Has anyone ever started as a partnership? There is a fellow cake decorator near by that is interested. We are both ready to start our own business and either lease or buy a place but have no clue how to procede. Any advice??? Tips???? Or am I asking for trouble in a partnership?

the best advice i can give is get your own attorney who practices in small business/partnerships. And remember its a business deal, you need to protect yourself first, or at least make sure all things are covered in a written legal document.

Such as:
Who is investing what? Everything needs a dollar value.
What percentage are you each getting
Are you taking saleries? If yes, is it a percentage of profit? or when you reach a certain profit?
Who is responsible for maintenence issues? the books? the ordering? (decorating is going to be the least amount of work that you do in a business)
If one of you gets out, does their portion of the business go to the other partner? or can they sell their part of the business to someone else?

there are lots of otherthings to make sure you cover too, way to many to list here.

Discover where you agree and where you disagree. The disagreement areas need to be worked out before you start business together.

Know each others work habits. Can you live with them?

Plus, what Leily said.

Along the line of what Cheatize said, talk about what you expect. I read a post somewhere in the past where someone went into a partnership and they signed a year lease. About 3 months into the partnership their partner wanted out because she thought it was going to be a 9-5 job, and no weekends. You both have to be realistic about what it takes to run a business (more like 23/7 - not many days off expecially when starting)