40 Simple Wedding Cakes That Are Gorgeously Understated

By Emily Platt

February 03, 2017

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Credit: Jose Villa

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Credit: Jose Villa

See All of Our Favorite Wedding Cake and Topper Ideas

There are plenty of wedding-day "wow" factor opportunities, if you're into that sort of thing. Between the venue, the dress(es), and the floral arrangements, to name a few, adding drama through jaw-dropping details can be appealing. But some couples choose a more subtle route, making quiet statements that better suit their tastes. Or, soon-to-be-weds play a balancing act, walking the line between bold and simple. While there's nothing wrong with elaborate wedding cake designs (think: towering or colorful), a less intricate option might be more of what you're searching for. Are you set on preventing your confection from clashing or competing with other aspects of your big day? Or, are you a "less is more" kind of couple, with an affinity for minimalist and more organic designs? Perhaps your celebration is just casual and unfussy, and you need something fitting for your theme. Regardless, there's a cake out there for you, be it modest and reserved, beautifully understated, or short and sweet. There's something to be said about these simple cakes from real weddings—take a peek for some effortless inspiration.

Fig and Fondant Cake

This red velvet cake had a smooth and spotless fondant finish, decorated sparingly by Sweet and Saucy Shop with bright, juicy figs.

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Flavorful Cake Trio

Credit: Mademoiselle Fiona Wedding Photography

Get Inspired by More Fruity, Flavorful Wedding Cakes

The complexions on these Lael Cake confections are undoubtedly understated, but the same can't be said for the flavors they contain. Each decadent cake (pear plus salted-caramel, chocolate plus rosewater-raspberry, and ginger plus lavender-rosemary) was topped with a handful of fruity add-ons.

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Cookies and Cream Cake

Credit: Laura Murray Photography

See More Unique Wedding Cake Toppers

This couple chose a single, tried-and-true flavor, which Tee and Cakes made into a short, one-tiered dessert. The display was finished off with an illustrated topper and blackberry rim.

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Cake with Parisian Topper

Credit: Jose Villa

Check Out More Small Wedding Cakes with a Big Presence

Favorite Cakes made this modest carrot-cake groom's cake. The main attraction was the Eiffel Tower on top.

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Coconut Cake

Credit: Kate Osborne

A focus on texture made this minimalist Sundance Resort-baked cake anything but lackluster.

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Gold-Coated Cake

Credit: Holland Photo Arts

Get Inspired by More Metallic Wedding Ideas

The couple who ordered this cake initially wanted to skip the dessert altogether. They were won over, however, after spotting this cheeky Etsy topper. To stick with their vision (no-nonsense desserts), Erica Fredericks of Design Cuisine put this metallic cake together.

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Naked Cake

Credit: Heather Payne

See More Naked Cakes for Your Wedding

What's more simple than an icing-free cake? The missing step means less fuss (and sticky mouths!), but actually makes the design more intriguing. This pretty confection was lemon-flavored and adorned with spray roses.

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Rustic Cake

Credit: Max & Friends

Check Out More Rustic Wedding Cakes We Love

This mini dairy- and gluten-free cake was dreamt up by Erin McKenna's Bakery. The flavor may have been vanilla, but the woodsy design was anything but.

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Four-Tiered Cake

Credit: Annabella Charles Photography

Learn How to Preserve the Top Tier of Your Wedding Cake

Dessert Designs concocted a cake with height for this wedding, but kept the cream cheese frosting beautifully simple. Inside hid vanilla, chocolate, and raspberry flavors.

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S'mores Cake

Credit: Jennifer Emerling

Get More Wedding S'mores Dessert Ideas

This little Heirloom LA cutie had a nostalgic taste—s'mores—that was achieved using chocolate cake, marshmallow crème, graham cracker crust, and toasted marshmallow icing. Atop was strung a simple initialed banner.

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Figgy Carrot Cake

The layers on this Cheryl Kleinman Cakes carrot cake are stark and short, but get a bump from beautiful figs.

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Brunch Cake

Credit: Liz Banfield

Get Fun and Trendy Wedding Brunch Ideas

This couple wanted something simple for their post-wedding farewell brunch. Their friend, Zoë François, made this orange-blossom-honey sponge cake—layered with kumquat-Champagne confit and topped with vanilla-bean Swiss-meringue buttercream—to suit their needs.

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Marbled Cake

Credit: Patricia Heal

See More Elegant Marble Wedding Ideas

Who needs frills when the frosting speaks for itself? Or, in this case, the Chocolate Editions chocolate bars, which were what lined the outside of this cake.

