Sweet treat: young Halifax mother turns COVID challenges into custom cake business
New mom Hanlyn Barlomento-Fuentes has turned her pandemic pastime into a busy cake-making business.
“It’s for a graduation party, and we’re putting white and gold designs all over it. And we’re going to be adding a grad hat after everything is done,” explains Barlomento-Fuentes as she designs an intricate graduation cake shaped like the letter ‘R’.
Originally from the Philippines, Barlomento-Fuentes immigrated to Canada in 2008. But she says she never expected to be baking cakes for a living.
“I graduated as a cardiology technologist, but because of COVID, I decided to just stay home and look after our little one,” says Barlomento-Fuentes.
It’s been a stressful year for the 26-year-old, who has been raising her infant daughter in Halifax while waiting for her husband to immigrate to Canada.
“My family is one of the badly affected by the immigration backlog. I sponsored my husband in 2019 and still haven’t heard from immigration, so that’s why I just decided to be home and be with my daughter for now, since my husband is not here,” said Barlomento-Fuentes.
But as the old saying goes, when life gives you lemons, make cake!
Rather than feel sorry for herself, Barlomento-Fuentes has found new ways to keep busy.
“It was because of my postpartum depression that I started looking for ways to ease my mind. One day, about six or seven months ago I decided to make cakesicles for my little one - pretty much cake pops but just a different, bigger style,” recalls Barlomento-Fuentes.
What started off as a delicious dessert for her daughter quickly turned into a blossoming business.
“I posted them online and they grabbed a lot of people’s attention, so after that I just started selling them. After two months I started adding cakes; first letter cakes, then cupcakes and also custom dipped strawberries,” explains Barlomento-Fuentes.
Her custom cake business ‘Memiswirls’ continues to grow with popularity, and Hanlyn says the experience has inspired personal growth as well.
“This is a very big thing for me, because I’m a very shy person, but doing this business helped me open up to new opportunities, even getting interviewed,” she says. “Customers keep coming back and that boosted up on my confidence.”
Delicious desserts that have helped make a tough year a bit sweeter for a young business owner, and her customers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.