Hand Gathered Home

  • Our Home
    • Front Porch
    • Entryway
    • Living Room
    • Kitchen
    • Dining Room
    • Master Bedroom
    • Bathroom
    • Nursery
    • Kid Rooms
  • Shop Our Home
  • Shop My Favorite Things
  • Shop My Amazon Storefront
  • Virtual Design Services
    • Meet the Team
    • Portfolio
  • About
    • Disclosure and Privacy Policy
  • Videos

How to Turn a Simple Store-Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake

Projects

2 Jul
4 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

Watch as I take this simple store bought cake and turn it into a pretty cake that you can use for any occasion. Whether it’s a birthday party, a family BBQ or a simple get together with friends.

Turning a Simple Store Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake for Any Occasion

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Follow along with me as I transform this store-bought cake into a pretty cake for any occasion. Have you ever committed to hosting and then felt overwhelmed with the amount of stuff that needed to be done before your guests arrived? Fear not! This simple cake hack will help you out, while still helping your table to look gorgeous and put together. First, you’ll need to grab a few things from the grocery store.

What You’ll Need

  • Store-Bought Cheesecake or cake
  • Strawberries
  • Raspberries
  • Blueberries
  • Mint
  • Macarons
  • Cake Stand

This cake started out as a super basic store-bought cheesecake, as you can see below. Nothing special, really. I bought a few ingredients to spruce it up. This is a perfect thing to do in order to provide dessert for any occasion, without all of the extra stress (and mess) that come with baking from scratch (especially if you’re hosting). Below you can see all of my ingredients laid out.

I spent $12.99 on the cake, and then the rest of the ingredients brought me to about $20. That’s not bad at all, especially considering it turned out so pretty!

While I chose a cheesecake (based on my grocery store’s availability), you could easily choose any type of cake. I personally love the white frosted look, but really chocolate works too. The idea is simply that you’re creating something beautiful for your guests without the hassle of actually baking. Now, if all you’re providing is the dessert and you love baking, then by all means! But if you’re also providing dinner or maybe just don’t love baking, this is for you!

Turning a Simple Store Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake for Any Occasion

How to Turn a Store-Bought cake into a Pretty Cake – VIDEO

Start with the Macarons

Macarons, macaroons… There seems to be constant confusion as to which pronunciation is correct for these little cookies. I believe the correct pronunciation is “macaron”. Macaroons being the coconut and chocolate dessert. Regardless… They’re delicious.

I started my adding these standing on their side in the middle of the cake. I didn’t really have a method, I just knew that I had 5 that I’d like to fit on the top of the cake. So I arranged them in a way that they’d all fit.

Turning a Simple Store Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake for Any Occasion

Then for the fruit…

I then started adding the fruit. Starting with the biggest fruit, which was the strawberries, I added them in one by one. The goal was to spread them out over the top of the cake, fitting them where there was room.

Next I added the raspberries, blueberries and lastly the mint leaves for just a little extra something green. For things like this cake, I think the fuller the better. If you go too light on the toppings, it might look bare. Plan to fill up the top plenty so it looks nice and full.

Turning a Simple Store Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake for Any Occasion

Finished Product

Definitely watch the video above, if you haven’t already, in order to see the process. But really it was so easy and I love the way it turned out.

When decorating a cake like this, there’s no “right” or “wrong” way to do it. You’ll notice in the video that I just started playing around with it, adding things and moving them until it looked right to me. You’ll want to just watch as you go and adjust as needed.

There are kind of two ways to go about this… You can try to be symmetrical or go with a more organic look. I personally prefer the more organic look, which means there’s definitely no right or wrong way. Just start piecing it together, and more so focusing on balance over symmetry.

For example, try spreading the strawberries out throughout the top of the cake, instead of grouping them all in one spot. And do the same thing for the rest of the ingredients. I did group the macarons kind of in the middle (again, perfect example that there’s no right way).

