This week, we’re incredibly fortunate to be joined by party designer and cookier extraordinaire Angela Rudy of Oh, Sugar! Events. She’s also one of the lovely ladies who’s headlining at CookieCon in a few weeks. True to my word (at least so far), I’ll be interviewing each and every one of these talented conference presenters in the lead-up (and possible follow-up) to CookieCon.
With over 228 thousand fans on Facebook (mind-boggling, eh?), Cookie Queen Angela ranks up there with King Arthur as far as household names in Cookie Kingdom.
And for good reason – her work is consistently stunning. Testament to this fact: her infamous tea party cookie set (below) which was the talk of every cookie Facebook group I know when it posted last June. The palette, the impeccable lettering (again, close-up below), the sophisticated styling – all considered, simply swoon-worthy!
That said, I admit (sadly) to having my head in the sand, because I knew very little about Angela, apart from her work, before starting to draft this interview. But that’s what makes my job so darn interesting – I get to know all sorts of talented people just by daring to ask! In this interview, Angela and I will cover a broad swath – everything from how she got interested in entertaining to the source of her astounding Facebook success to what she’s got planned for CookieCon and beyond. Read on!
JMU: Hi, Angela. Welcome! So, where to start? I know you have a fine arts background, a remarkably popular blog about entertaining, and an equally remarkable social media presence. But I want to know more! Can you tell our readers how you got started in entertaining, and how it turned from an interest into a business for you? When and why did you launch Oh, Sugar! Events?
AR: Hi, Julia! This is so fun! Thanks so much for the opportunity. I got started in the party planning business the way I think a lot of other planners do: throwing parties for their own family and friends. I hosted a couple of baby showers for some expectant girlfriends, and our house was the place for our neighborhood’s annual Halloween haunt; and then there was my little one’s birthday parties to organize. I was always online scouring party planning sites like Kara’s Party Ideas, Amy Atlas Events, and Hostess with the Mostess (this was a time before Pinterest, if you can remember back that far).[EDITOR'S NOTE: Sadly, yes, I can remember back to before the Internet.] As friends and family were attending most of my personal parties, they became my first customers, asking for help with their upcoming events. I was all too excited to help out, and what began as a few personal pet projects has now organically grown into a full-fledged business.
I launched Oh, Sugar! Events in 2010 thinking it would be full-service party planning. But instead it was really only full dessert tables. Then cookie decorating entered my life in 2011, and now cookies have become 90 percent of the work coming out of Oh, Sugar! Events.
JMU: So why are cookies at the forefront of your business now? What draws you to cookies and makes them such a central part of your party designs?
AR: As soon as I picked up an icing bag, I was hooked. The more I did cookies, the better I got, and they quickly became my bread and butter instead of the dessert tables. What draws me to cookies is how they are small, portable, and shippable works of art, and that practically every order is different so I don’t get bored. I also like the challenge of figuring out each design and the best way to tackle a set. It’s nice, too, that they are less pressure for me than, say, a wedding or birthday cake, which is the central focus of a celebration. If things go wrong with a cake, that’s it - you kind of only get one shot. But with cookies, if you have one or two wonky ones, those go at the bottom of the platter.
I think cookies have become a mainstay of my party designs because it is easier for clients to justify the cost of a few dozen cookies as opposed to an entire dessert spread. My event planning business has become very sporadic, with me booking only a handful of parties a year; whereas cookie requests come into my mailbox every day.
JMU: Did you have any formal training in cookie decorating? How did you go about learning and mastering these skills?
AR: I don’t have any formal cookie decorating training. I think I went about learning how to decorate the way most folks did. I discovered Sugarbelle and just scrolled through page after page of her beautiful cookies and tutorials. She made it look so easy, but I was still hesitant to dive in because I didn’t really know what royal icing was, and merinque powder sounded very exotic to me.
I finally took the plunge one night about three years ago, and it was so much fun just playing around, experimenting with all of the techniques I’d seen online. And from that point on I was IN. I did cookies for any occasion I could think of, and kept collecting cutters, and soon I was doing cookies full time. The more I decorated, the more I began to figure out what royal icing would and wouldn’t do. I kept visiting my favorite cookie blogs (Sugarbelle, LilaLoa, SweetAmbs), started following other cookiers on Facebook, and quickly became a part of this wonderful cookie community.
I have learned so much from all of these wonderfully generous artists: tips and tricks and experiments I would have never thought of on my own. I owe a huge debt to all the fantastic cookie artists out there who continually inspire me to push this art form even further.
JMU: If I ever stop food writing, teaching, and doing the other things I’m doing, it would be to become a party designer (or an archeologist, though that’s another blog post). So I’m intrigued to know more about your business. Is Oh, Sugar! Events a full-time occupation for you? Do you work solo or have employees? Work from the home or in another facility?
