A LETTER FROM CHRISTINE

Creating something for someone else to enjoy has always been my passion.  It was clear to my parents that I would become an artist when, at the age of 6, I drew Tarzan swinging from the trees in the jungle after watching television.  Throughout grade school and high school, and a year and a half at Wayne State University, all forms of art excited me: sculpture, texture, pen and ink, painting, theater background, design, wall murals.  In all these experiences, what media would I choose to excel in?

An experience I had at the age of 13 seemed to point the way.  After spending the night at a friend’s house, I was intrigued by her mother’s work on a wedding cake.  A love affair with culinary arts began, as I taught myself the basic techniques from How-To books.

With cake decorating, all my God-given abilities could be utilized at one time.  This realization did not come immediately, but only after opening my first storefront bakery.

To be a stay-at-home mom was a priority to me, as I had three sons, a husband who worked a night shift, and only one car.  It was more convenient to work from home.  From time to time, when the need for extra cash arose, I would take on a brief part-time bakery position to meet the need.  Over time, my clientele began to grow.  I had honestly never considered opening up a storefront, because I really enjoyed the freedom of working at my own pace; and I always thought that it could remain manageable.

In 1993, after making $30,000 from my home, my husband and I came to the realization that I needed a food license and we should look for a storefront.  The alternative?  Either stop decorating from my home, or get a job working for someone else.  So, in the next unbelievable year, we opened Christine’s Cakes and Pastries (CC&P) in Clinton Township with no more than a $10,000 gift from family.  With that amount, I bought me the most miserable used-but-functioning equipment available.  In two years, we expanded to the space next door and purchased new equipment!  There was yet another expansion a few years later.  In 2004-2005, we had again outgrown our space, and in October of 2006 opened a new and improved CC&P in our current address in Shelby Township, Michigan.

As I write this, I am still surprised that we own a storefront and have such a talented group of employees.  If I ever have the pleasure of meeting you, I could tell more of the story: some most important details.  In over 20 years, do I have some stories!

As a girl, I always imagined having my own “art studio” with clients hiring me for their portrait or a wall mural or a painting.  But it has been said, “Sometimes on the way to a dream, you get lost and find a better one. After all, CC&P is not the studio I had thought I would have; but it is the “art studio” that God purposed for me to have.

Christine

Owner, Christine’s Cakes & Pastries