British mothers join US craze for party cakes that reveal baby's sex

Rarely can a cake have played such a central role at a party. Wrapped in multicoloured icing, the first slice was cut to reveal – in pink sponge – the sex of Michelle Whitney's baby. With all her family and friends gathered around, the pregnant 27-year-old was leading a new trend in the UK that has swept over from the US – a party where the sex of the baby is revealed. Hot on the heels of that other American import, the baby shower, mothers-to-be are picking up on the newest way to celebrate parenthood and tell their loved ones the sex of their babies. A cake is made with the secret sealed inside in the colour of the sponge: pink for a girl or blue for a boy. "My cousin, who has been my bridesmaid, was leaving for New Zealand and I really wanted her to know what I was having before she went," said Whitney. "I hate baby showers because I didn't want people giving presents to a baby before it's born; it's unlucky and tacky. Then I saw all these videos on YouTube of women cutting open gender-revealing cakes in America and I thought it was a great idea." YouTube hosts tens of thousands of videos of such parties. But unlike Whitney, who kept the secret of her baby's sex from everyone except the cake-maker until the party, in the US women are having the technicians who conducted the scan seal a note of the baby's sex in an envelope, which is then given to the baker without the parents seeing, so that everyone gets the same surprise when the cake is cut. "That was too much for me," said Whitney. "There was no way I wasn't going to be the very first to know." Baker Lisa Finnigan runs Pretty Princess Cakes and Cupcakes in Cheshire. After it provided Michelle's cake, hers is now one of a growing number of UK cake shops catering for the trend, with the special cakes pictured among the wedding and birthday confectionery on her website. "People are just slowly catching on around here. I haven't had anyone who has done the sealed envelope from the doctor yet, but nothing surprises me any more about what people ask for. It's been fun to do it, though. One couple did it because they both had children from previous relationships and they wanted those children to be involved in the new baby, so they did it for them. Having a big family party and the cake was really nice. I do get why they did it." Aside from the pink and blue, she doubts that many UK parents will go for some of the types of cakes available in the US. One reading in icing "Am I a superhero in blue or a Pretty Princess in pink?" is popular, while guests are often asked to come dressed for their preferred result – "team blue" for a boy or "team pink" for a girl, although it's probably best if the parents remain neutral to avoid awkward confrontations in future with their offspring. Bloggers have been going social media mad with it, holding parties that can be followed on Twitter with sex-revealing hashtags. One Boston parenting blogger enthused: "One of my favourite ideas for 'gender-reveal' parties is definitely the food ideas." She suggested serving "mum's cravings" for the snacks. "I loved this idea. Regardless of the food, it seems like so much fun." Happily for her partygoers, it was chocolate-covered marshmallows, but perhaps not so great if the lady in question went through her pregnancy nibbling on chalk and anchovies. "Baby 'gender-reveal' parties are so different from a baby shower, which is usually for the ladies only. Husbands can be involved, which makes it really more interesting," enthuses one website. Blogs and magazines have labelled the parties anything from "narcissistic" to "cute". "When will smug mothers-to-be realise that no one but them really cares too much," said one Essex contributor to a discussion on a UK parenting website, where a poll found most mothers in favour. But while in the past the first question a pregnant woman used to be asked was, "When is it due?", now it's as likely to be "Is it a boy or girl?" as an estimated 60% of parents choose to know the sex of their babies before they are born. Advances in digital technology have made the 20-week scan picture so clear that most couples who don't want to know might have to be advised to look away by their sonograph technicians.