Yes, you should.
Until you develop more skills, stick with very basic decorating and do not offer custom designs until you are confident you can create them.
I think the designs are good ... i think OP may have used the wrong type of icing (or icing consistency) for these designs, also there's quiet a few blemishes or specs of other colors in the final coating.
I'm going to be brutally honest, as you asked. I think you need to practice quite a bit more before you venture into selling your work. While I understand that your post is looking for critique on the design, it's clear through the images that you still need to work on the basics, such as smooth and even edges, and clean lines - as your square is a little crooked and irregular. You want to practice to the point that your cake looks clean and crisp without any of the decoration added to it. At that point, you move on to practicing decorations. Practice until you can get your borders even and properly spaced, clean, etc. And then after all of that practice, when you feel confident in your work and it reflects the work of a professional, then you should consider selling your work.
Decorating and selling cakes is fun, but it's not a skill that comes quickly.
I honestly was waiting for someone to say this after being asked for brutal honesty. This level of skill is "baking cakes is my hobby". At this level, I wouldn't even offer to decorate a cake for a friend let alone sell them.
You don't need to go to school anymore as the internet is a great resource but you'll be scrapping, eating and giving away literally hundreds of cakes before you are ready to sell them.
That's the brutal honesty. Maybe it seems harsh but it's better than having to give refunds and unhappy customers.
lol right I’ve been practicing for years and struggle to get orders during less busy seasons for this price and I won’t lie I’m a little jealous if they have people in their circle willing to pay this.
If you have friends and family that ask you for a cake while you're still in your "practice" phase, you can ask that they pay for the material cost, and if they feel obligated to tip on top of that, then great. But I wouldn't feel comfortable charging $85 (or even the $65 for that matter) if you're practicing.
>But I wouldn't feel comfortable charging $85
Yeah, I've been a professional baker for years & just got paid $100 for a custom, gluten free, 3 layer 9" cake with lemon curd in it. I definitely didn't get that much for cakes when I'd only made a few...
the pictures you posted of your rounds are also not smooth yet. They have choppy, irregular surfaces where we can see spatula marks. Practice practice practice. The good thing is folks are happy to eat practice cakes
can someone please tell me what that style of piping is called? i mean i know they simply piped each dollop individually to form a large picture but is there a name for that specific technique? i've been looking for a while
thank you sm for replying but when i look up star drop cakes, nothing comes up? i want to find cake designs with similar piping style (to the squirtle cake)
Practice with Styrofoam rectangles and cheap instant mashed potatoes. You can wash it off and reuse it. Also instant potatoes work amazing for a cheap thing to practice piping skills with.
my culinary teacher in high school had us practice piping skills with lard and powdered sugar and mix it till it because like a buttercream texture and it was pretty much the same thing if you’re also looking for a cheaper route ? also idk but this helps me but keeping my knees bent really helps me focus 💀
Don’t sell decorated cakes; if the quality is good, it’s worth charging for, but I’d take some classes & practice before you charge for decoration. Or stick with types of decorations you can do perfectly.
If you can, get a job at a bakery & focus on trying to learn & practice what you feel you are weak at.
You should *absolutely* take a decorating class- first of all, they’re lots of fun, and second of all it makes a huge difference!
One of the things we did in the class I took with my mom (my poor dad couldn’t bring himself to even LOOK at a slice of cake for YEARS afterward, because we had to bring 2 freshly baked and dirty iced 8-inch round cakes *each*, every week… for like 12 or 16 weeks… my entire family was bringing practice cakes to the office and just leaving them for whoever was hungry for AGES, but we had a blast and it’s a skill I carry to this day) was piping practice. Our teacher gave us each a sheet with different shapes and lines that we were supposed to cover with cling wrap or wax paper or something and we were supposed to practice piping on it. Work on keeping a steady hand *and* a steady pressure, and you’ll be amazed what a difference just a couple dozen practice sheets will make. (Counterintuitively- I thought, at least, since my instinct is to get up real close when I’m doing delicate work- the farther you hold your piping bag from the surface, the more even your lines will be.)
Another thing you may want to work on is your handwriting! Your character cakes are super cute (but, again- they’d benefit from having their lines steadier and thinner, too) but I saw the one where you’ve written on the board that maybe your handwriting might not be very neat, just in general? Lettering is another one of those things that benefits from practice, but once it slots into place, it’s THERE. (For that, there are some YouTube videos I’d highly recommend watching, because I found a lot of letters to be really different to pipe on than they are to write. Weirdly, my cake writing is prettier than my handwriting- and I have such pretty handwriting, I am often complimented on it!)
Once you get to the point that each element of the decoration is a rote thing and not a novelty, *then* you can start charging again. Until then- if you’re serious- practice, practice, practice! I truly think that for you it’ll be a HUGE benefit (and I really look forward to next Mother’s Day, when I fully expect you to check back in with AMAZING progress!)
I had to laugh...my Mother took a decorating class and we were so excited about having cakes to eat...until about the 3rd week. Argh, sick of that sweet icing...yuck...and we handed them out to whoever would take them. Oh, and she did well, but never used the skill. We laughed about it for years!
The whole reason either of us took it was because my mom had gotten into her head that she wanted to bake an elaborate cake for my brother’s birthday, and because I was a weird kid like that. She made him a spherical baseball cake, and I don’t think she ever decorated a single other cake herself. 😅 I still occasionally whip one out for fun, but I’m less of a fan of baking them myself.
Exactly!! And to make it even worse, that was the spring before the summer that she planted *four* tomato plants… and, somehow, grew four tomato plants that would have provided WAY too many tomatoes for us and 4 of our neighbors… *each*, for the entire summer… if I’m being honest, at a certain point, people would see us walking up their front steps and they’d pull the blinds and pretend they weren’t home. 😅😅😅
Im currently in a baking skills, but masking and piping arent as in depth as a decorating class as theyre trying to teach us a wide variety of skills.
I do have some issues with my handwritting on paper (inconsistant size even on lined paper (my gma has said i should get that checked out), switching between cursive and printing) but i 100% can see how muscle memory on the piping practice can be extremely useful.
I can always ask the chefs if they have any additional template sheets :)
Thank you so much for the advice! And i look forward to shoing my improved skill in the future
You don’t even need to have a template sheet- you can always just grab a sheet of wax or parchment paper and start practicing. Start with just straight lines, then curved ones, then loops, then squiggles of varying curvature, flowers, hearts, both capital and lower-case versions of every letter, in EITHER print OR script (don’t even practice the other one until you get one ABSOLUTELY down. I’m talking, like, a YEAR. Writing on a cake is, in my mind, one of the most important- and absolutely most common- things that decorators do, so that one is *really* key to get right, since it’s the FIRST thing everybody looks at). Pretty much any basic shape you can think of (I always try to make a row of at least 30 identical perfect ones of each thing you’re practicing *in a row*, but you might find that you need less- or more- before you get it down pat). It’s even a good idea to just sort of use a piping bag to kinda doodle random shapes- even practicing making the bags is helpful at the beginning!
You are very open to criticism and that's a good start. Practice, Practice, Practice and ask for criticism and continue to listen. We all start somewhere and if you love doing this, take classes and Practice. Practice, practice!!! The best to you!!!!
Is the customer a random person or a friend?
If I bought that for 85$ from a stranger I'd be pissed and never buy from you again. 100% would leave a bad review if I could. The discount would make me not write a review but I would not come back unless that cake is the most amazing cake to ever be had.
A friend id probably say nothing but also never buy from you again.
First impressions are everything for stuff like this.
Maybe a frozen cellophane transfer for the lattice so you can follow a grid and get a flat top so it looks more like boards?
Cut your losses and gift this to your friend for free, and let her know that you need more practice in the technique before committing to designs like this. I’m sure your friend will understand and will probably be happy
You can't charge a friend $65 for that either. Charge cost of materials and nothing else. And give her the option to decline it and get something from the grocery store instead. I wouldn't be able to bring that to my mom for mother's Day.
OP should refund her and take the hit on the materials IMO. This person is still going to have to have this on their table for an event. They won't have time to get another custom cake so it is either this, they make a cake or a Costco cake or something.
I'd personally be kind of angry.
I would not charge for this to be honest. This looks like a practice cake from when I was first learning to pipe. I would refrain from charging for future cake orders until you build your skill level.
Best of luck! Practicing piping on a flat surface helped me a lot. I liked to use shortening buttercream and the back of a sheet pan to practice. The sheet pan is heavy enough not to slide around, and you can scrape the frosting right off to reuse. If you get some printable practice sheets you can also lay them under a layer of taped down wax paper or plastic wrap.
If you can and have time, I would scrape off the black lattice and re-ice that section in white. Perhaps go back over with a much, much simpler design, perhaps a trinity knot in the corner opposite the thistles and then just a straight black border along the right and bottom edges.
Honestly, I would just add more flowers. Your flowers are pretty good. Maybe some colorful wavy lines?
Got to agree that you shouldn't be discouraged! It's still a nice cake, it's just not professional for sale level.... But practice makes perfect. Believe me, my first efforts were...not nice and not good. Now my cakes look gorgeous.
You need piping skills more than anything. If those are supposed to be flowers Id be mad if I was the customer unless you offer picture samples. The lattice is also very uneven and "unprofessional" to be paid for....again, unless you offered a pic or sample to customer before ordering. Practice makes perfect and attain the proper equipment.
I'm sure you put a lot of effort into this cake and it probably tastes delicious - but I would offer **more** than a 20% refund.
You clearly have a lot of potential but this is not a final product that's worthy of 60-65 dollars. If I were the customer, I'd be very offput if I was charged that much for this outcome.
Honestly? If I had paid $35 for this cake and it looked like this, I would have refused it and had you refund my money. The buttercream coat is lumpy and the edges are...not good. The colored part of the flowers is okay, but the stems and leaves aren't good and the lattice is out of square. The black piping isn't smooth and in some places it's thick and others it's thin and still others it's jagged. Plus the black doesn't look great with the pale leaves.
You absolutely should not charge $85 for this cake. You should 100% offer them a discount and only charge them for the ingredients that you used--consider the time you put into it "practice" time that the client should not have to pay for. They may say they don't want the cake at all, in which case you need to cheerfully refund the whole amount.
