I am really struggling with this issue right now. I've been decorating cakes (for fun) for almost 4 years now. My basic belief is that I do it because it's fun and I enjoy it...and every now and agaiin I actually get paid for it .

My dh is of a different mind. He sees that I take time away from the kids and and him, staying up until 11 pm preparing hundreds of royal icing roses...all for $150 or so. He says the cost is not worth the hassle / headache.

But I'm definitely improving my craft and would like to market myself more. How do I do that locally? I have a business name but have not registered it anywhere.

My cakes don't compare in any way to what I've seen here so far, but here's some pics of my cakes: http://new.photos.yahoo.com/megbachman/album/576460762345468380

So, bottom line...is it worth to do this out of the home, even for the enjoyment and occasional check?

Family members are usually the least supportive and husbands are the worst!

While my husband is now my biggest fan, in the beginning, he would whine about how we couldn't do anything at night because I always had baking to do. The fact that we never did anything at night ANYWAY because he was too busy making sure the TV remote button was working properly is totally beside the point! Time away from the kids? Oh, that means HE has to help with the kids instead of the wife doing it all!

THe turning point was when I wrote the down payment check for his first-ever brand-new never-been-off-the-showroom-floor truck that only had 12 miles on it when we drove it off the lot. It was when I wrote the check for $3000 worth of landscaping (which we had never had before). It was when he saw kitchen appliances on sale and we went that day and got a new microwave, refrigerator, stove and dishwasher .... guess who wrote the check for that?

I had a drop-off catering this past weekend, and hubby figured out the time I spent on it and the money I profited on it. He LUVS knowing that my time is worth over $100 an hour.

In the beginning, he hated the mess, the time, the equipment stored thru-out the house. But I pretty much told him "this train is leaving the station with or without you" and moved forward with the business plan.

He managed to get on board the train!

Yah, my hubby is my biggest fan as well. Once you sit them down and show them you will get paid for all the work without leaving the house.

I'm so happy dh loves what I do!! I'd say it's worth it!

Here's the thing though - I work a 40-hour week as an Office Manager. I do the cakes in my spare time. For the cakes I've posted in my photos, it was 10 hours to make the flowers, at night after the kids were in bed (they are ages 6 and 4), and then 4 hours to assemble and decorate the cake.

Of course my dh is the same man who told me when I was returning to work after having our dd in 2002 that even with over 2/3 of my take-home salary going towards daycare, what was leftover still justified me returning to work :doh:.

Not only is it worth it for the financial reasons, but it is SO worth it for the enjoyment you get out of it. I see my job as a means to pay for my lifestyle. I see my cakes as a means to enjoy my life. Now to enjoy what I do AND get paid for it is a dream come true

Sorry this is so long, but it is JMO.

ABSOLUTELY!!! I whole heartedly believe that it is 100% worth it. My husband has been SO supportive of my new business. It was he who was pushing from behind me. It was he who gave me all the confidence and understanding about my business. He even went so far as to redo my whole kitchen. I was away, and my stove stopped working, I came home to a brand new stove. And just a couple of weeks ago, we bought a new fridge. While I was off on a cake delivery, it was he that went on line and purchased for ME ONLY, a new edible printing system. I could never imagine actually doing this for a REAL business, but he has encouraged me every step of the way. He stays up late at night with me when I have a deadline for a cake order, he even helps me when I get a little frazzled and almost panic. I have 5 children, and they are so proud and totally love that I am the cake lady in town. I make all kinds of practice projects and they get to eat them.

So my answer to you missmeg, is ABSOLUTELY!!!

I have seen your pictures of your art, and I believe that you should continue, and start your own business. You will be happy you did. Besides you say that it makes you happy to do this, what more could you ask for?
It will also add to your financial stability.

I expect to see great things from you by the looks already. Happy decorating.

