‘It was a tragic beginning, but the ending has been very sweet’: Baker looks back as she prepares to open first storefront
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) – Local bakery Cutes and Cakes is set for its grand opening at Stovehouse this weekend.
“The ‘Cutes’ is short for charcuterie,” owner Sharon Gray said. “I personally love charcuterie, but I’m also really good at cakes so I said, ‘I’m not choosing! I’m doing both.'”
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Gray has been a home baker for 13 years, specializing in custom cake orders. She credits her grandmother, Violet, for teaching her the secret to baking great desserts.
“I was always at grandma’s on the weekend, and she always would bake cakes and she would do this pound cake everyone would fight over,” she said.
While she learned the skills as a child, Gray did not put them to use professionally until many years later. She was prompted by a friend who said they could each use something sweet in their lives.
“She was actually going through chemo because she had just gotten diagnosed with breast cancer, and I was going through a divorce, so here we are going through these traumatic life experiences,” Gray said. “We’re sitting on the couch one day and she looked at me and said ‘We need a hobby.'”
They decided to try to bake a cake straight out of a show they both loved: Cake Boss.
“We made this ugly little cake and we posted it on Facebook like, ‘look at what me and my bestie did over the weekend,'” she said. “Well someone messaged me and said, ‘Hey my birthday is next weekend can you make this cake again?’ And I thought, ‘Well yeah, if I made it one time I can make it better the next time!'”
The pair set out baking together for profit a few more times until Gray’s friend realized it wasn’t something she wanted to make a career of — but Gray was finding her passion in cake design.
She continued baking all kinds of realistic custom cakes from home for years. She never imagined she would have a brick-and-mortar bakery, even considering giving up professional baking a few years ago.
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Then, things began to fall into place. She was contacted about a space at Stovehouse, and then, she said, a recent sermon series about ‘purpose’ at her church spoke to her and made her realize it was time to fully commit.
“God gave me the talent for a reason,” she said.
Now as she gets ready to cut the ribbon on Cutes and Cakes, she thinks back on what led her here and how much life has changed since that day on the couch.
“My friend is okay, she does not have breast cancer anymore, and I am remarried to my wonderful husband!” Gray said. “It was a tragic beginning, but the ending has been very sweet.”
Cutes and Cakes’ grand opening celebration is Saturday afternoon, April 13, from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. It is located on the backside of Stovehouse near F45 Fitness Training.
Stovehouse’s address is 3414 Governors Drive, SW.
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