Faux Bakery Meets Real Recipes
I am a healthy eater. I avoid oil, salt, dairy, sugar, and wheat. I don’t have an issue with any of those things, in fact, they helped to create some of my favorite foods before I changed my diet, but they don’t fit my lifestyle now. This is quite unfortunate as I think it would be fun to include a recipe with any of the faux foods I sell. I know I’d appreciate opening my box of cinnamon roll pattern weights, which look good enough to eat (don’t do that), and finding a cinnamon roll recipe so I could go make my own. In order to send along a yummy recipe, I’d have to bake and bake a lot. I wouldn’t be able to taste test every recipe tweak and still fit into my pajamas, so it’s not something that’s feasible right now.
However!
I have been considering the possibility of collaborating with a small bakery or an individual who would like to simply share their homemade creations with others. We shall see, I suppose. First, sales must be made to afford such an idea.
In the meantime, if anyone stumbles in here with a fantastic recipe they’d like to share, feel free to post it in the comments!
The Little Extras
My faux baked goods are shipped in proper bakery boxes, or cellophane bags, depending on the item. There are accent liners, tissue papers, and the thing I’m most excited about, scented inserts. That means when you open the box of cinnamon rolls, you’ll smell cinnamon rolls. When you open the bag of peanut butter cookies, the scent of peanut butter cookies will greet you.
I’ve been a member of Etsy since 2008, and one of the things I’ve noticed over the years is how detailed most of the packaging has been. I once ordered a set of hand-turned wooden snowmen that came in a custom fitted felt envelope with a sleeve for each snowman. On the other side of the coin, I ordered something not long ago that arrived wrapped in paper towels and stuffed into a plastic baggy. It really is the little things that set people apart, and I want to make sure my packaging says, “This is not just a way to make a few extra dollars to support my polymer clay habit, but rather a way to share with you the things I’m proud of creating.”
I’ve recently ordered another bundle of fragrance oils to go with all the new baked goods I plan to make. Here’s what on the upcoming menu: cupcakes, mini bunt cakes, mini chocolate cake bites, cornbread with honey, toasted marshmallows (which may possibly lead to s’mores), apple pie, Christmas cookies, and chocolate covered strawberries!
Discounted Prototypes
I started a new line of faux food today! Mini tarts! They’re formed in actual silicone tart pans, then removed and detailed by hand.
Each new prototype takes a lot of time. This particular one, a single pumpkin tart, took about three hours to make.
I have a spreadsheet that details the cost of every item used for each product I make: polymer clay, weights, and pastels, for example, as well as a packaged price that includes the bakery box, tissue, and decorative paper. So everything I create has a base price that isn’t flexible because it’s just whatever it costs to make the product. Since my profit comes from my per hour charge, three hours for one item would increase the cost of the tarts to a level I wouldn’t expect anyone to pay.
Of course, as with most things, practice will help, reducing some of the time required to make the tarts, but some items are just more labor-intensive than others. A doughnut, especially a plain glazed doughnut, takes far less time and effort to create than a cinnamon roll, which takes a lot less time than a pumpkin tart, and my prices reflect the amount of work required to complete a piece.
There are usually “flaws” in my prototypes — the wrong coloring, improperly mixed icing, etc. I alter the aspects I dislike to improve future versions. So, while they take a good bit of time to make, because they’re not up to my usual standards, I sell them at a discounted price. If you’re interested in snagging one of my weights at a deal, keep an eye out for listings in the prototype section!
