12 Things We Learned in 2012

Man, what a year!  365 days ago PSR was just a twinkle in our owner's eye.  It was a far off dream, lacking in skill, time, money, and hope.  Sure we liked to bake, but to actually sell what we made to people?  Book weddings and stuff like that?  Really?  Sounds unlikely.

And here we sit, 365 (366 for those keeping up with their leap years) days later, in awe at what has happened in this past year.  Are we where we ultimately want to be?  Heck no.  But we are much closer to our end goal than we ever thought we could be last December.

To celebrate the past 365 days of awesomeness that 2012 has brought our baker, we present to you a list simply entitled

12 Things We Learned in 2012

1. It is never too late to try something new.  We say that only being 26, so maybe that sounds a little funny.  But 4 years ago we graduated college with a degree in history and secondary education.  And now we're trying to start a new business.  It's amazing the path our lives take if we simply open ourselves up to possibilities.

2. Baking is not as simple as following a recipe.  There's so much more to it than that.  This is not a simple "Follow steps A-G" business.  This is artwork, this is creation, this is pure joy and love.  If you don't love baking, and you're a baker, your customers will see it in every piece you create.  My pieces may not be 100% perfect, but you can tell I put my heart and soul into each one.

3. Practice makes perfect.  I've had some pretty big mess ups this year.  Some of which people still lovingly accepted.  Some of which I quickly pitched.  But working at something until I get it, it's such an amazing feeling when you can pull off the unthinkable.

4. Powdered sugar has a way of ending up in really strange places.  Always wear an apron and never wear an outfit that you look at and think, "Hmmm, maybe I could go out later tonight in this."

5. Never bake on an empty stomach.  The customer will suffer, as will your waistline.

6. Put yourself out there.  Take risks, be adventurous.  Don't be afraid to say, "Hi my name is Lis and I run a small bakery!"  You never know who might remember that one line later down the road.  We've been selling that line for the past 6 months, and have booked 1 bridal shower, 2 weddings, and several parties.  It feels great to know that my enthusiasm for my business has lead to a steady growth in business.

7. Take your finances seriously.  Don't put your business money in with your actual money.  Open up a separate account, and act all "adult-y" with your funds.  Spreadsheets, finance trackers, find a way that works for you and stick with it.  You will only regret it later if you don't.

8. Find your weakness and educate yourself.  I'm not a business woman, never have been.  So I took tons of classes, read books, and asked for advise from business professionals in the area.  It's amazing what I've learned in the past year about running your own business.  It's hard work, that's for certain.  But if you're passionate about something you love to do, make sure you learn all the ins and outs of it.

9. Always thank those who help.  Starting a business takes a little luck, a lot of planning, and a mountain full of help from friends and family.  When help comes from loved ones (and it will), make sure you acknowledge how much you appreciate their time, services, and support.  I have a stack of cupcake-themed thank you notes that I constantly use to let people know how much I appreciate their support.  You can't open a business by yourself.  Make sure you take time to let those who have helped know how much their helping hand means to you and your business.

10. It's OK to make messes.  Just remember to clean them up.  No matter how tired I am, everything at least gets rinsed out before I go to bed.  Waking up to dirty but rinsed mixing bowls is much better than waking up to dirty mixing bowls with dried on batter.  The bed can wait 5 more agonizing minutes.  The dishes cannot.

11. Be open to new opportunities.  This is a hard one for us to remember sometimes, because we have a dream idea in our head about how our business should look 5 years from now.  It's good to set a plan, but keep yourself open to new opportunities.  We never know where it might lead.  Personally, I started out as a teacher, but allowed myself to slowly be lead to baking.  Who knows where I might be if I hadn't allowed myself the chance to try something new.

12. Have fun or get out of the kitchen.  Baking is an absolute joy for me, and I wouldn't have it any other way.  If the time ever comes where I think, "This isn't any fun for me" I need to either readjust or hang my apron up.  Good baking comes from the heart, not from a recipe card, and I need to remember to have fun each and every day I step into the kitchen.

There you have it, 12 lessons from 2012.  Keep following our bakery in 2013, we have some amazing things planned for you!!

Happy New Year, readers!

Lis

The End of the Road

Whew.  What a week.

For those of you who don't know, I work at a place I lovingly call Initech (yes, that's an Office Space reference, you nerds!)  It's one of those soul-sucking cubicle jobs that every college student boldly announces "I will never have a job like that" at some point during their days on campus, even though most of us know we'll end up there anyway.  It pays the bills, and has provided me with some very good friends.  Other than that, I'd rather force a nosebleed every morning than sit there for 8 hours a day.