I 100% agree w/ the poster that said how often to you get paid for a hobby!? I also work 40 hours a week with a 45 minute one way commute. I have a (just turned) 2 year old son that is a handfull and Dh works 50+ hours a week. However, the fun I have doing the cakes (even @ 3am) makes it worth it to me, and if I can get paid to do it why not?

Luckily, my Dh is also my biggest supporter and when I mentioned thinking about doing this as a side business (as well as cards) I was expecting him to respond the same as your dh but he said "I've been telling you to do that for years!".

So you only make $75-$100 a month and that's it, it's $75 more than you would have had right? I'm not going into this expecting to make thousands of dollars each month because with working full time I just don't have the time to do a bunch of orders but any extra money in our budget is a BIG help!

So I guess my point is, if you're enjoying it, and making money too, it's worth it.

I was with my former husband (I hate the X-husband word, sounds so mean, lol) for 14 years total. Middle-eastern and our biggest marital problem was that my needs and wants didn't count. I could spend $$ on the home, children and him, but not on myself and we had a great lifestyle and could afford many luxuries.

I became a Tastefully Simple consultant for almost 3 yrs and loved it in the last 4 years of marriage. I really needed something for me and he was so anti-social that I felt more and more isolated, so being at "taste-testing parties" with other women was fantastic. He never was supportive and would complain about "babysitting" his own kids! So most of my profit went to paying babysitters.

He has never wanted our kids to go to daycare (9 & 7 yrs) and I was a stay-at-home-mom, became a real estate agent right before we divorced
in order to have a flexible schedule to be available to the kids.

We divorced a year ago and it was very amicable. In fact, I'm helping his family members purchase a new home and we all spend days together looking for houses. Strange, huh? lol

He was my first paid cake order. He has bought 2 more cakes.

A few weeks ago he asked me about how it was going and what my profit margain was and told me that if I wanted to open a bakery that he would finance it and that we can be partners! I was a bit taken aback truthfully. Where the heck was this support while we were married??

So, after this long, long post, my advice to you... Do what you need to do to be happy in this life. Living only for your marriage and children is not healthy.

Stand for your needs and wants. Your husband should respect and support you. Also, keep in mind that a lot of that attitude can be based on insecurity (his) and controling things in his life or to be honest, his comfort level.

Is it *his* hassle and headache or do you become an ogre getting a cake done???

I can be a bit of an ogre, but that's because ihave a 4 year old that wants to help and I have to tell her she can't and please don't touch my stuff! I try to wait until they are in bed, but sometimes you just can't help it.

So my opinion is, if it's worth it to you, it's worth it. If you can handle staying up until 11pm and aren't negelcting your other responsibilities, he shouldn't have cause to complain. Good luck!

I just wanted to throw my 2 cents in here real quick...I LOVE THIS SITE!! missmeg is struggling with a decision and look at all the support she gets!! The rest of the world just dosen't understand the joy you get out of making a cake. The time..the deadlines...they just don't get it. I just wanted to say how nice it is to her all the support and kind words. Good Luck missmeg in whatever you decide but you absolutley should fallow your dreams

I started selling my cakes, so I could fund my hobby. It has worked out very well for me and my family. I love cake decorating. It is a stress reliever for me. And when Mommy is happy, everyone is happy. I only take 1-2 orders each week. But I am profiting enough to cover my expenses and buy new toys when I want them. There is also a tax benefit to it which makes my hubby happy.

If its something you love doing then of course you should do it. Im sure your husband has his own hobbies or things he likes to do, so why shouldnt you get to do yours.

In talking about how your dh wants you to work, (and you don't, I'm assuming?) perhaps you should figure out the hidden costs of you working and show him the numbers. I'd bet good money that not only is it costing you your entire paycheck to work, but it probably takes a little bit of his money too. Gas, clothing, lunches, coffee, snacks, pop, take-out for dinner, convenience foods, etc. Anything you spend in a day that you wouldn't spend if you were home should be added. Write it down every day for a month. Be prepared to be shocked! Good luck, men might not understand feelings, but they can understand numbers!

