I am in New York State and am not allowed to have a home based business in by town. My parents live 15 minutes from me in Mass and have generously offered to let me open a business in their home ( it is allowed, and for a minimal fee and a few forms I can have a legit business)
With a legit business I could advertise and maybe really make a living at what I love to do. I already spend a lot of time over there and it would be a lot of fun to have my mom as my assistant They have a gorgeous and VERY well eqipped kitchen by the way!
I need to decide whether or not to attempt this venture.... I would love it if some of you couold look at my photos (this is only a sampling of some of my work) and let me know you opinions of my work PLEASE BE BRUTALLY HONEST!!!!Do you think that I could make a go of it?? I value all of your wonderful opinions.
I am overwhelmed by the generosity of my parents' offer and really want to make an informed decision.

Thank you for your time.
MN

oh my yes! your cakes are wonderfull. if it is your passion then go for it!

Your cakes are wonderful! Only wish my work could compare with yours!
Go for it!!!

I say go for it. Give it a try. Your cakes are wonderful.

Best of luck.

are you nuts? of course you can make your passion for living you have a talent and if you can do it just go for it. if you do work on your dreams ho will for you?. just don't be too hard on your sefl remember that experience and perfection is someting that comes with time.... good luck and please let us know of your progress.

Marcia

What a great opportunity...and your mom as an assistant too!!! Your cakes are beautiful! I would definatly go for it!! Best Wishes!
Jacqui

I say go for it!

Heck yeah! Your cakes are great. I hope you decide to do it. This is a great opportunity to do something you love. Good luck.

Your more than ready go for it.

Go for it!!!!!

Your cakes are gorgeous. Get busy and start that business.

Your cakes are beautiful... go for it!

I say go for it! Really, for a few fees and paperwork, what do you have to loose? A lot of places it cost A WHOLE LOT MORE than that to start a business!! most states won't allow you to cook out of a your home kitchen...you have to have a seperate commercial kitchen.
good luck!

plus, your cakes are great!

melody

Are you kidding? Your cakes are awesome! Go for it! And good luck!

Your cakes are professional quality. I would say go for it!

It may take awhile to build up to fulltime but you are fortunate that you are able to use a homebased kitchen that is in close proximity to you and the support of family!

You have GOT to do it. it sounds like a perfect opportunity that has just fell in your lap. sounds like the paper work and fees are minimal you could probably recoup that quickly. get some business cards off the net (i think i got mine off iprint $20 for 150) look for cheap ways to advertise and just jump in. i think your cakes look great. good luck and keep us posted.

Thank you all for your words of encouragement. It really means a lot. I didn't post this thread to stroke my ego, I really wanted to get honest opinions about my work. So many of you are REALLY talented and the cakes you do amaze me! The idea of this possibility has rreally got me excited! Having the support of family is the best!! My mom is the one who got me started in the whole cake decorating thing when I was a little girl- she gave it up MANY years ago, but said she is willing to help with the baking- just not the decorating- she is an avid quilter now and said she'd leave the frosting up to me! I'll just have to keep dad away from the products! (He's one of my biggest supporters!!)
Thanks again and I'll keep you posted on the progress!
MN

YOU CAN DO IT! That would be a great opportunity. Ask Mama if I can come too!!! I had your lattice cake saved in my favorites when you first posted it, and I am dying to try it out for someone. There is nothing to lose! I cant do that here without a seperate kitchen, and I am only doing one or two orders a month. Not enough to pay for all new appliances a seperate room and bath! One Day though, one day. Thanks now I am drifting away!!! Good luck!

You asked for brutal honesty, so here goes. I think that your cakes overall are fine, however I see where your work needs some refining. On some of your cakes your borders look rushed and inconsistent. If you start at the back of the cake and work your way around when you come to the end you will not see where you tried to fit it in. Your icing could be smoother. I think that maybe taking a little more time to perfect your work will help. Your roses need to be crisper, they look flat. Maybe you need to stiffen your icing more to get that nice look. I see that you have the general idea down, now it just perfecting your work. Check out the competition in the area, to see what you are up against. If you have the opportunity to work at your mothers you at least will not have to incur the expenses of a building and all that goes with it. I wish you luck in your endeavors.

