Life.Style.Etc
Living Etc Magazine|December 2019
Baker and food writer Claire Ptak talks Christmas menus, clothes shopping , cakes for royals and her most flamboyant creation
Sarah Allen
Life.Style.Etc

Claire Ptak was catapulted into the spotlight after making Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding cake (Amalfi lemon and elderflower decorated with Swiss meringue buttercream) nearly two years ago. Her sales doubled, but the Californian-born baker was doing pretty well before royalty came knocking. After moving to East London in 2005, she sold home-made cakes at Hackney’s Broadway Market before opening her bakery Violet in 2010. With four cookbooks under her apron, Claire now writes books and for The Guardian and hosts a lifestyle podcast, Violet Sessions. She lives in Hackney with her three-year-old daughter Frances.life.style.etc

Sum up your business in five words…

Blood, sweat, tears, joy, laughter.

What was your light-bulb moment?

This story is from the December 2019 edition of Living Etc Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the December 2019 edition of Living Etc Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM LIVING ETC MAGAZINEView All
modern extensions
Living Etc UK

modern extensions

WITH STRIKING USE OF COLOUR, MATERIALS AND SHAPE, THE LATEST DESIGNS ADD SO MUCH MORE THAN AN EXTRA ROOM

time-read
1 min  |
August 2024
think like a pro
Living Etc UK

think like a pro

It's not just interior designers who are skilled at picking the perfect palette architects are in on the act, too, and Richard Parr knows just how to get the ideal shade

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
colour decoded
Living Etc UK

colour decoded

As with all successful schemes, there's much more going on beneath the surface of this space than first appears -Livingete's colour expert Amy Moorea Wong reveals all

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
enduring style
Living Etc UK

enduring style

B&B Italia has pioneered modern Italian furniture design since 1966 - but its latest collection feels as fresh as ever

time-read
1 min  |
August 2024
TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED
Living Etc UK

TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED

Seventeenth-century origins meet vibrant contemporary design in a cleverly reimagined Amsterdam canal house

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
ROCK OF AGES
Living Etc UK

ROCK OF AGES

The owners of a Menorcan home have made a stylish yet sustainable retreat using the island's signature stone

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
FORCE OF NATURE
Living Etc UK

FORCE OF NATURE

An unexpected flood into what was already a dark basement flat prompted a new vision, full of light, natural materials and foliage

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
TOP OF THE WORLD
Living Etc UK

TOP OF THE WORLD

High above the busy streets of Bangkok, two talented designers have created a tranquil retreat that nods to chic 1970s style and makes the most of the views

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
A PLACE IN THE SUN
Living Etc UK

A PLACE IN THE SUN

An apartment within a former luxury hotel celebrates - and updates - the style of France's Côte d'Azur

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024
OUTSIDE IN
Living Etc UK

OUTSIDE IN

The design of this modernist bungalow in South Africa was dictated by the trees on the plot and the desire for an indoor-outdoor flow

time-read
2 mins  |
August 2024