Ok so i posted a pic of a cute Turtle in my gallery. Dh says I totally undercharged for this cake. It was made from a wondermold (not sure how many that serves) probably 12-15??? All fondant covered and decorated. White cake with Rasp buttercream torted 3 times. I charged $35.00. looking for a ball park figure, understanding that prices range due to location. TIA, Lisa

You undercharged..... sorry, that cake is a beauty and should have gotten $50 - at least. Good God, it looks just like a Debbie Brown cake!

You are lucky to have a husband who sees how valuable your work is! My ex-husband would have looked at it and said "Do you really think someone will pay $20 for that ?"

It's really cute, I don't know exactly what I would have charged but I agree with your husband.

spotty--$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$35.00-------that's all oh heck i'm on the next plane out to kick some butt

glad he's an ex- -----jerk

I agree with all the above!! That is THE cutest turtle I've ever seen! Take pride in your work, woman!!

thanks everyone.....DH is laughing it up now that he was "right". I guess I will know better next time.

I charge 50$ for sculped cakes. Like the big foot truck in my photos. And the customers never argued on the price, and was very pleased with results.

My sculptures are about $5 per serving. Your turtle is so adorable it is worth much more than $35!

Deanna

Yep, he was right....BUT, I have to add that ALL of your cakes on your photo page are FANTASTICALLY BEAUTIFUL!!! >^.,.^<

I agree that you undercharged, but l do the same thing all the time. I am conditioned that most people don't have a clue what kind of time goes into a cake and when you are trying to build your business you take whatever you can get...Gosh, I need to stop that!!! Maybe we should start a 12 step program for decorators who undercharge! I'll go first...

Hello...my name is Michelle and I never charge what my cakes are worth... (LOL!!!)

Michelle you are absolutely right! I am at fault also thinking no one has a clue how much time goes into it. Ya know what I will just Ditto everthing you said.
hello...Myname is Lisa and I ALSO never charge what my cakes are worth.

Thankyou everyone.....(even though Dh was right)LOL I take it all as a compliment

my name is Melissa& I do not charge what my cakes are worth.......(although I am getting better)hahahah

Hi, My name is Kitti and I too don't charge what my cakes are worth!!

LOL!!! Spotty - DH tells me the same thing all the time!! I just don't think people would pay those prices in my area. I'm trying to stick to my guns and make fondant, sculpted cakes at least $3 per sreving.

BTW, that is the cutest turtle I have ever seen!! Excellent work!

thanks.....i think Michelle just started a 12 step program...LOL

I hate to be the "different" one, but I think $35 was a fair price given the small number of servings. I charge only $23 for a doll cake a (wonder mold pan) ... and that includes the pick that costs me $3.00! I do realize you added a head and feet and you covered it in fondant. I still think $35 is enough.

i'm just wondering--how do we determine what's fair with the time we put into one versus the number of servings

i kinda asked a question like this recently about pricing my own cakes--

from the outside looking in--a customer may not see the difference--but i did --when i did the light green w/pink daisies versus the pale yellow w/daises--of course it cost to buy fresh BUT DANG THE TIME it took to do the MMF ones too

anyone??

that's an excellent way to think about it--thanks

That turtle is just adorable - looks just like the precious moments turtle!

While keeping in mind the going rate in your own area, I think decorators also need to keep in mind how many hours they spend on a cake. We should be sure that we are getting paid a fair rate per hour for our custom work. Every other business does this ie labor charges for plumbers, contractors, etc. How much is your time worth per hour?

Just some food for thought...

Ann Marie

Hi Spottydog,

I think $50 would have been a fair price for the turtle. We live in one of the most expensive areas of the country, and the bakeries around here would think nothing of charging $100+ for a 3-D cake like that. You do beautiful work and should charge accordingly.

Lauren

I too live in an expensive 'area' compared to ANYWHERE in the US, and that cake would not have come for anything less than $50-$60 from me!

Well I'm of 2 minds as the baker I agree it is worth more but as a customer I think $35 is fair considering how many it feeds. I also do quilting and will not do it for pay as I would never get what it is worth in terms of creation and work so I only do them for special people as gifts. I find it is always that way with any craft that is done with care and love you rarely get the full value as far as money goes. Of course being in montreal yr $35 usd is about $40 cdn lol

I don't think that when you have a smaller cake (smaller servings) that you can charge in the same way. It takes me only a few minutes longer to decorate a 10in versus an 8in cake. I feel that the smaller cakes should in that respect cost more per serving than larger cakes.

Many businesses have minimum orders for this very reason. It takes a certain amount of time just to make batter, get the oven going, make icing and the like and making more doesn't mean a proportional amount of "more" time.

I think $35 would be on the low end for a buttercream decorated turtle. Take into account the amount of time to make and mold fondant and you have to push your price up. Of course it all comes down to what you want out of it. Are you in business to make enough money to support yourself or just make enough to support you hobby? Do you love making cakes so much that you'd rather charge less just to make yourself and others happy? Are you looking to gain experience and build up your reputation? These are all things that go into pricing your cakes.

I feel that many of us way undercharge. Next time you make a $35 cake why not clock yourself and then take out how much your ingredients and other things cost and that find out how much you made per hour! How much is your time worth? Was it "you" time or were you taking time away from your family? Was it "business" time or "pleasure" time? When you see how much you actually make per hour, you may feel differently about it!

Good point koolaidstains I would love to clock myself. I am ALWAYS trying to figure the time aspect but it is so hard doing this at home with a 2 year old...LOL. Someday I'll keep track of each cake. I always run into the problem of working on 2 cakes at a time. So it's so hard to figure separatly

Business or pleasure is the key. We are mostly all mothers, and none of us get paid for that! But being mothers for most of us is the most rewarding thing we do in life. Second most rewarding to me is getting praise for my beautiful cakes made more for the love of the art than the money.