Working Women Wednesdays: Simply Scrumptious Cakery

This week, we are going to meet Mandi Henderson, owner of Simply Scrumptious Cakery.   I have also had the pleasure of purchasing cakes and cupcakes from Mandi, and have to say, in comparison to even some of the local bakeries, her cakes (frosting, cake, design, and overall experience) are far superior! 

Mandi is a Military spouse to an Army Firefighter.  She is also Mommy to two great children. Mandi is also a Veteran having served in the Military for eight years.  She then moved over to the National Guard for seven more years. Her husband rejoined the military in 2008, and they were assigned to Fort Carson, CO. After leaving the military, Mandi did not know what she wanted to do when she grew up, so she went to school and became a Medical Assistant. Wanting to do more, she also became an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT).  While working for a Phlebotomist in Colorado, she started to making cakes from home for friends and family. Mandi started her business in Colorado in February of 2012. Over the year, she made over 100 cakes adding to her portfolio. Then in January of 2013, Mandi and her family moved to San Angelo, TX.   Here, she is trying to get up and running  as the go-to Cake Lady!

Here is her interview:

What inspired you to start Simply Scrumptious Cakery?

I enjoyed making cakes for my family and friends, and  I saw an opportunity to help my family earn some extra income. There were only a few places to get cakes in town- the biggest was Walmart, and lets just say the cake was "okay." I wanted to be able to give people a really yummy, homemade cake that also looked great!

 

How did you get started?

I have always made my kid's birthday cakes .  One day, I decided to do a baby shower for a friend, and I made her my first three-tiered cake. Well, she was a member of my husband’s fire department, and asked if I could do a cake for an upcoming retirement.  So I did!  Then more and more people asked me to do cakes for them, and the business was born! I started a Facebook page, and the orders just started coming in!!

 

Tell us about the type of products you make.

Delicious, home-baked goodies of all shapes and sizes, designed to your specificity and budget.  Each treat is unique to you and is made with the utmost care and attention to detail. At Simply Scrumptious Cakery, imagination comes to life. So you get to have your cake and eat it too! I make custom cakes and cupcakes for all occasions. I do cakes for birthday, showers, weddings, and any other occasion you might want a cake for.

 

What makes your products so unique?

Well, my cakes not only look good, but they also taste good. I have spent a lot of time working on cake recipes that both hold up to decorating as well as tasting really yummy.

 

What do you love most about your business?

I love that I can really make someone smile when they get a cake they want! I love that I am helping my family, while still being at home with them. I get to set my schedule and still have time for my kids when they need me!

 

What is most challenging about your business?

It would have to be my clients expectations. I have to ensure that what they are looking for in a cake is do able- that I can deliver what they have in mind for their cake.

 

What was an expectation you might have had, that you have had to reevaluate once you got started?

That as a new business owner I could not say no to a customer. I had to realize I have limits on how many cakes I can do in a given weekend, and that I am not Cake Boss. People see someone do it on TV and think that everyone can do that. One: they have more people on staff, and two: they have a lot more equipment and space then I do.

 

What is one tip you might offer to other stay-at-home moms starting out?

Just go for it! If you have a talent and know someone that can use your talent, make it known what you can do for them! No one has time to do everything they want done.

 

What do you think is your most valuable tool in marketing your business?

Word of Mouth. There is no better compliment then to have someone spread the word about you after they have tried your stuff. Anyone can put an ad out there or create a Facebook page, but if someone tells someone else about you, your business can go anywhere!

 

How does your business affect your family? In either good or bad ways?

My family is a great supporter of my business, but it does affect them. I usually have cake orders going out on Saturday, so that takes away from family time and events/places we can go to. But without my cakes and the revenue from them, we could not do as many of our little trips that we have done.

 

If you had it to do over again, what might you change about the path of your journey so far, if anything?

I am a military spouse and that effects my journey every couple of years. So I essentially I start from the ground up all over again. So getting to start over again each time, there is not much that I would change.

 

Simply Scrumptious Cakery offers a wide variety of flavors for cakes, cupcakes, frosting, and fillings.   To learn more about Mandi's beautiful and tasty creations, please visit her page on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ourcakedesign) where she also has a menu listing all the varieties she offers as well as her direct contact information.

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If you are a Work-At-Home Woman who runs your own business and would like to be featured on a "Working Women Wednesday," please submit a short email about yourself and your business to borden.cbands77@gmail.com. ((Sorry, no Direct Sales Businesses at this time.))

I Worry... A Lot...

I write another blog (Military Women of God) where I attempt the share God's Grace and Mercy with women associated with the Military who are often alienated in their Faith in one way or another.  One thing I try to do every Sunday is a blog called "Sacred Sunday" where I share a passage from His Word in hopes of encouraging and challenging these Christian women to lean more on Him.

This week, I shared a passage that has been both encouraging and challenging for me personally.  Rather than retype the entire thing- please click over to it here:  Sacred Sunday.