I agree with cupcake, check your competition and make sure that you're not doing run of the mill, supermarket looking stuff...

Some of your cakes are very interesting like the Yankee one..But most of the rest don't excite me.

( sowwy, please don't be hurt!!!!)

I know that you're probably a beginner, so they ARE very nice for that level, NOW....

you need to STEP IT UP a notch, because actually, nothing that you have posted is something that a VERY avid COURSE 1 WILTON METHOD student couldn't do.

See what kind of gap there is in your area and try to fill it, find your niche.

Be true to your passion!

I'd say go for it, and since your mom is helping you and you have access to a great kitchen, get some cake decorating books for inspiration! Don't be afraid to talk your customers into letting you do something extra because you want to practice or get a photo!!!

Overall your cakes are really good but remember the character cakes you cannot sell without permission. Character pans are really for home use but I know there are people out there that sell them. Of course that is copyright infringement and they could sue because they are not getting their royalties. Look at the cakes here in the galleries and like risque says try to fill a niche. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

.. u have an AMAZING opportunity.. take it.. if u dont u will ALWAYS wonder.. this may be a AWESOME thing for u..

i would do it in a heartbeat

Thanks for your honesty cupcake, risque business and sundine2- it's what I needed to hear- I have actually looked at many more photos on this site and elsewhere and realize that I really don't have the level of talent needed to persue a business. I think I'm just going to forget the whole idea and stick to doing cakes for family and friends and if a few bucks get thrown my way, then so be it. If not, I'll let it be a hobby.

I gotta say that I've looked through your photos and you have great potential....I don't agree that everything has to be perfect on the cake...to me they look very neat and clean and well thought out. I started selling decorated cakes because i loved doing it and people were excitedd to get something other than typical sheet cakess....are they perfect? no! In fact I just did a baby shower for my friend that was anything but perfect, but they went crazy over it. My blocks could have been more square...the bear could have been cuter...the icing smoother...but they didn't see that...all they saw was a cute cake & i got a few orders from it.

And just like RB said...her heart wasn't the greatest, but other people liked it and thats all that matters.

I honestly think you should go for this opportunity....you definitely will keep getting better with each cake & doing it out of your paren't house is a good low risk start.

Your cakes look a hell of a lot better then mine. I think you should go for it! You have the oppertunity not many people are given and I think you should take it. If it was that easy for me to get stuff straight I would jump on it even though I haven't even taken the courses yet. I honestly think you should go for it. If you are changing your mind because of the honest opinions hun they are just opinions and you asked for it so here is mine... People pay for quality and taste. As long as it looks good and tastes good it's worth what ever you charge for it. Now you don't need to perfect everything over night work on it slowly buy at the same time start your business and get more clients!!!!! Good luck hun and don't give up!

Do it.

Here's the thing: other cake decorators may feel the need to point out flaws or reasons that you shouldn't do this. However, your clients will not be other cake decorators, who can be very particular about technique/design (not that yours isn't good, because it is in my opinion).

Your clients will be people who can't do this themselves. Cakes for parties are not the same as cakes for competition and shows. Yours are wonderful, and as long as you remember not to use the licenced items, I think your product will be very much in demand.

You are a good decorator. Go for it.

(edited to correct a misspelled word)

I am definitely not changing my mind because of the honest opinions. I wouldn't have asked for them if that was the case. They just told me what I already knew but needed to hear from an objective source.(and they REALLY were appreciated) I am self taught and know that I could improve with classes,etc. I just haven't been able to fit any in. I know that my cakes are very tasty and mom's at school, friends, etc all love them. I just don't think that I have what it takes to start a business. I value all of the opinions/insights,etc that I have recieved from CC members.
RisqueBusiness... I am a cardiac nurse and think that the heart cake, while gross looking, is great!

I'm not an pro decorator by any means, just look at my photos to prove it! I just became legal a few days ago to sell cakes. I'm focusing on good tasting cakes and the unique flavors, mousses and cheesecakes etc. I will do decorated cakes too but I want to market the gourmet cakes until I can make more progress in my decorating techniques. I still say go for it! Give it a go! I love a good decorated cake but one that tastes fabulous always gets my vote!