I looked in your photos. I wouldn't sell a cake of that quality at all, personally. I certainly wouldn't charge $50 for it. I know that we can't compare ourselves to grovery stores - but you could get a much neater, cleaner looking cake at a store than that - for less. JMO
I looked in your photos. I wouldn't sell a cake of that quality at all, personally. I certainly wouldn't charge $50 for it. I know that we can't compare ourselves to grovery stores - but you could get a much neater, cleaner looking cake at a store than that - for less. JMO
Hi Kelly, I know you mean well, but this won't help our friend. Firstly, her cakes are good enough to sell. Do you know how I know this? She has customers. Customers who bought at least a few wedding and celebration cakes from her already. Secondly, a lot of our pictures are cakes we started with and have gotten better since. If she thinks she can tackle a fondant bow and get a good affect, I say all power to her.
I guess what I am trying to say is, she didn't ask us to critique her current cakes, she wanted to know about relative pricing for the cake she has already quoted this customer.
I looked in your photos. I wouldn't sell a cake of that quality at all, personally. I certainly wouldn't charge $50 for it. I know that we can't compare ourselves to grovery stores - but you could get a much neater, cleaner looking cake at a store than that - for less. JMO
WOW How can you be so rude, you would have been better off saying nothing
I agree with everyone about KELLYANNE!!! There is no need to be SOOOOOOO negative about anyone's cakes.
You KELLYANNE also left a NEGATIVE mark about one of my cakes (which I know I need A LOT more practice; but the people who get my cakes keep coming back and sending me more customer) when I was curious about how much to charge.
You wouldn't like it if everyone starting making negative marks about yours. This site is about helping each other out! Not about pointing out just negatives about our passion! Even the best of the best can always improve!
travelingcakeplate, I also looked at your cakes and you owe no apology to anyone. I'd buy a cake from you!
Kelly, I have seen lots of cakes on here that weren't as good as travelingcakeplates, but that just shows what a diverse community we have here .... from novice to expert to ultra professional, we all start and progress and learn with (WITH!) each other. I have learned quite a few tips from CC'ers who have the status of "newbie". I have a number of cakes in my favorites that you wouldn't really care for .... but I love the design and the idea and I hope to try to replicate them in the future.
I remember my first cakes .... and you would have made way worse comments about those.
I'm betting Colette Peters hides the pic of her very first cake ... but that didn't stop her from pursuing her passion.
I am not a fan of a patronizing comment ..... but neither am I a fan of comments like you made. They serve no purpose.
If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. (Wow, I sound just like my mother. 
)
Travelingcakeplate--I have found that everyone here has a different idea of what to charge according to area, ability, etc. A $50 half sheet may go for $100 in another state.
The value is in the eye of the customer. Don't degrade your work and don't let anyone else do it either. Put a dollar amount on it taht reflects the ingredients and time and love you put into that cake. Your customer knows what they're getting, and this one obviously knows that $50 is a good deal or they woulnd't have agreed to it. 
BTW--I believe it was Eleanor Roosevelt who said, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." What a smart lady! 
Give me a second while I pull my jaw off of the computer desk!! KellyAnne1284's comment was absoutely un-necessary.
Travelingcakeplate your cakes are beautiful and don't listen to anything else I have been to grocery stores where there cakes are not as nicely decorated as yours...as a matter of fact I insisted on writing the last cake I had to get at my local walmart because of the poor decorating skills there!! Again you cakes are great!!!!!
Val
KA:
There was no call for you to post such a nasty comment. She didn't ask us to critique her work. She asked if the price she was charging was fair for the size cake she was making and I think the consensus is that it's a more than fair price.
There are few decorators on this forum who create perfect cakes. Would you like it if someone told you that you seem to have a problem with your fondant bulging on your cakes or that your edges could be a bit neater and sharper? I bet not.
People could go look at my pics and tear them to shreds, just as they could a lot of decorators here, but what purpose does that serve? Constructive criticism, WHEN ASKED FOR, is great. Throwing out insults is not.
I hate to be nasty, I really do, but I'm just amazed that you would be so thoughtless and mean.
KellyAnne,
I guess I am amazed at your comment because it was harsh. I am a newbie here and I don't have any decorating experience and I was hoping that when I make my first cake I would post it but if your comment was an example of the attitude here, there is no way I would post it. Some people will be nasty even if you are learning. Your type of attitude can discourage a person and right now she needs confidence that her work is work 50 dollars because it is.
Traveling....
50 dollars is actually less than I would charge even at my very limited experience because of the time and the taste. Husbands love to talk about things they know nothing about. It makes them feel important. Just say okay honey and charge the 50 
Travelingcakeplate, $50 is a steal for a wonderfully decorated BY YOU cake that size! If your customer is willing to pay it, then you definitely aren't overcharging.
If your husband still agrees - add up all the time and resources (electricity for lights and baking and gas used to travel to get supplies) and show him (as others have mentioned.) It really opens their eyes! My mom thought $75 for each of my elmo cakes was too much (so KellyAnne, oh great one, were those acceptable to sell?) but due to the time I don't think I made anything!
