Over The Hill Birthday Cakes

photo of an over the hill cake for a 40th birthday party

Over the hill birthday cakes sure can be funny BUT...do yourself a favor and be sure the guest of honor has a sense of humor. We assume you do want to be on speaking terms when the party's over. As we've said before, anything that might mortify the guest of honor is a birthday party no-no.

How Many Ways Can You Say "Hey, You're Old!"

Most of the over the hill cakes we've seen fall into one of two categories: the cemetery cake (tombstone, grave, grim reaper), or a cake that looks like a hill or that has a picture of a hill on it. While these cakes can be cleverly done, we have one piece of advice for you. Choose wisely. Please, please don't put a picture of the grim reaper or a tombstone or a freshly dug grave on a cake for a 70 or 80 year old. Simply not funny!

The Sure-Fire Way to Get Your Cake Noticed

Personalize it! Just as with any other kind of theme cake, the memorable over the hill cakes are the ones that get a little personal. Now, we're not saying you should attempt to embarrass the heck out of your beloved guest of honor. But adding that personal touch to your over the hill cake will make your guest of honor feel appreciated (and it's always nice to feel appreciated while people are making fun of you!), and they'll all remember the cake long after the party's over. Win-win!

Ideas for Personalizing Over The Hill Cakes

Imagine you're going to draw a caricature of the guest of honor —only instead of his/her face as the focal point, think about his/her personality instead. For example, is there a hobby, interest, vacation spot, job, car, or pet he/she is obsessed with? Something funny she/he is known for saying or doing? Is there anything (a misadventure, a faux pas, a favorite color or item of clothing) that you and others always associate with him/her?

If you're still stuck for ideas, look through our photo gallery for inspiration.

If you have any questions about the decorating materials used in these photos, shoot us an e-mail via our contact form and we'll try to help you out.

Click on the thumbnails below to see a larger version of the photo.