OLIHAN....... ARE YOU ABOUT???

[PlumBumMum]

Where are you? Hope you are not drowning in icing sugar?

Are you on holidays, namechanged......???

I haven't seen her for aaaaaaaaaaages.

Wonder if shes on holidays?

How are you Bell? I was just going to show off my progress on Top table wedding cake.

Am ticking along nicely thanks Plum, and you?

Is the Top table wedding cake on your profile?

Have the people on my profile just finished setting the table tonight, can do no more until Wednesday when I have baked the cake

Just had a nosey at your profile, love your cakes,
I have a silver aniversary one on mine, you could use cutters and cut out their names, and paint them gold, thats what I did, I haven't actuaally done any piping yet

Boo .

I'm here sporadically atm. We're having an extension on our kitchen so have been without any kind of cooking/eating/chilling equipment for a couple of weeks. Have been spending much time at MILs doing cakes as a result.

Looking forward to seeing the cake, Plum. Mine isn't until March but have several orders over the next month that need figures so I'm figuring on getting lots of practice in!

Believe me I have had loads of practice now, although I started with bride and wish I could go back and do her

Ordered some stuff from dolls house emporium, so you can see man at end holding wine bottle & glass, best man is holding a bit of icing, I wrote speech on top and some squiggles it looks good, have grooms hand on brides bum,
and I have napkins folded in half with knife & fork on, mini cake, wine bottle & glasses on table, already have things I would improve on for this cake but its too late now and have realised I'm too cheap

oh and candlesticks

Is most of the table setting dolls house stuff then? I hadn't thought of that, I was too busy wondering how on earth I was going to make clear wine glasses - duh!

I'm always too cheap, I hate asking for the amount that I know I should charge but it seems so wrong to charge so much for a cake.

I've taken to breaking down my quotes into 'Ingredients/Board,etc/Labour costs so people can see where the price comes from.

l can't load any of my recent stuff onto my profile here as can't use the MacBook for anything other than typing .

They're on here though.

I got the wine bottle & glasses, 1 bottle and 4 glasses in a pack x2, 2 candle sticks with candles, and 2 packs of cutlery, It came to £15 plus postage, the clear glasses were dearer

When I went over to cake shop to get boxes, they had a birthday cake sitting ready to pick up, it was rectangular probably 12x10 maybe less, 4 people on top having a picnic, not much detail in people, it was £190, I have charged £30 more for a 12x12 and 8 people

£190 .

See, I just wouldn't be able to charge that much. Although the localish big cake shop that only sells cakes, is at least £20 - £30 a cake more than I charge and they have a huge city centre shop with all the overheads that entails.

People are obviously willing to pay that much but I can't bring myself to do it. Don't think I'll ever make my fortune, do you?!

I'm just doing an 8" square with 3 little girls sat on the top and their ponies around the sides. I'm charging £60,because it's going to take a good 6 hours to make it, with all the modelling involved but it still seems like a lot.

The mum didn;t bat an eyelid though, so I guess it's just me .

Yeap see that is what i would probably charge, but I am always googling others and that would be more expensive here,

I have a first birthday to do for my aunt and
I charged her £60 for the christening cake on my profile but is 12" and really deep so now she wants a 10" or 8" so was thinking between 30 or 40 but don't know what I'm doing yet but when you think the board and the box can be up to £5 of the price,

We are too cheap!!

here is someone who lives quite close to me, her prices are ££££

and this is our only supply shop! And their cakes are ££££££££££££ they had a sign up in the window asking if you could model they want to out source some models so obviously very busy!!

Hi Olihan

Plum, those are just fantastic.

It is embarrassing knowing what to charge for cakes.

My friend who I did the 12" square fruit cake for (plainly decorated) she paid for all the ingredients upfront and I decorated an 8" cake that was already made by her mum - she asked me how much £ I wanted when she picked them up. I truly did not know what to say so I ended up saying I would like a gift voucher from Boots. She bought me a box of chocs and a £25 voucher.

I bumped into her mum the week after in the village shop and mum asked me if I gave icing lessons.... I ran a mile!

Finally finished its on profile

Wow, that is fabulous, you must be really pleased with yourself.

Plum, it's amazing! I hope you're feeling very proud of yourself .

I've just done 3 little girls and their ponies and hugely undercharged for it. Partly my fault because I faffed around doing fiddly bits but the modelling took ages and ages. It's here.

I'm never going to earn my fortune if I don't get my pricing right .

OMG I love it My dd1 would love that cake, the bride gave me an extra £10 so I was pleased glad its safely out of my house

Isn't that just the worst bit, when it's done and you're on pins hoping nothing happens to it until you get it to the client?

I've got to do a bike out of modelling paste today - no idea how to do that, there isn't one in any of my books .

google it, I always have a google, to see how others are done

Well thought I would call into hotel and take a photo of the cake set up, took photo then realised one of the heads was broke went to fix it and it wasn't the right head ,
someone at the hotel had broke the brides head & bridesmaids head and then put the on the wrong way round
thank God I called in, but they knocked alot of hair off so hope the bride remembers seeing lots of hair when I delivered it yesterday

WWYD would you tell the bride this happened, because if I hadn't called she would know as heads were on the wrong people, iyswim, she left the cake in their care

Hello you lot, remember me?

Your wedding cake is amazing Plum, my figures are never thatn good, how did you learn was it from a book or did you teach yourself?

Olihan, I've 'Like'd you on Facebook and had a nose through your photos, they're all beautiful!

I'm setting up doing cakes properly now although we're moving next month (I hope!) so I'm putting it off until October to get started properly. I did have my first proper paid job recently though, here which I charged £120 for, does that sound reasonable? The tiers are 7", 9", 11" and it's plain sponge with buttercream.

Hey Moosy

love your fanpage £120 is quite cheap for what is basically a 3 teir wedding cake

I taught my self the figures very stressfull

T'is Plumbum btw keep forgetting to change back