so, I found a cake on CS that I said thatwant to make, of course in my own design.. Here is a link to the cake.. http://cakecentral.com/gallery/2052120
Im suppose to be making this for a friend of the family. I told told her that I would give her a good price on the cake but when she she is only budgeting $40-$50 for the cake Im thinking... you have got to be kidding me..
First of all it will most likely take me a day to make it and second its a lot of time and work..
I dont have a "business" so I have been making cakes for family basicly for free and for friends, only asking that they pay cost...
Getting to my question.... What would you charge for this cake and what do you think that actual cost may be to make it?
Thanks for your comments!!
since you are asking that they pay cost, i would give her a list of the items you need and have her go out an buy them. maybe then she'll see that these things are not cheap. i mean butter alone.. hello!! lol but i really think u need to write out everything you need and look up the prices.
I think giving her a shopping list is the perfect way to show your friend just how expensive it is to produce a cake like that. If you choose to donate your labor that's up to you.
People who don't bake like we do have NO idea how much it costs. Giving her a list of ingredients/supplies will be a HUGE wake up call for her.
Good luck!
Oh...I can't tell the size of the round tier but my fondant cakes are $4.50 a serving and than the "tower" would be an additional $45 to $50 depending on how tall I made it. I'd probably use RKT as the original maker did.
I think giving her a shopping list is the perfect way to show your friend just how expensive it is to produce a cake like that. If you choose to donate your labor that's up to you.
People who don't bake like we do have NO idea how much it costs. Giving her a list of ingredients/supplies will be a HUGE wake up call for her.
Good luck!
Oh...I can't tell the size of the round tier but my fondant cakes are $4.50 a serving and than the "tower" would be an additional $45 to $50 depending on how tall I made it. I'd probably use RKT as the original maker did.
I completely agree!! It's cost me $100 so far just in ingredients to make a 2 tier cake (10" & 8")..and that's just the ingredients for the cake. Not the fondant, gumpaste, cake boards, etc. My sister better appreciate this! lol
The only grocery store I have around me is pretty expensive so I try to stay on the cheaper side of ingredients, but sometimes you just can't do that.
I have to agree with everyone else that putting together a shopping list for her would be the best idea. GL
I agree, a shopping list (or shopping trip together) is the best way to go. I'm doing a cake for a friend in a week or so and she knows fully well, what kind of expense my cakes are, so she's buying all the ingredients and bringing them to me and then paying me a little extra for my utilities and hidden cost type things (paper towels, use of y pans, etc.)
Oh and I just did a Tangled Tower and spent a week's worth of nap time and bedtimes (my children are young and don't understand the concept of "mommy's busy") to complete the cake. My cost was about $100, but I buy things in bulk and on sale to save as much as possible, oh and I make my fondant which helps.
JS605, I must say if you make this cake for $40-50 you are a better friend than I would be!
You will be lucky to get your basic supplies for that amount let alone the supports, boards, box, eggs, oil, flour, flavourings, fondant and then there is the time you put into it, your hydro, water, cleaning supplies etc.
If a grocery store can charge $40 for a 1/4 slab with a half-ass border and a rose why would you waste your time to make a one of a kind creation? People 'act' like they don't know the cost but they do to an extent. They know how much it would cost to get a boring old cake at the grocery store so they would HAVE to know it will be more getting a custom piece!
You and your talent are worth more than $40!
C
I have made one of these Tangled tower cakes for a friend of a friend and let me tell you, the amount of money and TIME I put into it, was not worth what she gave me for it. Like you, I asked that she pay for the supplies but this by far took me so much longer to make than any other cake I have made. I wished I had asked for more and I swore I wasen't going to make another one of those any time soon.
Good luck and post pictures when you are done! 
I have made one of these Tangled tower cakes for a friend of a friend and let me tell you, the amount of money and TIME I put into it, was not worth what she gave me for it. Like you, I asked that she pay for the supplies but this by far took me so much longer to make than any other cake I have made. I wished I had asked for more and I swore I wasen't going to make another one of those any time soon.
Good luck and post pictures when you are done!
Me too! Mine was fun to make because it was for my granddaughter but if I had to make it again I'd charge $175.00
I think people pretend to not know the cost of cake ingredients, if friends/family members have ever gone shopping then they know that even junk food is hugely expensive, start charging for your cakes even at a discounted rate, good luck to you.
I really don't think people know how much it costs to do a cake. There are cakers that don't even know how much it really costs them to do a cake. We see it all the time, and not to pick on her, but even OP is asking what we think the actual cost to make this cake would be.
I had a student that asked me about pricing, I sent her the link to the thread I typically include in a pricing question thread. We talked and she went with a really low price for the cake. Her business, she had to charge what she felt comfortable with. I did ask her to do one thing, which was write done everything she used and spent on the cake, and mark down any time she was working on the cake. It was an eye opener for her.
People think cake and think oh cake mix or flour, sugar and eggs. There is so many more things involved in it. From the batter, to the icing, to the boards, supports, and all the other little supplies that you use for a cake.
I really don't blame the general public for not having a clue how much a cake costs. They don't have all the information to factor in. They walk by the cakes at the grocery store and see cheap prices. That's where they get their information from.
For me, the base cake, assuming it was a 8in covered in fondant would be over double what she wanted to spend on the whole cake. And really with that design, that bottom cake is probably more than an 8in. As for as the tower, I haven't worked with rice crispie treats myself. But that wouldn't come cheap either.
[quote="JS605"]so, I found a cake on CS that I said thatwant to make quote]
First, yes, give her the shopping list and be brand specific.
Second, you're irritated with your friend but are you the one who volunteered to make this particular cake as you stated? If so, then don't be mad at your friend.
Having her pick up the ingredients and then letting her know how long it takes you to complete this will be an eye-opener for her and more importantly for you, as well.
so, I found a cake on CS that I said thatwant to make, of course in my own design.. Here is a link to the cake.. http://cakecentral.com/gallery/2052120
Im suppose to be making this for a friend of the family. I told told her that I would give her a good price on the cake but when she she is only budgeting $40-$50 for the cake...
Thanks for your comments!!
From what I read, and please correct me if I'm wrong, it seems the idea for the design came from you rather than your friend and after the fact she told you what her budget is for the cake. I understand your frustration, but if I read this right, your friend is not being a bad friend here. If she had said here's a cake I want you to make and it's all elaborate but I'll only give you $40-50 then that's not right. But if you volunteered to do the cake, came up with the design you'd like to make and presented it to her and then afterwards asked her what her budget was and she told you, then she's not in the wrong. She may not have had high expectations for a cake to begin with and when you offered as a friend... I'd just hate to see a friendship go awry because of different perspectives and expectations that were simply not communicated in the right way or at the right time.
That's why when a friend asks me to make a cake for them, my VERY FIRST QUESTION is "What's your budget?". That way I know from the start how to direct the conversation.
At this point, just politely back out and say you hadn't realized what her budget was and because it doesn't work with that particular Tangled design, you'll have to either come up with something more appropriate or maybe you shouldn't do it so there are no hard feelings. Just take into account the sequence of events and apportion fault appropriately before you decide what to do.
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