The third week of every month my job becomes a living hell.  Crushing deadlines fall to my team, and it's an all-for-one-one-for-all get 'er done kind of mentality.  Did I really just mix Alexander Dumas and Larry the Cable Guy in the same sentence?  Really?  Anyway, the days are long, the overtime is ferocious, and you learn to love 5 minute Ramen breaks 3 times a day.  I see my co-workers more than anyone else during that week, and long enough overtime to technically take the following week off.  To say it's an insane week would be an understatement.

On top of that, me and my bright ideas thought it would be the perfect time of year to have a Christmas bake sale.  Sometimes my ideas, in theory, sound wonderful, but in practice, are just about the worst things I've ever decided to try.

Here's the thing, you all know I love baking.  If I didn't, this blog wouldn't exist, and I wouldn't be carefully creating my own Ocean's 11 heist for the needed start up funds.  But baking after 12 straight hours of work...?  Wow.  That's where the boys become men, in my book.  It takes real dedication to work 12 hours, 12 stressful, million-miles-an-hour hours with problems, phone calls, and international break downs (I am making this job sound so interesting...it's not) only to come home to my little crack den on Duncan Avenue, the one with no counter space or dishwasher, and pump out cupcake after cupcake.  Real dedication.  For the past 8 days or so, this is what my schedule has looked like:

     6am: Alarm goes off
     6:05am: Alarm reminds me the world is expecting to make something of myself
     6:10am: Alarm is shoved down the garbage disposal as I wearily make my way into the shower.
     7:30am: Welcome to work.  Let the headaches begin.
     8:30am: I greet the state of New Jersey with a round of "Why didn't you pay your taxes?" phone calls.  So sexy.
     9:43am: Cookies for breakfast?  No shame here, shove 'em down.
     10:37am: Have not peed since 6:12am.  Bladder may explode.  Question whether I could be sent home if I pee my pants.  Decide to risk a trip to the bathroom.
     11:51am: Call from Germany.  Do I know where the U.S. Embassy is in Berlin?  Do I look like I know where the U.S. Embassy is in Berlin?
     12:04pm: Boss reminds me I have a lot of work to do.  Really???  I had no idea.
     12:45pm: I'm hungry.  Maybe it's time to grab some...
     12:46pm: Call from Florida.  Crisis at the bank.  CODE RED!!  ALERT!!!  ALERT!!!
     1:31pm: Crisis averted.  Now about that lunch...
     1:32pm: Co-worker begs for help.  Lunch stays in the fridge.
     3:21pm: Barely have the strength to reach into the fridge to retrieve my lunch.  Running on some water and a handful of stale cookies.
     4:09pm: The Germans are back.  Why are they not in bed?  What's the time difference?
     5:16pm: Do I know the zip code for Biloxi Mississippi?  Seriously?
     7:15pm: Good bye Initech.
     8:00pm: Hello crack den.  It's been too long.
     8:11pm: Where is that flippin' spatula?  I had it right...oh crap, it's dirty.
     8:12pm: Wash all dishes.
     8:45pm: Start baking
     9:01pm: NEW GIRL IS ON!!!!  AND I MISSED THE FIRST MINUTE!!!!
     9:11pm: Continue baking during the first commercial break.
     9:20pm: Continue baking during the second commercial break.
     9:35pm: Into the oven you go!
     9:53pm: Holy bananas is that pan hot!!!
     10:43pm: Cupcakes should be cool by now.  Maybe I should make some icing...
     10:45pm: Well great.  I'm out of butter.
     11:38pm: $5 more that Giant Eagle has sucked from my wallet forever.
     12:00am: Icing's done.  I'm way too tired.  I'll ice tomorrow.
     12:16am: Good night world.

8 days of some sort of variation of this.  I'm kind of klutzy and kind of forgetful, so there's always a crisis to worry about.  Thursday night I pulled a pan of gingerbread cupcakes out only to watch them fall and splat all over the floor.  Monday night I put an accidental hole in a bag of powdered sugar, causing my clothes and the counter to be covered in the mess.  And the one night I left the milk out alllllllll night.  I think I was a bit sleep deprived, though.

So looking back, was it worth it?  Well, in 8 days I sold 20 orders of cupcakes, baked and iced hundreds of little cakes, and (hopefully) gave people a holiday treat to enjoy with friends and family.  Oh yeah, and I also raised several hundred dollars for my baking business.  So was it worth it?  Definitely.  Would I do it again like this, given the chance...?