Let me just say this- I once again stand convicted. 

Let no one ever say that Christians are perfect, because I am living proof that not a single one of us is perfect.  Rather, I am a perfect example of imperfection covered in His Grace.  Thank God, He takes me under His wing and loves me so much even when I fail Him miserably, and cling so tightly to my own transgressions.

Working Women Wednesdays: Connella's Creations

This week, I interviewed my friend Misty, owner of Connella's Creations.   Misty and I went to college together.  I wish I could say that she and I were really close back then, but truth of the matter is, I always tend to meet the coolest people, the ones that best jive with my personality either as I am leaving, or as we cross paths later in life.  My friendship with Misty is one of these. 

While I had genuinely liked Misty the little I saw her in college, I finally got to know Misty better through MySpace and Facebook during the time my hubby and I were stationed on Oahu.  While we were on that island, Misty and her family were living on another island.  Small world that brought the both of us all the way from college days in Florida to the middle of the Pacific Ocean. 

At any rate, over the years, through our numerous comments and messages back and forth, I have come to truly admire and respect Misty as she strives to live a more natural life.   Her products, whether knit items or body care items reflect her passion to live clean, to use the resources God gave us wisely while taking care of our bodies using only what God gave us.   Misty has been inspirational to me to also start moving in that direction as I reevaluate the products I use and the foods I eat.

Below is our interview:

What inspired you to start Connella’s Creations?
A friend of mine had a soap making class at her house, and I loved the idea of making my own soap for my family, so I went and found it to be really fun. The soap turned out so well, I started researching and talking with other soap makers who encouraged me to go for it, and even shared some recipes.  On the knitting side of things, I always wanted to knit, and finally decided to take a class the beginning of this year. The ladies were so great, and I caught on quick because of their support.

How did you get started?
Well, from the time that I learned each skill to now, my family kept cheering me on to sell my products.  So, I made a Facebook profile page and just started posting soap and knit wear as I went along.  Because I'm still in the early phases of business, I'm still kind of "starting".

Tell us about the type of products you make.
I make handmade, cold-processed, goat milk soap bars, organic lip balm sticks, and knit hats, scarves, cowls, wristers, skirts, slippers, etc.

What makes your products so unique?
I try to use natural ingredients in my body care line: organic unrefined cold-processed coconut oil, organic shea butter and organic bees wax, organic essential oils, local honey, local fresh goats milk, and, of course, lard-- Good old fashioned soap.  My knitwear: I try to use mostly natural fibers like various wools, cottons, and vary rarely use synthetic fiber like acrylic.

What do you love most about your business?
Being home with my kids and feeling like I am still contributing to our finances.

What is most challenging about your business?
As I am still in the beginning stages, I think finding venues to sell through have been a little challenging and learning how to do more online business. Figuring out shipping costs is always a little tricky too, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.

What was an expectation you might have had, that you have had to reevaluate once you got started?
The initial cost of start up.  To really make a "go" of this, I need to put more into my supplies to build up an inventory. Currently, I mostly make knitwear for special orders, and have a small inventory of body care products. So in order to supply more, I'd like to invest more. Gotta have money to make money, as the saying goes. Right now, whatever I make pretty much goes back into buying more supplies.

What is one tip you might offer to others stay-at-home moms starting out?
Find something you love and can live with doing over and over. Get connected online. Networking is so important. I post on several stay-at home-mom pages on Facebook, and share what I'm doing constantly. You never know who is looking and just may want what you are promoting.

What do you think is your most valuable tool in marketing your business?
My enthusiasm and the Internet. I don't know how many people have contacted me that I've never met and want my product. It's awesome.

How does your business affect your family? In either good or bad ways?
My family is excited about my business. Everything I make they want me to sell, or they come up with different ideas for scents or something to knit. There are times where they are put off, like when I have a big order to fill, or it is taking a lot more of my time than they'd like, but overall it has been a good experience so far.

 

If you had it to do over again, what might you change about the path of your journey so far, if anything?
I'm glad I am taking baby steps with this. I tend to be an all-or-nothing person, and although this may not be the way I'd like to do it, I think it will give me a better sense of accomplishment- for being patient and doing what I can when I can, versus being frustrated that I can't put a lot of money into it right now to bring about bigger results faster.

Share a funny experience.
I like to give out samples of soap and don't mind driving to a person to do so. I think a lot of people are looking for alternatives and want more natural products as a whole. That said, I was getting ready to knock on the door of a potential customer and got nervous when I heard dogs barking. To my relief, they were inside because when I looked up, I could see them in the window. As I looked back to the door, the guy had already opened it and was staring at me. It surprised me so much I let out a small yelp and nervous giggle. He was amused as well. That'll teach me.

Misty is offering some specials as stated below. 
I try to keep the cost of my products down to make them affordable and easy to incorporate into having a healthier option. My specials are 3 bars of soap for $10, regularly $4 each and 2 lip balm sticks for $4, regularly $3 each. the cost of my knit wear is comparable to others on Etsy or other handmade sites.

