How did you get interested in cake decorating? I made my first cake for his birthday. Store bought chocolate cake mix baked in a bundt pan. Garnished with cool whip and strawberries.

My kids have multiple allergies so I baked a vegan, nut free, dairy free, egg free carrot cake in a sheet cake pan.

I got interested almost a year ago...watching one of the cake shows...I thought "I can do THAT"...snap.....now almost a year later I have learned sooo sooo much and know that there is still a long long way to go and that the true art of cake decorating ....ain't no snap!!!! But a love affair has begun...and I have fun!!!!!

I was looking for a hobby, something i could do while the kids were in school, went through IDK about 20. It looked challenging so now, Im learning very slowly

My Mom used to make wedding cakes when I was little (80's style) and she gave me all of her pans and stuff. I've always been a crafty type person so it was easy to get into it.
My first cake was the dumb-n-dumber dog van. Still one of my favorites!

i decided to make one for my sisters beauty school graduation....making my own fondant and cake from scratch..suprisingly it was pretty good for my first...and I've been doing it ever since...and I LOVE it! i still have alot to learn but i am enjoying the learning process!

My sister-in-law was doing the cake thing awhile before me and when I saw her cakes I wanted to try. I'm an artistic person. I figured it would not be easy since I'd been trying to make unbubbled cakes and smooth icing for years and couldn't make a level, smooth cake if my life depended on it. Then my sis-in-law told me about this site and started learning! My first attempt was a hamburger cake. Don't laugh too hard at attached picture, lol....

Funny that i saw this post I just posted a topic similar to this. I thought it was funny looking back to my daughters b-day cake 1 year ago. I made hers this year and the comparison is humorous. I posted a picture just so I could show how much CC has helped me. I started because my husband was appalled at how much we spent on b-day cakes(4 kids) and said you should just make them. Well I don't do things half-a@$ed So I figured I would go for it. Looking back I don't think that is what my DH meant but he is my biggest supporter now! My first cake is the most recently added on my photos if you want to look at the disaster.

I have baked for over 30 years and my first decorated cake was a Mickey Mouse cake for my 32 year old son's 2nd birthday. I've always made my kids (I have 7) birthday cakes. But, I only decorated a cake when we had a birthday. I've been decorating cakes like I do now for about 1 1/2 years and I started doing this for therapy....

In February 2008 my 19 year old nephew committed suicide. In September 2008 his 21 year old brother (both were my only brother's children) died due to complications of having had a heart transplant just a year earlier.
Three weeks later my sister-in-laws father also committed suicide.

THAT'S why I started therapy.... I nearly lost my mind when our family went through these things. All of this happened in just a little over a 6 1/2 month time frame. I HAD to find something to pour myself into so that I didn't loose my mind. Our family is very close and both nephews were really close to my children. I literally did NOTHING but exist for about 4 months after September 2008. I couldn't work, I couldn't function normally at all. I began seeing a therapist and she suggested that I start doing something that I enjoyed doing...a hobby...to help me fill my idle time SO...I started decorating cakes. About 2 months after I started decorating I stumbled across cc online and I've been "hooked" ever since.

This "hobby" literally gave me my life back. I was able to go back to work about 5 months after starting this "therapy" in a grocery store bakery and a few months later I went to work at the bakery where I work now. Not only did I find something that I love to do I've found all of you here on cake central that I just adore. You guys mean more to me than you probably realized.

9 years ago I made my first cake..It was the Wilton Elmo holding a ice cream cone for my son's 1st birthday..I have never looked back!!

mamawrobin: I always read posts by you and you are always so helpful and kind! I am sorry you had all those terrible things happen in your life. But I am happy you found a way out of the place you were in. And you do amazing cakes!!

I went with my husband's sister to order her wedding cake. We're sitting in this lady's living room, looking at her cake photos and I'm thinking "I can do this!" Went out, bought a Wilton book and some tips/bags and taught myself. I was selling cakes inside of a year. (legal? you have to be legal? no kidding? Huh! )

My first wedding cake was friends of the family. 3-tiers, pillars between each tier, covered in blue BC roses (she got married in a Rose Garden). I'd never made a BC rose in my life, but by the time I got done making 80-100 of them for that cake, I was an expert!!!

nothing works like practice!!!

Mine was about a year ago. It was a 3 tiered wedding cake with basketweave and live flowers. I have learned so much more from this site. Thank you all!

I had moved back to my hometown after finding out that I was pregnant with my son. My mother had always baked and made our birthday cakes. As I was having a hard time finding a job, I spent much time with my mother, and she taught me how to bake a pound cake and red velvet. We always had family gatherings, and church gatherings, so I was able to get some baking practice in. When my best friend got married, she was wanting to save some money and said that she wanted red velvet cupcakes and a topper. I made MMF for the first time about 2 weeks before her wedding, and was prepared to do my son's 1st birthday cake two months later. My mother says I'm too meticulous with my cakes, but since baking my first cake, about 1 & 1/2 years ago, and actually decorating my first wedding cake, about 1 year ago, I have made 4 wedding cakes, and many other cakes. Not to bad for the first year! I absolutely love doing this, and can't say enough how much this site and the community of people in it has helped me and continues to inspire me!

i grew up with the love to bake i guess i can say its in my own blood lol none of my family bakes on either side. I use to bake for my son, 4 1/2 yrs old, lol he was my biggest supporter trying everything i baked and letting me know his own opinion! In june of 2008 he past away due to an accident. I went into depression and quite baking and cooking everything. I was at michaels about a year ago and seen they offered cake decorating classes! wow im so glad i signed up. i used it as sumthing to get things off my mind and now almost a year later im making cakes for everyone thats a friend or family and their friends. now my daughter that is 2 1/2 loves to help me decorate the cakes.