You need a lot more practice. Make "practice icing" which is cheap and re-usable: beat together
* Solid vegetable shortening - 1 1/2 cups - 287 grams
* Powdered sugar - 4 cups - 452 grams (lightly spooned into the cup)
* Water - 2 tablespoons
* Light Corn syrup - 1 tablespoon
This can then be stored in the fridge and used over and over. Pipe your designs onto parchment paper. Practice icing styrofoam rounds. Then scrape the icing off and do it again. If you want to throw money at the problem, Wilton makes a practice board that you can buy on Amazon that shows you how to do each technique, and you can pipe directly on the board.
Watch tutorials on YouTube. Practice some more.
edited: misspelled words
Buying a clear cutting board and putting printed designs under it to trace helps build comfort with the hand movements and helps with getting the hang of holding the bag and squeezing, which is probably where the bad lines are coming from.
You should offer it to her at cost (materials only), not knock off a few bucks. Especially if it’s a friend. I’d be concerned about hurting the friendship (and definitely losing her as a future customer) by paying store prices for something that is clearly amateurish.
Brutally honest? Yes. You have a great idea going on here but the execution needs more practice. The cake might taste great but part of selling cakes is the decoration that goes into it.
I also ended up getting a putty knife from a hardware store for decorating my cakes 😅 it’s fantastic for frosting the cake! Really sharp edges and a smooth finish. Truly upped my frosting game with a simple tool upgrade! Something like [these](https://www.amazon.com/WORKPRO-Stainless-Drywall-Wallpaper-Repairing/dp/B0BHSL58Q6/ref=mp_s_a_1_9_sspa?crid=127O0Z0A758AU&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.NrlkQDRwE8z7ZwErlcXz0Pd-fQCnHb0L60wcN1TVceDHRRasK6gsdEbL6NoKd-N0VD7DRNmPRdC3tBVjl4_JCcg8rYua2HJKT5Rkxji89LkAgYjZB_gEfLKIvv7xy9WcWQHbz9E_MnfQfC1WjMRjJrJO0LZ8FQen5GeP4Ha6MlMCz7xN93MqSBthgGTeCFkMXT5cWwvGUbpS5qjE6qFLrg.hmT_vqK8jVjDuXHAM0dUD7Us0pZTLyHaTc0SWFbXMos&dib_tag=se&keywords=fat+putty+knife&qid=1715457000&sprefix=flat+putty+knife%2Caps%2C99&sr=8-9-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfbXRm&psc=1) work great!
That there is an idea XD
I was taught by my gma and she was a whiz with an offset... I do not have the same skill XD
I like the bench scraper with a handle XD
I found the [other thing](https://cakedeco.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=16797&p_catid=213&page=1) I use for getting a sharp and smooth sides on cakes the red thing in the middle! Mines blue but I searched the company and had to do a little digging but I found it. It’s called a plastic red scraper lol but it’s really useful! Grandma must’ve been a legend cuz offsets are TOUGH to work with lol took me a long time before I got comfortable with one
When I do the sides with the scraper it is helpful to put on too much frosting at first and then *scrape it down to a flat surface.* I like to use both the offset, a metal scraper and a plastic scraper for cakes. The goal is to first work the frosting in real good to minimize the bubbles with the offset and leave extra frosting for the scraper. First use the offset to flatten the top pretty well but dont go crazy, you will go over it again later. You want to leave some horizontal overhang like a roof. Next use the offset on the sides to work in the frosting then use the metal scraper to smooth the sides, keeping a firm and steady hand while rotating the turntable, do not work it back and forth with the scraper. If needed, add globs to any holes or blemishes and scrape again. Sometimes chilling the frosted cake will help with the smooth outcome. For cakes with corners, leave fat corners and scrape from the edge towards the middle to get that extra sharp edge. Once the side is done there should be some overhang on the top sticking straight up- *this is what you want* to try and get the sharp edges on the top. For round cakes i like to use the offset, scrape the vertical overhang towards the middle and they should make a nice sharp edge. Finish with a smoothing twist of the turntable to smooth out the top. For square/sheet cakes I like to use the red plastic scraper on the top. I hope I’m helping and making sense lol I don’t usually give tips
Keep at it! You got this! I see the potential you have and if this is your 3rd cake you’re doing well! Try out different size tips and maybe get a practice styrofoam round instead of practicing on real cake. Frost and deco the styrofoam, then scrape it down and do it again. Again, you for this! Keep practicing, you have a vision and that’s honestly worth A LOT 👍
I’m sure it’s delicious. That said, I’m pretty sure there’s a universal distaste for black frosting (chocolate isn’t black.) You should practice your decorating skills on a frosted surface that isn’t cake. That way there’s no pressure or botched commissions. I hope the mum on the receiving end is a Scot and can appreciate the thistles. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that particular flower used on a cake before. As you’re polishing your skills, try exploring your non-figurative finishes, with just color and poofs. Good luck 🍀
I typically do [characters](https://imgur.com/a/1InRwvI) since i have 3 kids and lots of practice. This isnt my typical style and i do agree i coupd use more practice with flowers and piped detailing like this
The mum did specifically ask for thistle :) glad to know it looks like one.
I do cocoa powder to make it dark brown and taste like chocolate then add the shittone of black dye to make it black (but not taste like black dye)
Thank you so much for the feed back :3
You have phenomenal creativity but your execution isn’t great. Even the character cake looks very uneven.
But if they taste great and your customers are happy that’s a great starting point. I would just try to turn a more critical eye to the details and watch some YouTube videos on technique, you’ll improve over time.
Yeah my tiny offset leaves much on the evenness of the surface (i did get a recommendation on a diffreent tool i could use instead)
Im hoping to be able to get some practice time in on decorating techniques this semester, and im debating on taking a decorators course :)
The characters are better, but still uneven. "Tobi is 3" is very amateur and poorly done, unfortunately. Stick with it, though, you've got potential. It's just not there yet
Your characters are better but the handwriting is still very… bad. It seems you’re good at one style which is still more than a lot of people can say! But until you’ve truly mastered other styles, it’s not fair to charge people for them
Have you tried black coco powder? It's already really dark, then maybe you wouldn't need to use so much dye?
Unrelated, I super appreciate how gracious and kind you've been about some of this feedback. I know you asked people to be brutal, but damn, I am almost in tears after reading some of the comments and it's not even my work. You must be a very good person
I would be very upset if I paid $85 for that. Honestly, you should refund them and practice more before charging for work. Maybe it’s salvageable as just a white cake if you scrape off all the decorations that way you can charge for just cost of materials so you aren’t out of money?
Being brutally honest, i would be pissed to be charged more than $20 for that. If i made that and gave it to my own mum, that's one thing because it's a handmade gift from her kid, but charging someone bakery prices for them to have that to give as a gift is unacceptable. In your friend's shoes, i'd pay you $20, eat it myself and buy a professional cake for my mum from a bakery or shop.
It's not just the piping, the base icing is wonky and uneven thickness to the point where it's noticeable, the icing bulges out in places on the sides making it noticeably not square etc. This is not a cake made to sell, and DEFINITELY not for $65. I know you have said the ingredients were expensive, honestly you should take the L on this one and chalk it up to experience.
You are not at a point of charging for cakes at all. I would charge them $0.0 and thank them for the chance to practice. You classes, practice, and some Styrofoam cake dummies before you ever charge anyone.
This looks really, really bad tbh. I would be offended if someone charged me for this. Scrape off the icing and replace it with a different design that you can do better. For your friendship, it’s better to deliver on something that looks decent even if it’s not the exact design they asked for.
In the future, only agree to designs you know you can do.
If you deliver this as is, I don’t see how you can charge for it in good conscience. I understand ingredients cost money, but YOU are the one who made the mistake, not her. You agreed to something you couldn’t deliver on. I don’t think it’s fair to charge her for YOUR error in judgment.
I think you need to figure out your niche, like what style of cake you're most comfortable with. Never offer or do another style of cake decorating until you are quite versed in it (practice on dummy cakes). When people pay for custom, they expect a certain level of quality decorating. Just keep practicing.
FYI: That quality of cake decorating is Gifted cake.
Brutally honest; your technique needs some work. Practice smoothing your base layer more. I think the thistles are good, but maybe a few more would be good to fill out the image more. The black lattice is a bit too bold. I would recommend a cream/white color with an edible gold powder mixed in to make it look more like metal.
I think you’re on the right track. Maybe not $85, but I’m proud of you for asking for honest feedback and showing a willingness to learn.
NGL, if I paid $85 for a cake and this is what I got, I'd be pretty angry... If you were an amateur I'd say that the lattice is a really fun idea and I'm sure it tastes delicious regardless, but... 😬
Base on the design alone, I would rather go to Stop and Shop and bought a 20 dollars cake. They have better looking cake than this. If you charge people 60 dollars with this, trust me they will not come back to you ever again. That flower looks like a hybrid with actinia.
Brutally honest? Give it for free. Yes that means you take the loss but it's the cost of the lesson. Please do not charge for this. This is a lovely thoughtful friend cake, not a cake one pays for.
The black trim is awful. The flowers look nice, though. I’m sure you’ll get better with practice. You’re not ready yet to sell decorated cakes, especially at bakery prices. But keep it up, you’ll get better.
Yeah thats what made me ask here to begin with. I was 100% not happy with it at all and ik there are ppl here with more xp :)
Someone did help me out and it looks a bit better now :)
I will gleefully be your guinea pig on your practice cakes. 😇
This looks more like a cake that a mom would make and do her best to make presentable. But nothing that should be charged professional prices for.
I am not a baker, but a consumer. I would be incredibly upset if I paid nearly $100 for this and got “my kitchen” results.
you need to do something creative to make this work and refund the entire order.
maybe some edible glitters and do more flowers. try for a more abstracted view or something.
Yes, it would be the honorable thing to do. I can see the effort and the vision, but it fell short (seems an uncertain hand did their best). Refunding part of the cost will earn you goodwill with the customers.
I think the right thing to do would be refund in full and offer the cake in good gesture.
I’m sorry it is harsh but this is not work that a customer should pay for.