I’d encourage you to just jump in and give it a try. Worst case scenario, you can always rinse off the fruit and start over. 🙂

Turning a Simple Store Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake for Any Occasion
Turning a Simple Store Bought Cake into a Pretty Cake for Any Occasion

A while back I did something similar to this f0r my son’s 2nd birthday. You can find it below.

Upgrading a Store-Bought Cake for Under $20 – VIDEO

Thanks so much for reading this post on how to turn a simple store bought cake into a pretty cake for any occasion! If you give this a try, comment below and tell me how it went. In the meantime, you can Pin for Later below.

If you liked this post, you might also like…

How to Make Beeswax Candles

Healthy Smash Cake

Pin for Later

Turning a Simple Store-Bought Cake into a Pretty cake for any occasion

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

Leave a Comment

About Alleigh

« Amazon Farmhouse Home Decor Must Haves | Affordable Home Decor
DIY Easy Farmhouse Entryway Table – Decorate with Me »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




So glad you’re here!

Hi! I’m Alleigh. I’m a mom to my two sweet little boys, and wife to a very supportive husband. I’m so glad you’re here! Join me and my little family as we get our hands dirty and add life & personality to our home to create a place that we love.

Find more about me here

Let’s Connect

  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

On Instagram

handgatheredhome

I was trying to post this with original audio of m I was trying to post this with original audio of me explaining each item and my thoughts on the price etc etc but apparently I don’t have that capability yet on IG… so, enjoy this reel and just know that I had a lot more to say. 😂
A little IG vs reality for ya. Swipe to see the mo A little IG vs reality for ya. Swipe to see the more realistic view (which is really not bad at all 😂).
I feel like my house is just constantly a mess, no matter how hard I try. Anyone else? It feels like I’m always behind, and to be honest, it bothers me a lot. It overwhelms me and stresses me out. It keeps me from being content and present. Between things constantly being broken (hello middle child) and just too much stuff in general.
Here’s what I’m working on to simplify and calm the chaos.
1. I’ve been removing all toys that don’t get played with often. We currently have magnatiles, Duplos, and race cars out. The rest have been moved to storage in the basement for the moment. We’ll see what we keep as my kids do sometimes notice toys they’re missing and ask for them.
2. I’ve been ruthlessly getting rid of stuff - whether donate or trash. If we don’t absolutely love it, or we have multiples, or no one touches it, or we have a huge pile of random papers and crafts. Gone. 😂 it’s so relieving.
3. I often have artwork and decor laying around because I don’t fully know where it’s going yet. I’ve been removing anything that doesn’t serve a purpose and have been putting it in basement storage. No point having it sit there and clutter. I’ll go get it when I’m ready to hang the picture or use the decor.
4. I’ve been re-assessing where we need more storage. I replaced a dresser that didn’t functional well with a $50 homeschool cabinet from FB marketplace and it’s been so much better.
5. As I remove things from our every day view, I’m noticing the ability to better enjoy the everyday messes and real life, because it isn’t so out of control and overwhelming.

I hope this is encouraging for mamas in the same boat ✨
Enjoying our last flower harvest of the season ✨ Enjoying our last flower harvest of the season ✨
My weekend project ✨ We spent a lot of time in o My weekend project ✨
We spent a lot of time in our front yard, but never really on our porch. I bought this porch paint months ago and finally got it done! Now our porch is a cozy place to sit ✨ Inspired by @mustardseedbeginnings super cute porch.
These frames have been sitting empty for a while n These frames have been sitting empty for a while now… I went to order some prints for them the other day, and I didn’t like the price. SO I decided I was going to make my own art for them. I found a fabric remnant at a local thrift store for $0.99 cents and voila. Took all of 5 mins ✨
Such a fun, special day 🤍 Notice the new toys s Such a fun, special day 🤍
Notice the new toys scattered everywhere 😂
Antiques all day long 🤍 Exciting changes happen Antiques all day long 🤍
Exciting changes happening here at Hand Gathered Home. More to come ✨
Since everyone is saying how social media is fake… here’s some real real life for ya 🙃

Copyright © 2025 · Refined theme by Restored 316

4 shares
 

Loading Comments...