If you would like to place an order or view the variety of items Misty makes, please visit her Facebook page: Connella's Creations. 

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If you are a Work-At-Home Woman who runs your own business and would like to be featured on a "Working Women Wednesday," please submit a short email about yourself and your business to borden.cbands77@gmail.com. ((Sorry, no Direct Sales Businesses at this time.))

National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer...

Let us not just take time out of our busy lives to concentrate on prayer...  Let us make today a new start to a praying relationship.  Let us turn our prayers into continual conversations.  Let us make our conversation with our Lord as common to our lives as breathing.

^"What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?"  Deuteronomy 4 v 7

"... if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."  2 Chronicles 7 v 14

"But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,  that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."  Matthew 5 v 44-45

"One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
 ^{He said to them, “When you pray, say:}

^{“‘Father,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.And lead us not into temptation. ’”}    Luke 11 v 1-4

 

^"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God."  Romans 8 v 26-27

 

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.  Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."  Ephesians 6 v 18-20

 

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 4 v 4-7

 

Working Women Wednesdays: Click Life Photography

After writing "Supporting the Work-at-home Spouse," I considered ways in which I might better serve my work-from-home friends.  Since all of us who work from home really rely on the Internet and Social networking to help get the word out about what we do, I thought a showcase once a week of some of these working women might help them reach a wider clientele, and make you aware of why their product or service is unique.

This week, I interviewed Mandi Hagenbuch.  Besides being one of my dearest friends, she is a multi-tasking maven!  Mandi is a Military Spouse.  She is also a Veteran, a displaced New Englander, who has found her niche in the Military Community.  Her DH is an Instructor at our Base.  They have four children: one teen, one tween, one toddler, and one baby.  Mandi makes the best "crackacino's"- my nickname for her homemade version of the Starbuck's Frapp.  Currently, she is a nanny to three siblings while also taking care of her two littlest during the day.  While Mandi loves being a nanny, her heart and her passion really rest in her photography business- Click Life Photography.

Below is our interview:

What inspired you to start Click Life Photography (CLP)?
Inspired? ... Life.  All the little things in life that people miss, or just the opposite, don't WANT to miss.

How did you get started?
It started quite suddenly, actually.  My husband bought me a "big girl camera" for Christmas one year, and I decided then and there I was going to become a photographer.

What makes your photography business unique?
Photography is art- the art of the Photographer.  But CLP is all about my clients and their lives.  Every shoot is unique- from simple, every day to elaborate, prop-planned sessions.  [My insert as a client- Mandi shoots as much as she can in natural light, which in my opinion, truly makes her viewpoint original, real to life, and raw... all the things I want in my family pictures.]

What do you love most about your business?
This might sound cliche, but I love capturing memories.

What is most challenging about your business?
Social media.  Now a days, photographers have to Facebook, Tweet, Blog, LinkedIn, Google+, and Pinterest.  UGH! 

What was an expectation you might have had, that you have had to re-evaluate once you got started?
I am a real person with real feelings and a real desire to deliver not just images, but a wonderful experience from start to finish, from first contact to the thank you cards.

What is one tip you might offer to other photographers starting out?
Do not compare yourself to other photographers.  Many things I tried to achieve in camera, I could not.  Some images I loved turned out to be complete composites, not  safely achievable in camera, only in Photoshop.

What do you think is your most valuable tool in marketing your business?
Word of mouth- Definitely!

How does your business affect your family?  In either good or bad ways?
[paraphrased]  Time management is crucial to making this work so I don't lose time with my family.  Managing the balance of working from home, being a photographer, while still being a wife and mother means I have to multi-task, plan, and schedule.  I try to make sure God and family come first; I plan date nights with my husband and family nights for all of us.  I work on photography editing while the kids are taking naps.  I have learned it is okay to ask for help, whether it be from my husband, my children, my friends, or others.

If you had it to do over again, what might you change about the path of your journey so far?
I would have solidified more time to shoot for myself, honing my craft, and learning the light.

Share a funny story.
[paraphrased]  Not so much funny, per se.  Every shoot is a lot of fun.  I witness a lot of tenderness and laughter.  You never know what is going to happen.

Of course, I enjoy every second I get to spend with my friend, but as I have seen her start this photography business, I have seen her heart open and grow.  Having found a job that she can do from home that she loves and is quite talented at, has lightened her life, and in extension all of us who have had the opportunity to have her do our pictures.

If you are in the San Angelo area, and are looking for an amazing photographer, check out Click Life Photography.

Currently, she is offering Father's Day Mini Sessions and Prom Mini Sessions in addition to her regular sessions.

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If you are a Work-At-Home Woman who runs your own business and would like to be featured on a "Working Women Wednesday," please submit a short email about yourself and your business to borden.cbands77@gmail.com.  ((Sorry, no Direct Sales Businesses at this time.))