February 19, 2018

Olive Studio recently had the pleasure of collaborating with the lovely and talented Caitlin Elaine from Cakelaine for our Unicorns and Rainbows creative photo shoot. We had been admirers of her work and were thrilled when she agreed to create some unicorn inspired desserts for our shoot. Read on to learn more about how Cakelaine came to be and where their inspiration comes from.

I’m personally not the greatest baker and I’m always amazed at how people like Caitlin can create these baking masterpieces that often times look more like they belong in an art museum than on someone’s dessert plate! I asked Caitlin for a few tips for us home bakers and she said to be creative and try a variety of flavour pairings, which are great tips, but perhaps the most important (and practical!) tip she shared was to clean up as you go along. 

Baking started as a hobby for Caitlin but the universe had bigger baking things in store for her and before she knew it, she was graduating from pastry school and was turning her love of baking into a small business.

“I have just always had a love of baking, and experimenting in the kitchen. Pair that with an artistic and creative brain, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for a cake artist!”

A little known fact about Cakelaine is that they used to be known as SweetCity. After completing pastry school and a summer internship, the business was re-branded in March of 2014 in order to target the wedding industry. But that’s not all they focus on. Milestone occasions, like turning 50 for example, come in at a close second as far as other popular events they create desserts for. When asked where her baking and decorating inspiration comes from, Caitlin shares:

“Every wedding I do is different, which is one of the best parts of my job (excluding the free cake scraps). My favourite kind of inspiration comes from nature, realistic textures seen in the everyday and the way actual flowers grow. I love working with couples who give me inspiration, and who give me a little bit of their story and who they are as a couple.”

Caitlin has seen the success of her business continue to grow through platforms like social media and she credits Instagram in particular as her number one source for booking new clients. She has reached out to many people through Instagram, some she’s even developed friendships with, and she also thinks it has allowed wedding professionals the opportunity to get to know other “bad ass creatives” to collaborate with.  We couldn’t agree more! It was thanks to the images we saw on their Instagram feed that attracted us to Cakelaine and made us want to collaborate with Caitlin. So, thank you Instagram! 

Many couples look for ways to keep costs down when it comes to certain aspects of their wedding planning, such as selecting their wedding cake. Some of Caitlin’s recommendations are to opt for a cake that is mostly fake, and accompany it with a slab to be cut and served to guests. And for the minimalist couple, she suggests considering a buttercream covered or naked cake accompanied by real flowers. In recent years, the naked cake has definitely become a popular trend. And while we love this minimalist cake look, we’re also very excited to see what will be popular in 2018 and beyond! Caitlin predicts texture will be a big trend this year.

“So much texture will envelope the wedding industry in 2018 and I’ll tell you what, I’ll have a chance to show my true and most creative side. Wafer paper texture, realistic flowers, weathered flowers, more getting-back-to-nature-type flowers.”

Running your own business is no easy task. One of the biggest challenges that Caitlin faces, which so many of us can relate to, is the work/life balance and managing her time. Cakelaine is a one woman show and last year, she took on a lot of orders, which is great for business, but also too much for one set of hands, a single oven and only 2 of each size pan. She pulled 55 hour work weeks, and slept an average of 5-6 hours a night, sometimes only 3! That’s when she decided that her business needed a new home. Cakelaine now operates out of a shared commercial kitchen space in Mississauga called the Cake Collective! Which also means they are now fully licensed and health regulated.

While the business of making wedding cakes seems like it can be a lot of fun, it can also come with its own share of challenges. A couple of years ago, and on the morning of a wedding cake delivery, Caitlin’s fridge was acting up. She had a 5 tier cake which had to be transported to the wedding venue and assembled on site. Well, thanks to the mid July heat, the cake was already coming to room temperature upon arrival to the venue and as Caitlin explains “you can’t really put your hands on the cake or your hand print stays there forever.” Cue Caitlin’s quick thinking! She left the cake in the venue’s freezer to cool down for the assembly which unfortunately, made for a late delivery, and in front of the wedding guests no less! Nerves anyone?! But luckily, Caitlin had a make it work moment and it all came together in the end.

Since we’re on the topic of desserts, to close out our interview, I asked Caitlin to share her favourite dessert.  Like many people, she said she loves so many that it’s hard to pick just one. I can relate to that! Instead, she shared that she loves going to fancy restaurants and trying their delicious desserts and one that she recommends is the bread pudding at Los Colibris on King St West in Toronto. I’m not a big bread pudding person, but when a pastry chef tells you it was one of the best desserts she’s ever had, well, that’s reason enough for me to want to try it! Thanks for the dessert tip, Caitlin! I wish you continued  success in all your dessert making ventures and thanks for sharing your story with us! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go make a reservation at Los Colibris for some bread pudding.

~Marilyn

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photo credits: Cakelaine // Olive Studio // Jennifer See Studios // instagram @cakelaine