Hi Folks,

I feel like I'm at a crossroads and I need a push in one direction or another. I LOVE creating cakes! It is a passion for me. But I don't know why. I'm just a home decortor, I lose money on every cake because I'm a lousy businesswoman, and depending on which recipe I'm using/trying, my baked cakes are hit or miss. But ever once and while, I nail that cake. I'm talking perfect moistness, perfect flavor and for the most part, very well decorted.

I gave up decorating cakes once, got rid of most my stuff and everything. Never thought I'd do it again, but now, slowly, I'm eeking back into it.

I want to be really great at it. Not to sound arrogant or anything, I just want to put my best foot forward. But I'm not sure what to do from here. I thought about taking the summer to try just about every cake recipe I can get my hands on until I find the no-fail, perfect one. Maybe doing the same thing with frostings and fillings. I was also thinkng about just trying decorating techniques over and over and over again until I perfect those skills.

That's what I want to do, but then I look at it this way. I'll never have my own professional kitchen. I can't afford to buy all the special things I need most of the time and at the end of the day, I'm STILL a lousy businesswoman!!

The worst part of it all is that out of all the people in my life, there's only one person I want to impress more than anyone and that's my best friend. I make her cakes occasionally but she doesn't seem to get too excited about them. Doesn't usually comment on the flavor or design. I never think she's impressed. She told me she wants a birthday cake from a local bakery in town because, "they have the best cakes." Don't get me wrong, she's a wonderful and amazing person, she's my best friend and I adore her and I know she wasn't trying to hurt my feelings, but I allowed it to hurt me and now I'm just trying to figure out should I go forward or just let it all go?

What do you all think?

Your situation reminds me of my husband.

My first love is writing and it always has been. Anyoen who reads my work gives me great feedback, my husband, well...he sucks at it. He doesn't critique he critizes. He has no tack and this makes it so he is the last person to read any of my drafts.

I know I'm good, I have agents and editors wanting to represent me but if left to my husband he believes in my work he's just a Taurus.

I finally had to realize tha though it would be great to have him be like all the other critiquers he is himself and I have to respect that.

In respecting him I've also realized that i need to not put so many expectations on him.

The same goes for you with your best friend. Allow her the ability to pick and choose her cakes without it becoming a "slight" issue with you. You can't force someone to love your cakes. SHe loves you and for that you are fortunate. Be grateful for your friendship and know that everyone has different tastes.

You have a way of making your cakes and each person has a fav taste and such.

If you go into business don't do it for someone else's approval. Do it for you. YOU! YOU! YOU!

If it is your passion, then follow your passion. You don't have to be a businesswoman to be really great at cakes. Buy books, take classes, learn from people here, and practice, practice, PRACTICE! And don't give your best friend the power to tear down your love for cakes. Do it for YOU, not her.

You can do it and maybe you will meet more supportive friends in the pursuit! Good luck!

If you love it, GO FOR IT I read this web site all the time and have learned so much from everyone on it. See if there are any Wilton classes at your local craft stores. That would help build your basics, then just practice. Trying different recipes is always fun. Soon you will develop your own specialties.....don't lose your friend over cake. That would be awful.....good friends are hard to find. You'll impress her eventually, just hang in there and good luck!!

My cake philosophy is "the first one always sucks, all the rest are an improvment!" So just practice, practice, practice.
Take a class in small business administration or buy books and read or borrow them from your library. You can do it, just belive you can and you will!!! Look for your validation from other cake people, they are the ones that understand your passion!!!

I agree with kelleym! If you have a passion for it then do it for yourself and how good it makes YOU feel and STOP trying to impress your best friend. You'll never get past doubting yourself if you continue to do that.