I love constructive criticism, I find it helps me learn and grow as a person. And trust me, MissNeishaGyrl, post your picture, you'll get some wonderful constructive advice and comments - I think Kelly's attitude is way in the minority on this site. Just look at all the wonderful people who jumped on here to defend traveling!
There's all levels of quality of cake decorating. Just like going to a restaurant. You eat at some that are super good and generally you pay super big prices. I think you're at least a notch up from the grocery store. For one, your customer gets to make some choices and gets to pick what he/she wants. Those cakes that Duff makes on Ace of Cakes, they get in the thousands of dollars range for some of those. And quite frankly, sometimes they look a little rough to me. Not that I can make most of those cakes, but there's some that don't look that great. I think even as a beginner you should be able to charge more than the grocery store because there's are going to be frozen and off the shelf designs. You're giving somebody a freshly made, unique cake.
I actually think the cake you mentioned is lovely, boarders are nice, pretty smooth - as smooth as any grocery bakery cake that's for sure. We all start somewhere. When I started selling cakes I'm sure mine did not look much different from yours. And I certainly think $50 is not too much.
I would charge at least $100 for something like that, and I'm sure over time you will not be thinking twice about charging that much for your.
Makes me crazy when DH says "You're charging THAT much?"
KellyAnne I must say I am a bit surprised - from reading the replies in your photos you do not seem to be mean spirited. I'm just hoping that maybe someone hijacked your account and chose to leave a message like that and it was not really you. At less than $2 per person I think $50 is a bargin for just about ANY homemade desert!! And I don't think it's too much for any beginner cake. Obviously the customer is familiar with her style of work and is happy with it or she would not be ordering.
Like I always tell my son - it's not really what you say, but HOW you say it. But you just may be one of those thick-skinned people who would not be bothered or upset if anyone said anything similar to you and don't realize it may upset someone else.
"I love constructive criticism, I find it helps me learn and grow as a person. And trust me, MissNeishaGyrl, post your picture, you'll get some wonderful constructive advice and comments - I think Kelly's attitude is way in the minority on this site. Just look at all the wonderful people who jumped on here to defend traveling!"
well said crislen!!
MissNeishaGyrl, please post your pictures and questions 99.99999% of the time you will get the help and constructive criticism you asked for and not the nasty attitude!!
Val
I looked in your photos. I wouldn't sell a cake of that quality at all, personally. I certainly wouldn't charge $50 for it. I know that we can't compare ourselves to grovery stores - but you could get a much neater, cleaner looking cake at a store than that - for less. JMO
Hey guys, it's ok. I am a big girl. I understand where KellyAnne1284 is coming from. And she is right about the importance of quality.
However, just to let her know the cake with the fondant circles and the crusty/oily paper was a free cake I gave to my cousin b/c I was experimenting. And quite frankly, there is no need to waste that expensive fancy foil on a project I am giving away. Albeit brash and slightly rude I do understand where you are coming from.
And thanks to all the other CCer's who are supportive and kind. Your wonderful words are very encouraging and I appreciate your thoughtfulness!
Keep caking!
tcp
I looked in your photos. I wouldn't sell a cake of that quality at all, personally. I certainly wouldn't charge $50 for it. I know that we can't compare ourselves to grovery stores - but you could get a much neater, cleaner looking cake at a store than that - for less. JMO
Hi Kelly, I know you mean well, but this won't help our friend. Firstly, her cakes are good enough to sell. Do you know how I know this? She has customers. Customers who bought at least a few wedding and celebration cakes from her already. Secondly, a lot of our pictures are cakes we started with and have gotten better since. If she thinks she can tackle a fondant bow and get a good affect, I say all power to her.
I guess what I am trying to say is, she didn't ask us to critique her current cakes, she wanted to know about relative pricing for the cake she has already quoted this customer.
I understand that she wasn't asking to be critiqued. However, she did ask for opinons on if $50 was too much to charge. She said the cake would be "yada yada yada" like the sheet cake with the heart on top in my photos. So, if its going to be LIKE the on in her photos, NO, I do not think it is work $50 at all. It's all relative. People are great around here and I love this community...but honesty here is rare and it's frustrating.
I agree with everyone about KELLYANNE!!! There is no need to be SOOOOOOO negative about anyone's cakes.
You KELLYANNE also left a NEGATIVE mark about one of my cakes (which I know I need A LOT more practice; but the people who get my cakes keep coming back and sending me more customer) when I was curious about how much to charge.
You wouldn't like it if everyone starting making negative marks about yours. This site is about helping each other out! Not about pointing out just negatives about our passion! Even the best of the best can always improve!
That's just the thing, though. I wish people would be honest. When I post a picture and ask for critisism, I get sweet sugarey coated comments. It's so frustrating! For once, why not just tell it like it is? She said the cake would be like the one in her photos...and in my opinion, the one in her photos is not worth $50. Period. She asked for opinions on that and I gave mine. I didn't say - oh, you could improve this...or...your icing looks bumpy...I didn't critique...I gave an opinion about the question she asked. I'm not going to say "oh yeah, that cake is DEFINITELY worth $50" like the majority did. I DO NOT THINK IT IS. And again, THAT is what she originally asked. Everyone has an opinion and not everyone's is going to be sugar coated.
