The First Wedding Exhibition

In September 2017, I took a plunge and booked my first Wedding Exhibition which took place in February 2018.

Having only one wedding cake under my belt at the time of booking, I was probably more than a little mad for taking it on and pushing myself. Every time I think of just how mad I might've been, my favourite quote from 'Alice in Wonderland' springs to mind.

The Mad Hatter:

"Have I gone mad?"

Alice:

"I'm afraid so. You're entirely bonkers.

But I'll tell you a secret.

All the best people are."

This quote always gives me a little comfort. Although I don't think of myself being the best I can be quite yet, I know that by doing this exhibition, it will be a stepping stone in the right direction.

Having not participated in any form of showcase at all, I had no example cakes to show off what I could do, and slowly, very slowly, I came up with 3 designs that I really liked and thought brides would like too.

I knew straight away that I wanted to incorporate my love for Disney's Snow White into one of my cakes and I even featured my own Snow White and Prince Charming cake topper from my own wedding.

The lead up to the exhibition was one of the strangest weeks I'd had in a while. There was stress, late nights, tears and more stress (if you've read all of these blog posts so far, firstly well done, secondly, you'll notice the recurring theme of stress and late nights). As well as exhibiting, I was also one of the suppliers supplying biscuits for the goody bags. So, 3 unfinished cake designs, 100 biscuits to bake and ice, and cake samples to make, we were only 2 days away from the exhibition.

It was a frantic 48 hours, but somehow I pulled it off. With very little sleep, the car was packed, and off we went to Hamilton Park Racecourse for the next 2 days!

My lovely mum was my assistant for day one, and armed with pens, samples and a fake, nervous smile (me - not mum!) the doors were opened and off we went.

It went by in a flash, and with a sea of excited brides-to-be, slightly less enthusiastic grooms, and empty sample boxes, day one was successfully completed. I'd had the chance to meet a lot of fantastic engaged couples, some of who I now have the pleasure of creating their Wedding Cakes in 2019 and in to 2020. As well as this, I was able to speak to some wonderful wedding suppliers, and got to admire some fantastic wedding cake designs from other lovely bakers.

An exhausted drive home, I flopped on to the couch with a great sense of achievement.

6.30am on Day Two, and the alarm went off. More samples were freshly baked and off we went for day two. My friend Julie was assistant this time and I couldn't have done it without her or my mum.

Sunday was much busier than the Saturday and again it was great to meet such lovely couples. Some new faces, and some had come back to see me again having spoken on the Saturday. I was absolutely over the moon to have one couple book me on the spot, I still get a little buzz when I think about it.

Another day done and dusted, another lot of sample boxes gone in a flash.

The time had come to carefully pack up my designs and other little bits I'd had with me for my display and start the 45 minute drive home.

It was a thrill to be surrounded with all things Wedding and further cemented my love for weddings and being able to play a small part by making wedding cakes. I knew my goal, and I've been working on it ever since.

I've said it once, and it's likely I'll say it a million times more, but I love weddings. It is such a special time.

See you next time!

All my love,

Erin x