For instance today I delivered a cake to a home where they were having a baby shower. The mother to be had not arrived nor had the girl that contacted me to do the cake.

The lady that received the cake acted like everything was good but didn't really calm my nerves either. I think I'm just going to have to get over the fact that majority of the people don't understand how much of ourselves we put in these projects and to some it's just a cake...

Had those feelings plenty of times. We just have to throw it over our shoulders. The ones that make us feel good , make up for those that don,t.

Ditto

I also agree, the cakes I've made that I expect at least a little praise over have sometimes been the least acknowledged!

I totally agree! It bugs me sometimes because we are soo proud of what we done that we hope to get this big excitement over the cake.

Sometimes I want a response when I drop off the cake...But I don't really trip if I don't get one...for me my biggest fear is the taste. So my satisfaction come when they tell me how much they enjoyed the cake.

For Example, I dropped off a 1/4 sheet cake & didn't charge because on the way there I had to slam on the brakes and the cake went flying...it smashed on one side of the cake & the main image was still intact. The next day I got so many calls for future orders because they love the taste. I was all grins....My half-sister started decorating before I did...so one time I drove 3 hours there & 3 hours back to pick up a cake for one of my friends...& the said the cake was beautiful but tasted like cardboard. And the cake was only 1 day old. Ouch! So as much as I want them to love the way it looks if the taste isn't good then they won't remember how pretty it was

I am a hobby baker and not even all that good by CC standards but so far I have been blessed with very excited receptions of my cakes. the last one, TJ Maxx bag I heard later that the dad of the birthday girl (turned 40) was calling people into the room to see it, they were at a restaurant and had reserved a room. Those are the days I love caking... tonight was miserable because I have been trying to make the Dora characters for two days and finally gave up and bought them... I wish there were someplace close to take classes..more than Wilton.. Happy Caking

[quote="luckylibra"] I wish there were someplace close to take classes..more than Wilton.. Happy Caking[/quote

luckylibra I started buying videos & watching tutorials on YouTube. I took Wilton Classes & I'm a WMI & you will only learn the basics. I've learned more with trial & error than I did in the class room & I took the classes when there was still 4 course. Don't get me wrong I try to pass on secrets to my students if I can

I said I was going to be just a hobby baker, but I've been blessed with my name being shared & people call to place orders...So I am now going to rent a Commercial. Good luck

i'm just a hobby caker so i dont get the "paid for" reactions. probably the best reactions i've gotten were on a couple of the easiest cakes i've done. one was the bucket cake, the birthday guy literally drove the cake around town so his friends could see it, and the other was the picture image transfer i did...that one got featured on a webisode on youtube. deifinately not expecting that. not everyone thinks OMG!!! look at that cake!!! but the ones who do are the ones who matter, they are the ones who will remember you for your cakes.

I have come to learn that to some people, it is "just" cake. For me, that's what makes it really rewarding whenever I receive a "wow" reaction from a customer or an e-mail telling me that the cake was really tasty.

It's funny, but my favorite cake reaction was when I delivered a sheet cake with a corporate edible image to a dentist's office. Although I worked to make it as "pretty" as possible, in my mind, it was not an exciting cake. When I delivered the cake, I learned that it was a surprise for the staff. They were so excited to receive the cake, and some of the staff even asked if it was real. This reaction was unexpected, and it was nice to know that my cake brought a little joy to their day.

So, I never know how folks will respond to a cake, and for me, it is helpful to find self-satisfaction in a job well done. Then, whenever I receive a "wow" reaction or a follow-up email from a customer, it is the "icing on the cake" (pun intended).

As long as there is no "oh my god is THAT the cake we're getting?!" with a look of disgust on their face, I'm happy!

I think cake is just another piece of the event puzzle for most people. They are so busy trying to get all the details in place that when the cake arrives, they are happy that piece is taken care of but don't have the attention span to appreciate it right then and there. As long as it looks as expected, their brain has to move on to the next detail.

Having said that, I will tell you that the most satisfaction I've ever gotten from a cake was today. I surprised my sister with a birthday cake and she cried. As a single mom, I don't think anyone remembers her birthday most years. When her daughter passed, it was two weeks before my sister's birthday and I remember her telling me, "I will never again enjoy my birthday." She had a rough year last year (job loss, her kids having kids, etc....) so I brought over a ton of groceries, cake, ice cream, and a birthday gift. When she saw the cake, she hugged me tight and cried.

We may not get a positive reaction all the time; but if we did, we wouldn't appreciate as much when it does happen.

I'm always really happy when they get excited about how it looks but I'm never really comfortable until I know if they liked how it tasted.

I just finished a two tier cake for someone that will be picking it up in the morning. I think it looks pretty good considering I wasn't excited about the theme (twilight). The top tier is chocolate with raspberry filling. I think it tastes great. Hershey recipe, always good.

But the bottom tier is red velvet. Never tasted it before and never made it before. I really didn't like it at all! It seems like it has an aftertaste and I'm supposing it's from all the red food coloring. I'm really bummed about it. But I'm hoping it's just me and maybe I just don't like red velvet. I guess I'll find out after tomorrow...

Cheatize, what a lovely thing to do for your sister, I'm sure she will never forget it.

As to the original op, I'm just a hobby baker but am always so nervous about reactions and then worry if I don't hear back from them that maybe they didn't like it but then I figure that when I go to the hairdresser I don't phone her the next day to say that I really like my hair cut!

I am another one who worries about the taste more. I make very few wedding cakes. My regular cakes are always decorated, but my business is built on taste. My cakes are scratch and I worry about the box lovers hating my cake. It doesn't happen, but I still worry.

My best response to date was a coworker that called our boss to get my home number just to tell me the cake I made for his son was delicious...he said the design was great too (toy story with toy box) but he was amazed at how great it tasted...love that!