...but honesty here is rare and it's frustrating.
I am always, shall we say, "entertained" by those who are just flat out rude but try to justify it or deny the rude/blunt label by saying they are "just being honest". Let me help ya out, here.....
According to the Merriam Webster dictionary (and these are direct cut-n-pasted definitions):
HONEST: 1 a : free from fraud or deception : LEGITIMATE, TRUTHFUL
BLUNT: 1 a : slow or deficient in feeling : INSENSITIVE
RUDE: 1 a : being in a rough or unfinished state : CRUDE; 2 : lacking refinement or delicacy: a : IGNORANT, UNLEARNED
Wow. I just now signed into my email after being in the kitchen for 5 and 1/2 hours exactly working on a cake to find "reply" emails to this topic. I want to make it perfectly clear that I did not leave any of these posts. I have a roommate who I share this computer with, who I have also caught looking in my emails from time to time. Someone else earlier also mentioned that I had left a rude comment for them, too and I can assure you that I personally did not. I am a very nice person, honestly. I don't even know if I'd have the "kahunas" to say something that rude, even if I was thinking it. I'm sorry to anyone who may have been offended, I haven't even been online most of the day. I will be getting to the bottom of this situation ASAP.
Hahaha. I'm reading all of the posts now and I see that someone earlier said my edges could be more smooth and defined? YES!!!! You're right!!! I've been crying for the last 10 minutes because the cake I am delivering tomorrow morning is not level on top! It's like a little dome!!! Why does this always happen with my cakes?
Kelly: People are great around here and I love this community...but honesty here is rare and it's frustrating.
Kelly, I get what you are saying but there is a way to be honest without being rude. You have to weigh your words carefully when people don't have a face or mannerisms to look at when you tell someone your opinion.
I read lots of threads where people asked for constructive criticism. They get constructive criticism.
Here is an example of constructive (when asked):
-"Looks like you did well with your writing but I would work on centering it more or maybe using a different script"
-"I find to smooth frosting, try using this technique...."
-"If I were you, I would use a sturdier board"
Here is an example of destructive (when asked):
-"Your writing is terrible!"
-"You can't sell a cake and expect to get paid with lumpy frosting like that"
-"Your cake looks cheap because you didnt care enough to use more than one cake board"
So... your comments were destructive. Try for constructive next time if that was really your intent.[/quote]
Well, if this is what happened, tell your roommate that it is extremely taboo to 1) login with someone elses ID. She can make her own, its free 2) Leave a comment with someone else's ID.
My husband and I are both gamers and huge computer nerds, we play online all the time and would never dream of leaving messages or comments on each others accounts.
Anyway tell your roommate shame shame shame on her. Bad call!.. 
This has been an ongoing problem, but I have lease issues. I'm stuck with it for the time being. Seriously, I am so non-confrontational and friendly. I'm pretty much infuriated at the moment. Again, I'm really sorry for any upset these posts caused.
KA: I read some of your other forum posts as well ~ looks to me like your roommate has been visiting pretty regularly lately.
Its ok, you did not offend me at all. Im new here still so I am not familiar with what was your comment versus your evil roomate. If I were you, I would do a few things:
1. Ask the moderators or Heath to change your login and then go and change your password and undo the option to save password upon login. That way she can never hijack your account again.
2. Go in and audit yourself. You can go into most of the replies and edit them. You can leave the content maybe but add something like "ORIGINAL comments not by KellyAnne1284-fraulently. I am now KellyAnne2000 if you have any questions" or something to differentiate yourself from this roomates comments. That is if you want to salvage your reputation. Not that you might need to, but I hate to be blamed for things that I am innocent for, etc
I'm not sure I get it...If this is an on going issue, why aren't you just logging out every time? There is no way for anyone to post under your id if they can't get logged into it.
At any rate, if it were me, I'd go back and edit the offending posts and replace them with an apology. Then I'd change my password and start logging out between visits.
I do log-out, but it seems that my password is "saved", so all you have to do is come here (and I usually leave the screen up) and hit the button. Signed in, just like that. I'm not too internet savvy, so I didn't even realize it was just saved like that. I'm going to bed now, but will be correcting all these posts tomorrow. Can someone please tell me how to "audit myself"? Is there a way to find all of the posts this user name has made?
I want to make it perfectly clear that I did not leave any of these posts. I have a roommate who I share this computer with
Ya know, somehow I just knew this was the case!
I hope things work out and you definitly should think about changing your password! It must suck to have to worry about that!
Hmm.. under the main heading Cake Central Forum Index you can view your "watched topics". I am not sure if this would be all inclusive but this is a good place to start since threads you reply to are listed there (not sure about all but it seems mine are when I have the box checked below)
Quote by @%username% on %date%
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