Former science teacher turned cake artist: how Eunice monetizes her hidden talent with Sellfy  

Eunice, also known as Eumicakes, is a Singapore-based former science teacher and baker turned cake artist and content creator. She creates beautiful floral arrangements on cakes using the palette knife painting technique she learned from a friend in 2019.

After learning this new technique, she went from baking pastries for family and friends to creating her own cake decorating venture—a hidden talent she didn’t know she had until she was in her 30s. 

Now, she finds joy in teaching hundreds of students and sharing her skills with free tutorials and online classes. Eunice is also very active on Instagram where she has a growing following of 29.5k+.  

She started looking for an affordable eCommerce solution when she saw her friends using their own websites. This gave her the motivation to open an online store for her cake painting courses. After comparing several eCommerce platforms, she ultimately chose Sellfy for its ease of use and focus on digital products.

In this interview, Eunice shares how she discovered her unique hobby, and how she learned cake decorating despite not having formal art education. She also talks about how she grew her social media following and shares tips on how to discover your creative calling.

How do you define yourself and what do you do? 

I’m a palette knife cake artist and hobbyist who enjoys being crafty. I don’t have an educational background in art, but I discovered that I have a hidden talent the first time I tried palette knife painting on a cake. 

Now, I find joy in sharing my cake decorating skills with everyone, and people love it. 

How did you discover this unique hobby? 

I discovered it through a Thai friend of mine who is a cake artist. I had already been into baking and cake decorating since 2018, so when I saw her palette knife decorations in 2019, I decided to give it a try.

So, I joined her class and started learning the palette knife technique, and fell in love with it. 

Learning wasn’t easy, but I was really into it and kept practicing every day until I was comfortable enough to share my skills on social media and teach people.

At that time, I was already married and had quit my full-time job to be a stay-at-home mom and care for my son. This gave me the opportunity to explore my new hobby. I don’t think I would’ve been able to dedicate as much time to it had I been employed.

At what point did you start sharing your cake painting skills on social media?

I started after I met my current mentor in baking. I already had a personal Instagram account, but she encouraged me to create a separate one for baking.

Then, a year later, I started posting videos of my floral arrangements and a new technique every month. Eventually, I started sharing photos as well, but all my photos and videos were taken with my smartphone and I wanted better quality. 

So, with the help of my husband and his photography equipment, I learned how to use video editing software and film the whole process for my followers.

Now, I share all of my cake decorations and tutorials on Instagram. It’s a pretty huge trend and I’m glad I jumped in at the right time.

Can you tell me a little more about your Instagram strategy, and if you use any other social media platforms?

I am only focused on Instagram. I do have a Facebook page, but it’s connected to my Instagram account, so all my posts get automatically shared on Facebook.

I don’t really have a specific Instagram strategy. The main purpose of my account is just to share my art with my followers. Maybe once in a while, I’ll make a reel, but I mainly just post cake painting tips and tutorials. I don’t even show my face that much.

Sometimes, I’ll share a sneak peek video of a new design from my course. This has helped me grow my following as well as attract a lot of potential students, especially recently.

And, I guess my following has also grown so much due to the type of content I make in general—my feed is very educational. 

All of my students are on Facebook. They’re currently enrolled in a two-year course that includes new monthly designs (freebies). The course Freebies will end in May 2022 and, after that, they’ll be ready to create their own designs and showcase their creativity using my techniques.

When did you get the idea to have your own website? How did you find Sellfy?

I started thinking about having my own website after launching my first course on Facebook. I saw that many of my social media friends referred their clients to their own websites. So, I was like, “How can I easily create a website without having to learn to code?” 

I used to keep in touch with my students through email. But, after some time, I couldn’t keep up with it anymore, so I started searching for an affordable solution that fell within my budget.

I compared different eCommerce platforms by weighing the pros and cons. And, Sellfy’s Starter plan for selling digital products seemed like the best option for me—it was exactly what I needed.

Also, I like that Sellfy is more than just an online store—it’s a fully functional website that doesn’t require any coding skills, which makes it very beginner-friendly. 

It’s actually my first website and, so far, I’ve been very happy with my experience. I’m definitely in good hands with Sellfy. 

What else do you like about Sellfy? Do you have any favourite features?

I like that, in addition to digital products, it’s possible to offer freebies, subscriptions, and physical products. 

I also like the fast customer service. I had a couple of issues once that were quickly resolved by someone in the support team, and I think that’s commendable.

As for the features, I like the pay-what-you-want (PWYW) pricing. I used it for my first sale, which was a week-long fundraising campaign. I offered tutorials at a minimum start price of $5 and $10. The campaign attracted so many customers that I almost earned a thousand dollars!

How has Sellfy impacted your life so far? 

Sellfy has played a very important role in my life. It has made my life easier in so many ways.

Now, I can just share my Sellfy store link on social media so people can directly go to my website. And, I can also send the link whenever someone private messages me and asks about my course. 

Plus, it’s a relief that I don’t have to frequently answer emails anymore. If anyone has a question, they can just get in touch with me through the Sellfy contact form.

What’s your favourite part about your business?

It’s teaching and the appreciation that comes with it. I’m happy that my students get to learn from me. I was a teacher before and I didn’t think I’d be able to do that again after getting married, but then I discovered cake painting.

I love being able to share my knowledge and my skills with others—I think that’s my purpose. And, I love that I’m able to do what I love and spend time with my family. That has always been my dream. 

Sometimes, filming and editing a course can be a little time-consuming, but my family is very understanding. 

And, what’s the hardest part?

I think turning your idea into reality and creating it is the hardest part. You always need to come up with something new to make for people. But, sometimes, you just run out of ideas. And then, it can take up to a week to think of a new design and colour palette.

So, coming up with an idea and turning it into a beautiful design is definitely the most challenging part. 

And, since I don’t have formal training in art, I have to seek inspiration from all the sources I can find—paintings, nature, colours, and so on.

What tips would you give to someone who wants to monetise their hobby?

I started learning art quite late in life. And now, three years later, I am still learning and loving it. So, my advice would be to find out what you like; to discover and learn a new skill.

People will say, “I think I’m too old for that.” But, age shouldn’t be a hindrance. It’s never too late to learn something new. That’s what I always tell others. So, just give it a try. 

Learn and practice different things so that you’ll discover what you love and what brings you the most joy. Then, turn it into a business venture to earn money.

For example, I thought cake painting was going to be a very expensive hobby for me because I had to buy tools. But, then I realized that I could cover these expenses with the money I make from sharing my knowledge.