Divorce, it seems, has turned into a party - special cakes and all.

Event planners, bakers, lawyers and academics have noted the rise of "divorce parties" over the last few years, many with cakes featuring weapon-wielding brides or gloomy black frosting on inverted tiers.

"I've taken to naming them freedom fests, as you aren't celebrating the end of the marriage but the freedom you have chosen in your life," said Richard O'Malley, a New York-area event planner who organised one divorce party that cost a woman about $25,000.