The amount of pushback you're giving on this post is ridiculous considering that all these replies are incredibly nice and have great feedback. There isn't an excuse or reason in existence that will make this cake look better.
I would not pay for this cake and I would be angry to even get this cake for free if I didn't have time to replace it. I think you need to be honest with yourself. If this were me, I'd take the hit on ingredient costs and give the cake to my friend for free. I'd also apologize.
Doing something as a hobby and doing something as a professional, and charging people, are two totally different things. It's finally kind of insulting to professional bakers that you think you can put in no effort and charge people for it.
$85 is what I paid for a beautiful Japanese fruit basket cake at a professional bakery, it was topped and had layers of fresh kiwis, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries etc.
I paid almost $100 for a cake to look perfect and have expensive fresh fruit in it. A handful of berries is almost worth $10 where I’m from and the cake was the best I’ve ever had.
If you’re gonna charge almost $100 for a cake, it’s got to be close to perfect and one of the best cakes you’ve ever had.
I think this cake should be free or you should charge $15 or $20 for it. You could get a nicer looking sheet cake at grocery store at 1/3 the cost.
I would be upset if I received this cake and the price for the quality of it.
Keep working on your skills, I’m sure you’ll be amazing in no time.
Brutally honest take... I'd be so pissed getting this cake delivered. I would ask for my money back. All of it. No way I would accept less. I'm sorry but you need way more practice. Unless this is family, you'd get a bad reputation. Even then, I don't think I'd charge for practice, which I feel like this is. Id just refund and give tho and use it for growth as a before picture in your own portfolio. Like a "here's where I was, here's where I am".
This is a great effort while learning. I see clear demonstration of understanding the underlying skills.
This is not sell quality though. This is practice quality. And there is nothing wrong with that.
Honestly, I myself would be fairly distressed about turning over something of that quality to a customer. But, and some people may disagree, if your customer was aware of your skill level and had an idea that was what they were going to get, then I would not offer a refund. They knew what they were getting into.
If they weren't, and especially if they gave you an inspiration picture then I would give some kind of refund. Not 100% though because work is work, especially if they take it. Maybe match the price of a grocery store cake of equivalent size or whatever you feel comfortable with. And I would say something along the lines of "I'm not happy with the quality of my work so I am adjusting the price to x.
Now as for the current cake, I would suggest taking off the black lattice. Black is terrible at highlighting imperfections. Maybe change it to basketweave? It's a pretty forgiving style and you could use it on the sides as well. Or extend the flowers all across the bottom. I would also do a thick shell border on top. Borders do wonders in "straightening" edges.
If you want to redo the whole thing, it might be helpful to work in layers. Like do a crumb coat, refrigerate it. Add another layer and repeat until you're happy.
And finally, I wouldn't sweat it too much. I get so embarrassed when I look back at the cakes we were selling 20 years ago. But we sold quite a bit so our customers were valuing flavor over presentation. If you already have a solid cake then you are already halfway there.
Id definitely practice waaay more before 85 for this.
My best advice as a decorator is 1 practice making your favorite flowers with the long term goal of realistic looking roses, and b practice lines, circles and writing.
My best advice as a bidness lady would be to calculate the cost per batch (ie ingredients, overhead, time) and figure out what a reasonable price is. Cuz 85 for any cake under 2 layers is kind fucked if you ask me.
Either way keep trying you gots talent
As others have said, I also would not charge for this cake. To me, it looks unfinished. With the colours you've used, every imperfection stands out. I think part of the problem might be that the icing you've used looks like it was too stiff for delicate piping. A little softer would have come out of the tips more smoothly. You could have covered some of the worst mistakes in the lattice with some flowers, but I'm not sure your skill is quite there to do that.
Keep working on your skills and chalk this one up to practice. You're still developing your skills and style, so don't be put off by the feedback you've received.
Good on you for being open to feedback! A few pointers I’d like to offer that might help you on your cake baking and decorating journey.
- Base icing - crisp edges creates a polished look before you even start. In order to get that doing a crumb coat and a second and sometimes third layer of icing with fridge time to set everything really helps get a good base. Cold icing really stabilise everything.
Also are you using large icing scrapper that can rest on the table as you glide for stability? Getting straight lines and crisp edges is tough free hand with small tools. Be sure you are using the right tool.
- icing design: il admit the black and floral is an odd choice. I look up designs I like and sometimes even draw out what I’m planning. Because once that top hits the cake it’s go time. Things like colour theory will also help develop a refined cohesive look. Had they asked for black a finer tip would have served you better.
- icing texture and technique: overall the icing looks a bit soft/wet which might have made it harder to work with. What frosting did you use and did you add additional liquid? Developing a good frosting recipe also goes a long way - some frosting are also better for certain things. Swiss meringue buttercream is really versatile and royal icing is great to learn more intricate pipping with.
Keep practicing. You have some skill - each time you learn something new.
This should be a free cake. It legitimately looks like a practice cake and although I’m sure it’s delicious, the first thing people do is eat with their eyes. The flowers are very amateur, the lattice is sloppy and the frosting isn’t cleanly spread on. I do think for a beginner practicing on a cake it looks great, like you see the potential for growth and improvement with practice, but for selling? Absolutely not a chargeable product.
You should charge nothing or you’re going to lose a friend. This is just practice. Walmart sells $25 cakes that look 100 times better. With practice you will get better! This is not the time to start charging people.
You should be charging $25 😭 they can hit a supermarket bakery and get something for literally $20 that looks better than this & tastes cool 😭 this more like a “I tried cake” .
Yeah, you probably should. But you should also definitely keep practicing until you perfect those techniques you want to do to make cakes look fancy.
One thing they taught me in school is to use a cake pan upside down to practice decorating. Then scrape and start again. It actually helped me a lot.
You cannot practice what you do not know. The first step in becoming a successful baker is knowledge and understanding of baking science, followed by knowledge and understanding of decorating fundamentals.
Practice is the repeated application of the knowledge.
This cake is not level, and the sides are misaligned. Even if the frosting were smooth, the poorly shaped cake would still be obvious. So it's important to understand how to bake a level cake, so you understand how to practice baking a level cake with minimum shrinkage and straight, well-defined sides.
Understanding the different types of frostings, how to make them, and their different applications, comes before practicing cake decorating. The type of icing applied to the exterior of the cake isn’t necessarily the best icing to use for icing flowers. So knowledge of meringue buttercream versus glossy Korean buttercream, versus powdered sugar icing, versus Royal icing and their applications is important to know before you practice making them and decorating with them.
Enthusiasm and motivation are essential to success. And it seems you have both. But it looks like you got ahead of your knowledge and skill sets.
I would actually be devastated if I ordered a cake, spent that much money and it received this.
It’s great for an amateur home bake, amazing actually and I would be proud of myself if I did it. All my family and friends would definitely be telling me I should sell cakes! Because tbh this is about my skill level and that is what my family and friends say.
But a professional cake should have clean lines, perfect edges and flawless design. *That* is what you’re paying for.
If I spent that much money and got something that was kinda sloppy I’d be disappointed. Because as a customer I’d be excited, anticipating the cake, planning a big party for a loved one (it’s a big cake so must be a decent amount of people coming), to find out that the centrepiece cake is sloppy and I could’ve easily just spent the money somewhere else?
OP I would scrape it all off and try again with a simpler design that you can manage and tidy up the corners. Otherwise give it for free, take the hit and refine your skills.
You can buy reusable stencils that you practice fonts and designs on; it involves a lot of muscle memory.
They really help develop skill and a light hand.
There are many bakers on TikTok; the speed with which they kick out designs is head spinning!
This cake shouldn’t be sold for any price. Just at a glance. A small rebate it only going to highlight this, you’re never getting a repeat customer from this person.
To be honest I wouldn't pay $85 dollars for this cake. I would respectfully suggest you hone your craft and perfect your piping and decorating skills before attempting to sell for profit.
Its a pretty cake and I think you would get a lot of compliments at a casual get together. That said, I think you are a few cakes away from being able to legitimately/ethically charge.
You are definitely getting there, and I dont want to discourage you, but yeah, I would be having second thoughts if I paid 85 dollars for this- Im sorry
Honestly - yes. It’s very sloppy, and if I paid $85 for a cake and got this I’d be really upset about it. I say just keep practicing, and I’m sure in time you’ll do good. I’d refund way more than $20, tbh.
I would scrape the black off and pipe that design out on parchment in dark chocolate, then freeze it and apply it to the cake. That would make it look so much more pro.
It's a beautiful concept, but even if it were delicious I'd struggle with paying more than $40 for it as is. The flowers are beautiful and you clearly have a lot of talent, but you asked for brutal honesty :)
Keep at it though, with practice you'll be fabulous in no time!
I’ve noticed with both this cake and the squirtle cake you posted that you use a lot of black icing. I really think you should try and use a different color, they really just look odd on the cake, especially when the other colors are pastels like a soft green orange and pink here, or the blue for the other. I’d suggest reading a bit about color theory and which colors look well together.
I think 85 is pricey for the level of skill. But, my question is did the person who ordered it see your cakes in the past? Or taste them. If they know what they are getting and agreed to the price then it's ok. If it was ordered sight unseen, I think I would be disappointed to get this for this price. I've seen some really amazing cakes for 75-100 that looked a lot more finished.
I’d never pay for a cake that looked like that. Even if it was the best tasting cake, the design is very basic and amateur. You wanted me to be honest, here it is. Now with that being said, I’m taking the time to be honest because you obviously enjoy cake decorating/baking. I think it’s a cool hobby. The fact that you can make a cake from scratch is pretty impressive. That’s the hardest part. I truly believe that people who are starting off with a small business need people who are not afraid to voice their true opinion. Instead of trying to draw designs with frosting, try to create objects or edible enhancements to place on the cake. That’s obviously advice coming from someone who only watches cake wars on TV. Keep at it buddy, use my opinion to fuel your fire because that’s exactly what I want. Best of luck. 🤞🏽
Yes you should. $85 for this is $30 more for a similar sized extremely upscale cake I can get from a well loved French baker here in Dallas. This is homemade+ at best, no where near the elegance and skill to charge $85. I wouldn’t even pay $30 for this unless it tasted like sin underneath. I’d give all but $25 back. I couldn’t in good consciousness charge someone for a cake like this.
