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| Wilton Course III Mid-Course Cake |
I often get asked "How did you end up making cakes"? The answer always starts out the same:
As a little girl, I helped my Grandma in the kitchen and grew up with a love for cooking and baking. And a sweet tooth. A really, really sweet tooth! For my daughter's first birthday, I wanted to make her something myself, and soon after, I found myself making cakes for any and all events I could. Then one day, my Husband suggest I start a busiess and turn my hobby into a money maker! And here I am!
But....that's not the WHOLE story. You see, we're given a path in life that feels natural to follow. We choose, do and say things that eventually take us to where we are. Mine has always been with hands-on creativity. Whether it was finger painting, writing poetry, or assembling mixed media art, I have ideas in my head that need to get out!
I flirted with the idea of attending culinary school while I was still in high school. But by the time I was 14, I had immersed myself into music so much, I knew I wanted to work at a radio station. Nah, I didn't play an instrument (6 months of the flute and clarinet in 3rd grade don't count), I just listened, intently. I loved picking apart the different instruments and listening to them individually, hearing what they contributed to the song. It was so beautiful to hear all of these different strings of melodies come together, to marry and harmonize, making one fluid track!
Back then, it was a lot of "alternative" music, indie rock, with a dabbling of electronic music. I chose a university that had a program for me and, most importantly, a radio station that was student run and allowed you to play music you loved (within reason, i.e., no cursing). I found Radford University. It had everything I wanted, and not far from home. Not to mention, it wasn't super expensive, either.
Once I got to college, I was introduced to the underground club scene. There, my love for music took on a life of it's own. There is no way to explain in words what it is like to feel music. And I don't mean just feeling the bass. I mean really feel the soul of music. The layers of sound resonate through you and take you places so far beyond reality. It's an experience like none other. Sure, there was also experimentation with psychedelics, but that's not all of it. When you love something, you really know it, inside and out. The one thing I learned from all of this, besides having a good time, is my role in the Universe. (And, this might be a whole different post one day because we're about to take a short philosophical turn). We look at things from the surface. Wake up, eat, work, sleep, rinse and repeat. But, it goes so much more deeper than that. We are all interconnected, we all have a job to do, and not just a 9-5 one. We contribute something to the world, not just Earth, but to the WHOLE world, the Universe, to everything that is conceivable. You just have to get in touch with it.
So, while I'm learning the ins and outs of behind-the-scenes technology for radio, tv, and film, I have my own hour and half weekly radio show. Dream come true! Even though I will never again work in radio, I officially reached my goal of being on-air and having my own show. I can die happy. It was a different outlet for my creativity. I could share my favorite songs with anyone who wanted to listen. At hone, I did some minor sewing, which I hoped would become an obsession, but I never got far.
Time goes on, the path of life weaving itself in and out of other people's lives. I find myself at 25, married with two kids. It wasn't exactly what I had planned, but I go with the flow. Except...I'm missing something. Something to allow me to be myself, something to take the edge off from the daily grind, something....like making cakes! I had made my daughter's first birthday cake in 2005...and I loved it! I had a great time! I consider that my first officially decorated cake, although I did make a 2 tiered cake for my friend's 18th birthday in high school. I know there's a picture around here somewhere...
In the meantime, I'm busying myself with other sweet treats and delicacies. I make a cake for a co-worker and a few small things here and there for family. By March 2008, television was picking up on the world of cake design phenomenon with "Ace of Cakes" and "Challenge". I had come across some local classes I could take that would teach me the basics of decorating. I kept the idea in the back of my head but didn't take it seriously until I was filled with so much stimulation, something HAD to come out!
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| Wilton Course I Finale |
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My daughter had just turned 4, my son was almost 2. I finally mange to enroll in the Wilton Course I. My mom always said, "Once you start something, you have to finish it", so it was natural to sign up for Course II. Then Course III. And of course, Course IV. All the while, word is getting out that I am a fairly proficient cake designer and friends are calling for events, not just my family. I decide to see what would happen if I used the internet as a way to reach more people.
And then it snowballs.
I didn't realize how effective the internet was as a promotional tool! It was so overwhelming! I was getting more calls than I thought I would. My husband suggested I look into turning my obsession into a business. He could see what I was seeing-the need for unique, one-of-a-kind cakes in my area was great! Everyone wants something that is personalized. They don't want to go to the grocery store and pick a cake that was made (how long ago?) in a factory, frozen, shipped, and then thawed on a shelf. They don't want just vanilla, chocolate, or white cake with greasy, oily, non-dairy whipped icings. What happened to homemade products with REAL ingredients?
That's why I'm here! My job, my passion, my obsession, is to provide you with a cake that is unlike anything you have had before! I want the freedom to be creative and to explore the innovative ideas that fill my head up, all the while giving you a centerpiece that you can show off to your party guests...and then eat! How perfect, how symbiotic the relationship between myself and my clients is!
Remember I was telling you about how I loved to pick apart the layers of music, feeling the depth of each one and listening to it merge with the others and create this magnificent sound? That's the same feeling I get when I design a cake. Each element has it's own look, it's own feel. They are all small works of art themselves, but put together it becomes a masterpiece! Each cake is tailored, hand crafted with all of my life experiences behind it. A piece of myself goes into each cake. Sure, you can bake a cake and throw some icing on it and call it done. But, there's so much more that goes into making a cake become the vision I have designed.
So, there you have it. That's my story. Life is constantly evolving as we tumble down our path. I don't know if it's pre-planned for us, if destiny has lead me to now. But I do know I have found my place in life, my calling so to speak. I love what I do! I love each and every client that comes through because they are helping me to be myself and do what I have been programmed to do.
Thanks everyone! Thanks for a great 3 years!