I say take classes, read books, ask questions of others with the same passion, and practice, practice, practice as others have said. You won't get better if you don't spend time practicing. And you can get GREAT if you don't get better by practicing.

if you love doing it, its worth it! im doing right now what you are thinking about. i've searched through tons of books, and compiled lists of recipes for all different cake flavors. now im systematically testing them out to find out which ones are winners for me. i've found my fav white, yellow, and choc cake already, so i think you can find yours this summer.

its always disappointing when someone you care about doesn't get the cake deco thing. my sisters appreciate what i do, but they too don't really get that its important to me, and their opinions on what i do matter. just keep trying, and turn to CC for the encouragement, and compliments you crave!

btw, i looked at your shoe box photo, that cake rocks! and its a fav to like 12 people. you've got the talent, so don't give up. and post more pics!

beccakelly, I've been doing the same thing. I'm working up my basic recipes for white, choc, yellow (still working on that one) and hopefull a great strawberry cake (soon I hope) to offer to clients. i don't want to do the "you name it I'll bake it" thing because i don't always have the time to try something out and know how good it is. I only want my name attached to something great tasting, as well as great to look at as I can get it.

You all have been soooooooooooooo encouraging to me!! Thank you all for your support!!

I see so much advice I can take from here! I think I will go ahead and work on perfecting the recipes and techniques. I don't know about you all but my most favorite cake to do is the one that someone DIDN'T order! I mean, then it's all my creation and I'm not trying to copy a picture of someone else's work (I hate those orders!) and I can do it at my leisure and if it turns out terrible, I don't have to worry about any criticism!!

About the business end, that's gonna be an uphill battle for me. I hate charging people what the cake is worth because I've heard comments over and over in the past about "I can't believe you want that much for a cake.....it's just a cake, they're half that at such & such a store." I'm super duper sensitive and don't like to make people feel bad! When I did my first wedding cake, not knowing what I was getting myself into, I told the girl I'd do it for $50.00. Next thing I knew, her idea was growing and growing and so was my supply list and I ended up spending more than $300 on ingredients and supplies, but felt like I owed it to her to stick to the price I quoted her. UGH!! That was AWFUL!!! Like I said, I fully admit, I'm a LOUSY businesswomen! I just want to make cake! I just need to find someone to run the business end of it, (and not my hubby! He'd drive me crazy!! )

I would like to say to MamaBerry, thank you for sharing your personal experience with your writing. Your advice was beautiful and touching! You are right, my best friend does not have to love my cakes, I'm just glad she loves me! I'm going to go ahead and start getting her cakes at the bakery in town that she loves so much. I think it's the right thing to do, I see that now. Thanks for your advice.

Someone asked me to post some more of my pics so I'm going to do that right now. Thanks for looking!

You all have a blessed day and you'll be hearing from me a lot! I love CC!!!

I can promise you one thing, any time a potential client says THAT to ME then going to wherever they can get it CHEAPER is just exactly what I will suggest they do. And that's where the conversation will end. I'm not going to bargain with anyone to sell my cakes. This isn't my livlihood, so I don't have to put up with that crap.

I'm sure this appeared on the site not so long ago but I thought it was so helpful in this situation. When you are asked to make a cake ask what their budget is for this. You can advise what you can do for that sort of money so that at least you don't end up out of pocket.

I love doing cakes too. When I first started my sister would put down my cakes or tell me they didn't taste that good. Back then I hated it and it hurt my feelings too.

Now I'm thankful because she really was the only really honest one. Now she is the one who tells everyone how great my cakes are and how they are the best tasting ones.

By her being like she was I was able to get better. So while you don't need to have your friend love your cakes she may be doing you a favor by not going all ga ga over them. But once she does.......well then you know you hit the nail on the head and found the way to make a really great cake.

I say talk to your friend and find out what makes that bakery cake so great! Tell her you want to be like that also and get her help. Use her to try out your cakes. Just try not to get upset if she is honest with you.

Your shoe box cake is great. I have a feeling you are better then you think you are. You sound like me. I put everyone of my cakes down.

You don't have to open a business to do cake decorating. Do it for the hobby, for fun, for the love of it. Not everyone here sells their cakes. In fact I think most people don't.

If you do charge someone and don't want to charge them the price the cake should be then just have them pay you for the cost of what the cake was to make it. Use those cakes as practice.

I really don't think everyone can become that GREAT decorator. I know I won't be. But I do think I've gotten better and have had fun making every cake. Even those that gave me a headache doing them.

Don't give up on something you love though just because you may never make a business out of it.

Very good advice JoanneK.