HERE COMES ... THE CAKE; BRIDES SELECT STYLISH DESIGNS FOR THEIR SPECIAL DAY.

Byline: Natalie Haughton Daily News Food Editor

When it comes to wedding cakes, anything goes these days. While the classic three-tiered wedding cake will never go out of style, there are plenty of other options - including nontraditional shapes and bolder colors. The buzz word is individual.

The bride's selection depends on her style, taste and dreams, say local wedding cake experts who customize and design cakes to suit each individual, the wedding location, the dress and the color theme.

But whatever the bride decides on, the cake should delight the palate as well as the eye.

``Overall, we're seeing more soft, romantic cakes, more flowers - whether they are fresh or butter cream - and very soft colors in the flowers and the cake,'' said Jane Lockhart, owner of Sweet Lady Jane in Los Angeles. ``White or ivory colored cakes are most popular.''

And nowadays, many brides are opting for a larger cake based on visual impact rather than the number of guests to be served.

Colette Peters, owner of Colette's Cakes in New York, likes doing different cakes that reflect the bridal couple's personality and has fashioned many fanciful cakes, among them one that resembled a flowered cloisonne bell and a country cottage with a white picket fence.

She has also created a Blue Delftware cake in a bright blue-and-white design to incorporate a Delft ginger jar. Her Majolica Cake, inspired by Italian majolica ceramics, has different, brightly colored layers with colorful designs depicting sunflowers, fans and more.

You can get a glimpse of some of her fabulous designs in her book, ``Colette's Wedding Cakes'' (Little, Brown and Co.).

``People right now are doing more rolled fondant (or rolled-out icing) - made out of sugar and gelatin - rather than icing smoothed on with a knife,'' she said.

At Regal Bakery in Woodland Hills, customers also favor the smooth fondant look along with white chocolate shavings. Also, realistic-looking handmade sugar paste flowers in different sizes, shapes and colors are often requested, especially by those who want an outdoor look but are skeptical about using fresh flowers (they can wilt or contain pesticides, and the stems may be poisonous).

But fresh flowers on cakes still rank among the top choices with brides.

If using fresh flowers, check with the bakery regarding who will order and arrange them on the cake. The flower colors usually complement the colors of the cake.

Neon colors - like bright orange, lime green and hot pink - are being used for both the decorations and the cake itself these days, said Teresa Leung, Regal's cake designer. ``We've also been doing cakes in blue fondant with white chocolate seashells for weddings at the beach - and brown sugar is used to simulate sand around the cake.''

Plusko's Valley Bakeries in Canoga Park ``turns out more traditional three-tiered cakes with white columns and butter cream roses - in colors ranging from purple to pink to burgundy and teal or other colors to match the bridesmaids' dresses - than anything else,'' said owner Darlene Plusko, who has been in the business for more than two decades. Second in popularity are their cakes on individual stands that have been trendy for the past two years.

The most-requested cake finishes are basket weave, chantilly (which resembles really fine lace) and elegance (created by piping butter cream up and down the cake with a border cake-decorating tip), said Plusko. And cakes decorated with edible white and dark chocolate seashells along with real seashells on the tiers are currently very popular, especially for Malibu weddings.

Toppers on cakes range from fresh or butter cream flowers to old porcelain vintage or Lladro brides and grooms, crystal or porcelain dolphins, ceramic teddy bears, Cinderella and Prince Charming and family heirlooms, say the cake experts. Regal Bakery can even create a cake basket creation that can hold fresh fruits such as grapes, blueberries and raspberries, depending on the season.

Today's brides have more adventurous choices in cake flavors and fillings than in the past. Cakes today run the gamut from lemon, chocolate Grand Marnier, cappuccino, Bailey's Irish Creme, banana nut, cheesecake and carrot cake to marble cake, German chocolate, yellow, chocolate and more. Among the various filling choices are fresh fruits, raspberry whipped cream, chocolate pudding, rum custard, apricot marzipan, banana custard, tiramisu, cappuccino cream and much more.

At Plusko's, the selection includes eight cake flavors and 12 fillings, while at Regal Bakery there are a dozen cake options and more than two dozen filling possibilities. Sweet Lady Jane offers 18 flavor choices (the bakery has already paired the cakes and fillings that work best together), including lemon cake with lemon curd, coconut with pastry cream, and chocolate cake with raspberry filling.

Sweet Lady Jane's most popular wedding cake flavor is triple berry - yellow butter cake with three layers of fresh berries - raspberries, blackberries and strawberries with cream - followed by the chocolate old-fashioned cake with chocolate European butter cream, notes Lockhart.

At Plusko's, the champagne cake - yellow sponge cake with champagne custard filling and whipped cream icing - takes the top spot and is the signature cake, says Plusko. Second in popularity is the chocolate and white cake with chocolate chip custard filling. At Regal Bakery, the most ordered cake is chocolate filled with chocolate fudge and chocolate mousse or Bailey's Irish cream, says Leung.

