A month or so back, we received a surprise from one of our loyal customers. Imagine our delight when we opened the box and found brownies adorned with prints from our own bags! Needless to say, we had a hard time not staring at them for hours on end, but when we eventually dug in… ohhh, the textures and flavors that came from within.

Paisley Petals is the brainchild of Nanthini Retnam, an avid aficionado of the yummy kind. She started the home-based business solely on passion and the many compliments she got from feeding dear friends, and hasn’t looked back since. From cupcakes, to birthday cakes, to a small selection of what she titles “Boozy cakes”, Nanthini has grown accustomed to the fact that she is, indeed, made to do this.

Since we had a chance to meet up with her last weekend, we took the opportunity to pick her brain (and her bag!)

1)    What are the most essential things in your bag you can’t leave home without? 

 That would probably be my craft knife and my paintbrushes which always come in handy for tidying up cakes on-site. Now with my tootsie roll, things just became a whole lot easier as I don’t have to worry about forgetting something because all my smaller tools can be kept organized neatly in there. (No more on-site panic attacks!)

1)    We are delighted to see a baker using our craft basket! What are the most important things in your craft box? 

 My craft box serves two purposes really. When I’m working on a cake project, it usually contains a range of fondant decorating tools such as some flower and letter cutters, a rolling pin, my measuring tape, a small cutting mat, a dusting pouch as well as my fondant modeling tool set. When I’m on the go, the craft box doubles as a caddy for me to carry with me packets of wet wipes, some extra decorations and sometimes spare frosting on top of the decorating tools that are already in there.

1)    What were you doing before you started your online bakeshop?

 I come from an IT background where I worked as an information systems engineer in a local engineering firm for many years.

 2)    What made you make the decision to make this change? 

 It was definitely a struggle for me initially to make that decision, but eventually I came to a realization that it was the right time for me to pursue my passion in baking and cake decorating. It’s been a challenge so far but also a truly fulfilling experience.

 3)    Roughly explain what your shop represents or why the name Paisley Petals.

The logo/name came about as I was looking for something that both reflected my personality as well as my preferred style of cake decoration. Looks aside, my biggest and often only concern is the taste of my cakes and other baked goods. My menu consists of some pretty unique flavors as well as a few good ol’ fashion favorites – all taste tested and approved of course!!

 Paisley Petals has come up with a promo just for Gin & Jacqie followers and blog readers! Simply LIKE them on Facebook, and mention “GIN&JACQIE” to redeem 20% off either her yummy plain bittersweet fudge brownies, retailed at RM50 for 9 3″x3″ pieces, or her cream cheese swirl brownies, retailed at RM55 for 9 3″x3″ pieces.