association, log onto www.trianglebridal.com