Prices vary greatly, so plan to taste cake samples, which most bakeries will provide with no obligation, before ordering. Pricing is quoted either by the slice or person, or by the completed cake. It ranges anywhere from $1.85 to $15 per person per serving, depending upon the elaborateness of the cake design.

At Plusko's, an average three-tiered cake that will serve about 125 people is about $190 with whipped cream icing. At Regal, an average three- or four-tiered cake for 150 guests costs about $400, while at Sweet Lady Jane, a three-tiered cake that serves 100 people will be about $700, including fresh flowers.

The most extravagant, pricey cake for Regal was a $4,000 castle cake with an elevator that served 300 people. Sweet Lady Jane's most expensive cake was a $5,000 six-tiered cake for 300 people that Lockhart was commissioned to do in Napa.

If you have designs on a custom cake ...

Here is a sampling of bakeries specializing in wedding cakes. Prices vary depending on the cake, filling, decorations, etc. Some bakeries figure the price of the cake based on the charge per person or serving, while others quote prices based on the complete cake. In some cases, delivery is additional.

Before planning to visit a specific bakery, check to see if a consultation appointment is necessary, or whether you can just stop by. But be sure that someone who specializes in wedding cakes is there to help you.

Many bake shops offer tasting samples of various cakes and fillings. Some require ordering a wedding cake several months in advance, others just a couple of weeks. In some cases, bakeries will make up a wedding cake on just a few days' notice.

Balducco's Italian Bakery, 2839 Agoura Road, Westlake Village, [phone]. Prices start at $2 per serving for Italian-style cakes, including rum cake, tiramisu, cassata, etc.

Bea's Bakery, 18450 Clark St., Tarzana, [phone]. For a cake to serve 100 people, figure on spending $165 to $275 and up. Delivery fee ranges from $3 to $25.

Cakeworks, 117 N. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, [phone]. Prices range from $5 to $12 per person per serving.

Cake and Art, 8709 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, [phone]. Prices start at $85 and go up to $5,000.

Chez Nous, 10550 Riverside Drive, North Hollywood, [phone]. Prices start at $4.50 per person and go up from there, depending on decoration.

Hansen's Cakes, 18432 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana, [phone]; 1072 S. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles [phone]. Minimum price is $108 for a cake for 30 people.

Nicolosi Pastry Shop, 17540 Ventura Blvd, Encino [phone]. Minimum price is $67.25 for a cake for 30 people.

Patticakes, 1900 N. Allen Ave., Altadena, [phone]. Price is $5.75 per person.

Plusko's Valley Bakeries, 21013 Sherman Way, Canoga Park, [phone]; 2838 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd, Thousand Oaks, [phone]. Cakes average from $190 to $400 each. If the newlywed couple brings in a photograph of their cake a couple of days before their first anniversary, the bakery will keep the photo and use it to reproduce the top tier to give them gratis to celebrate.

Regal Bakery, 20812 Ventura Blvd., Suite 108, Woodland Hills, [phone]; 1068 S. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, [phone]. Prices range from $1.85 per person to $6. Average is $3 to $3.50 per person.

Rose Bakery, 15232 Vanowen St., Van Nuys, [phone]. Prices start at $1 per person per slice.

Rosebud Cakes, 311 S. Robertson Blvd., Beverly Hills, [phone]. Prices range from $4 to $14 per serving.

Solley's Restaurant & Delicatessen, 4578 Van Nuys Blvd., Sherman Oaks, [phone]. Prices range from $4 and up per person.

Sweet Lady Jane, 8360 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, [phone]. Prices range from $5 to $15 per person per serving.

Viktor Bene's Bakery in Gelson's, 16450 Ventura Blvd., Encino, [phone]. Prices start at $2 per serving.

- Natalie Haughton

CAPTION(S):

6 Photos, Box

Photo: (1--Color) At Sweet Lady Jane, a Los Angeles bake shop, romantic wedding cakes with flowers, whether fresh or butter cream, are among the most requested by brides.

(2--Color) Vibrant, bolder colors - including pink and orange - are often selected for cakes, such as this stacked gift-box, ribbon-topped wedding cake designed by Regal Bakery in Woodland Hills.

(3--Color) Besides traditional tiered wedding cakes, brides today often opt to present cakes with a variety of cake and filling flavors on separate clear or colored stands like this creation fashioned by Plusko's Valley Bakeries in Canoga Park.

John McCoy/Daily News

(4--Color) This Birch-Bark Cake designed by Colette Peters, owner of Colette's Cakes in New York, was inspired by some dried-flower arrangements that resembled cakes. She made the cake to look like a lovely array of dried flowers. The flowers are made of royal icing.

(5--Color) The layers of this unusual Chocolate Fantasia cake by Colette Peters are shaped and assembled to create a piece of edible sculpture. The chocolate designs were based on art deco metalwork Peters saw at an exhibit.

From ``Colette's Wedding Cakes''

(6--Color) Sweet Lady Jane owner Jane Lockhart, who has been in business more than a decade, decorates a wedding cake in her bake-shop kitchen.

John Lazar/Daily News

Box: If you have designs on a custom cake ... (See text)