In today’s Student Spotlight, we’re bringing you Sarah Jones from Latimer Bakes! Sarah currently works as a Firefighter and is a hobbyist baker.
Appreciating the sentiment and effort that goes into homemade gifts, Sarah has always baked for others when it comes to special occasions. She was making cakes for fun at work at the station when a colleague asked her to make a tiered cake for his wife’s birthday. He unexpectedly paid her and her business started from there!
Your Name:
Sarah Jones
What’s your business?
Where are you from?
Wirral, United Kingdom
How do you find working with buttercream in your climate?
I much prefer working with buttercream as I find it more modern however, it can be challenging at times. In the UK buttercream can be a nightmare in the summer as we aren’t built or prepared for hot weather so no houses have air conditioning! And the same goes for winter – I find my kitchen to run particularly cold and so buttercream can ‘set’ quicker than desired! Because there is a particular focus on Thao’s buttercream around temperature I have learnt over time how to control this better and work with the limitations that I’ve got.
How has your business evolved since Covid-19?
Fortunately, I bake part time so I didn’t feel the effects of covid too much on my business and I was lucky enough to be able to continue working as a firefighter throughout the pandemic. I did however notice a shift in what people were ordering and from where due to travel restrictions.
For as long as I can remember I have baked, it is my creative outlet, allows me to express myself and I find it therapeutic. My dad has always baked so I guess my interest in baking stems from there… plus I like the taste of cake batter!
Any cake disaster story?
I’ve had two occasions where I have created tall cakes for customers and they have not followed the cake care instructions correctly. In one case a customer ‘hid’ the cake in her warm bedroom for over 24 hours and the whole thing understandably collapsed! As I was at the beginning of my baking career I naively thought that this was my fault as the baker – perhaps I hadn’t structured the cake correctly etc and offered a refund which she took. Looking back I have learnt so much from these situations including giving instructions in written format as well as verbal! Perhaps my next course needs to be the Cake Care Templates!
What made you decide to take an online course?
I was inspired by Thao’s minimal and modern designs and was getting exasperated with how hit or miss my cakes were when it came to smoothing buttercream. I think I had suffered a particularly stressful late night decorating session which finally pushed me to take the plunge and purchase the course!
What DTC course have you enrolled in and how have they helped you?
I enrolled in the Buttercream Cake Mastery and the Cake Sizing System. I love that once you have purchased the courses they are there indefinitely and so you can dip in and out of them. I have found the skills I have learnt are extremely adaptable and allow me to apply them to other baking and decorating methods that I use alongside Thao’s.
Having both the videos and written material is critical for me as I am a visual learner, yet the text allows me to clarify the skills being shown. The cake sizing system course was fantastic as it allowed me to confidently size and price up the cakes that I was offering.
Check out Sarah's work
What advice do you have for people starting out in their modern cake making journey?
I much prefer working with buttercream as I find it more modern however, it can be challenging at times. In the UK buttercream can be a nightmare in the summer as we aren’t built or prepared for hot weather so no houses have air conditioning! And the same goes for winter – I find my kitchen to run particularly cold and so buttercream can ‘set’ quicker than desired! Because there is a particular focus on Thao’s buttercream around temperature I have learnt over time how to control this better and work with the limitations that I’ve got.
Courses Sarah is enrolled in