AR: Oh, Sugar! Events is a full-time occupation, but I really should just drop the “Events” from my name because the party planning is so little of what I am doing these days. And I think I plan on doing even less of it in the future. Maybe a couple of high-end weddings a year or birthday parties for my own kiddo or close family/friends, but that’s all I can foresee. I am a one-woman show over here in the Oh Sugar sweatshop, and it [party planning] is a ton of work that takes over my kitchen for weeks at a time.
JMU: And some corollary business questions: How much time do you spend on your business each week, and what does your typical work week look like? For instance, how much of your time is spent producing cookies/sweets? Or doing other things, like teaching classes, running Cookie Boot Camp (more on that in a bit), social media marketing, etc.?
AR: Since I work for myself, there isn’t a structured work schedule. But typically in the morning, I like to answer emails, post any new pictures, and check in on what’s happening in the cookiesphere on Facebook. I do any sketching or design reference work and baking in the afternoon. And then when everyone’s in bed, I get to work decorating. Typically, I decorate from 8 or 9 pm to 2 or 3 am. This schedule is pretty brutal, so I’m trying to transition into teaching more and taking on fewer orders.
If I am working on a dessert table - for instance I have a wedding on the books for this weekend - I will block out the entire week to concentrate solely on the table. I begin by laying out the table with empty vessels and platters to get the layout that I want; then I fill in those empty plates and jars with goodies that the bride and I have discussed. I bake, decorate, and design the table all week; then the day of the party, I pack it all up in my mom-mobile, pray for no potholes, and drive to the event to set up a couple of hours before the party begins. If I’m lucky, there’s time to snap pictures, and then I return to the party after it’s ended to clean up and break down my table. It’s all very glamorous! 
JMU: I mentioned Cookie Boot Camp earlier, but what exactly is it? How often do you run it, and is it something that Cookie Connection members could attend?
AR: The Cookie Boot Camps I run are three-hour courses held out of my personal kitchen. I hold three different courses – (1) basic training covering icing consistency, piping, flooding, mini roses, wet-on-wet, marbling, and creating dimension; (2) advanced techniques focusing on creating textures like basket weave, cable knit sweater patterns, quilting, icing transfers, and brush embroidery; and (3) a character class that covers the design steps and basics of tackling characters. This is my second year running Cookie Boot Camp, and looking at my calendar, I seem to be holding a class almost every weekend. I love teaching them and would love to have any one from Cookie Connection attend. If anyone is interested in information, they can always reach me at ohsugar.events@yahoo.com. I am also more than happy to put together a private class for more one-on-one instruction.
JMU: At a time when most people are growing leery of Facebook and increasingly disappointed with their exposure there, Oh, Sugar! Events seems to be picking up fans like mad. To what do you attribute your social media success? Are there particular posting, advertising, or other strategies that you can share with readers to help build their fan bases?
AR: Honestly, it has all been a gigantic fluke. I was merrily plugging along, posting cookies as we all do, gaining likes along the way. After two and a half years on Facebook, I celebrated a huge milestone of 20,000 fans. I was stoked. And then all of the sudden, my likes started shooting off the charts. I went from 20 to 100 likes on a good day to averaging 4,000 likes per day. I hadn’t changed anything. I wasn’t paying for promotions. It was really confounding.
I spoke to some of my cookie friends in the same boat, and we finally figured out we won the Facebook lottery and were, for whatever reason, being recommended on a side bar - whenever anyone clicked “like” on another related page, Facebook suggested “liking” our pages, too. I decided just to ride the wave for as long as it lasted, which was about five months. And in those five months, I gained an additional TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND likes. I am grateful for each and every one and completely floored by my good luck. But it was completely out of my hands and due to no technical or marketing savvy of my own doing.
JMU: What are your sagest words of advice for those considering launching a party planning business? How, if at all, would you tailor that advice to those wanting to start cookie businesses?
AR: I would start small, doing parties or get-togethers for your friends and family. With any business, I think it makes sense to start small. A lot of times you may wind up working for free in the beginning to gain confidence, experience, and exposure. I would use any opportunity I could to practice my dessert tables, and with every new project, I would ask myself how I could push even further. What could I do to give this party my own twist? Or how could I take a tried-and-true design and make it seem fresh?
As you get more experience, hopefully your confidence will grow, and you can begin charging a rate that will cover your time, materials, and talent. I think if you pour your passion into whatever it is you are creating - dessert tables, cookies, etc. - you will eventually find an audience who will appreciate your work and pay you a fair rate for your services.
JMU: You seem to juggle a lot in the sweets space – party design, cookie design, teaching classes, and probably countless things I’ve failed to mention. How do you swing it all? Which of these things, if any, is your priority going into 2014?
AR: How do I swing it all? Ha! Poorly. Ask my husband about the last home-cooked meal he’s enjoyed, or my kiddo about her non-existent Brownie troop, or my couch about the dust bunny collection living underneath it. I really struggle with balancing family, home, and work. I feel like none of it is given 100 percent of my attention, but I’m trying to give myself some grace when I feel like one or all three areas are being neglected. Difficult for sure, but I’m trying to be better to myself, which is something I’ve learned in the last three years of doing cookies. This year, my business focus is going to be on teaching more, increasing my earnings (trying to work smarter, not harder), and finding opportunities to teach abroad.
