Wait wait wait--let me get this straight I wanna be sure to check my understanding and get a good grip on the reality and the sharing here.

If I have a one thousand dollar minimum like Duff, do you mean that people won't buy my cakes or the op's?? Please please help me out here. Why not.

Omg omg

I definitely think the cake was more than $20. I think you may have opened a can of worms with this amount. How many other people or going to want a similar cake for this same price? Why should customers go to Walmart if they can come to you and get something better, but cheaper.

Kate, I only said it once.

And everyone else-Just because I enter a thread doesn't mean it has to turn nasty. See my Avatar.

I agree with Kate all the way!

Stop selling now. Take a class or two. Practice on some dummies. Do not be the chick down the street that I want to beat the holy hell out of for pimping herself out for a cake order and stealing money from me. Yes, stealing.

Professional biz, versus underselling, unsure of herself hobby cake chick. There...taking the focus off the other blabber going back and forth.

Putting on my bulletproof jacket now.

Because dear Debi, sometimes folks in here are targeted not for what they say....but just who they are. Sad, huh? If not in the case, my apologies, but in general, quite true. Just as on the other side of the coin, some other people can get away with saying things 90% of the rest of us would get toe-tul-ly slammed for.

Thanks Deb and Lurvely and LaBellaFlor! Good to see some brain cells on here this morning!

Good morning Rylan! How are you?

I think your cake is worth more than $20. I also like it. The one thing I've found out about people is they will pay for what they want. I also learned a looong time ago not to judge another person's pocket book. My aunt taught me that when I was selling jewelry and I thought she couldn't afford what I was selling. I was shocked when she bought about $300 worth of jewelry and paid me cash on the spot. She told me "you don't know what I have" and I guess that was true.

Also as far as cakes go, sometime I may not want to do a cake for someone but don't want to flat-out say no, so I will give a higher price for the cake, and when they say ok I just say "damn" lol. The cake that I have posted I didnt think it was all that good, did the top as frozen buttercream transfer, told customer would only charge $30 they liked it so much they gave me $40.

So don't cheat yourself. Keep caking and practicing, we all get better with practice. Once you set your price, let your price be your price. Good luck with your business.

If you want to charge $20 for your cake then that's up to you. It becomes a diffrent story when you come on CC and ask other bakers (some of which do this for a living not a hobby like myself) how much a cake is worth.

I dont add in my gas, electricity, counter space. I take what it cost me to make a cake then I try and figure out how long it will take and times that by how much I think I'm worth an hour and then I have my selling price. Some people will say "Oh, that's all?", and other's will say "That's to much I was thinking of only spending $20."

I would have charged more than $20 for that cake, but that is just me. I recently started to tell my customers my 2 tiered cakes start $50 and then go up from there. I dont get into serving's all that much..only if I dont want to do a cake and I want a way higher price. I know, I know.... I can hear the comments... Oh well, that's just me.

I dont compare myself with Wal-Mart and neither should you. Why? Beacause Wal-Mart DOESN'T offer tiered custom cakes like the one you made. This might be an over statement, but here goes...Wal-Mart has a set design on their cakes. I used to order my kids cakes from there and I HATED it! It was the same damn design every stinkin year. I got tired of it.

With that said...that is why poeple will come to you! Because there tired of the same ole thing at Wal-Mart, HEB, and all the other chain bakeries.

Read between the lines. Some one might come off being rude or mean in there posts but every one here is really coming from a good place. Well most of us anyway.

I do this as a hobby as well so I don't usually charge for my time which I am slowly starting to turn around. My pricing starts at the very least $45 that is if I like the person I am doing the cake for!
HOWEVER...the minimum I charge is based on ingredients... the "fancier" the ingredients up the price goes or if they want a cheaper cake they can make it themselves!

Amazingly, you haven't need the bullet proof vest yet Jamie!

LOL OfficerMorgan to the rescue <cue the super hero theme song>

I'm with LURVELY (shocking)... selling that cake for $20 should be a crime. Go to jail.. do not pass go.. do not collect $200.00.

And I also fail to see where OfficerMorgan was insulting the OP... but that's me.

Fromscartch-I love your peony in your Avatar. Beautiful!

Awwww Jeanne, I've missed you!

Had I not read the Officer's remarks yesterday I would not have responded thusly. But I did read them and I do stand by my comment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To me our op's got enough of a problem with the pricing.
One thing at a time yes?
She didn't ask for a critique on her work either that I saw.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kim I think your cake rocks. For short notice on top of that?
Rocks even more. My daughter would correct me & say,
"Mom it rocks harder." Whatever--I think it's adorable.

And yes for goodness sake take everyone's advice on the money thing. But hold your head up high, very high that's a great cake.
Good solid workmanship.
Nice artwork --wonderful attention to detail.

Wellllll good morning sunshines!!

I went to bed expecting to wake to a wave of hysteria directed at the Aussies!!

Thanks for a good read!! I was expecting to hear HOW the $20 was calculated though

afternoon funnies anyone...?

It looks like the OP has run away and left everybody else to fight it out.

Have I really been a member of this website for 2 years?!?!?!?!

Wow...You know, I'm simply amazed at the responses the experts/professionals/long time cakers give to those of us who are starting out on shaky legs trying to compete with those who came before. I have read a few of these threads, b/c I would LOVE to know what others are charging. I know that there's a per slice charge (that's been hammered into my brain, thanks), but since I'm starting out, I wouldn't even DARE to charge what the pros charge. I would charge what I think I am worth, AT THE TIME. I mean seriously, $4-$6 a slice for something that looks frankly juvenile is an insult to the customer. And lemme tell ya, I recognize that some of my efforts are just that, juvenile. But you better believe I know I'm capable of more and will be swingin hard with all the major leaguers when my time comes.

And for all the comments asking if people post their pics for "validation" or "comments/favorites" and making it sound like a bad thing...uhhhh...why do YOU post your pics hm? Self gratification? I don't believe that for a minute.

I believed this site to be for new cakers and old cakers and yuletime cakers of yore to gather together and share tips and tricks and above all else ENCOURAGE each other. Soooo...basically stop being big meanie pants and be nicer. At this point, I'm paranoid to ask ANYTHING about my own cakes for fear of being harangued to death and ultimately ruining what little confidence I have going on. And if all the comments are meant to be nice and you need to read between the lines...welll, I don't have time for that. Everything typed is taken at face value with no tone/inflection and so, ya...keep that in mind please.

That being said, yes, OP, you should charge much more than $20, but you need to feel good about your product and your price or you won't sell a ding dang thing. So keep on keepin' on sister!