Thinking of dipping your toe into the world of cake decorating? We’re all very friendly here, promise. Here are the six steps you’ll need to follow to go from complete beginner, to cake decorating pro…
1. Learn your craft
First and foremost you need to learn how to decorate cakes well. As with many of life’s pursuits, it takes time and practice to become good at something. Luckily, there are plenty of ways you can hone your cake decorating skills.
- Take a class. Our attended courses are a brilliant way to dive into the world of cake decorating. You’ll get one on one tuition and learn all the important techniques and skills in a hands on environment. Browse our attended courses here.
- Do an online tutorial. If you’d prefer to teach yourself from the comfort of your own home, pick out one of our beginner’s level tutorials.
Be patient, learn at your own pace and don’t worry about making mistakes!
2. Choose your niche
Once you’ve spent some time honing your cake decorating skills, you’ll start to get a feel for what kind of cakes you like making. While many cake decorators don’t like to be pigeon-holed, you may find yourself swaying toward novelty styles, wedding cakes or something completely different! The important thing is to make cakes you love.
3. Practice on friends and family
Feedback is an important part of the learning process. Making cakes for friends and family will get you used to working to a brief and managing expectations – without the added pressure of asking for money at the end! Making a cake for a local charity is always a lovely way to get some practice in, and will make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
4. Get support when you need it
In the cakey world, we are blessed to have such a wonderful, supportive community. If you don’t already follow us on Facebook get involved, and don’t forget if you’re a Premium or a Pro member you have your very own special groups. Our Q&A forum is also a brilliant place to see advice from fellow cakeys. So if you’ve got a question, big or small, help is out there!
5. Find inspiration
Use websites like Pinterest, read plenty of cake magazines and keep an eye on our blog for inspiration and the latest cake trends.
6. Keep receipts
Once you get into cake decorating as a business, a good beginner’s tip is to make sure you keep hold of all your receipts. Whether you store them on fancy software or keep them in a shoe box – it’ll make life much easier when it comes to doing your VAT return! For more business tips, sign up to become a Pro member.
Are you just starting out as a cake decorator? Tell us your story in the comments section below, or share a few pearls of wisdom…
