How to Host a Cake Decorating Party for the Girls
If you love cake, laughter, and a bit of friendly competition, this girls night is for you! I hosted a mini cake-decorating party to celebrate my birthday – and honestly, a time was had! Everyone’s creativity came to life in the most unexpected ways, from the ladies who had secretly done this before, to the ones who claimed they’re not artistic but still surprised us with something cute.
So whether you’re celebrating something special or just want an excuse to get the girls together, here’s how to host your own cake-decorating night at home.
1. Pick Your Theme
Some of the best get-togethers start with a theme, and mine was Triple Pink – pink cake, pink décor, and pink pyjamas. I wanted a cute, girly vibe, and the pink absolutely delivered. I challenged my guests with designing me the best pink birthday cake, a theme fit for the occasion. If you fancy switching it up, here are some other cute cake-decorating themes you could try:
- Emoji Cake: Everyone recreates an emoji that matches their vibe or personality.
- Decades Cake: Guests choose a decade (70s, 80s, 90s, etc.) and decorate a cake inspired by it.
- Cartoon Cake: Everyone picks a cartoon show they love and designs a cake around its colours, characters, or overall aesthetic.
💡 Tip: Try linking your dress code and décor to the cake-decorating theme – it instantly makes everything feel cohesive and effortless, and the photos come out so much cuter.
2. Send Your Invites
Once your theme is set, it’s time to send out your invitations. I created mine on Canva — pink, obviously — and opted for a digital format that allowed me to insert different links. Here are a few extra details to include in your invite (alongside the usual date, time, and location):
- What to wear — I dropped the link to the matching pink pyjamas so everyone could be on theme
- The cake-decorating theme and competition details – Let the girls know what to expect from the night so they can get thinking beforehand
- Anything to bring — like extra cake toppings to personalise their designs and really stand out from the crowd
💡 Tip: Add a simple Pinterest or Canva moodboard to your invite so everyone knows the exact vibe from the start.
3. Gather Your Essentials
You don’t need a fancy setup to host a cake-decorating night – just a few key tools to keep things smooth and stress-free. I kept it simple with rotating turntables, icing scrapers for smooth sides, a few piping nozzles to share, plus mixing bowls and spatulas. And don’t forget the unglamorous essentials: kitchen rolls and wipes, as things will get messy (in the best way).
Now for the cakes – my mum kindly baked a 5-inch sponge for each guest, and honestly, homemade cakes taste so good. Just make sure to check in advance whether anyone has any dietary requirements so you can prep (or buy) a suitable alternative. And if you’re not really a baker, or short on time, there’s zero shame in grabbing cakes from your local supermarket. Besides, you’re only being judged on the final decoration, not the bake!
Quick Supply Checklist:
✅ Small cakes & cake boards (one per person)
✅ Cakes boxes (for guests to take cake home in)
✅ Buttercream & fondant
✅ Sprinkles, edible glitter, chocolate & sweets
✅ Icing pens & edible markers
✅ Piping bags & nozzles
✅ Turntables
✅ Spatulas, wipes & tissues
💡Tip: Freeze your cakes after baking — decorating a chilled sponge is so much easier as it helps the icing go on a lot smoother.
4. Dress Your Table
You don’t need to go overboard — just create a warm, inviting setup that feels special. I kept mine simple and used what I already had: a white tablecloth, a pink runner, a few candles, some vases, and fresh flowers. Cute, effortless, and very on-theme.
To keep things practical, I only put a handful of tools and toppings on the main table, keeping the rest on a trolley nearby. It freed up space for everyone’s cakes and made the whole layout look intentional rather than cluttered.
If you want to add a little something extra, a few personal touches go a long way. I made personalised wine glasses for everyone to drink from (and take home), and I even found BuzzBalls that complimented the theme — so of course, one went next to each glass. Tiny details, but they pull everything together.
💡 Tip: Place a digital camera on the table and invite the girls to snap away throughout the night.
5. Get Decorating
Once your guests arrive, it’s time to take the cakes out of the freezer and get decorating! I would have given a quick demo, but I honestly had no idea what I was doing either – so we searched for TikTok tutorials instead, and it literally had everything we needed.
A few helpful search terms:
- How to spread frosting
- How to use piping bags
- How to add decorations
- How to smooth sides
Everyone picked up the basics so quickly, and it actually made it fun learning together instead of me pretending to be an expert.
💡 Tip: Put on a “sing-along” type playlist to keep the vibes high while everyone decorates.
6. Judge the Final Cakes
Once all the cakes are finished, it’s judging time – honestly one of the funniest parts of the night.
I numbered each cake from 1–8 and sent photos to our male friends, asking them to rank the cakes from best to worst. Some of them even jumped on FaceTime to get a closer look and give dramatic, detailed commentary.
If you’d rather keep the judging in-house, you can:
- Have everyone vote anonymously for their favourite cake
- Ask a partner or sibling to act as the official judge
- Use scorecards for categories like “Creativity,” “Application,” and “Colour Palette” — with the highest total score winning overall
💡 Tip: Give a small prize to the winner — a mini bottle of prosecco, a cute baking set, or a chocolate box always goes down well.
Final Thoughts
Hosting a cake-decorating night is honestly such a fun activity, and it’s something you can easily get stuck into even as the host. It’s creative, low-pressure, and all about the laughter, the vibes, and maybe finding out who your secretly talented or unexpectedly competitive friends are. I even discovered that one of my girls used to sell cakes professionally before I met her… and yes, she’s the one who won. Low-key cheating, right? 😂
Just remember, it’s really not about creating the perfect cake – it’s about the perfectly imperfect memories you make together. The laughter when someone’s buttercream collapses, the concentration faces when everyone’s piping like their life depends on it, the little compliments flying around the table… that’s what makes the night so special. I hope you have the best time hosting your own and enjoy every moment. 💕
Kyra xx
FAQs
Q: How far in advance should I bake the cakes?
A: Bake and freeze them at least a day before the event. Most cakes actually freeze really well and still taste great even a couple of weeks later.
Q: How long should the night last?
A: Around 2–3 hours is the sweet spot, but it depends on whether you set a timer for decorating or let everyone move at their own pace.
Q: What’s the best number of guests?
A: I’d say a minimum of two guests so there are at least three cakes to judge (including yours). The maximum really depends on how many people you can comfortably seat at your table as everyone needs space to decorate at the same time.
Q: Can we use cupcakes instead of full cakes?
A: Definitely! Cupcakes are great if you’re tight on space or want something quicker and easier to decorate.
