Giving Up On Cakin' For Friends Of Friends

Decorating By dynee Updated 13 Nov 2010 , 1:28pm by dynee

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dynee Posted 13 Nov 2010 , 12:48am
post #1 of 6

After the last cancelled cake, I've given up doing cakes for anyone that I don't know face to face. The last one was for a girl who was a friend of a girl who works with my SIL. The first friend wanted me to do a Twilight cake in black fondant with a single red and white parrot tulip. I quoted her a price and she said "would you just do the tulip" I told her yes, and sold her the tulip for $10. I should have known when HER friend e-mailed me and said she wanted a 2 tier zebra stripe and pink cake with stars shooting out the top. I quoted her a range of prices and she went for one or the other of the highest prices. She thought she needed it either the first or second week of October. After e-mailing her back and forth for several times over the space of a couple of weeks, I tried to pin her down on which cake config. and which day. She never answered me back.....
SOOOO! I went down to a craft studio run by my son's college and who knew someone from the general public could join by the semester. I decided to try my hand at making cakes and cupcakes out of clay. It was so much fun. I think I'll get the hang of it. I was going to attach some pics, but I see I still can't do that. I tried on another post in Sept. and couldn't do it then either.

5 replies
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-K8memphis Posted 13 Nov 2010 , 12:51am
post #2 of 6

What kind of clay did you use?

That's what I've been thinking for a long time--I should get a different medium. But use them as gifts--I mean marketing them might zap the joy out of it y'know?

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-K8memphis Posted 13 Nov 2010 , 12:52am
post #3 of 6

And then there's the learning curve too. But I could do it.

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dynee Posted 13 Nov 2010 , 1:15am
post #4 of 6

K8, Right now I'm using the craft studio cone 6 porcelain clay. I actually have a degree in Art Education and 35 years ago could throw pots on a potters wheel. This time I'm doing all hand building. I have shoulder issues now and don't think I could handle the wheel now.
I retired 5 years ago and have been trying to deal with a creative "JONES". Cakes did it for me for a while. On the gifts thing, I have 7 brothers and sisters and guess what they are ALL getting for Christmas LOL!

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-K8memphis Posted 13 Nov 2010 , 2:10am
post #5 of 6

OOOooooh can I pick your brain about this stuff? I mean I would like to carve and build--Y'know like for example rice krispie treats--where I whirl the dry cereal in the food processor--then I make them-- then I fashion in the general shape of what I want then I carve. I could even add some more from a fresh batch if necessary.

Is there any type of medium I could do that with? Ceramical or clayfacal or sculpyfical??? That's asking a lot out of a product huh. But I know basically zip about this.

Thanks!

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dynee Posted 13 Nov 2010 , 1:28pm
post #6 of 6

I'm not sure what you are wanting to know. The rice krispies threw me. I can tell you a lot about ceramics but not the krispies. All the years I taught, I had a ceramic program. One of the frustrations I've had with the craft studio is that I know more about it than they do. Also I've had some trouble there with mis-labeled jars and over-firing. My DH is in the process of getting me a kiln of my own.
I have been making "cupcakes" two ways. I have been using the standard size silicone wrappers for one size. They end up the size of a mini-cuppie. The other size, I bought the Wilton jumbo pan with the swirl tops. They come out the size of the standard. I'm thinking about getting the large single cupcake to make things like teapots. And I have used my round cake pans to make boxes to look like layer cakes. For the cupcakes, it is a simple matter of taking a ball of clay and making a pinch pot and pushing it down into the hole of the pan. For some, I let it "spill" over to make a muffin top and then the icing is seperate for the lid. On the cakes, I roll a slab about 1/4 inch thick and cut long strips to lay vertically against the inside edge of the pan until it sets up. I wish I could post a pic. but I know it is against the rules to do non cake items. Would it help to e-mail some pics?

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