Archives for July 2023

I interviewed my friend, Colette Peters, for the American Cake Decorating magazine July/August 2023 issue. Below are the additional questions I asked Colette and her insightful responses that were not printed in the magazine. I hope you enjoy! Cake photos courtesy of Colette Peters.

Lisa King:  Thank you so much for meeting with me Colette.  Congratulations on your well-deserved award!

Colette Peters:  Thank you so much!  I was completely surprised by it.

LK: Are there specific groups or media you follow to stay current with trends?

CP:  I follow other media other than cake to inspire me.  I like to look at ceramics, mosaics, and see what my friends are creating.

LK: What are some common mistakes novice decorators make and what advice do you have for them?

CP:  The last few years, people have started to paint with gel colors right out of the container.  I can tell when I am judging if someone has done that.  It looks like a sticky, dark mess.  It never dries. It’s not against the rules, but it is not a good idea.  How would you like to get a cake like that?  I think that is a bad trend.  When using gel colors to paint, add alcohol or water to tone down the color.

Regarding sugar flowers, dust the flowers with powder pigments.  Pay more attention to details.

When it comes to cake boards, use a size appropriate for the size of the cake.   Some people choose cake boards that are too small for the cake.  If you chose a smaller board, and after decorating the cake you determine it would look better if it had more of a border around it.  An easy fix is to use an additional larger cake board.  Set the current smaller cake board with the decorated cake on the second larger board.  Be sure to securely fasten those two cake boards together. 

A sturdy base is essential. Use foam core or wood so it doesn’t bend.  Don’t use cardboard.  Cover cake boards with something.  I suggest fondant or royal icing to match.  When covering the board, do not cover the edge of the board with the medium.  When you pick it up, it will crack off the side. 

Some beginners put too much stuff on the cake.  You don’t need every character.  It’s too much.  Use just a few and you get it. 

Give thought about your color choices.  Many beginners use colors that are too dark, too light or use too many colors.

LK: What advice do you have for someone wanting to start a career in cake design?

CP: I’ve had students that have told me that they want to have a bakery, custom cake business, a little café and a retail place.  That is a lot to do.  They just want to start making and selling cakes.  When I had my business, it was just custom cakes.

I had a shop for 30 years in Manhattan.  You need to figure out a lot of logistics before embarking on having a business.  I had employees and a delivery service.  I had to go into the shop on the weekends to do paperwork.  I never had a day off.  You have to have the right people around you.  People you can trust and that won’t steal from you, money, recipes, products or ideas. You need to have enough money. 

Employees are also a gigantic thing you must think about.  You must pay them, take out taxes, have insurance, etc. 

You also need to know and follow guidelines by the health department for setting up and maintaining a kitchen.

LK: How do you balance the demands of running a successful business while still being creative and innovative with your cake designs?

CP:  Well, they kind of go together.  The design part is part of the business.  I was never one to be secretive and hide my designs.  I would ask my assistants for their input and ideas.  I would ask them “what do you think of this, should we put …” They’d say, “well maybe put more green here.”   I would take their suggestions.  A lot of times I would do the paperwork and meeting with customers, and they would make the cakes.  I would still have creative control, but they understood the design and vision. 

Customers would not meet with anyone but me.  Which I found kind of funny.

LK: Customers demanded that they only wanted to speak with you?

CP: Yes, which always surprised me.  It bothered them if they didn’t meet with me.

LK:  You would have liked for them to occasionally meet with your assistants?

CP:  Yes, and they would have said the same kind of things I would have said.

LK: Because you hired people who you trusted and they understood your vision.

CP: Yes. I don’t blame the customers for wanting to meet with me.  It just put a lot of additional pressure on me because I had so many roles to fulfill in my business.

LK: How do you manage client expectations and ensure they are satisfied with the final product?

CP:  I try to listen to them.  Usually, people would send a note and say the cake was great.  Maybe twice we had someone who was disappointed.  But it wasn’t for anything we did.  We didn’t give them the short end of the stick.  

I am reminded of an experience that ended up changing how I asked a question when getting information for orders. 

A woman was having a party with 40 people, which wasn’t a lot.  I did a sketch which was 2 tiers.  She signed the sketch and it was plenty of cake for 40 people.  We delivered the cake and the caterer said “Where is the rest of the cake?”  It turned out the party was for 100 people and the woman only wanted enough for 40 people, but nobody else knew that.

It made it look like I was cheating her.  I gave her exactly what she agreed to and she authorized it by signing the sketch.  People do that sometimes.  They don’t want to purchase the appropriate amount of cake servings.  After this happened, I then started asking clients, How many people are you having?” Because I’m going to look bad if you are having this tiny cake that serves 40 people and 100 people are in attendance.

LK: How did you keep your team motivated and inspired to create your beautiful cakes?

CP:  That’s a good question, I don’t know, they were.  I was always excited about everything we did and I think it rubbed off.  We had a few people that left because they found out it wasn’t their cup of tea.  But most of my employees I had for a long time.  It was always something different.  A lot of celebrities would order cakes from me.  One of my assistants had to go to Sting’s house.  I met Bette Middler, designer Carolina Herrera.  I met with some of the famous people, but mostly with their assistants.

LK: Did that make you feel even more validated because those people came to you?

CP:  Yeah, it did.  Especially because they were artists and designers.

LK: What advice would you give to someone who wants to learn more about sugar art?

CP:  Definitely take classes.  I taught a class in Europe and these people had taken one class and started a business.  In my opinion, you need take way more classes than that.  You can’t just take one class and make a rose and start a business.  You need to take classes and attend the cake shows.  If you are in your own isolated little place, that’s not good. You have to get out there and see what other people are doing.  What materials are up and coming and go to the vendors and see what is available.

When you come to the shows, you leave your own bubble and meet people and you are exposed to so many things.  You may think you are Miss Innovative, but you may find out that ten other people are doing what you are doing.  You can be isolated in your own town, but if you really want to do something you need to expose yourself to other experiences and art.

You can do online classes too.  I feel In person, hands on classes, are always the best.  You have to go to as many classes as you can and read books.  Some people can get along with having three cakes as their signature and that’s all they do.  And that’s fine if customers want that.  But if you want to do more, you have to learn more.  You have to practice, but don’t do your practice on a customer’s cake.

LK: Can you discuss any projects or upcoming collaborations you are excited about?

CP:  I would love to do another collaboration.  I would love to do another coloring book, that would be great.  I have been teaching at a school in New Jersey and I would like to collaborate with them more on expanding the information in the classes to include more techniques and also continue with project classes.

Thank you to Colette for taking the time to talk with me and share her knowledge and thoughts about this fun world of sugar art! Follow Colette: Instagram.com/colette_peters and ColettePeters.com

Please share your thoughts in the comments.