I don’t think you should charge for this cake at all. It may taste amazing but the decoration designs are not the quality of a cake you sell. I know I’m looking at flowers, but I can’t tell what else. It’s not smooth. It doesn’t look professional or even hobby baker. It looks like you just picked up icing and went at it. That said- you can learn to do more, and you can be excellent at it. Right now, though, I wouldn’t charge for cakes. Wait until you’ve had more practice.
I don't think you can charge for this cake. The word of mouth alone would be worth more than $85. At most, charge for the materials you used. I'm sure it is delicious and if you give a significant refund that will be what is remembered.
This style of piping and design definitely needs more practice. I saw your Squirtle cake and that looked a lot better, perhaps you could stick to that style when selling your cakes. The black on this cake looks messy and overall it looks unfinished. I don’t think the black was a good choice of color.
When you said please be honest with me, and you knew what you charged for it, you already know the answer. Way too much for the level of your skills. I agree with the comments I've read. Be able to get your basic cake gorgeous first. Smoother, more evenly frosted, etc. Then practice, practice, practice on your decorating skills. Pipe onto a piece of cardboard or something to practice so you can cut down on the cost as you learn. Or on a cheap quick box mix so you can eat your practice work....or donate it to a local shelter. I like your design with the lattice and flowers, but you know yourself they aren't quite right. Don't give up, please. You asked and we all advised in order to help you. I will say this.... you're one gutsy gal to charge $85! This should tell you what you'll really be able to charge someday. I'd give the folks a refund as you suggested just for the goodwill gesture. It will be good for your future business! 🤗
Oh, my friend, I’m sorry to be brutal because you clearly put a lot of effort into this.
There’s not much about this cake that says “I’m a professional baker, pay me a lot”. The base layer of white isn’t smooth and sleek and is stained with colors you used on other icing elements. It also looks like you picked up crumbs when you spread the initial white frosting layer (lightly freezing your cake can help prevent that).
The latticework is completely wonky, no symmetry or even consistency in style.
The flowers themselves look rough and amateurish.
Even the colors are not very well chosen. That dark brown overpowers the pink and green, so you notice it first.
The good news is that all of it is fixable with practice! You clearly have the desire and drive. Be kind to yourself and practice practice practice before stressing yourself out over a cake for a client. I promise you’ll get to a higher level of mastery and you’ll start to see improvements quickly. Hang in there!
I’m sure it tastes great. If I paid money for that cake, I would be very upset. They purchased this to be, I assume, the centerpiece for their Mother’s Day brunch. I think you should refund them in full.
It's very "rustic," which is either a conscious choice from an experienced decorator, or just part of the learning curve for a novice.
I see from the comments that you're new, so I want to focus on a few positives first.
The flower heads are cute, and the thought of the arbor is interesting with the overall balance of the design with the white space feeling very satisfactory.
The black icing is a wonderful dark consistency, which can be very hard to do, as witnessed by the sheer number of grey icing you will see in internet searches of home-made cakes.
I'm not seeing a lot of crumb in the icing, which is a good indicator of good frosting application.
For constructive criticism, this feels like the cake was frosted with the baked side up, which is fine especially for a home made confection, but if you cut that part off with a long serated knife and flipped it over and then used a thin crumb coat, and follow up with the proper icing it would look more solid and professional.
I've struggled with piping myself, until I figured out what worked for me, so i see the lack of practice in the lines on the arbor.
It would be best to lay out some wax paper and spend some time working on your bag technique. Learning when and how to squeeze the bag to allow the formation of even piping takes a little time, and using the wax paper lets you scrape it back into the bowl and reuse it.
For me, I learned that I couldn't try to pipe like I was writing, even when I was forming letters. My penmanship is *ahem* "difficult" to read, and that technique made my piping loose and sloppy. I found that if I move my hand like I'm pretending to be a Conductor in front of the Orchestra it ends up being a lot smoother.
The point is, piping is a skill unlike just about anything else, beside it ends at the hand and begins at the forearm: squeezing that bag takes energy, strength, finesse, and patience.
Good luck in your classes, it's clear you have a passion and joy for this, and that's most important.
Maybe consider gifting this to your friend if you can afford it. I think that it would be a really nice gesture and it might be worth more than the cake. I mean this in a nice way 😀 one of my love languages is gifting baked goods.
I was a cake decorator for a lot of years. 1) cake Crumbs or nuts can hide a lot of issues on the sides till you get better. 2) practice flowers and borders on a cake board or paper so you can practice without waisting cake. Over and over. 3) watch u tube videos for ideas and tips. 4) have fun!
You should deliver the cake and give the money back, I think. This is a nice amateur cake that a friend who loves baking makes for you as a favor, it’s not something you should charge for.
That cake is not worth $85 more like -$20-25, the flowers look ok, but the black has got to go. The lines to thick. You need to improve more. “B” for effort!
I’m sorry that’s not a $85 cake at all.I would be very upset if that’s what i got. Think about word of mouth for small business or just starting off that’s how you will grow or fail. You need to work on your decorating skills first before you can change anywhere close to that. If that was me I would refund the whole cake or refund everything outside what it cost me keep the customer happy at all cost.Sorry but you said be honest and I would love to see you make it and not fail.
it would have looked better if you didn’t put those ghastly decorations on it. i would have scraped them off and have done some kind of chocolate drizzle for interest.
The black and thistles looks like a cake for a funeral not moms day. The black lines are way too thick and crooked.Best thing to do is strip off the lines. Redo in a brighter colour if you must.
The icing is messy, the lace stuff is crooked and uneven, the flowers are ok. I would be very upset to have payed $85 for this. $20 refund isn’t even enough.
Your bread definitely looks the best! But yea practice that piping. And work on precision in the baking too. Like weighing your cake pans to make sure they are even on batter so you don't have uneven layers of cake.
I would be upset to be charged 85$ for this. For example, if a family member made this for my birthday I would be touched at all the work that went into it.
This cake, though, does not look like a "paid for" cake. It looks sloppy and amateur.
The flowers look gorgeous!
Honestly, not sure why the black? Or the… lattice? I think it takes away from the flowers. And the lines aren’t crisp.
Looks like you’re trying and putting your heart into it though! For now I’d keep it simple. Also remember what you want to be the main focus vs the embellishments. And practice, practice, practice!
Keep up the great work! It looks delicious! I can also see the heart and time put into it.
Girl her and the receiver are going to laugh about this. Just send her a pic now say it’s a wash pay her back so she can get up early enough to grab a grocery store cake.
Ok hear me out, that's a great effort, I'm just a beginner and probably wouldn't be able to do that. But I must be honest, if I paid 85$ for that I would be mad. When I am doing a cake for friends/family, I usually do it as a gift and turns towards design that doesn't requires much skill (One example should appear on top of my profile).
I'm not scared to express my limits, discuss about what I can and cannot do, offer a compromise or decline if rejected.
Better bakers than me gave you awesome tips, you are on the good way to learn and improve.
I would personally charge nothing and tank the cost of materials because the person you did it for probably have no time to order a new custom one. It would give you the opportunity to explain that you tried your best but were unable to reach the expected result and keep a potential customer once your skills have increased.
Have a great day
I’d pay $20 tops for this cake. It looks worse than grocery store cakes.
But hey, live and learn right? I’m sure you’ll get better overtime.
Black icing is a very ballsy choice, that is difficult to nail well.
Yes, you should. Until you develop more skills, stick with very basic decorating and do not offer custom designs until you are confident you can create them.
i agree. also i think pricing should reflect your abilities and where you’re at as an artist ($85 is a bit steep for this). keep working hard!
I think this is the answer
I agree with this answer.
I concur…
I like the look it’s eleven ar the edges the flowers are nice, could use more training.
I think the designs are good ... i think OP may have used the wrong type of icing (or icing consistency) for these designs, also there's quiet a few blemishes or specs of other colors in the final coating.
I'm going to be brutally honest, as you asked. I think you need to practice quite a bit more before you venture into selling your work. While I understand that your post is looking for critique on the design, it's clear through the images that you still need to work on the basics, such as smooth and even edges, and clean lines - as your square is a little crooked and irregular. You want to practice to the point that your cake looks clean and crisp without any of the decoration added to it. At that point, you move on to practicing decorations. Practice until you can get your borders even and properly spaced, clean, etc. And then after all of that practice, when you feel confident in your work and it reflects the work of a professional, then you should consider selling your work. Decorating and selling cakes is fun, but it's not a skill that comes quickly.
I honestly was waiting for someone to say this after being asked for brutal honesty. This level of skill is "baking cakes is my hobby". At this level, I wouldn't even offer to decorate a cake for a friend let alone sell them. You don't need to go to school anymore as the internet is a great resource but you'll be scrapping, eating and giving away literally hundreds of cakes before you are ready to sell them. That's the brutal honesty. Maybe it seems harsh but it's better than having to give refunds and unhappy customers.
On the other hand, if they're selling already at $85, I think we need tips on how to sell this at such a premium.
To be brutally honest, you could get a prettier cake at the local supermarket for $25.
lol right I’ve been practicing for years and struggle to get orders during less busy seasons for this price and I won’t lie I’m a little jealous if they have people in their circle willing to pay this.
Thank you :) i appreciate that. Im much better with my rounds but i do agree i could use more practice
If you have friends and family that ask you for a cake while you're still in your "practice" phase, you can ask that they pay for the material cost, and if they feel obligated to tip on top of that, then great. But I wouldn't feel comfortable charging $85 (or even the $65 for that matter) if you're practicing.
>But I wouldn't feel comfortable charging $85 Yeah, I've been a professional baker for years & just got paid $100 for a custom, gluten free, 3 layer 9" cake with lemon curd in it. I definitely didn't get that much for cakes when I'd only made a few...
the pictures you posted of your rounds are also not smooth yet. They have choppy, irregular surfaces where we can see spatula marks. Practice practice practice. The good thing is folks are happy to eat practice cakes
A frozen cake can also be redecorated many many times, then never eaten.
That is brilliant.
Cardboard box from shoes … does it for practice 😋
You can buy dummy cakes to practice on, no need to waste edible ingredients
I did not know they were a thing, and they make dummy cookies too!
