Meet Patrice Saltzman | Custom Cake Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Patrice Saltzman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Patrice, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
It really happened out of frustration, unhappiness and a distraction from my previous career! Gosh, those are probably not the most sophisticated reasons to start a business, but it’s the truth. I have a BFA in Musical Theatre and I lived in NYC pursing that career for about 7 years when I started to really feel the grind of auditioning, rejections and instability. It’s a really hard profession. It happened pretty organically — I started procrastinating doing the work for theatre jobs by instead baking in my kitchen. (I have always loved good food and I enjoyed finding recipes to recreate in my own kitchen, especially baked goods. And I also spent many formative years in the family kitchen decorating my mother’s sugar cookies.) I would bring whatever I made to my side job and share with co-workers. One day someone asked if I could make them a pie for Thanksgiving and I thought, I love this! I’m going to start an instagram page and take orders. I had NO idea what I was doing, but I was having fun for the first time in a long time and I loved watching people delight over whatever dessert I brought to them. From that point, things really got moving. Clients took me more seriously than I took myself at first, which was a wake-up call and very humbling. I had a dear friend from my audition days ask me to create a hockey jersey cake to surprise her fiance on their wedding day. I was scared out of my mind to do it so I charged VERY little because I was worried I would fail. I did not fail, thank goodness. From there, I had some very serendipitous connections that help me go from baking simples things like chocolate chip cookies to creating more substantial pieces like wedding cakes, amongst other things.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I always joke that I got to where I am with blood, sweat and tears. But it’s actually very true! I am completely self taught so there were lots of late, long nights figuring things out as I grew my business and learned my craft. Sometimes there are still late nights because I will want to learn a new technique for a cake and sometimes it doesn’t always work out the way its supposed to and that can be very scary, especially when you are on a deadline! It’s not easy, but I get to work for myself and I have built a business from the ground up. I am very proud of that. I think what sets me apart from others is my background in theatre. I LOVE connecting with people and I am very outgoing. My favorite thing is find some sort of connection with my clients and learn all about them as people. It makes creating their cake so much more intimate, special and exciting to me! I am not a wallflower and I just want people to be happy, laugh and enjoy my cakes. I am a people pleaser through and through, and while that can have its disadvantages, I truly love making people feel special and know that they have can trust me with their wedding cake

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Eat: Kill Devil Grill, Trio, Treehouse, Blue Point, Colington Cafe, Woo Casa, Blue Moon, NC Coast, Oyster Happy Hour at Blue Water, Greentails Drink: Swellsa, Tortugas, Buffalo City Jug Shop, Shine On Juicery, Avalon Pier, Mulligans, Roadside
Hang: The beach!, Jockey’s Ridge, Wright Brothers Memorial, Nags Head Woods, Pea Island
Relax: Massage with Erin Jackson, OBX Hot Yoga

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
SO MANY PEOPLE! I mentioned this before… but I had a few very serendipitous connections that really helped me learn the craft. I would never be where I am without a few very special people. I am so grateful every day for the following people. I know this is more than one person!!!

Veronika Metunin (Neighbor turned friend in my apartment building who taught me how to use fondant for the first time // Owner of Birchwood Bakery and Kitchen)
Teissia Treynet (Connected me with Betsy Thorleifson of Nine Cakes so I could learn more about wedding cakes)
Betsy Thorleifson (Owner of Nine Cakes — she let me shadow her, ask a million questions, learn her techniques and come help in her kitchen. If I ever moved back to NYC, I would beg Betsy to let me work for her.)
Rose McAdoo (Cake Support Friend)
Melissa Torres (Owner of Cake Hero // Cake Support Friend)
My husband, Ben Saltzman
My mom + dad, Dann and Joanne Seibel

Website: www.pattybakesalot.com

Instagram: @pattybakes__

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/patrice-seibel-b2098422a

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pattybakes

Other: https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/patty-bakes-nags-head/63948799c9ebb9bc.html

Image Credits
Sarah D’Ambra Photography Perry Vaile Kasey Powell Weddings All Bliss Photo Laura Marie Duncan Gideon Photography