Hi, my name is Bettina Schliephake-Burchardt and have been married for over 12 years to a very supporting husband. We have a 10 year old son, who is my best critic. I live and work in the beautiful town of Hamburg in the north of Germany.

I started cake decorating back in 1989, when I began my 3-year training as a confectionary in a classic German patisserie. During this time I read an article in a newspaper about Colette Peters, but all my teachers told me, that those cakes weren’t real and I shouldn’t think about it anymore. In 1993 my friend Deborah got married in England and asked for a traditional British wedding cake. This was the time I got hooked on fondant and gum paste.

 I started “Betty´s Sugar Dreams” in 1993 - visited several courses in UK and 2004 one at Colette Peters in NY. I still love to do flowers, but my main focus is now on modelling: figurines and sculpted cakes. So my favourite tools are my hands! The greatest honour for me was being asked to make the Golden Jubilee Cake and the 80th birthday cake, at the Consulate General in Hamburg, for Queen Elisabeth II.

CC has taught me much more than I ever could have learned from all the books and magazines and it’s like a “pot of gold” full of inspirations. I’ve met fantastic people from all over the world – so since the first time I discovered CC, I haven’t missed out on single day here!

Best wishes

Bettina