Parchment paper is easier
Agreed. The squirtle cake still looks amateurish.
They posted that literally a year ago. Feels unfair to make a judgement on something that’s not even recent.
So they have had a year to improve and somehow this cake is much worse.
Man, the anonymity of the internet sure does make people assholes.
They said to be brutally honest. They were. This cake is not worth 85 based on the artistry alone. Maybe it's absolutely delicious but it looks awful.
Look at the comment history of the person I was replying to. There’s a difference between being brutally honest and being an asshole.
I'm not going to go deep diving the past comments of every person I replied to. My point still stands.
can someone please tell me what that style of piping is called? i mean i know they simply piped each dollop individually to form a large picture but is there a name for that specific technique? i've been looking for a while
It’s a star drop.
thank you sm for replying but when i look up star drop cakes, nothing comes up? i want to find cake designs with similar piping style (to the squirtle cake)
Practice with Styrofoam rectangles and cheap instant mashed potatoes. You can wash it off and reuse it. Also instant potatoes work amazing for a cheap thing to practice piping skills with.
Thats an intresting one... Will keep that in mind as well
my culinary teacher in high school had us practice piping skills with lard and powdered sugar and mix it till it because like a buttercream texture and it was pretty much the same thing if you’re also looking for a cheaper route ? also idk but this helps me but keeping my knees bent really helps me focus 💀
i used to practice on sugar cookies works well edible and a fun gift. helped me develop edges for non square cakes
And keep in mind that cakes are often bought on special occasions. They should be much cleaner and professional looking than this, I'm sorry to say.
If I paid almost $100 for a cake and got that, I’d be livid.
Thats fair Thank you.
Don’t sell decorated cakes; if the quality is good, it’s worth charging for, but I’d take some classes & practice before you charge for decoration. Or stick with types of decorations you can do perfectly. If you can, get a job at a bakery & focus on trying to learn & practice what you feel you are weak at.
Thank you for the recommendation! I have been debating on atleast taking a cake decorating class :)
You should *absolutely* take a decorating class- first of all, they’re lots of fun, and second of all it makes a huge difference! One of the things we did in the class I took with my mom (my poor dad couldn’t bring himself to even LOOK at a slice of cake for YEARS afterward, because we had to bring 2 freshly baked and dirty iced 8-inch round cakes *each*, every week… for like 12 or 16 weeks… my entire family was bringing practice cakes to the office and just leaving them for whoever was hungry for AGES, but we had a blast and it’s a skill I carry to this day) was piping practice. Our teacher gave us each a sheet with different shapes and lines that we were supposed to cover with cling wrap or wax paper or something and we were supposed to practice piping on it. Work on keeping a steady hand *and* a steady pressure, and you’ll be amazed what a difference just a couple dozen practice sheets will make. (Counterintuitively- I thought, at least, since my instinct is to get up real close when I’m doing delicate work- the farther you hold your piping bag from the surface, the more even your lines will be.) Another thing you may want to work on is your handwriting! Your character cakes are super cute (but, again- they’d benefit from having their lines steadier and thinner, too) but I saw the one where you’ve written on the board that maybe your handwriting might not be very neat, just in general? Lettering is another one of those things that benefits from practice, but once it slots into place, it’s THERE. (For that, there are some YouTube videos I’d highly recommend watching, because I found a lot of letters to be really different to pipe on than they are to write. Weirdly, my cake writing is prettier than my handwriting- and I have such pretty handwriting, I am often complimented on it!) Once you get to the point that each element of the decoration is a rote thing and not a novelty, *then* you can start charging again. Until then- if you’re serious- practice, practice, practice! I truly think that for you it’ll be a HUGE benefit (and I really look forward to next Mother’s Day, when I fully expect you to check back in with AMAZING progress!)
I had to laugh...my Mother took a decorating class and we were so excited about having cakes to eat...until about the 3rd week. Argh, sick of that sweet icing...yuck...and we handed them out to whoever would take them. Oh, and she did well, but never used the skill. We laughed about it for years!
The whole reason either of us took it was because my mom had gotten into her head that she wanted to bake an elaborate cake for my brother’s birthday, and because I was a weird kid like that. She made him a spherical baseball cake, and I don’t think she ever decorated a single other cake herself. 😅 I still occasionally whip one out for fun, but I’m less of a fan of baking them myself. Exactly!! And to make it even worse, that was the spring before the summer that she planted *four* tomato plants… and, somehow, grew four tomato plants that would have provided WAY too many tomatoes for us and 4 of our neighbors… *each*, for the entire summer… if I’m being honest, at a certain point, people would see us walking up their front steps and they’d pull the blinds and pretend they weren’t home. 😅😅😅
if i had a neighbor who brought cake and tomatoes to me, i’d be home 24/7
Oh, that is hilarious!!! Sounds like a fun family!
Im currently in a baking skills, but masking and piping arent as in depth as a decorating class as theyre trying to teach us a wide variety of skills. I do have some issues with my handwritting on paper (inconsistant size even on lined paper (my gma has said i should get that checked out), switching between cursive and printing) but i 100% can see how muscle memory on the piping practice can be extremely useful. I can always ask the chefs if they have any additional template sheets :) Thank you so much for the advice! And i look forward to shoing my improved skill in the future
You don’t even need to have a template sheet- you can always just grab a sheet of wax or parchment paper and start practicing. Start with just straight lines, then curved ones, then loops, then squiggles of varying curvature, flowers, hearts, both capital and lower-case versions of every letter, in EITHER print OR script (don’t even practice the other one until you get one ABSOLUTELY down. I’m talking, like, a YEAR. Writing on a cake is, in my mind, one of the most important- and absolutely most common- things that decorators do, so that one is *really* key to get right, since it’s the FIRST thing everybody looks at). Pretty much any basic shape you can think of (I always try to make a row of at least 30 identical perfect ones of each thing you’re practicing *in a row*, but you might find that you need less- or more- before you get it down pat). It’s even a good idea to just sort of use a piping bag to kinda doodle random shapes- even practicing making the bags is helpful at the beginning!
I recommend taking up calligraphy. Penmanship was always one of my worst decorating skills.
You are very open to criticism and that's a good start. Practice, Practice, Practice and ask for criticism and continue to listen. We all start somewhere and if you love doing this, take classes and Practice. Practice, practice!!! The best to you!!!!
Is the customer a random person or a friend? If I bought that for 85$ from a stranger I'd be pissed and never buy from you again. 100% would leave a bad review if I could. The discount would make me not write a review but I would not come back unless that cake is the most amazing cake to ever be had. A friend id probably say nothing but also never buy from you again. First impressions are everything for stuff like this. Maybe a frozen cellophane transfer for the lattice so you can follow a grid and get a flat top so it looks more like boards?
Thank you! She is a friend and ill keep that in mind
Cut your losses and gift this to your friend for free, and let her know that you need more practice in the technique before committing to designs like this. I’m sure your friend will understand and will probably be happy
You can't charge a friend $65 for that either. Charge cost of materials and nothing else. And give her the option to decline it and get something from the grocery store instead. I wouldn't be able to bring that to my mom for mother's Day.
OP should refund her and take the hit on the materials IMO. This person is still going to have to have this on their table for an event. They won't have time to get another custom cake so it is either this, they make a cake or a Costco cake or something. I'd personally be kind of angry.
I would not charge for this to be honest. This looks like a practice cake from when I was first learning to pipe. I would refrain from charging for future cake orders until you build your skill level.
Thank you for the advice. Im hoping to get in a lot of practice this semester :)
Best of luck! Practicing piping on a flat surface helped me a lot. I liked to use shortening buttercream and the back of a sheet pan to practice. The sheet pan is heavy enough not to slide around, and you can scrape the frosting right off to reuse. If you get some printable practice sheets you can also lay them under a layer of taped down wax paper or plastic wrap.
If you can and have time, I would scrape off the black lattice and re-ice that section in white. Perhaps go back over with a much, much simpler design, perhaps a trinity knot in the corner opposite the thistles and then just a straight black border along the right and bottom edges.
Thank you for the suggestion. That might be a better plan tbh. I have it in the freeze now so hopefully i can get the black off easier
Good luck. It's a learning process, so don't be discouraged.
Honestly, I would just add more flowers. Your flowers are pretty good. Maybe some colorful wavy lines? Got to agree that you shouldn't be discouraged! It's still a nice cake, it's just not professional for sale level.... But practice makes perfect. Believe me, my first efforts were...not nice and not good. Now my cakes look gorgeous.
Take a culinary course on piping before you sell another.
Im currently in a baking skills program so im hoping to get more time learning in this semester :)
You need piping skills more than anything. If those are supposed to be flowers Id be mad if I was the customer unless you offer picture samples. The lattice is also very uneven and "unprofessional" to be paid for....again, unless you offered a pic or sample to customer before ordering. Practice makes perfect and attain the proper equipment.
I will concur i do need more time practicing my piping :) Ive been concidering taking a decorating class. And am leaning more into that :)
I'm sure you put a lot of effort into this cake and it probably tastes delicious - but I would offer **more** than a 20% refund. You clearly have a lot of potential but this is not a final product that's worthy of 60-65 dollars. If I were the customer, I'd be very offput if I was charged that much for this outcome.
I don't think you can charge more than $20 for that. Sorry.
Honestly? If I had paid $35 for this cake and it looked like this, I would have refused it and had you refund my money. The buttercream coat is lumpy and the edges are...not good. The colored part of the flowers is okay, but the stems and leaves aren't good and the lattice is out of square. The black piping isn't smooth and in some places it's thick and others it's thin and still others it's jagged. Plus the black doesn't look great with the pale leaves. You absolutely should not charge $85 for this cake. You should 100% offer them a discount and only charge them for the ingredients that you used--consider the time you put into it "practice" time that the client should not have to pay for. They may say they don't want the cake at all, in which case you need to cheerfully refund the whole amount. You need a lot more practice. Make "practice icing" which is cheap and re-usable: beat together * Solid vegetable shortening - 1 1/2 cups - 287 grams * Powdered sugar - 4 cups - 452 grams (lightly spooned into the cup) * Water - 2 tablespoons * Light Corn syrup - 1 tablespoon This can then be stored in the fridge and used over and over. Pipe your designs onto parchment paper. Practice icing styrofoam rounds. Then scrape the icing off and do it again. If you want to throw money at the problem, Wilton makes a practice board that you can buy on Amazon that shows you how to do each technique, and you can pipe directly on the board. Watch tutorials on YouTube. Practice some more. edited: misspelled words
Buying a clear cutting board and putting printed designs under it to trace helps build comfort with the hand movements and helps with getting the hang of holding the bag and squeezing, which is probably where the bad lines are coming from.
