Crushing on Business Ownership - is the Honeymoon Over?

The short answer - NO!!

When I was a part of the dating pool, there was this unspoken rule that if you dated someone for three months and then kept dating - it meant that the relationship had legs. After three months, you saw how things really were with another person - you can only keep smiling for so long :) Well, we've been in business three months as of this weekend and Sugar Pine Bake Shop is going strong. The holidays were definitely a test, as they are on any new relationship but even though we are still a little tired, we have come through with flying colors. No disasters and lots of wonderful people who enjoyed our baked treats - plus we learned just how busy we can be and how many consecutive mornings we can get up at 5am.

All kidding aside, what a learning experience this fall and early winter has been. As you can probably see from the lack of postings (which I am not good at in the best of circumstances), there's been alot to get used to. Getting up is definitely difficult for this not a morning person but with a wonderful team in place, one of whom is Angel who gets up even earlier so I don't have to, some of the burden is shared. I actually feel really fortunate with the people I have working with me - all ladies, aside from Angel and my best unpaid worker Jim (my husband - he gets paid in "favors"). I keep adding new items to our menu - keeps it interesting and I hope keeps our regulars happy because they get to try new things all the time. And I've learned that I can process numbers, as long as a calculator isn't far away and that I am a business person - dare I say business woman. I like having my own business, as challenging as it might be. When Jim asked me what I wanted for Christmas I couldn't come up with a single thing because I have everything I want.

So that's that and more posts about cakes and stuff later but I just wanted to comment on where I am in the business and how it feels - which is fabulous!!!

Crushing on Fake Cakes

I have been a reluctant maker of fake cakes up until now but in my quest to always put a positive spin on things, I've decided to embrace them as an artistic medium. Why, you may say am I anti fake - after all this is Southern California- well it has to do with longevity. I like making a cake and then it getting eaten - my artists medium doesn't have to sit there and be examined for perfection because the goal it that its edible. In other words, I am too much of a perfectionist. But then I found an outlet in a local florist - Little Greenhouse - and my first cake was made. I've done a bunch now and with the most recent one, really allowed myself to make a cake that I probably wouldn't get called upon to make too often. My weddings tend to be rather simple, couples coming to the mountains to marry usually aren't looking for an ornate cake. So now I have fake cakes in two of the shops in Big Bear Lake Village: ReJoyce and United Wood Craftsmen and I am making a goal of keeping the fake cakes coming. This spring, I've done a couple of wedding shows and created new fake cakes for both of them. What's more fun is the edible treats that surround the fake cake - I just love a good display, it speaks to the type A personality in me.

The cakes that started it all at ReJoyce and Little Greenhouse

Embracing the medium - its weird to work with fake cakes because they are so LIGHT- real cakes are much heavier and as much as that might sound strange, the heft makes it easier to work with real cakes in a way. You can apply pressure on a real cake (like when attaching fondant or pressing a pattern) and it won't move but a fake cake could go flying! I love the button cake - hundreds of handmade fondant buttons - actually kind of fun -

Time to eat - the fake cake is surrounded by tasty samples of my treats: red velvet cake and vanilla orange spice cake truffles and a selection of yummy cupcakes!

Crushin on Cinnamon Buns

Sometimes, its not just about the cake. I'm trying to perfect my cinnamon bun recipe and I think I'm getting pretty close. Or else I will wind up really chunky and not in a cute sort of way. I can't resist these - I must admit, there's a secret ingredient which I'm not going to share but YUM for sure! Like a cross between challah bread and cinnamon and cream cheese - gooey and a little but not too sweet (because of the glaze) and warm and satisfying. You know where to get you some - from ME! No seriously, anyone looking to be a taste tester?

Crushin on Vegas, Baby

Anyone who knows me knows I love Vegas - you eat well, sleep all day, shop hysterically and then go home, more tired than when you came but happy. I woke up this morning just dreaming about hearing the pop of the bellagio fountains and the bargains to be had at the Williams Sonoma Outlet in Primm. Oh, gambling, well, that's not really my thing, I got it out of my system in Vermont (but that is another story and certainly not about cake although I have done a red barn but I digress). I was thrilled when couple weeks back a wonderful supporter of my art in cakes asked me to do a dice cake.
What fun this cake was! Poker chips bear the anniversary couples initials and cards that are "blackjack" have a picture of them - it was their 21st anniversary. What's inside? My current favorite filling - vanilla bean cake with bananas foster filling and whipped cream cheese frosting - YUM!!

But it doesn't end there - this past weekend I was asked to do another "21" themed cake inspired by Vegas for twins Nick & Jen:

Asked to make a little bit feminine, red roses definitely fit the bill. I carved the cake to elongate the lines and make it seem taller. What's inside? Red Velvet Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting - taking the "red" theme to a new level. Oh what I would give to be getting in a car and driving the three short hours from Big Bear to Vegas - but since its not "in the cards" I'll just have to content myself with playing with cakes!

Welcome to the Crush!

Welcome to Cake Crush. When naming the blog, I wanted to come up with a word (combined with cake of course) that described both the art of cakeing - and the spirit in which I approach cakes. So I came up with "crush" Crushing on a particular object or pattern and making it into a cake and also feeling crushed by cake sometimes - the Crush of the rush of cakeing - how it gets very intense at the end of the week sometimes with last minute orders and my inability to both say no and do a lesser job - I always go full tilt. I would say that I Crush on other people's art when it comes to cake as well - I constantly work on my technique and vision to try to get better. So here goes - not sure where it will take me but check back and I'll share my cakes of the week, as well as revisit older cakes and techniques.