How To Make Cake Toppers at Home from Paper, Wood, and Acrylic

When you have a kid’s birthday party coming up or want to jazz up a fun holiday gathering, adding a cake topper to the “big event” can transform the atmosphere. While you can pick some up at a local store, they don’t offer the personalization you may want.

Learning how to make cake toppers helps you add special messages, design unique graphics, or even put the guest of honor into the cake itself. You can DIY cake toppers using materials like cardstock, natural wood, and modern acrylic.

Here're some instructions on getting started with the cake toppers you want, including steps and suggestions for unique designs you cannot find in your local grocery store bakery.

What You Need to Make a Cake Topper

For do-it-yourself cake toppers, you’ll want to gather all the required materials ahead of time. The supplies often depend on how detailed you want the finished design to be. Those materials might include:

You can also blend materials and styles with how to make a cake topper, but when you’re just beginning the creative hobby, start small. Stick to the basics for each type of material until you’re ready to try more advanced techniques.

Supplies for Paper Cardstock Cake Toppers

Cardstock cake toppers are beginner-friendly because they require only a few basic craft supplies. You can pick up cardstock at pretty much any local hardware, office, or big box store. In addition, you’ll need:

• Heavy cardstock, usually 250–350 GSM
• Scissors, craft knife, or cutting machine
• Cutting mat
• Printer for full-color artwork
• Glue, double-sided tape, or foam adhesive
• Wooden skewer, lollipop stick, or acrylic rod

Whenever you can, pick the heavier cardstock for cake toppers. That will help if you want to layer designs or combine lighter decorative sheets with a thicker backing that won’t fall onto the cake’s frosting.

Supplies for Wooden Cake Toppers

Wooden cake toppers last a lot longer than cardstock, making them good candidates for repeatable holidays or family gatherings. You’ll want:

• Thin basswood or plywood
• Compatible laser cutter
• Design software
• Fine-grit sandpaper
• Optional “food-safe” finish

You won’t need a separate stake or skewer, as you can incorporate that stand into the overall design of the wood itself.

Supplies for Acrylic Cake Toppers

Acrylic is a more modern material, but it can reflect light (especially from candles) in ways other materials cannot. You’ll need:

• Compatible acrylic sheet
• Laser machine
• Masking material
• Microfiber cloth
• “Food-safe” barrier or support

You’ll want to confirm your laser’s compatibility long before starting. Different acrylic types may require specialty setups.

Create or Choose Your Cake Topper Design

The really fun part of how to make cake toppers is finding a design. There are four practical methods for do-it-yourself cake topper designs. You can choose any of them, or a blend of a few, based on your personal artistic talent and how much time you have to get the topper out for the party.

Design ideas by Atomm

• Draw the design by hand and scan it, or a photo, to create a digital file.
• Build the design digitally using popular design software like Canva, Adobe Illustrator, or similar tools. Most have stock images or graphics that will help if you’re totally lost on creating from scratch.
• Browse Pinterest for different themes, layouts, and colors (just be careful not to copy any protected designs).
• Use the Atomm Cake Topper Generator to create based on photos, names, ages, and framed templates. You can personalize all kinds of designs and build laser-cut inserts for weddings, graduations, bakery side hustles, and birthday parties, including previewing designs or adjusting stake settings before exporting the vector cutting file.

As you work with different materials, you’ll notice some basic design elements should be in place. For example, you want to connect letters and floating elements so it generates a single design instead of multiple, individualized pieces.

Avoid any fragile lines and match the design so it fits where you want relative to the cake’s width. Any details that are too small for your cutting method may not show up well in the final design, so be sensitive to visual balance and stake placement. The beauty of digitally designing cake toppers on sticks is you can always start over without wasting materials.

How to Make a Paper Cardstock Cake Topper

Cardstock is one of the easiest and most versatile materials for making cake toppers at home. You can cut letters, numbers, and decorative shapes directly from colored or glitter cardstock, then combine multiple layers for a 3D effect. If your design includes a photo or full-color illustration, you can also print the artwork first and contour-cut around it.

Step 1: Prepare the Design

Size the design to fit your cake and make sure thin letters or decorative elements have enough support to hold their shape.

For a regular cardstock topper, separate the design into the shapes or layers you want to cut from each cardstock color. For a layered 3D cake topper, plan the stacking order before cutting so you know which pieces form the background, middle, and foreground.

If you're making a picture or full-color topper, prepare the finished artwork as a single printable design. Remove any unwanted background and add an offset or border if you want a clean outline around the image.

Step 2: Cut the Design by Hand, with Cricut, or with xTool M2

For a regular cardstock topper, cut the design directly from colored cardstock. Simple shapes can be cut by hand, while a craft cutting machine such as Cricut, Silhouette or xTool M2 can handle more detailed letters shapes, and multiple layers. Having more accuracy for contour cutting really saves you a lot of hassle and time trying to get into those sharp corners or odd shapes with scissors.

If you're making a picture or full-color topper, print the finished artwork first, then cut around its outer contour to remove the surrounding background. With Cricut or Silhouette, this generally involves printing the artwork with a separate printer beforehand.

The xTool M2 can handle both types of projects. Its diode laser can cut detailed shapes from compatible cardstock, while the optional CMYK inkjet module lets you print a full-color design first and then switch to the laser module for contour cutting.

Step 3: Assemble and Reinforce the Cake Topper

For a simple printed topper, glue a second piece of heavy cardstock to the back to make it sturdier. Make sure the backing stays within the outer edge of the design so it is not visible from the front.

For a layered cardstock topper, arrange all the pieces before applying adhesive to confirm the order and alignment. Glue flat layers from the back forward, or use small foam adhesive squares between selected layers to create a 3D effect. Add a solid cardstock backing if the finished topper still bends easily, especially around thin letters or decorative details.

