Christine Nguyen, the owner of The Sweet Boutique Bakery, began her career as a teacher and is a self-taught decorator. She had seen Sylvia on cake shows hundreds of times, but never thought she’d meet her one day! It was actually a dream come true. Christine loved visiting Sylvia’s apartment, sharing stories over drinks that Sylvia made, and going out for dinner with her baking icon.

“She was very candid about how she got started in the cake world, her joys and struggles in this business, and–best of all–she taught me how to create beautiful gumpaste flowers by hand with minimal tools needed!” Christine says.

Christine was also introduced to Vilna, Sylvia’s assistant of over 25 years, who has “magic hands.” “Vilna effortlessly put together a peony with such ease that it was mind-blowing. I’ve seen pretty sugar flowers before but now I’m forever changed! Sylvia and Vilna taught me to look for the little details and how to achieve the thinnest petals possible. I could have stayed all day and night to make flowers with them if I could.”

Christine is grateful for this opportunity that Icing Smiles provided and that because of this experience, she has a new friend in Sylvia. She considers this trip to be truly an amazing experience. Christine would like to thank her voters for donating to a cause that’s near and dear to her heart.

Our second winner is Wahida Liapis. She was excited and nervous simultaneously before meeting Sylvia, but as soon as they were introduced, Wahida knew she found a friend. She relaxed as Sylvia greeted them with hugs and a tour of her home. Sylvia was even kind enough to ask about Wahida and her business, CRAVE’ems.

The next day at their lesson, Wahida was in awe that she was learning how to do flowers from Sylvia and Vilna. “Ms. Weinstock is 89 years old, but you’d think she was in her forties!” Wahida says. Wahida was inspired by the techniques that Sylvia and Vilna use for their flowers, and she was excited to achieve a few of her own to bring back home as a memory.

One of Wahida’s favorite parts of the trip was getting to know Sylvia better. “She shared that she was married to the love of her life for 70 years. You could see the love she had for her husband; he was such a big part of her life and how she built her empire. She told some incredible stories about the cakes she’s made for celebrities and regular people who love her work. Her advice to really make your business thrive was you need good product (meaning fresh, simple ingredients) and you need to believe in what you are doing.”

Wahida walked away from this incredible experience feeling that she can do whatever she wants. Sylvia started doing cakes at age 50 and has made over 1,000 at this point. But it all started from love and doing cakes for her family. As Wahida’s journey started the same way, she hopes that her own story will grow as Sylvia’s has and she’ll continue doing what she loves: baking and making others happy!

Congratulations to our winners and thank you to everyone who voted! Your votes made this trip possible, but it also provided smiles and joy to the children this organization exists to serve.

With smiles,

Kaitlyn Depoister

Icing Smiles Blog Writer