How Long Before Delivering a Large Order Do You Decorate to Maintain Freshness?

Thanks for bringing up this topic... I was wondering the same thing as I do just before delivery as well....

First, you must know your baking times, decorating times for that cookies you will bake.  I  check weather too, it could make me to bake a few days early if it will be humid.  According to your cookie dough and design, and the number of cookies.   The packing time count too.

1.- Dough preparation day (plus the freezer recomendatinons of your récipe.

2.- How many cookies can you bake per day. (maybe you must calculate here more freezer time according your récipe)

3.- How many time you use per cookie, and how many hours can you spend for that.

4.- According your place and weather how much time your cookies need to dry complety.

4.- How much time you need to pack them?.  If you must print special labels, special bows.

Always take   contingency time, for example if you accidentaly burn some cookies (you will need prepare dough), or if cookies are takeing more time to dry, or you have a home emergency.

For example, I know that 200 snowman are baked in my oven (home) and my slowhandin 1or 2 days.  I use 1 day to contour and fill the snowmen. At night they are probably dry to put hats, dress or scarf, face, nose.  I let it dry.   If I must add more details it take me more time.  But that are my times, because it's my hand, you can use less time or more.  You must learn to know yourself.

As Mily said, you would know best (or should be able to figure out) how long it will take you to decorate that amount of cookies, because everyone is different in this regard and intricacy of design will figure in, too. What I think you are asking is if your iced and pre-iced cookies will stay fresh enough once you add in the additional days that your job will require you to be out of town. My thought would be to ask you if you have ever frozen your baked cookies prior to icing them, and if they are up to your standards after defrosting them and icing them. If that's an option, at least you can bake all your cookies ahead of time and only have to worry about getting them decorated "on time." I think that if you defrost, decorate, dry and seal them airtight, they should stay fresh for at least a week or so, which--if I'm reading you correctly--should give you at least four or five days to complete your decorating task.

I would first decorate and wrap the 60 take-aways and put them (wrapped) into airtight containers. I'd do the 100 platter cookies last and put them into airtight containers, plating them on the day of delivery. 

Personally, I did a bridal shower this past August (unpaid for my niece) and had to have the cookies done in order to travel on Tuesday for a Saturday event. I carried them in Food Network cupcake takers, which make a pretty good seal, and they were great at the party--the hit of the dessert table! People raved, and no one complained they were stale. In fact, many of the guests asked if I could bake for their upcoming events.

I think you should be okay! Good luck!!

Thanks Mily! Yeah I know much of it has to do with my speed if I could get them all ready to go in the two days time this may not be an issue! I will have to get better about timing myself so I can get it exact- I'm still pretty new at this

Thank you CT Cookie for the advice! I will definitely think about getting those take away ones wrapped and ready first- that makes a lot of sense and it's great to know your cookies were still great at your party situation - I travel a lot with my cookies - I will definitely have to take a look at those FN carriers you mentioned. 

Thanks so much again for your advice!!!