Does Anybody Else Come Close To A Breakdown When Decorating?
Decorating By CarolLee Updated 10 Dec 2010 , 3:24pm by cownsj
REALLY though. I've been decorating for 3 years now. But every so often while I'm decorating - if it doesn't come out EXACTLY like I've envisioned - I start to question my abilities, my sanity and wonder why the heck I EVER thought I could actually charge a fee for my cakes!! Sheer panic. Then, when it's done and it looks good, I settle back down....Damn the insecurity! It's getting OLD!!!
I'm ordering the SugarEd Production instruction CD's SOON. I'm thinking it will assist me in my skills and will help boost my confidence. Anybody use these?
Sorry, I needed to vent.
Seriously. Am I the only one??
You aren't the only one. I struggle with self-doubt daily.
Sharon's DVDs are awesome!!
That happens to me almost every time I make a cake. 
My attitude -- who cares if it doesn't come out "exactly" how we envision it. In my pix I have some cupcakes, they are chocolate and vanilla with pink and brown flowers. http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1372465
My exact vision of this order was based on an old bakery sign with pink and white and chocolate cupcakes with pink and white and brown flowers. Could I get the pink frosting and the pink fondant to match like in the picture?? Heck no!! Then this went wrong, then that wrong... yada yada yada... So I stepped back, thought that the vanilla and chocolate frostings looked good, liked the pink and brown flowers I created and dumped the other flowers and the result is what you see in the picture. Personally I like it and so did the lady who ordered it.
I've had quite a few other cakes that didn't quite work out they way I had envisioned it (Bella's purse cake, Gilda's 10th anniversary cake...) but the trick is to work with what you have to make a great product.
The moral to the story -- if it doesn't work, then make it work! 
I am haivng one right now as I start my first wedding cake tonight
I have breakdowns all the time and I am just a hobby baker for fun... always asking myself why did I offer to make this cake.. as j_prinz said...I always see the flaws, thing is - most of the time we only see them because we are hard on ourselves!!
Remember, you are looking at that cake mere inches from your nose for hours if not days! Of course you're going to see the flaws!!! The ones who get the cake will look at it from a few feet for a moment then dig in. Will they notice the flaws? Not likely! Give yourself a break. Remember, if you're not having fun, you're not doing it right!! 
I thought breakdowns were a part of the process?! Sometimes it seems like the breakdowns are worse when I am nervous about trying something new or feel totally unprepared. Best way to fix it is to be around when people go "Who made the cake? It's amazing!" Not always possible, I know, but it's nice when it works out that way!
I always tell my hubby I have one breakdown per cake. He knows that now and he stays away....FAR away! I am hard enough on myself without his trying-to-be-helpful-but-about-to-get-a-cake-pan-to-the-forehead questions like..."Are you going to get it done?" or "Is that exactly what they asked for?"
You may have that feeling when trying a new technique for the first time, but with practice and experience, that feeling goes away. If you really want to boost your confidence, work in a bakery... there will be no time for near breakdowns in that type of working environment!
I have breakdowns all the time and I am just a hobby baker for fun... always asking myself why did I offer to make this cake.. as j_prinz said...I always see the flaws, thing is - most of the time we only see them because we are hard on ourselves!!
Remember, you are looking at that cake mere inches from your nose for hours if not days! Of course you're going to see the flaws!!! The ones who get the cake will look at it from a few feet for a moment then dig in. Will they notice the flaws? Not likely! Give yourself a break. Remember, if you're not having fun, you're not doing it right!!
It feels so good to know I am not the only one. I think you said it best here. We see the flaws because we are inspecting it and do so for HOURS on end. I also have come to realize that the recipient cant see the vision that was in my head so if this is different they dont think What happened. THey just see the end product which is generally pretty awesome in its own right 
Ahhh yes, the vision in my head is just lovely and the execution is always amateur. I'm always comparing myself to cakes I see here...but I have to remember that the few customers I have actually baked for don't read this site!!! A custom cake is what they wanted and they seem thrilled with the result.
However, along the way I am pretty snippy with anyone bothering me and always make a giant mess while decorating! And of course, making elements for the cake take days ahead of time. My DH announce he was "over this cake thing." Thanks for your support, dear. 
I'm sure I am decorating for about 5 cents an hour and telling myself I do it because it's fun! (???)
breakdown? As in curling up on the corner, shaking and crying, covered with powdered sugar and icing, muttering "its just a cake its just a cake its just a cake" .......?
No, never.
Stressing because the clock is running faster than you want it to because you're a bit behind schedule?
Sometimes.
Perturbed because I see the flaws and that's not what I expected?
frequently.
Elated with joy because I just created another masterpiece that none of my family or friends can make and knowing that those flaws won't even be noticed?
All the time.
I have breakdowns all the time. I want everything perfect, and most of the time it is, and I just need to give myself a hard time.
One thing that has helped me out a lot is something I once read here. It went something like " The little things you see wrong with your cake, no one else can see."
This statement is correct most of the time.
I wouldn't call it a breakdown (no tears have been shed yet), but I do find myself disappointed when the cake in my head is not the cake I created. This always seems to happen when I try something new or when I do something that I know I am not really good at, like my piping skills. I once read an interview with Sylvia Weinstock, where she was asked how she gets her buttercream so smooth. She answered, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice." I just try to remind myself of that.
Come close? how about broke down, got back up and broke down again! There have been days I've said I don't ever wanna see another cake in my life! But you can bet by the next weekend I'm going thru withdrawal.
I've been doing cakes for 36 years and I still freak out, I guess we really don't want to be the one to ruin someones special occasion if the cake we are making flops. I have to say I've worried myself sick over this and have never in these 36 years had a REAL MAJOR UNFIXABLE problem. It's just me I think being anal. So I guess I can't help you. Good luck though!!!!
Do you mean OTHER than every cake my husband and I do?????? lol I melt down on every one. And I have hated almost every one until a few days later when I would be going through the photos and trying to pick out the best to put on our website. That forces me into looking at the cake as a whole instead of the sum of its flaws. There are still a couple I hate and when people tell me, "Oh I just love that cake," or, "that one is my favorite!", I want to question their sanity and taste... lol And we just do it as a hobby, though I do think my husband could do it as his career if he chose to.
omg..my last cake a customer ordered in a rush..it was a gold polka dot cake with pink ribbons...it came out all wrong but didnt have time to take it apart and start over ..the cake was tilting..it made me question my abilities and still haunts me to this day..ugh..in fact when i have slow weekends(no cake orders)..in my head im thinking its cus of that yuck cake..MY REPUTATION IS RUINED!! im a little dramatic..but then i realize..we all have bad days...im just hoping they liked it..but ive yet to hear anything about it..im tempted to email that persons niece..that i happen to know just to ask..but im too scared..maybe its better off not knowing..omg im venting now..lol..sorry!!
Elated with joy because I just created another masterpiece that none of my family or friends can make and knowing that those flaws won't even be noticed?
My husband reminds of this fact every time a cake makes me throw spatulas across the kitchen, and I'm not even really awesome at it! Last time I brought a cake to a family function, decked out because I wanted to try something new, and it wasn't at all what I had hope, my FIL went so crazy over it he started insisting I sell cakes for a business, and he still does every time I see him. I'm nowhere near comfortable selling my cakes yet, but it keeps things in perspective to know that all the little imperfections that I see and obsess over, most people don't notice at all.
But I absolutely stress the heck out over every cake I have ever made.
I've felt the same way also. so your not by yourself.
EVERY single time...the meltdowns just vary in magnitude, but they DO happen with each cake LOL It's getting better, though.
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