This was my first cake xD

I squished his eyes putting the lid on the box lol I said to a mate "I'm going to make you a frog cake", his nickname is grandmaster bullfrog . I've only done 5 cakes in total as I work full time in a prison with crazy shifts, but the hobby is coming a long nicely and I'm progressing

This was my first attempt at decorating a cake - almost 4 years ago. It was for Halloween and, as you can see, I joined CC very shortly thereafter.

I have baking for ages, just not the decorating part. I am pretty crafty too, and at the time I was playing with polymer clay and saw the decorating classes and thought to myself"hmm, I can use that technique for clay" I wanted to learn how to make the roses and figures. Now I have not even touched the clay in my craft room since then.
Hopefully with a little more research and money, my dd and I are going to have home based business.
Here is my first attempt at fondant figures. Before classes.

Great Post! My first cake was about 4 years ago. My son was having a Curious George (the movie) party and it was so new that none of the grovery stores had the kits yet. I drew the picture of wax paper and did the thing where you poke holes into the buttercream as a guide. Here it is in all it's glory- haha! I quickly discovered that I am a much bigger fan of fondant then I am of the evil star tip!

I don't know what my first one was .. wow that was a long time ago. But, I used to make a lot of caricature cakes for people I worked with. I had Wilton's rag doll pan (still have it out in the cabinet somewhere... and I'd carve away at it until it resembled the person and decorate it, jewlery and all...I never sold them, but I sure took a lot of them to the office in those days Wish I had taken pictures back then.. never even entered my mind.

My first attempt at cake decorating was 9 years ago for my own bridal shower. I'm not sure what led me to that decision (at that time I didn't even know I was supposed to level the cake!). Awe...to be young and naive again...

My first cake (scratch) was 10 years ago when we were stationed in Germany. It was really pathetic. It looked and tasted like a brick! LOL, I ended up throwing the whole cake in the trash.

Great thread!

Mine was about 6 months ago for my son's third birthday(first in my photos). It was completely unfinished because I had no idea how long it really takes to do these cakes!

I've learned so much here in such a short period of time. You guys saved me quite a bit of trial and error

haha! I just found one I made 5 years ago for my daughter. Classic!

My fist attempt turned out ok, but i kept it pretty simple. I started making cakes for family, mostly because about half of us are celiac(on a gluten free diet). I made my first cake for my son's first birthday about 2 years ago. It was a dinosaur made with the Wilton 3d bear pan. I made him a mini one just like it for him to smash

I'm not sure how to add an image but it's in my photos.

I only do cakes for friends and family but maybe someday I'll start selling them. I'm doing my first wedding cake for my sister in two weeks, very excited but also a little scared.

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I only started to decorate recently. I love to bake. Decorating has not proved to be as easy.

@brea1026 that chocolate looks yummy.

My first cake was my son's first birthday cake, and after that one, I was bitten by the bug. I'm now in the process of planning his fourth bday cake!

http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1159357

My file was too big for me to add the photo, so here's the link to my gallery.

My first cake was 4 months ago for my son's first birthday. It was supposed to be navy blue MMF with white stars and blue sprinkles with the blue gumpaste animals I made. I was warned at the cake store in my area, who was nice enough to answer a ton of questions, that the dark navy would probably break down the fondant, which sure enough, it did. I was cooking for 70+ people and therefore ran out of time, so I covered it in white and threw a bunch of sprinkles on it...

Love these stories...I decorate my first cake when I was 9. It was a 9 x 13 cake and there was a contest at Sunday School. My mom baked it for me and then just gave the frosting, etc. I drew a big smiley face on it and wrote the words "Jesus Loves Me".

Then my brother put it in the cake carrier for me and smashed down the lid!!! I was as crushed as my cake. But you could still see the design through the top and I guess they felt sorry for me and I think I won 2nd place or runner up or something like that...LOL!

Fast forward 30 years and now I'm trying to learn "real" decorating techniques like the pros

I've always, since childhood, enjoyed baking -- not just cakes but cookies, pies, etc. too. I think my first really "decorated" cake was a bunny I made when I was about 10 years old or so -- one of those things you see in women's magazines, where you bake two round layers, one of them is the head, and the other one gets cut into two bunny ears and a bow tie.

I remember being really proud of it, and we were going to have it for dessert that evening, but while we were occupied elsewhere the dog jumped up on the counter and destroyed it! Ate about half of it and slobbered and trampled all over the rest. I was ready to kill that dog!

Anyway, I don't think I did much of anything with cake decorating again until my firstborn's first birthday. I was inspired to do a "cut up cake" design for his party, just as my mom had done them for me and my sister when we were little. So I designed this frog.



I'm still pretty proud of that one even though looking back on it now, well, my skills have improved in the eight years since.