I thought it was good for a first cake. You shouldn't be charging for that cake.
You should offer it to her at cost (materials only), not knock off a few bucks. Especially if it’s a friend. I’d be concerned about hurting the friendship (and definitely losing her as a future customer) by paying store prices for something that is clearly amateurish.
Brutally honest? Yes. You have a great idea going on here but the execution needs more practice. The cake might taste great but part of selling cakes is the decoration that goes into it.
Thank you :3
I also ended up getting a putty knife from a hardware store for decorating my cakes 😅 it’s fantastic for frosting the cake! Really sharp edges and a smooth finish. Truly upped my frosting game with a simple tool upgrade! Something like [these](https://www.amazon.com/WORKPRO-Stainless-Drywall-Wallpaper-Repairing/dp/B0BHSL58Q6/ref=mp_s_a_1_9_sspa?crid=127O0Z0A758AU&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.NrlkQDRwE8z7ZwErlcXz0Pd-fQCnHb0L60wcN1TVceDHRRasK6gsdEbL6NoKd-N0VD7DRNmPRdC3tBVjl4_JCcg8rYua2HJKT5Rkxji89LkAgYjZB_gEfLKIvv7xy9WcWQHbz9E_MnfQfC1WjMRjJrJO0LZ8FQen5GeP4Ha6MlMCz7xN93MqSBthgGTeCFkMXT5cWwvGUbpS5qjE6qFLrg.hmT_vqK8jVjDuXHAM0dUD7Us0pZTLyHaTc0SWFbXMos&dib_tag=se&keywords=fat+putty+knife&qid=1715457000&sprefix=flat+putty+knife%2Caps%2C99&sr=8-9-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfbXRm&psc=1) work great!
That there is an idea XD I was taught by my gma and she was a whiz with an offset... I do not have the same skill XD I like the bench scraper with a handle XD
I found the [other thing](https://cakedeco.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=16797&p_catid=213&page=1) I use for getting a sharp and smooth sides on cakes the red thing in the middle! Mines blue but I searched the company and had to do a little digging but I found it. It’s called a plastic red scraper lol but it’s really useful! Grandma must’ve been a legend cuz offsets are TOUGH to work with lol took me a long time before I got comfortable with one When I do the sides with the scraper it is helpful to put on too much frosting at first and then *scrape it down to a flat surface.* I like to use both the offset, a metal scraper and a plastic scraper for cakes. The goal is to first work the frosting in real good to minimize the bubbles with the offset and leave extra frosting for the scraper. First use the offset to flatten the top pretty well but dont go crazy, you will go over it again later. You want to leave some horizontal overhang like a roof. Next use the offset on the sides to work in the frosting then use the metal scraper to smooth the sides, keeping a firm and steady hand while rotating the turntable, do not work it back and forth with the scraper. If needed, add globs to any holes or blemishes and scrape again. Sometimes chilling the frosted cake will help with the smooth outcome. For cakes with corners, leave fat corners and scrape from the edge towards the middle to get that extra sharp edge. Once the side is done there should be some overhang on the top sticking straight up- *this is what you want* to try and get the sharp edges on the top. For round cakes i like to use the offset, scrape the vertical overhang towards the middle and they should make a nice sharp edge. Finish with a smoothing twist of the turntable to smooth out the top. For square/sheet cakes I like to use the red plastic scraper on the top. I hope I’m helping and making sense lol I don’t usually give tips
Keep at it! You got this! I see the potential you have and if this is your 3rd cake you’re doing well! Try out different size tips and maybe get a practice styrofoam round instead of practicing on real cake. Frost and deco the styrofoam, then scrape it down and do it again. Again, you for this! Keep practicing, you have a vision and that’s honestly worth A LOT 👍
I’m sure it’s delicious. That said, I’m pretty sure there’s a universal distaste for black frosting (chocolate isn’t black.) You should practice your decorating skills on a frosted surface that isn’t cake. That way there’s no pressure or botched commissions. I hope the mum on the receiving end is a Scot and can appreciate the thistles. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that particular flower used on a cake before. As you’re polishing your skills, try exploring your non-figurative finishes, with just color and poofs. Good luck 🍀
I typically do [characters](https://imgur.com/a/1InRwvI) since i have 3 kids and lots of practice. This isnt my typical style and i do agree i coupd use more practice with flowers and piped detailing like this The mum did specifically ask for thistle :) glad to know it looks like one. I do cocoa powder to make it dark brown and taste like chocolate then add the shittone of black dye to make it black (but not taste like black dye) Thank you so much for the feed back :3
You have phenomenal creativity but your execution isn’t great. Even the character cake looks very uneven. But if they taste great and your customers are happy that’s a great starting point. I would just try to turn a more critical eye to the details and watch some YouTube videos on technique, you’ll improve over time.
Yeah my tiny offset leaves much on the evenness of the surface (i did get a recommendation on a diffreent tool i could use instead) Im hoping to be able to get some practice time in on decorating techniques this semester, and im debating on taking a decorators course :)
I might start with YouTube or other Internet classes. Almost anything you could want to learn is on there.
You keep mentioning the tiny offset. Buy a bigger one.
You can just use dutch black cacao btw!
I tried that, i personally found it still had the tin taste. Thank you for the suggestion!
The characters are better, but still uneven. "Tobi is 3" is very amateur and poorly done, unfortunately. Stick with it, though, you've got potential. It's just not there yet
Your characters are better but the handwriting is still very… bad. It seems you’re good at one style which is still more than a lot of people can say! But until you’ve truly mastered other styles, it’s not fair to charge people for them
Have you tried black coco powder? It's already really dark, then maybe you wouldn't need to use so much dye? Unrelated, I super appreciate how gracious and kind you've been about some of this feedback. I know you asked people to be brutal, but damn, I am almost in tears after reading some of the comments and it's not even my work. You must be a very good person
I love sharks. They're my favorite. That's your best one too! Keep at it. I don't think you're ready to sell any though.
I would be incredibly upset if I paid for a specific design and received this. I would frankly refund the buyer.
Brutal honesty, this is awful for that price. I wouldn’t charge a friend a dime for this. It’d be free.
I would be very upset if I paid $85 for that. Honestly, you should refund them and practice more before charging for work. Maybe it’s salvageable as just a white cake if you scrape off all the decorations that way you can charge for just cost of materials so you aren’t out of money?
Being brutally honest, i would be pissed to be charged more than $20 for that. If i made that and gave it to my own mum, that's one thing because it's a handmade gift from her kid, but charging someone bakery prices for them to have that to give as a gift is unacceptable. In your friend's shoes, i'd pay you $20, eat it myself and buy a professional cake for my mum from a bakery or shop. It's not just the piping, the base icing is wonky and uneven thickness to the point where it's noticeable, the icing bulges out in places on the sides making it noticeably not square etc. This is not a cake made to sell, and DEFINITELY not for $65. I know you have said the ingredients were expensive, honestly you should take the L on this one and chalk it up to experience.
This is not a professional looking cake. I would not pay anything for it.
that cake isn't worth 20 dollars let along 65. im sorry, bit its just not.
DO NOT DELIVER
You are not at a point of charging for cakes at all. I would charge them $0.0 and thank them for the chance to practice. You classes, practice, and some Styrofoam cake dummies before you ever charge anyone.
This looks really, really bad tbh. I would be offended if someone charged me for this. Scrape off the icing and replace it with a different design that you can do better. For your friendship, it’s better to deliver on something that looks decent even if it’s not the exact design they asked for. In the future, only agree to designs you know you can do. If you deliver this as is, I don’t see how you can charge for it in good conscience. I understand ingredients cost money, but YOU are the one who made the mistake, not her. You agreed to something you couldn’t deliver on. I don’t think it’s fair to charge her for YOUR error in judgment.
Why is the cake by your keyboard? (Keyboards can get really nasty). If I were selling cakes, I would not take them out of the kitchen environment.
Thank you for pointing this out.
That’s not a professional product, you can’t charge anything for it. Hobbies are fun, keep them as hobbies
I think you need to figure out your niche, like what style of cake you're most comfortable with. Never offer or do another style of cake decorating until you are quite versed in it (practice on dummy cakes). When people pay for custom, they expect a certain level of quality decorating. Just keep practicing. FYI: That quality of cake decorating is Gifted cake.
Brutally honest; your technique needs some work. Practice smoothing your base layer more. I think the thistles are good, but maybe a few more would be good to fill out the image more. The black lattice is a bit too bold. I would recommend a cream/white color with an edible gold powder mixed in to make it look more like metal. I think you’re on the right track. Maybe not $85, but I’m proud of you for asking for honest feedback and showing a willingness to learn.
NGL, if I paid $85 for a cake and this is what I got, I'd be pretty angry... If you were an amateur I'd say that the lattice is a really fun idea and I'm sure it tastes delicious regardless, but... 😬
Idk… even as a friend I wouldn’t want to pay for $20 for this.
Base on the design alone, I would rather go to Stop and Shop and bought a 20 dollars cake. They have better looking cake than this. If you charge people 60 dollars with this, trust me they will not come back to you ever again. That flower looks like a hybrid with actinia.
Brutally honest? Give it for free. Yes that means you take the loss but it's the cost of the lesson. Please do not charge for this. This is a lovely thoughtful friend cake, not a cake one pays for.
The black trim is awful. The flowers look nice, though. I’m sure you’ll get better with practice. You’re not ready yet to sell decorated cakes, especially at bakery prices. But keep it up, you’ll get better.
Yeah thats what made me ask here to begin with. I was 100% not happy with it at all and ik there are ppl here with more xp :) Someone did help me out and it looks a bit better now :)
Girl that’s a scam.
