Cupcakes!

Red Velvet Poinsettia Cupcake

I can cheerfully report that I am making progress toward starting my life. My daughter Karin and I have been discussing starting a baking business for some time. She is most interested in cake decorating, while I lean more toward breads—yeast and quick. My youngest has developed an interest in the pastry side of the business as well.

Thanksgiving Cupcakes

Anyway, we launched our business this month, meeting with mixed success. I found a community kitchen in which to make our wares, at the moment limited to cupcakes and muffins. We have sold a good many at a local flea market. Financially, we have yet to make our money back. But that’s okay. I regard this as our research phase. There is a lot to learn, and books/videos/classes can only provide so much.

Clockwise from top left: Peanut Butter Double-Take, Margerita, Thanksgiving designs, and more PBDT's.

My daughter keeps developing fantastic cupcake design ideas. I need to learn to decorate as well as she does. I’m not worried. That design degree will come in handy. I may take a few classes to learn the basic techniques. The big craft chains offer a lot of class times.

Spring Flowers

Autumn Cookie

I know, I know. Cupcakes are sooooo overdone, right? Well…not so much around here. They’re big on TV, but there aren’t all that many people actually making them. The trick is to make gorgeous cupcakes that taste as good as they look, and offer them at a price people are willing to pay while making a modest profit. You’d be amazed how few people actually get up off their duff and make the effort.

Christmas Cheer

We’d eventually like to turn it into a bigger business, with our own baking facility and an established market. We’re willing to start small and work our way up. It’s exciting and exhausting. It may never be a smashing success, but it lends purpose to the week. It’s doing SOMETHING, rather than waiting around for “Something” to happen. I now have a better understanding of the saying “It is better to have tried and failed than to have never tried at all”. I don’t plan to fail. Sure, this “starting a business” stuff is scary, but it isn’t anywhere near as daunting as so many people make it out to be (and believe me, there have been plenty of people who say it’s just toooooo hard…). You just have to DO IT. Make the effort. Stop waiting for permission.

At The Flea on 29 in Greensboro, NC

 Start living.

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