Pastry Diaries with Rebecca

06/05/2026

03/05/2026

Never settle!

29/04/2026

This is not a real cake.
It's a practice cake I made in 2023 on a quarter sheet baking tray.

This is how I practice my cake decorating skills and how I was recently showing some staff in a client bakery I visited recently in Lae.

Use even cardboard to decorate on. Discard remainder in bin.
In pastry school, we used cake foams to create cakes in our wedding cakes classes.

As a baker/cake decorator, you have a responsibility to your customers and to your fellow bakers in in the industry. There are non negotiables that you should be practicing if you want to be seen as trust worthy, build reputation and maintain repeat customers.

To be successful in the long run, you must have repeat customers. That means you are doing something right.

I discuss in detail the non negotiables in our Facebook Group, PNG Bakers Hub. Join our group today, if you haven't. Its a place of community, learning, sharing qnd growing.

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29/04/2026

💙👩‍🍳..
creating magic and beauty in my laboratory:
bedroom 80% of the time and 20% kitchen/office...
humble beginnings and I'm grateful for starting over from scratch and rebuilding.

24/04/2026

A walk by the bay - Tuna Bay, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
21 April 2026.

23/04/2026

//VALUE ALIGNMENT AS A BAKER//
👜👛💲🎂

One thing that hurts us cake decorators who have been selling cakes for more than 3 years is meeting customers who will negotiate with us for our prices.

They think our prices are too expensive and many times we price too low just because someone sells lower. Or we give huge discounts to customers to make them to purchase when the price of eggs, milk, cream cheese, chocolates, etc is not cheap and finding packaging supplies is already a pain in itself- running from one shop to the next.

Business maturity is knowing your value and pricing accordingly.

It’s not arrogance.

If my products or services are outside your budget, there’s no negotiation. It simply means it’s not for you—and that’s okay.

Not everything is meant for everyone. Find what fits your budget.

📸 Cake is a to 2024 before pastry school. Cake by Chef Rebecca
Flavour: Lemon Blueberry Cake with Blueberry compote and cream cheese frosting.

22/04/2026

///PRICING BOUNDARIES FOR BAKERS///
🤑💰💲

📸 2023, before pastry school - Cookies & Cream Cake Flavour done by Chef Rebecca,

From being self-taught to now a trained pastry chef, one of the hardest lessons I learned was this: not every order is worth taking.

In 2023, a customer ordered:
• 1 full-sheet double-layer Black Forest cake (15 x 23 inch, feeds 70-90)
• 1 full-sheet single-layer vanilla cake (15 x 23 inch, feeds 70-90)

Properly priced, they should have cost K1,300 total.

After negotiating and negotiating with another SME, I agreed to do both for K714. Less than what the Black Forest alone should have cost.

I was scared to lose the order. I wanted the customer. I wanted the money.

But when you price yourself too low, one of three things happens:
• you lose money
• you cut corners
• you become resentful

The same people who say you are “too expensive” often do not believe the cheaper baker is better. They just want the lowest price. Then when the cheap cake turns up dry, messy or nothing like the photo, they complain.

You were never too expensive. They just did not value the work.

Now I simply say:
“My pricing reflects the quality and work involved. If it is outside your budget, I completely understand.”

Because I would rather lose the order than lose money, peace and respect for my work.

I will post full storytime video on my TikTok page.

# 🇵🇬

21/04/2026

Shout out to my newest followers! Excited to have you onboard! Stephaine Eve Kiki, Gemalyn Hadassha Nohoro, Sadie Flint, Smol Sales, Dorish Iewa-Pleleteip, Hilda Ireeuw, Beatrice Hope Tau, Liyah Leiqz Raga, Robertha Kiapranis, Faatupu Kia, Rebecca Uviri Becky, Luku Palan Kakul, Loloma Gairo, Chalkist Sales, Gab Liah Twistemup, Panda Peas, Raywin Timil Kunjo, AL Bee, Kelly Ralai, Morivina's Kollection, Lilly Tai

21/04/2026

***Cake Drama in Port Moresby***
///
⚠️ These are not my cakes but I want to highlight the cake drama recently in our cake community in my city, Port Moresby, PNG.

I've recently started a Baking Hub for the baking community in the country and this is one of the reasons why I created this group - To avoid scammers and pretenders.
People, that is the customers need to be honest about expectations.
🎂
K90 for a custom cake and K30 for cupcakes is not luxury pricing. You are not paying for a premium, bespoke cake artist at those prices.

That said, even at a low price, the baker still had a responsibility to communicate, be honest, refund if they could not deliver, and not advertise one thing and provide something completely different.

It is not your job to practice your craft on a customers order. Find your own time to practice your skills and slowly build your portfolio.

Noken tingim mani na kisim ol order bilong ol kastoma na giamanim ol. Don't fake it to make it.

This industry has no mercy for people who lie and cheat customers. You will be caught out when you deliver your products.

But this is also why I keep saying to customers: stop expecting Maserati on a Toyota budget.

A quality cake costs more because you are paying for ingredients, skill, time, consistency, communication and professionalism.

Sh*tty prices usually attract sh*tty standards.

Good bakers with systems, quality ingredients and reliability cannot survive charging K90 for a cake.

16/04/2026

Hello PNG 🇵🇬!!

Three days ago I made a simple post to share PNG Bakers Hub.

Since then, that one post has reached:
• 11,329 views
• 79 interactions
• 72 reactions
• 6 shares

Our memship grew from 34 members to now 90 members and growing in just 3 days! 🤯

After starting the group in December and slowly growing to around 30 members, I honestly did not expect PNG Bakers Hub to grow this quickly in just 3 days.

I also asked members why they joined the group and the top reasons were:
• To learn and improve their baking
• To get help with recipes and baking problems
• To meet other bakers in PNG and build community
• To grow their baking business
• To find baking supplies and ingredients

That tells me there is a real need in PNG for a space where bakers can learn, ask questions, share knowledge and support one another.

Thank you to everyone who has joined, shared, invited others and believed in the vision.

My hope is to build more than just a Facebook group — but a community for bakers in PNG with no gatekeeping, more sharing and more opportunities for us all to learn & grow together 🇵🇬🤍