JMU: Speaking of teaching abroad, I believe you and Ms. McGoo [EDITOR’S NOTE: CookieCon’s keynote speaker, BTW] traveled to Genoa, Italy last fall to teach some cookie decorating classes at All in One Events. Was that the first time you’ve taught in another country, and what lessons did you learn from that experience?
AR: That was such a fun trip with Liz! To be clear, I was more Sherpa/travel companion than teacher, but that was actually great. I got to see Liz in action and see all of the ins and outs of teaching abroad. It was all interesting: from shopping for ingredients and adapting recipes to using a foreign kitchen, Macgyvering cookie trays out of to-go containers, interacting with international students (and mastering some essential Italian curse words), enjoying three-hour dinners, and finding out the difference between what Italians and Americans want from a decorating course. We learned to be adaptable and to think on the fly.
JMU: For the benefit of our readers who would like to teach cookie decorating classes, what teaching dos and don’ts can you share with them?
AR: I would recommend covering relatively few techniques and making sure to allow your students enough time to get in some real practice. Even if you think, “oh, that’s a really easy technique, that won’t take them long”, remember that some students may have less experience than you and will need more time. Also, sit with your students at the decorating table so they can see, up close, what your hands are doing, and give them genuine feedback about how to improve their technique.
JMU: Onto some questions about CookieCon. How, if at all, will your recent teaching experience in Italy or elsewhere color your teaching approach at CookieCon?
AR: I think it will help me with my public speaking nerves. I usually get a case of “cry-voice”, where I get all quivery and out of breath from nerves. But in this case, I feel like I really know my subject, so it’s like talking to a bunch of friends and is a lot less intimidating.
JMU: What’s your biggest source of excitement about CookieCon? Your biggest fear?
AR: I am most excited about seeing old friends and meeting decorators I’ve been following for years for the first time, as well as being introduced to new cookie decorators whose work I haven’t yet had the pleasure to see. Last CookieCon was such a fantastic experience of putting business names to human faces and making genuine connections and friendships that have lasted and grown since I got back home. I guess my biggest fear would be that my presentation is a flop. I hope that attendees will walk away with something useful, even if it’s just a small takeaway.
JMU: Oh, I'm sure your presentation will be fantastic! Though since we're on the topic, can you give us a sneak peek into what you’re planning to teach? Any new and exciting techniques? Any specialties of yours?
AR: My talk is going to focus less on hands-on techniques and more about designing and putting together cohesive and dynamic cookie sets. I’m still working on my presentation, but I do know the focus will be on upping the ante on your cookie designs. Shoot. Now you’ve got me all nervous.
JMU: Ah, forget about those butterflies! Let's move on to another subject - a question that I've asked most of the other CookieCon presenters. For those Cookie Connection readers who can’t make it to CookieCon, what are your best tips for improving their cookie decorating skills?
AR: I can only speak from my own experience, and it is just time. Put in the time. Devour as many online tutorials as you can, pour over all the generous cookie decorating blogs and pick up tips and tricks, look through the zillions of cookie pages for inspiration, get involved in the cookie community for support and friendship . . . All of this is unbelievably helpful. But most of all, do the work. Until you ask your hand to perform whatever technique it is you’re attempting, you will never understand exactly WHY Sugarbelle recommends doing it this way or WHY SweetAmbs suggests trying it that way. I have had so many aha moments that came maybe on my third or fourth attempt of a technique, where everything just clicked and I finally got it. And the more I practice, the more confident I get, and the more I understand what royal icing can do and what I can do with it. They say it takes 10,000 hours of practice before you become an expert in any field. I still have thousands of hours to go . . .
JMU: In addition to CookieCon, I believe you'll be presenting at Cookie’sCool in Genoa, which was recently rescheduled for November 2014. What other new and exciting cookie projects or events do you have in the works for 2014? Any plans to change the nature or scope of your business? Do tell! 
AR: For now, it’s staying small and artisanal. Teach more, take on fewer orders, continue to travel, and hopefully do more teaching abroad. I can’t wait to see where 2014 takes me.
All cookies designed, crafted, and photographed by Oh, Sugar! Events.
Want to learn more from – and about - Angela? I thought you would! Be sure to check out Angela and her work on both her blog and Facebook page.
Also, not to be missed - quick links to previous interviews with other CookieCon 2014 presenters:
Cookier Close-ups is the place on Cookie Connection where we celebrate the change-makers of the cookie decorating world. Whether forging new enterprises, inventing novel decorating techniques, or consistently charming us with their cookie decorating prowess, each of our featured thought leaders has redefined in his/her distinctive way how we interact, create, or otherwise do business here in cookie space!
If there are other cookiers you'd really like to get to know, please post requests in this forum. We'll do our best to round them up for an upcoming Cookier Close-up! Thanks!
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