Step 4: Attach the Cake Stick

Most of the cake toppers on sticks you’ll find use wooden skewers, lollipop sticks, or clear acrylic rods. You can find these in hardware stores or DIY them at home. Try to center the stick behind the design, where it can be secured best, so it balances the weight of the cake topper evenly. Then you just need to let it dry for a bit, and you’re ready to celebrate!

How to Make a Wooden Cake Topper

Wooden cake toppers are especially helpful for naturally themed parties (woodland, fairies, enchanted evenings, etc.) and also for weddings or neutral décor. They tend to last much longer than cardstock, making them useful if you want repeatable holiday cake toppers.

Step 1: Adapt the Design for Wood

When you design using wood, you really must connect every letter. Any narrow cuts should be connected, or they could break during storage.

You’ll also have to adapt the design for the stake. It can be built into the final cut design, or added later. Either works. The final choice is really what will hold the topper the best for your presentation.

Step 2: Set Up the Printing and Cutting Process

You can use a wooden “blank” and place it into the cutting machine based on the design's position. If you’re adding full-color artwork, start with printing first so you can confirm the image is properly aligned.

If you’ve opted to keep the stick separate from the primary cake topper, see if you can utilize spare materials after cutting.

Step 3: Print and Cut the Wooden Topper

Once the printing is done, you’ll need to replace the print module with the laser module before cutting. Always double-check your blank is in the right position, select the settings for specific wooden material, and run a test if you’re nervous.

Step 4: Add or Inspect the Support Stake

With a built-in stake, you are pretty much done from here. Just test out the balance of the cake topper.

If you’re adding the support stick after the rest of the cake topper is finished, use a reliable and safe adhesive. In some more complex designs, you can slide additional sticks into the cut wood, but stick to simplicity when starting out.

Lightly sand any rough edges before applying paint or finish. If the topper will contact the cake, use materials and coatings specifically rated for their intended food-contact use, or insert the stake into a food-safe cake pick or protective straw.

How to Make an Acrylic Cake Topper

How to make cake toppers in acrylic is more suited to upscale or modern events. Something like a milestone 40th birthday party or a wedding with a clean line theme. That’s because the material is glossier, kind of like frosted glass when you’re finished.

Step 1: Choose Compatible Acrylic

It’s very important to know different lasers work with different acrylic types and colors. Take the time to look through all the various xTool laser machines so you can match your material well. Something like the xTool P3 may be better due to the 80W CO2 laser module working more compatible with clear acrylic. Let the material and the machine work in harmony so your cake topper has the best possible outcome.

Step 2: Cut or Engrave the Acrylic Topper

As you cut or engrave, leave the protective masking in place. Secure the sheet and, if you have extra material, run a test first. You’ll find names, monograms, numbers, or simple silhouettes translate best with acrylic.

Step 3: Remove the Masking and Clean the Surface

When you’re finished, you can remove the masking. Wipe down the surface of your laser-cut cake toppers using a microfiber cloth. Pay close attention to the edges and avoid using any overly abrasive cleaners that might further scratch the surface.

Step 4: Attach or Inspect the Support Stake

In some acrylic designs, you can have a built-in stake, but you should still ensure it is smooth and stable. If the stake is separate, you’ll need a compatible adhesive to secure it to the design.

Cake Topper Ideas You Can Make for Different Occasions

When you’re stuck trying to think of how to best make cake toppers for different events, check out a few of these ideas to help:

• Layered cardstock for birthday designs where you can add more depth by having names and ages in front against a larger happy birthday background.
• Printing full scenes of favorite themes or characters for children’s parties using full color designs and then cutting cardstock so they look like pop-up books.
• If you have a rustic or farmhouse wedding, use wooden cake toppers with script font names to add style.
• Engraved wood cake toppers are also great for monograms during anniversaries.
• Graduation years and school mascots are fantastic in acrylic.
• Mirrored milestone numbers for retirement or something like a golf club founding date celebration when using acrylic.
• You can blend paper clouds glued to the back of wooden cake toppers, perfect for baby showers or space-themed events.
• Wooden floral frames are fun for rustic celebrations.
• Authorized business logos can look polished when cut or engraved on acrylic.
• Use portraits and layer them into a fun scene with cardstock for a 3D result.

There is a lot of flexibility in how to make cake toppers, especially when you add in the printing and cutting capabilities of something like the xTool M2. Take your time to explore different designs, materials, colors and layer combinations before producing the final creation.

You can also involve other friends or family in the process. This can easily turn into a memorable hobby or profitable side-hustle, even when you start with something smaller like a 2-year-old’s jungle-themed birthday party.

FAQs

What is the best material for making a cake topper?

Cardstock is probably the most beginner-friendly because it is affordable and repeatable in case you have design issues.

How do you make a 3D layered cardstock cake topper?

You can cut separate designs first, then arrange them from the back to the front to add depth or the 3D effect you want. Just be sure to add a sturdy backing before attaching the stick.

How large should a cake topper be?

It really depends on the size of your cake. Most toppers you’ll see are around 5-7 inches wide, but your cake will dictate the final dimensions.

Are wooden and acrylic cake toppers food-safe?

You always want to check the material, finish, adhesive, and surface for food safety. There are also food-safe barriers or protective straws so the material doesn’t actually touch the cake’s surface.

How to make picture cake toppers?

When you’re working with picture or photo-based cake toppers, remove the image background first. Then you can add a contour border for printing and cutting around the outline.

How do you keep a paper cake topper from bending or leaning?

Use heavy cardstock that has reinforced backing. You also may want to run test prints so you can see where to place the stick so it holds the most weight without tipping.