There are so many fabulous bloggers out there, and we want to highlight them on CityLine.ca. We’ll be profiling different lifestyle bloggers from month to month — they might write about food, fashion, beauty, decor, parenting, entertaining, gardening, you get the idea! For February 2012, we’re putting the spotlight on one of our favourite foodie blogs, A Baked Creation. Run by cute couple Sylvia Chan and Howard Chang, and covering everything edible, from recaps of their own baking adventures to reviews of their restaurant/bakery visits, we love how these two can constantly make our mouths water with their delicious creations and gorgeous photos. Here’s our Q&A with the authors, Sylvia and Howard:
When did you start A Baked Creation and what was your inspiration behind starting the blog? How did you come up with the blog name?
Sylvia: I had to double-check with the post archives (but I knew the date, honest) – we started blogging in August of 2008.
Howard: I think it was something that just naturally took its course since Sylvia enjoys blogging about her love for baking and sweets. It was definitely after we had completed a few cake decorating classes together that the idea of documenting our learning “adventures” came to be. We thought it would be fun to showcase our successes and failures, so our family and friends could share in the experiences.
We were tossing ideas around with our friends to figure out which name to use and felt that the initials ABC would be neat to have since we wanted our blog to be light-hearted, fun, and easy to follow, so eventually A Baked Creation was chosen.
You run the blog together as a couple – tell us about what that’s like, sharing this project together. Who does what when it comes to the blog? Is running a blog with your partner always fun, or are there difficulties sometimes, too?
H: This blog is Sylvia’s baby and I play the supportive partner – which is a lot of being the guinea pig for taste-testing and providing a lot of massages after tiresome baking sessions.
S: Don’t forget the dish-washing!
H: I provide my commentaries here and there and we bounce creative ideas for projects off of each other. And like all partnerships, it’s not fun all the time.
We find most conflicts revolve around finding free time to keep the blog active, as both of us work full-time and have very busy schedules. But that’s manageable, and we’ve found ways around this so I guess I wouldn’t really consider it a difficulty anymore.
We love food photography, and your pictures are particularly stunning. Do either of you have any photography training? What camera do you use, and do you have any special tricks for getting such mouthwatering shots?
H: Believe it or not, we just use our trusty Canon point-and-shoot cameras. We have no photography training but we do understand the importance of lighting and, when necessary, a little photo editing – I guess you can consider that our little trick? We did recently purchase the Olympus PEN E-PM1, so we’re still learning and picking up photography as a side hobby. Essentially, we want you to drool by looking at our photos, like you were there with us.
S: The Canon PowerShot SD940 IS has been our friend for a very long time. It’s so light to carry and doesn’t look too showy when we’re snapping photos of our meals in restaurants.
At home, we always try to shoot our photos beside the window and when the sun is out. I use Bristol boards and scrapbook papers to create a clean background. Photos at night are tricky as we don’t have any special lighting equipment, so we’re still trying to figure that one out.
Tell us about a post that you’re particularly proud of and want to share with CityLine viewers.
S: We’re thinking the posts that originate back to characters from books – Calvin and Hobbes and the Moomins. While both were tricky to make (if you can’t get the likeness to match, it just doesn’t work), they were also extremely fun to make!
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, we have to ask: do you have any special V-Day-inspired treats that you plan to make this year?
S: I’m trying to think of something that Howard would like – pies, tarts, lemon flavours, or cheesecakes. Or, maybe his new favourite cake, the mille crêpes.
Then, there is the other part of me that wants to make something pretty and pink!
H: Mille crêpes cakes are awesome!
You tend to do a mix of both recaps of your baking adventures, as well as reviews of your restaurant/bakery adventures on the blog. Which do you prefer to write about?
H: We like to share our food adventures with our readers, so I don’t think there’s really a preference of one over the other. Our blog kind of evolved into the savory foods recently as well too, and that’s exciting for us because I have always been more into savory foods and treats. It definitely gives us more excuses to try more new restaurants.
S: I can tell you which ones are easier to write about! Taking photos of what others have made is quicker, but you lose out on the details of how it was made and what could be done differently the next time around. I don’t have a preference, but I feel strongly about doing both.
You also review a lot of cookbooks on the blog. Do you have some favourite cookbooks that you can always count on in your baking?
S: Yes, I love cookbooks! I can always count on Baked, Baked Explorations, Bon Appétit Desserts, Flour, Miette, and the SoNo Baking Company Cookbook for baking inspirations.
What are some other blogs that you love reading?
S: There are so many blogs on my Google Reader. Off the top of my head, there’s Bakerella, Bakers Royale, Call Me Cupcake!, David Leovitz, Matt Bites, Rasberri Cupcakes, Smitten Kitchen, Sweetapolita, and really so much more! I have most of them listed on our links page.
What do you hope your readers get from visiting A Baked Creation?
S: Ideas and inspiration. Most of all, we love hearing feedback from our readers.
H: The joys of making, eating, and trying new foods; but mostly the eating part.
We want to hear from you! Do you know a blogger we should feature on CityLine.ca? Maybe it’s you! Email us at submissions@cityline.ca and include “CityLine Featured Blogger” in the subject line. And don’t forget to include a link to the blog! Look forward to hearing from you!