How to Prepare for Your Baby’s Cake Smash Session

Your baby is ONE! 🎂

Cake smash sessions are such a fun way to celebrate this huge milestone. They’re messy, sweet, a little unpredictable—and that’s exactly what makes them so much fun to photograph!

If you’ve never done a cake smash before, you may be wondering what kind of cake to bring, what your baby should wear, or how in the world you prepare a one-year-old to happily destroy a cake on command. 😂

Here are a few of my favorite tips to help your cake smash session go as smoothly as possible!

Before Your Session: Let Them Practice!

Believe it or not, some babies have absolutely no idea what to do when we put an entire cake in front of them!

A week or two before your session, let your little one practice with a cupcake, small cake, or even some whipped cream at home. Let them touch it, squish it, taste it, and get messy.

This is especially helpful if your baby hasn't had much experience with sweets or messy foods. We don't need them to become a professional cake smasher—we just want the texture and experience to feel familiar!

And don't worry if your baby isn't interested in eating the cake. Some babies dive face-first into it, while others delicately poke it with one finger and decide they're finished. Both make adorable photos!

Choosing the Perfect Cake

Simple cakes photograph beautifully.

I recommend a small cake, usually around 5–6 inches, with soft buttercream or whipped frosting. Avoid anything overly tall, hard, or heavily decorated that may be difficult for little hands to dig into.

A few cake tips:

• Choose white, cream, pastel, or another light-colored frosting when possible. Chocolate or dark brown icing can look a little less-than-cute once it's smeared all over baby's face. 😉
• Avoid fondant. Soft frosting is much easier for babies to smash and explore.
• If using sprinkles, keep them small and baby-safe.
• A simple cake usually photographs better than an extremely busy design.

Most importantly, please make sure your baby has already been introduced to the ingredients in the cake before the session, especially if there are any allergy concerns.

Don't Bring the Cake Ice Cold!

This is a BIG one!

If your cake has been refrigerated, give it plenty of time to come closer to room temperature before your session.

Cold buttercream can become very firm, making it surprisingly difficult for tiny fingers to dig into. A softer, room-temperature cake is much easier to smash—and much more fun!

Just be sure to follow your bakery's food-safety recommendations for how long the specific cake can safely remain unrefrigerated.

What Should Baby Wear?

This is completely up to you!

Some parents choose a cute birthday outfit for traditional portraits first and then change baby into a simple cake-smash outfit. Overalls, bloomers, suspenders, diaper covers, rompers, or even just a diaper can photograph beautifully.

Try to avoid clothing with large logos, characters, or extremely busy patterns. Simple, neutral, or coordinating colors keep the focus right where it belongs—on your little one!

And remember: whatever baby wears during the cake smash will probably get messy. Very messy. 😂

What to Bring

A little preparation goes a long way. I recommend packing:

• Your cake
• Baby's cake-smash outfit
• A clean outfit for baby afterward
• An extra shirt or change of clothes for YOU—you may become part of the cake smash whether you planned to or not!
• Baby wipes
• A favorite snack
• Water or baby's usual drink
• Diapers
• A favorite small toy or comfort item
• Any special birthday accessories you'd like included

If your baby has a favorite snack, definitely bring it. Sometimes we hide a few tiny snacks in or behind the cake to encourage a hesitant little one to investigate!

Don't Arrive Hungry or Exhausted

It sounds backwards, but your baby doesn't need to arrive starving in order to eat the cake!

A hungry, overtired one-year-old is usually much more interested in being held than having their picture taken. Give baby their normal meals and snacks that day and try to schedule naps as normally as possible.

A happy baby with a full belly is much more likely to enjoy the experience.

Give Baby a Little Time to Warm Up

Please don't worry if your baby doesn't immediately start smashing!

One-year-olds don't understand that we've scheduled a photoshoot and have expectations for them. 😂 Some babies need a few minutes to look around, get comfortable with me, and figure out what's happening.

We'll let them explore.

They may use one finger. They may eat icing by the handful. They may crawl away. They may cry when their hands get dirty. They may demolish the entire cake.

All of it is part of documenting who your baby is at this exact stage.

Parents: Be Prepared to Get Involved!

You may need to sit near your baby, encourage them, reposition the cake, hand them a little icing, or scoop up a runaway birthday babe.

Try not to stress about getting the "perfect" reaction.

Some of my favorite images happen between the perfectly posed moments—the confused expressions, frosting-covered fingers, belly laughs, and little looks they give Mom or Dad.

That's the good stuff.

What If My Baby Hates the Cake?

That's okay!

Seriously.

Your baby's reaction is part of the memory.

If they don't want to smash it, we won't force them. We can encourage them, give them time, offer a taste, or try a favorite snack, but the goal is never to make your baby perform.

Cake smash sessions are about celebrating your little one exactly as they are.

Whether we end up with a completely demolished cake or one tiny fingerprint in the frosting, we'll still capture this incredibly sweet milestone.

One Last Tip: Embrace the Mess

This isn't the session to worry about keeping everything perfectly clean.

Let them dig in. Let the icing get on their toes. Let them make the faces. Let them be silly.

Your baby only turns one once.

We'll clean up the frosting.

You get to keep the photos forever. 🤍

— Candice

Candice Co. Photography