14 Sunflower Wedding Cake Ideas

Using flowers to decorate your wedding cake is one of the best ways to freshen the entire look of your wedding day confection. Bakers often add cascading blooms or artfully arranged petals to the top or tiers of a wedding cake by securing fresh flowers that match the overall wedding aesthetic. And for those in search of the ultimate splash of color, sunflowers are the perfect match. These cheerful flowers have become especially popular with summer and fall weddings—and we’re so here for it.

“Sunflower cakes would be perfect in my opinion for any type of wedding,” says Sammi-Jo Gascoyne, owner of Blushing Cook, a bespoke cake studio in London. “Sunflowers bring so much happiness and joy to people. How could they not?”

Meet the Expert

Sammi-Jo Gascoyne is the owner of Blushing Cook, best known for the development of the ‘Pressed Flower Cake’ design.

Aside from seasonal weddings in the summer and fall, sunflower-adorned wedding cakes are the perfect design choice for a couple looking to host a rustic wedding, too. Whether you’re tying the knot with a barn or farm wedding, or maybe hosting your reception in a pastoral field, sunflowers are such a lovely addition.

Choosing a Sunflower Wedding Cake

So, how exactly do you add sunflowers to your wedding cake? “Sunflowers are edible flowers, so I always encourage anyone to use fresh sunflowers if they are in season,” says Gascoyne. “You want to make sure you get your flowers from a reputable edible flower grower who doesn’t spray them with pesticides. Or, even better, you might have some in your garden you have grown from seed.”

Gascoyne often presses her sunflowers whole for a bespoke dried floral look. If you’d prefer fresh sunflowers, you definitely have some leeway there as well. “Fresh sunflowers are fairly sturdy, so if you’re adding them fresh I would say they will withstand some time out of the water,” she says. “I would always add them fresh on the day, however. If they’re a little on the heavy side, pop a little wooden dowel or large wooden barbecue skewer beneath it to support it on your cake.” Sunflowers can also be incorporated into a cake by piping buttercream florals or by making flowers out of sugar or marzipan to place on the cake.

Ready for some major sunny inspiration with these bold blooms? Read on for 14 of our favorite sunflower wedding cakes.

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Showcase the Blooms

Sunflowers have the ability to be totally overdone on a cake if you’re not careful with the design since they run large and the color is very bold. But this four-tiered beauty certainly isn’t in that category. We love the way the semi-naked cake offers just the slightest rustic touch, paired with sunflowers and greenery, for an elegant summer look.

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Commission a Hand-Painted Masterpiece

Sunflower cakes don’t always have to feature bold, fresh blooms. The addition of this happy flower can be a bit more subtle. Case in point: This hand-painted work of art on fondant.

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Dress Up a Semi-Naked Cake

A sunflower cake is perfect for an outdoor wedding—especially when paired with a semi-naked cake. Here, we love how one bold bloom is showcased on the top of the cake, while additional florals tie the look together.

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Celebrate the Season

Sunflowers are edible, so they make for the perfect pressed flower on a beautiful cake. We suggest embracing the pressed petal look by pairing sunflowers with fresh sprigs of lavender—and, if you're marrying in the summertime, consider adding in-season strawberries and blueberries for a cake that seriously celebrates the season, as this one does.

19 Pretty Pressed-Flower Wedding Details

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Channel a Rustic Look

Hello, rustic barn wedding! We can’t get over the backdrop for this cake, with rustic barn walls and a table to match. This three-tiered cake fits perfectly with the setting, but the textured buttercream and cascade of sunflowers bring it all together.

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Pick Pressed Florals

We can’t get over this pretty pressed flower look! This two-tiered naked cake is the most beautiful design, perfect for displaying at an outdoor garden wedding. With pressed violas, cornflowers, and one bold sunflower, this floral look is absolutely stunning.

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Consider Sugar Flowers

Why not pair sunflowers with additional flowers? We love the color palette with this four-tiered fondant cake, which features handcrafted sugar flowers leading up to the sunflower at the top.

38 of the Prettiest Floral Wedding Cakes

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Serve Cupcakes

What if you took the sunflower party to the next level with cupcakes? These would be the cutest confections to display on a wedding dessert table.

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Decorate With Cascading Sunflowers

This cake makes a bold statement, proving that it doesn’t take very many sunflowers to add a pop of color. With simple white buttercream frosting paired with cascading blooms and baby’s breath, this cake is sweet as can be.

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Opt for a Statement Bloom

This cake features sunflowers as inspiration in the most beautiful way. Each petal of this bold top flower is handcrafted and edible, with hand-painted details and a sunny yellow drip to finish the look.

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Bring the Outdoors In

The display, which pairs smaller sunflowers with purple filler flowers and greenery, is simple yet beautiful. Thanks to the mix of flowers, the sunflowers make a statement without overpowering the overall design. The final touch? A round log cake stand that truly brings the outdoors in.

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Decorate Multiple Tiers

There are so many different design elements to this cake, and we’re definitely here for it! The top and bottom tiers bring a rustic buttercream design to the party, while a semi-naked middle-tier adds a simple rustic vibe. Fresh sunflowers finish off the look.

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Add Additional Sweets

This single-tier cake is complete with fresh and bold sunflowers, white florals, macarons, and meringues. It's seriously fun, but it’s the white chocolate drip with gold glitter that really makes this design shine.

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Mix Orange and Yellow Tones

For a fall wedding, consider pairing a gorgeous mix of late summer and early fall colors. This cake is proof that the tones—and flowers, for that matter!—make for one perfect pairing.

Looking for more sunny inspiration? Be inspired by stunning sunflower bouquets below.

20 Stunning Sunflower Wedding Bouquets