Probably not like this.

The baking was fine, but man was Initech a killer.  But you know what, this entire blog is about learning how to start a bakery.  Down to those nitty-gritty details like, hey, remember to put the milk away!  This blog is not about celebrating only my victories.  It's about learning from mistakes, laughing at messes, and trying not to cry too much when things go south.  It's about discovering my own strengths, changing my weaknesses, and learning how to become a better business woman.  I guess this is just another step in the journey.

If you helped me at all through this past week, thank you.  Thank you to the Cokes for letting me invade their very large and wonderful kitchen (complete with two ovens AND a dishwasher.  I was in heaven!)  Thank you to those who donated supplies and time.  Your donations were appreciated more than you realize.  Thank you to my coworkers who helped keep me laughing through the stressful times, and who taste tested dozens of batches before I rolled them out to the masses.  And, of course, a big thank you to all who trusted my baking skills enough to buy some cupcakes for themselves, friends, and family this holiday season.  You are trusting people, but I thank you for it.

And now, I think, it's time for a much needed good night's sleep.  I might be a little tired!!

Merry Christmas all. :-)

Lis

Christmas Time in the City!

In case you were worried, I'm not dead!  Sorry for the lack of updates, it has been cuh-razy for this lone baker!  Why does my employer not realize I don't actually want to sit in a cubicle for 8+ hours a day.  Someone want to drop the hint for me?



So what have I been up to recently?  Oh plenty!  Pittsburgh Sweet Relief officially made its first out-of-state trip last weekend, to New Jersey.  What a trip that was!  I have never carted 2 dozen cupcakes 700 miles, and for awhile I wasn't sure they were going to make it.  But they did, and everything I heard from the delivery is that they rocked!  My favorite were some margarita cupcakes I made for the first time.  Moy caliente, were they amazing!!  So many shots of tequila in them too, that didn't hurt :-)

We're gearing up now for our Christmas fundraiser.  We're all systems go for this last big push/fundraiser before 2013 hits.  If you haven't ordered any cupcakes yet, don't forget to stop by and sign up for some before Friday, when ordering closes.  I promise, you don't want to miss this!!  It's going to be a fantastic gift for you and all of your friends and family to share!

Well, time to wrap some presents and stick them under the tree.  It really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Have fun, talk to everyone soon!

Lis

Reviewing For You: Wilton Easy Lift Cake Lifter

Product: Wilton Easy Lift Cake Lifter

Claim to Fame: Need to tort a cake, or want to shove some amazing homemade caramel between two layers of divine cake?  This will help you out.  For years whenever I wanted to cut a cake to layer it in half to spread some amazing icing between it, it was a balancing act of spatulas, prayers, and a small amount of sweat and tears.  Anyone who has ever baked before understands my paid.  It's tricky trying to divide a cake without breaking it.

This cake lifter from Wilton, then, claims to make cake torting a simple, painless experience.  Just cut the cake, insert this between the two layers, and lift away.  It will lift cakes up to 14", and because it is made of metal, Wilton claims it won't buckle under the weight of even your densest cake.

Price $ ($0 - $10): The price at most places is $9.99.  Again, I used my 40% off coupon at Joann's and managed to snag this potentially life-saving device for $5.99.  That's a great price, in my opinion.

Testing It Out: If there was ever a product that was designed for me in the baking industry, this is that product.  I hate cutting and lifting cakes, and usually use an assortment or two wide spatulas wedged in between the layers.  It's a small nightmare.

I had to ice a cake for a decorating class, and decided to try this bad boy out.  Let me just tell you, this is a God send.  I sliced my frozen cake in half, seamlessly slid this between the cake letters, and boom, the cake lifted right up!  No buckling halfway in transition, no cracked cakes, a seamless transition to a plate.  I couldn't believe how easy it was.  I wanted to keep slicing my cake up just so I could try this out again and again and again.

The Results: A perfectly torted cake.  A seamless transition from cake plate to holding cake and back again.  The results were professional.

Final Verdict: This was worth every penny it will save me in headaches, re-cuts, and broken cakes.  If you bake cakes a lot, this is a must-have in your pantry.  It will make your baking experience so much easier.  If you're a casual baker, it's something you could definitely consider adding to your kitchen.  With a price of $9.99, it's an added gift that won't bust the budget.

Rating: ***** out of *****
A perfect score for a perfect product.  I could rave about this product all day.  Instead, I'll simply say, go try it yourself.  You won't be disappointed. :-)