Meet Marlene Martinez-Dorlus | Cake artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marlene Martinez-Dorlus and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marlene, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
My thought process behind starting a business was it’s easy enough! I ordered a cake for my daughter’s first birthday and when I saw the cake and the price I said to myself I can do this. I love making cakes. We have so many kids in our family so I can get lots of practice. I started making cakes for my coworkers and family. They kept telling me I should charge and have a business. When I had my 2nd child and had to stay home I decided I can work and stay home with the kids. I started doing research in my state of what I needed, thought of a name and decided to take the plunge.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I love creating beautiful cakes and desserts for parties or events. I believe every child deserves a birthday cake/dessert or to be celebrated. I love seeing how happy people are when they see what I created especially when it’s custom made for them. When I moved to California I started baking for an organization called cake4kids. It provided cakes for kids in foster homes and hospitals for their birthdays and/or celebrations. When I move back to Florida, I looked for an organization that would allow me to do the same. I decided to really push my business and help anywhere I can. The hardest part of this journey for me was juggling home/work/life balance. The running around with the kids for school and activities, the house work that needs to be done and trying to still go out with my family/friends and be social. Getting everyone out of the kitchen was a mission. I had to learn to really organize and write out my days so I’m not running around like a crazy person. I set up a baking schedule that worked for me and turned my breakfast nook area into my work area. Since I work from home, my fridays has become movie night/hangout day with the kids since I can still watch tv, watch them play video games and work from my baking area. A big lesson I learned along the way is to not compare myself to others in the Baking community. We are all at different levels, all do things differently and all charge differently depending on location and experience.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
When my family and friends come to visit us we definitely love to go to the beaches or walk around and enjoy the scenery. Rosemary Square and clematis have so many restaurants bars and shops that everyone can enjoy or catch a movie. We don’t have favorites because we like trying new things but we love going to Restaurants Hardware, Saito’s, City Cellar, Batch, Rocco’s Tacos, Banko cantina, lost weekend and ER Bradley to name a few. Some nights you can catch live music outside. We always walk down Flagler to the inter coastal and enjoy seeing water and boats while enjoying some ice cream.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to dedicate my shout out to my close family and friends, who supported me and pushed me out of my comfort zone. I also want to thank my Instagram Cake community for helping me when I have questions or need to get inspiration and ideas.

Website: www.mar-velouscreations.com

Instagram: www.instagram/mar_velouscreations

Facebook: www.facebook.com/mar_velouscreations