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Talking Cake Trio

Credit: Kate Headley

Make Lucky DIY Cake Pulls for Your Wedding

Fluffy Thoughts Cakes made this trio of white minis, which were chosen due to the number three symbolizing good luck in the bride's culture. Each dessert (white cake with passion-fruit curd, cake with blackberry-meringue buttercream, and almond cake with salted-caramel filling) hosted a charming (and on-theme) topper, too.

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Blue Rose-Swirled Cake

Credit: Dana Fernandez

Get Unique Ideas for Your "Something Blue"

A uniform color and icing design is a great way to keep clean and pretty. This mint chocolate creation was made by Buttercup Bakery and stood in as the "something blue."

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Cake with Purple Flowers

Credit: Tonhya Kae Photography

See More Creative Wedding Backdrop Ideas

This Billy's Bakery vanilla buttercream cake stayed simple to let the gorgeous custom background shine behind it. The "I told you there'd be cake" backdrop was created by KT Smail and was inspired by a favorite book of the bride: I Was Told There'd Be Cake.

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Petaled Chocolate Cake

Get Inspired By Our Favorite Chocolate Wedding Cake Ideas

Minimalists love using as little as possible, and in that vein, this dessert did well. The basic chocolate icing on the Perfect Endings cake was spruced up using petals plucked straight from the wedding flowers.

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Floral Cake

Credit: Leila Brewster Photography

See More Fresh Floral Wedding Cakes

Simple buckwheat was spiced up with pickled blueberry and lemon cream at this wedding, and decorated with just a small sprucing of flowers.

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"LOVE" Cake

Credit: Emily Steffen

Keep things minimal, like this couple did, and you'll make room for a statement topper. The decoration was designed by artist Robert Indiana (available at Blue Butterfly Design) while Sazama's Catering made the cake.

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Garland Cake

Credit: Echard Wheeler Photography

Check Out More Wreathed Wedding Ideas

This classic confection was the bride's favorite part of her wedding. Almond cake with buttercream icing was wrapped in a garland of stephanotis vine.

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Macaron-Topped Cake

Credit: Gary Ashley for Les Loups

Learn How French Macarons Become a Wedding Dessert Trend

This single-tiered olive oil cake was made by Beach Plum Bakery Café and topped with strawberries, macarons, and wildflowers.

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Buttercream Cake

Credit: Natalie Shelton

Find the Right Cake Stand for Your Wedding

Lisa Copeland of Austin Street Café made this two-tiered buttercream-frosted vanilla confection, which sat atop an antique pedestal purchased from Etsy.

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Silver and White Cake

Credit: Lucy Schaeffer

This sleek silver-bottomed cake was made by Martine Pasties and adorned with a single, big sugar magnolia.

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Semi-Naked Cake

Credit: Shannon Von Eschen

See More White Wedding Cakes We Love

Just the lightest coating of icing frosted this violet-lavender cake, which was made by Colorado Rose Cake Company and topped with a small sprinkling of fresh flowers.

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Seashell Cake

Credit: Meghan McGovern Hamilton

Get Amazing Beach Wedding Cake Ideas

Subtly celebrate your seashore wedding with a tiny, thematic cake like this buttercream-frosted one, confected by The Casual Gourmet.

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Cake with Olive Branches

Credit: Jose Villa

See More Wedding Cakes That Prove Vanilla Isn't Boring

A sprucing of olive branches helped this clean-cut cake steer clear of boring. That, and the flavors (vanilla with chocolate ganache, peanut butter, and salted caramel filling) dreamed up by Sweet and Saucy Shop.

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Unique-Flavored Cake

Credit: Love Me Do Photography

We Bet You Haven't Tried These Wedding Cake Flavors

Cake Life Bake Shop took "wine and cheese" to a whole new level with this honey-lavender white wine-soaked vanilla cake with honey-goat cheese frosting. The naked styling kept the design simple to let the flavors speak for themselves.

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Mini Cake

Credit: 3 deseos y medio

Get More Red Velvet Wedding Cake Ideas

Everything about this Cup & Cake Barcelona dessert was minimalist, from the small shape to the single flavor (red velvet).

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40 Simple Wedding Cakes That Are Gorgeously Understated

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Fig and Fondant Cake

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Flavorful Cake Trio

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Cookies and Cream Cake

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Cake with Parisian Topper

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Coconut Cake

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Gold-Coated Cake

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Naked Cake

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Rustic Cake

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Four-Tiered Cake

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S'mores Cake

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Figgy Carrot Cake

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Brunch Cake

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Marbled Cake

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Talking Cake Trio

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Blue Rose-Swirled Cake

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Cake with Purple Flowers

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Petaled Chocolate Cake

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Floral Cake

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"LOVE" Cake

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Garland Cake

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Macaron-Topped Cake

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Buttercream Cake

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Silver and White Cake

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Semi-Naked Cake

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Seashell Cake

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Cake with Olive Branches