Today we’d like to introduce you to Kellie Dickinson.
Hi Kellie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My entire life, I have been surrounded by food – specifically desserts. I grew up around the corner from my grandmother, who was always cooking, baking, or frying something, especially when I came over. She owned a restaurant for several years and spent her childhood learning to cook and to bake from her mother and her grandmother. And my Memaw shared that experience with my Dad and with me. And she still does today.
Like my Memaw, my Dad was obsessed with creating unique flavor combinations, even if it was just mixing different cereals in a bowl. His curiosity for pairing one sweet with another is what piqued my interest at a young age. When I was in middle school and high school, baking was, as I like to say, my sole personality trait. It’s something I constantly did, and through it, I found countless ways to push myself with the most challenging recipes I could find.
More than that, it was something that my Dad and I really enjoyed together. He was a very tough critic but my number one taste tester. He introduced me to new ingredients, took me to the store when I was too young to drive, attending cooking seminars with me, and did everything he could to support something I truly loved.
However, as I got older, my dream of attending culinary school sort of fell by the wayside for something less unpredictable. And as I went through college, I baked less and less. Then, I moved to Colorado, then New York City, and finally back to Atlanta, where I just lost my passion for it. But last year, my Dad passed away completely unexpectedly and essentially turned my life upside down, inside out, and every which way in between. I spent months just trying to find any way I could to feel halfway connected to him again, and luckily baking was that one thing that he brought back to me.
It was like I never stopped. I felt so energized, creative, challenged and comforted by it. So I just keep doing it. I took about a month off work to take more time to grieve the loss of my dad, and throughout that entire month, the only thing I did was bake and share everything I baked with anyone who would take it. Then, through that, I discovered how fulfilling it bringing that kind of joy to people that only desserts can bring. So I kind of dropped everything, took a leap of faith, and started Velvet in Red. Now, it’s a place where I can share my love of baking, where I can experiment with my favorite childhood flavors, where I can fully be myself and share the best part of life (sugar) with anyone who will listen.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Because it’s been something I truly started for myself, I can’t say it’s been filled with obstacles. In the beginning, when it was the only thing I was doing, it was definitely challenging to go from a full-time job with a secure paycheck to something that definitely has a hard time paying the bills. But I have never been happier doing something. I am also a very introverted, anxious person, so opening myself up this way has been a unique challenge every day. However, I am so grateful to all of the new people that have welcomed Velvet In Red into their lives that it has built my confidence and my desire to meet new people in ways I could have never imagined.
It’s definitely challenging to start something that means so much to me without being able to share that excitement with my Dad or to be able to know if he’s proud of me or not. But I know that if he saw me creating something inspired by him, that’s become so important to me and has introduced me to so many people that he would be just as excited as I am. Even though I know for a fact, he would try to tweak my recipes every time he gets bored during the day.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
At Velvet In Red, I am a baker. I focus mainly on creating flavors and flavor combinations that bring me back to my childhood. Whether it’s Fruity Pebbles cakes, macarons filled with my own version of Dunkaroos frosting or reminding everyone how good those orange Flintstones PushUps used to be. I want to make everyone feel like a kid again when they’re eating one of my desserts.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
This entire adventure was born out of some serious bad luck when I lost my Dad. But it’s been a delicious way to bring good luck into my life through new people and new creative opportunities. And really, being able to spend all of my days baking makes me feel like the luckiest person in the world. I think success comes out of a whole lot of hard work and the blessing of luck at the right times, and I feel like I have so much more to do and to give through Velvet in Red. And I can’t wait to see what it has in store for me and for what Atlanta has in store for it.
In my daily life, Velvet in Red has brought me some really fortunate opportunities. To get my business off the ground, I quit my job as a copywriter for a period of time to make baking my sole focus in life. However, a girl’s gotta pay her bills. So, as I started to dip my toe back into the job search pool, Velvet In Red actually threw an opportunity right in my lap. Through one of the more cherished clients that I met through my baking, I was introduced to a role as a copywriter for Cinnabon and Carvel Ice Cream. Not only did my experience as a copywriter for the past 8+ years help me, but my love of dessert and my history with baking made this position everything I could ever dream of.
And now, I am so lucky to not only get to write for some of my favorite childhood (and adulthood, of course) desserts, but I also get to provide the joy of sugar to people through Velvet In Red at the same time. I’ve never felt so fortunate.
Pricing:
- Cakes: $50-$155
- Cookies: $25-$42
- Macarons: $30-$55
- Custom Cakes: $90+
Contact Info:
- Email: info@velvetinred.com
- Website: https://www.velvetinred.com/,
https://velvet-in-red.square.site/s/shop - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/velvet.in.red/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VelvetInRed
Image Credits:
Personal Photo: Scott Lowden Photography
