Sugar, Spice & Everything Iced

Discover the artistry and magic of Caker Eliza Stubbings, in an insightful Q&A. Delve into Eliza's journey, creative process, and delectable inspirations as she shares her secrets behind crafting stunning and scrumptious masterpieces that redefine the world of cakes.

Where does your love of cake making come from?

I was the kid on the block that always had baking themed birthday parties. Caking specifically wasn’t a thing for me until after high school though. It was the rise in the social media of caking that made me realise I could use my love for baking in a trendy and artistically creative way.

You started your business at the age of 21. Can you tell us a bit about venturing out on your own at such a young age and how it's taken shape?

The first two years feel like a happy accident to me now. I’d love to say I started it all with a strong entrepreneurial spirit and big goals, but it’s not the case. I was using cakes as an escape from Uni. I was making cakes for friends and family and it started to quickly snowball from there. At the time, I was driven by nothing but a passion for what I was doing. Aside from working part time, my whole life was cake. Looking back, I was definitely shooting in the dark, but it was working out. I went full time with the business in 2019, just before COVID hit.

If a customer came to you requesting a custom cake, what would the process and creation of the cake design look like?

One of the first questions on my initial enquiry form is to rank your expectations on a scale from “I know exactly what I’m after and I have photos/ drawings to show you” to “I have no idea what I’m after and I’d love your help”. Depending on their answer, the process can look really different.

How do you and your business stay connected to the cake community?

Can you tell us how your online course came to fruition and why? My entire business was built on social media, specifically instagram. I owe just about everything to it! In the beginning, the audience I was attracting was not prospective cake clients but rather other cake businesses and hobbyists. Whenever I posted behind the scenes content there was always a lot of interest in my caking methods and recipes.

More than often the cakes you make are the most important cake of your clients life! How does it feel to be given this responsibility?

I’m a HUGE sucker for weddings. The importance and the honour of creating someone’s wedding cake is never beyond me. I get goosebumps thinking how lucky I am to be trusted with that. I often have couples apologising for changing their design or their flavours for the third time or triple checking floral colours. My response to them is always the same. I would be doing the exact same thing if I were in your shoes. It needs to be perfect and it’s my job to make that happen.

What is your favourite cake that you have ever made?

My favourite is my very first arch cake. I was asked to make a cake for a styled shoot at a venue with beautiful arches in the architecture. So, I made a cake in the shape of a standing arch. At the time, it seemed so challenging and obscure. But, I was really proud to see it come to life as I had imagined. The arch cake divided the internet though. Some loved it and some absolutely hated it. Both the love and the hate made the #archcake a really popular design in the cake community.

What is your style? What are your favourite materials to work with?

My caking style can best be described as a cross between clean, minimalist, modern, soft and feminine. There are two main types of caking, buttercream and fondant. Some cakers can do both really well, but I sit firmly in the buttercream camp. Fresh florals also play a huge part in almost all of my designs. If I wasn’t a cake designer, I’d definitely be a florist, so I feel very lucky to be getting the best of both worlds.

What does cake making mean to you?

Early on, as much as I loved making cakes, I worried I wasn’t doing something meaningful enough. I have friends that are nurses, disability carers, and charity workers and I was just making cake. Cake is never something you need, it’s always superfluous. But this is also what makes it meaningful. There is a reason it’s the centre of our celebrations, it’s just pure happiness. It’s a joy to look at and eat, and for me, it’s a joy to make. •

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