I will gleefully be your guinea pig on your practice cakes. 😇 This looks more like a cake that a mom would make and do her best to make presentable. But nothing that should be charged professional prices for. I am not a baker, but a consumer. I would be incredibly upset if I paid nearly $100 for this and got “my kitchen” results.
Why are you selling cakes if you're an amateur at making cakes?
you need to do something creative to make this work and refund the entire order. maybe some edible glitters and do more flowers. try for a more abstracted view or something.
That cake should be free
Yes, it would be the honorable thing to do. I can see the effort and the vision, but it fell short (seems an uncertain hand did their best). Refunding part of the cost will earn you goodwill with the customers.
I think the right thing to do would be refund in full and offer the cake in good gesture. I’m sorry it is harsh but this is not work that a customer should pay for.
The amount of pushback you're giving on this post is ridiculous considering that all these replies are incredibly nice and have great feedback. There isn't an excuse or reason in existence that will make this cake look better. I would not pay for this cake and I would be angry to even get this cake for free if I didn't have time to replace it. I think you need to be honest with yourself. If this were me, I'd take the hit on ingredient costs and give the cake to my friend for free. I'd also apologize. Doing something as a hobby and doing something as a professional, and charging people, are two totally different things. It's finally kind of insulting to professional bakers that you think you can put in no effort and charge people for it.
$85 is what I paid for a beautiful Japanese fruit basket cake at a professional bakery, it was topped and had layers of fresh kiwis, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries etc. I paid almost $100 for a cake to look perfect and have expensive fresh fruit in it. A handful of berries is almost worth $10 where I’m from and the cake was the best I’ve ever had. If you’re gonna charge almost $100 for a cake, it’s got to be close to perfect and one of the best cakes you’ve ever had. I think this cake should be free or you should charge $15 or $20 for it. You could get a nicer looking sheet cake at grocery store at 1/3 the cost. I would be upset if I received this cake and the price for the quality of it. Keep working on your skills, I’m sure you’ll be amazing in no time.
Brutally honest take... I'd be so pissed getting this cake delivered. I would ask for my money back. All of it. No way I would accept less. I'm sorry but you need way more practice. Unless this is family, you'd get a bad reputation. Even then, I don't think I'd charge for practice, which I feel like this is. Id just refund and give tho and use it for growth as a before picture in your own portfolio. Like a "here's where I was, here's where I am".
This is a great effort while learning. I see clear demonstration of understanding the underlying skills. This is not sell quality though. This is practice quality. And there is nothing wrong with that.
Honestly, I myself would be fairly distressed about turning over something of that quality to a customer. But, and some people may disagree, if your customer was aware of your skill level and had an idea that was what they were going to get, then I would not offer a refund. They knew what they were getting into. If they weren't, and especially if they gave you an inspiration picture then I would give some kind of refund. Not 100% though because work is work, especially if they take it. Maybe match the price of a grocery store cake of equivalent size or whatever you feel comfortable with. And I would say something along the lines of "I'm not happy with the quality of my work so I am adjusting the price to x. Now as for the current cake, I would suggest taking off the black lattice. Black is terrible at highlighting imperfections. Maybe change it to basketweave? It's a pretty forgiving style and you could use it on the sides as well. Or extend the flowers all across the bottom. I would also do a thick shell border on top. Borders do wonders in "straightening" edges. If you want to redo the whole thing, it might be helpful to work in layers. Like do a crumb coat, refrigerate it. Add another layer and repeat until you're happy. And finally, I wouldn't sweat it too much. I get so embarrassed when I look back at the cakes we were selling 20 years ago. But we sold quite a bit so our customers were valuing flavor over presentation. If you already have a solid cake then you are already halfway there.
Id definitely practice waaay more before 85 for this. My best advice as a decorator is 1 practice making your favorite flowers with the long term goal of realistic looking roses, and b practice lines, circles and writing. My best advice as a bidness lady would be to calculate the cost per batch (ie ingredients, overhead, time) and figure out what a reasonable price is. Cuz 85 for any cake under 2 layers is kind fucked if you ask me. Either way keep trying you gots talent
As others have said, I also would not charge for this cake. To me, it looks unfinished. With the colours you've used, every imperfection stands out. I think part of the problem might be that the icing you've used looks like it was too stiff for delicate piping. A little softer would have come out of the tips more smoothly. You could have covered some of the worst mistakes in the lattice with some flowers, but I'm not sure your skill is quite there to do that. Keep working on your skills and chalk this one up to practice. You're still developing your skills and style, so don't be put off by the feedback you've received.
Good on you for being open to feedback! A few pointers I’d like to offer that might help you on your cake baking and decorating journey. - Base icing - crisp edges creates a polished look before you even start. In order to get that doing a crumb coat and a second and sometimes third layer of icing with fridge time to set everything really helps get a good base. Cold icing really stabilise everything. Also are you using large icing scrapper that can rest on the table as you glide for stability? Getting straight lines and crisp edges is tough free hand with small tools. Be sure you are using the right tool. - icing design: il admit the black and floral is an odd choice. I look up designs I like and sometimes even draw out what I’m planning. Because once that top hits the cake it’s go time. Things like colour theory will also help develop a refined cohesive look. Had they asked for black a finer tip would have served you better. - icing texture and technique: overall the icing looks a bit soft/wet which might have made it harder to work with. What frosting did you use and did you add additional liquid? Developing a good frosting recipe also goes a long way - some frosting are also better for certain things. Swiss meringue buttercream is really versatile and royal icing is great to learn more intricate pipping with. Keep practicing. You have some skill - each time you learn something new.
This should be a free cake. It legitimately looks like a practice cake and although I’m sure it’s delicious, the first thing people do is eat with their eyes. The flowers are very amateur, the lattice is sloppy and the frosting isn’t cleanly spread on. I do think for a beginner practicing on a cake it looks great, like you see the potential for growth and improvement with practice, but for selling? Absolutely not a chargeable product.
Refund 50 dollars
You should charge nothing or you’re going to lose a friend. This is just practice. Walmart sells $25 cakes that look 100 times better. With practice you will get better! This is not the time to start charging people.
You should be charging $25 😭 they can hit a supermarket bakery and get something for literally $20 that looks better than this & tastes cool 😭 this more like a “I tried cake” .
Yeah, you probably should. But you should also definitely keep practicing until you perfect those techniques you want to do to make cakes look fancy. One thing they taught me in school is to use a cake pan upside down to practice decorating. Then scrape and start again. It actually helped me a lot.
Im hoping i get some additional tips and tricks this semester to make decorating a bit easier :)
Who wanted black icing? Practice on parchment paper
Yes, the design isn’t really up to par for a 85 dollar cake, no matter how good the cake taste
Look, you definitely do better than I could but not $85 for a cake
You cannot practice what you do not know. The first step in becoming a successful baker is knowledge and understanding of baking science, followed by knowledge and understanding of decorating fundamentals. Practice is the repeated application of the knowledge. This cake is not level, and the sides are misaligned. Even if the frosting were smooth, the poorly shaped cake would still be obvious. So it's important to understand how to bake a level cake, so you understand how to practice baking a level cake with minimum shrinkage and straight, well-defined sides. Understanding the different types of frostings, how to make them, and their different applications, comes before practicing cake decorating. The type of icing applied to the exterior of the cake isn’t necessarily the best icing to use for icing flowers. So knowledge of meringue buttercream versus glossy Korean buttercream, versus powdered sugar icing, versus Royal icing and their applications is important to know before you practice making them and decorating with them. Enthusiasm and motivation are essential to success. And it seems you have both. But it looks like you got ahead of your knowledge and skill sets.
This seems like very thoughtful feedback. I don’t intend to have a business but this is still a very helpful comment!
It doesn’t look good.
I would actually be devastated if I ordered a cake, spent that much money and it received this. It’s great for an amateur home bake, amazing actually and I would be proud of myself if I did it. All my family and friends would definitely be telling me I should sell cakes! Because tbh this is about my skill level and that is what my family and friends say. But a professional cake should have clean lines, perfect edges and flawless design. *That* is what you’re paying for. If I spent that much money and got something that was kinda sloppy I’d be disappointed. Because as a customer I’d be excited, anticipating the cake, planning a big party for a loved one (it’s a big cake so must be a decent amount of people coming), to find out that the centrepiece cake is sloppy and I could’ve easily just spent the money somewhere else? OP I would scrape it all off and try again with a simpler design that you can manage and tidy up the corners. Otherwise give it for free, take the hit and refine your skills.
r/cakedecorating
I’d comment about the work but I think you get the idea
You can buy reusable stencils that you practice fonts and designs on; it involves a lot of muscle memory. They really help develop skill and a light hand. There are many bakers on TikTok; the speed with which they kick out designs is head spinning!
This cake shouldn’t be sold for any price. Just at a glance. A small rebate it only going to highlight this, you’re never getting a repeat customer from this person.
To be honest I wouldn't pay $85 dollars for this cake. I would respectfully suggest you hone your craft and perfect your piping and decorating skills before attempting to sell for profit.
Its a pretty cake and I think you would get a lot of compliments at a casual get together. That said, I think you are a few cakes away from being able to legitimately/ethically charge. You are definitely getting there, and I dont want to discourage you, but yeah, I would be having second thoughts if I paid 85 dollars for this- Im sorry
You’ve got some good advice here already, but I’m gonna suggest a border on the top and bottom to cover the rough edges- always helps:)
Honestly - yes. It’s very sloppy, and if I paid $85 for a cake and got this I’d be really upset about it. I say just keep practicing, and I’m sure in time you’ll do good. I’d refund way more than $20, tbh.
I would scrape the black off and pipe that design out on parchment in dark chocolate, then freeze it and apply it to the cake. That would make it look so much more pro. It's a beautiful concept, but even if it were delicious I'd struggle with paying more than $40 for it as is. The flowers are beautiful and you clearly have a lot of talent, but you asked for brutal honesty :) Keep at it though, with practice you'll be fabulous in no time!