Happy Day,
Steph

steph is right. When my 14 year old was born, I got be a SAHM for quite a bit. We were very surprised to discover we were saving more than just daycare, work clothes, lunches, etc. I was able to shop for the best buys at various grocery stores, we had better meals since I cooked everything (usually from scratch) instead of expensive quick-fix meals or ordering pizza 4 nights a week because we were both tired and exhausted and didn't want to mess with or have time for a "home cooked dinner". (The dominoe's guys knew us on a first name basis!)

The weekends were more fun because I didn't have to spend the weekend doing all the housework that piled up during the week. My hubby will be the first one to proclaim the benefits of a SAHM .... he says his schedule seemed less hectic and more relaxed.

If you drive any distance to work, your car insurance could go down (work use vs. pleasure use), not to mention the cost of gas today! I was more than happy to do some minor fixes and repairs around the house because I now had time (painting rooms, sorting thru the storage room to do a garage sale, cleaning the garage), .... and I actually worked in the flower beds and the yard! ..... something I loved doing but NEVER had time! (do you know what landscapers charge to do that????)

well I just have to say I was kinda shocked that my husband is soooo with me on this. I just needed something that I could do at home and something that I could earn a little money off of as well. I love doing cakes and it is a stress reliver. I also am so glad I am not the only one doing cakes at 2and 3 in the morning I have three kids 5,4 and 1. I have a cake a weekend so far and I have only been doing this since Late april. so the 50 or 60 a week is great. it is gas money right now right? so you keep up the good work. us women need something for us and it is so great that it benifts all of the family.

I no this is a stupid question but what does dh mean?

For those of us wanting to be WAHM's with little ones....mine are 5, 3, and 10 months.... do you deliver your cakes??? I don't think I would want them coming over to pick up the cake! My kids would attack ( lovingly! =] and follow them out the door fighting to go with 'em!)

I CAN NOT keep the house and cake and kids looking superb all at the same time with someone trying to come over to pick it up. The house would be a mess. Also, how and when do you get payment from them? These, to me are the scariest part!!! I have not started selling, but am wondering how to go about this. I guess this is part of what is holding me back.

as Stay at home mom with a budget. how do you learn the cake decorating techniques on a budget? does it get expensive buying all the materials to be at home ? do you practice? do you go to a class? how do you learn with a budget?

I just wanted to add to the post. I'm a SAHM, who does cakes part time. My kids are 1 and almost 3. Years ago when I started talking about doing cakes for a living, my DH thought it was great. However, once kids came, then the late nights, he had to give up his free time to help, he quickly began to not see the benefit to me trying to fit in cakes right now. The thing that changed his mind was when I FINALLY started charging enough for me to make it work my time to make cakes. He was always telling me I did not charge enough. So when I finally set my prices to where we both were happy, everything was better. I still don't do very many cakes, but its enough for me. My family comes first. For me its not about the little bit of extra income, its about the experience and portfolio for the future. Maybe in 10 years, once we are done having kids and the younger ones are in school I want to be able to take on cakes full time already having all the tools and experience.

I don't think it costs too much to practice cake decorating at home. I did start out taking the wilton classes and buying those kits, then adding alittle at a time. If you are starting out with nothing, I guess I could see how expensive everything would be. But once you have the basics you can do alot with little tools. I think many of the "new tools" we all want just make things easier or faster. If you are really set on practicing you could just buy a cake dummy and redecorate it over and over. All my cake decorating tools would fit in one large box, but i have seen pictures of studios on CC where they have a room full of tools (not including pans). I would say just start out with what you have and add alittle at a time.

thank you. your replies makes alot of sense. I have taken wilton and build up my supplies with my 50 percent coupons from Michaels and Joann Fabrics. I am ready for the next step. I will definitely be on googl from now on.

thank you. your replies makes alot of sense. I have taken wilton and build up my supplies with my 50 percent coupons from Michaels and Joann Fabrics. I am ready for the next step. I will definitely be on googl from now on.