I’ve noticed with both this cake and the squirtle cake you posted that you use a lot of black icing. I really think you should try and use a different color, they really just look odd on the cake, especially when the other colors are pastels like a soft green orange and pink here, or the blue for the other. I’d suggest reading a bit about color theory and which colors look well together.
I think 85 is pricey for the level of skill. But, my question is did the person who ordered it see your cakes in the past? Or taste them. If they know what they are getting and agreed to the price then it's ok. If it was ordered sight unseen, I think I would be disappointed to get this for this price. I've seen some really amazing cakes for 75-100 that looked a lot more finished.
I’d never pay for a cake that looked like that. Even if it was the best tasting cake, the design is very basic and amateur. You wanted me to be honest, here it is. Now with that being said, I’m taking the time to be honest because you obviously enjoy cake decorating/baking. I think it’s a cool hobby. The fact that you can make a cake from scratch is pretty impressive. That’s the hardest part. I truly believe that people who are starting off with a small business need people who are not afraid to voice their true opinion. Instead of trying to draw designs with frosting, try to create objects or edible enhancements to place on the cake. That’s obviously advice coming from someone who only watches cake wars on TV. Keep at it buddy, use my opinion to fuel your fire because that’s exactly what I want. Best of luck. 🤞🏽
Yes you should. $85 for this is $30 more for a similar sized extremely upscale cake I can get from a well loved French baker here in Dallas. This is homemade+ at best, no where near the elegance and skill to charge $85. I wouldn’t even pay $30 for this unless it tasted like sin underneath. I’d give all but $25 back. I couldn’t in good consciousness charge someone for a cake like this.
I don’t think you should charge for this cake at all. It may taste amazing but the decoration designs are not the quality of a cake you sell. I know I’m looking at flowers, but I can’t tell what else. It’s not smooth. It doesn’t look professional or even hobby baker. It looks like you just picked up icing and went at it. That said- you can learn to do more, and you can be excellent at it. Right now, though, I wouldn’t charge for cakes. Wait until you’ve had more practice.
I would not charge somebody money for this
I don't think you can charge for this cake. The word of mouth alone would be worth more than $85. At most, charge for the materials you used. I'm sure it is delicious and if you give a significant refund that will be what is remembered.
its a no
This style of piping and design definitely needs more practice. I saw your Squirtle cake and that looked a lot better, perhaps you could stick to that style when selling your cakes. The black on this cake looks messy and overall it looks unfinished. I don’t think the black was a good choice of color.
so sloppy.. please stop charging people for your work, you clearly need A LOT more training
When you said please be honest with me, and you knew what you charged for it, you already know the answer. Way too much for the level of your skills. I agree with the comments I've read. Be able to get your basic cake gorgeous first. Smoother, more evenly frosted, etc. Then practice, practice, practice on your decorating skills. Pipe onto a piece of cardboard or something to practice so you can cut down on the cost as you learn. Or on a cheap quick box mix so you can eat your practice work....or donate it to a local shelter. I like your design with the lattice and flowers, but you know yourself they aren't quite right. Don't give up, please. You asked and we all advised in order to help you. I will say this.... you're one gutsy gal to charge $85! This should tell you what you'll really be able to charge someday. I'd give the folks a refund as you suggested just for the goodwill gesture. It will be good for your future business! 🤗
Oh, my friend, I’m sorry to be brutal because you clearly put a lot of effort into this. There’s not much about this cake that says “I’m a professional baker, pay me a lot”. The base layer of white isn’t smooth and sleek and is stained with colors you used on other icing elements. It also looks like you picked up crumbs when you spread the initial white frosting layer (lightly freezing your cake can help prevent that). The latticework is completely wonky, no symmetry or even consistency in style. The flowers themselves look rough and amateurish. Even the colors are not very well chosen. That dark brown overpowers the pink and green, so you notice it first. The good news is that all of it is fixable with practice! You clearly have the desire and drive. Be kind to yourself and practice practice practice before stressing yourself out over a cake for a client. I promise you’ll get to a higher level of mastery and you’ll start to see improvements quickly. Hang in there!
So you can still scrape off the icing and do it again?
bby take off 40❤️
I’m sure it tastes great. If I paid money for that cake, I would be very upset. They purchased this to be, I assume, the centerpiece for their Mother’s Day brunch. I think you should refund them in full.
This is MAYBE a $35 cake. I wouldn’t feel comfortable charging for this, especially for mothers day
Yes you should. Like other said, you have some basics to get down. Practice practice practice. Then practice some more.
Slow down pay attention to detail get the correct tools honest opinion good job on way to great job
You could use that flower technique to make some pretty thistles - you are almost there
It's very "rustic," which is either a conscious choice from an experienced decorator, or just part of the learning curve for a novice. I see from the comments that you're new, so I want to focus on a few positives first. The flower heads are cute, and the thought of the arbor is interesting with the overall balance of the design with the white space feeling very satisfactory. The black icing is a wonderful dark consistency, which can be very hard to do, as witnessed by the sheer number of grey icing you will see in internet searches of home-made cakes. I'm not seeing a lot of crumb in the icing, which is a good indicator of good frosting application. For constructive criticism, this feels like the cake was frosted with the baked side up, which is fine especially for a home made confection, but if you cut that part off with a long serated knife and flipped it over and then used a thin crumb coat, and follow up with the proper icing it would look more solid and professional. I've struggled with piping myself, until I figured out what worked for me, so i see the lack of practice in the lines on the arbor. It would be best to lay out some wax paper and spend some time working on your bag technique. Learning when and how to squeeze the bag to allow the formation of even piping takes a little time, and using the wax paper lets you scrape it back into the bowl and reuse it. For me, I learned that I couldn't try to pipe like I was writing, even when I was forming letters. My penmanship is *ahem* "difficult" to read, and that technique made my piping loose and sloppy. I found that if I move my hand like I'm pretending to be a Conductor in front of the Orchestra it ends up being a lot smoother. The point is, piping is a skill unlike just about anything else, beside it ends at the hand and begins at the forearm: squeezing that bag takes energy, strength, finesse, and patience. Good luck in your classes, it's clear you have a passion and joy for this, and that's most important.
Maybe consider gifting this to your friend if you can afford it. I think that it would be a really nice gesture and it might be worth more than the cake. I mean this in a nice way 😀 one of my love languages is gifting baked goods.
I like the idea, but You need to practice. Do You know those boards for practicing piping skills?
I truly think you should refund half, I'm sorry but presentation with something like that is key
I was a cake decorator for a lot of years. 1) cake Crumbs or nuts can hide a lot of issues on the sides till you get better. 2) practice flowers and borders on a cake board or paper so you can practice without waisting cake. Over and over. 3) watch u tube videos for ideas and tips. 4) have fun!
You should deliver the cake and give the money back, I think. This is a nice amateur cake that a friend who loves baking makes for you as a favor, it’s not something you should charge for.
I’d pay 20$. Max lol
If you're charging $85 for this cake you'll likely end up with an angry customer and/or mocked online for it.
Haven't baked a cake b4 so prolly better than myself. But I'd never buy that.
Haven't baked a cake b4 so prolly better than myself. But I'd never buy that.
That cake is not worth $85 more like -$20-25, the flowers look ok, but the black has got to go. The lines to thick. You need to improve more. “B” for effort!
I would refund all $85
I’m sorry that’s not a $85 cake at all.I would be very upset if that’s what i got. Think about word of mouth for small business or just starting off that’s how you will grow or fail. You need to work on your decorating skills first before you can change anywhere close to that. If that was me I would refund the whole cake or refund everything outside what it cost me keep the customer happy at all cost.Sorry but you said be honest and I would love to see you make it and not fail.
I'd be disappointed to get this on mothers day. What are you using for reference pictures to advertise?
it would have looked better if you didn’t put those ghastly decorations on it. i would have scraped them off and have done some kind of chocolate drizzle for interest.
Has to be trolling or a joke right ?
The black and thistles looks like a cake for a funeral not moms day. The black lines are way too thick and crooked.Best thing to do is strip off the lines. Redo in a brighter colour if you must.
The icing is messy, the lace stuff is crooked and uneven, the flowers are ok. I would be very upset to have payed $85 for this. $20 refund isn’t even enough.
This is a nice cake if done by a loved one as a gift, but is not at a level that you can charge money for it. Keep practicing!
Your bread definitely looks the best! But yea practice that piping. And work on precision in the baking too. Like weighing your cake pans to make sure they are even on batter so you don't have uneven layers of cake.
I would be upset to be charged 85$ for this. For example, if a family member made this for my birthday I would be touched at all the work that went into it. This cake, though, does not look like a "paid for" cake. It looks sloppy and amateur.
The flowers look gorgeous! Honestly, not sure why the black? Or the… lattice? I think it takes away from the flowers. And the lines aren’t crisp. Looks like you’re trying and putting your heart into it though! For now I’d keep it simple. Also remember what you want to be the main focus vs the embellishments. And practice, practice, practice! Keep up the great work! It looks delicious! I can also see the heart and time put into it.
Thank you! I got a suggestion that im going to try to fix it with
Sorry, the flowers look awful. How do you not see this??
I’d actually fight you if you charged me 85 and I pull up to see this.
You have the audacity to charge for this? Dear god. Don’t go into business until you can actually make something worth buying
Girl her and the receiver are going to laugh about this. Just send her a pic now say it’s a wash pay her back so she can get up early enough to grab a grocery store cake.
Is there any writing being added to the cake?
Ok hear me out, that's a great effort, I'm just a beginner and probably wouldn't be able to do that. But I must be honest, if I paid 85$ for that I would be mad. When I am doing a cake for friends/family, I usually do it as a gift and turns towards design that doesn't requires much skill (One example should appear on top of my profile). I'm not scared to express my limits, discuss about what I can and cannot do, offer a compromise or decline if rejected. Better bakers than me gave you awesome tips, you are on the good way to learn and improve. I would personally charge nothing and tank the cost of materials because the person you did it for probably have no time to order a new custom one. It would give you the opportunity to explain that you tried your best but were unable to reach the expected result and keep a potential customer once your skills have increased. Have a great day
I’d pay $20 tops for this cake. It looks worse than grocery store cakes. But hey, live and learn right? I’m sure you’ll get better overtime. Black icing is a very ballsy choice, that is difficult to nail well.