Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Vermillion.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Before I ever picked up a spatula, my dream was to make people feel beautiful.
I started my career in the beauty industry as a shampoo technician in a salon. I was eventually offered an apprenticeship, and after a couple of years of studying, learning and working incredibly hard, I earned my cosmetology license and began working behind the chair. I absolutely loved what I did. I had worked so hard to get there and I truly thought I had found the career I would have forever.
And honestly, my life was pretty cool. I had opportunities I never imagined I would have when I first started. I did makeup for commercial photoshoots, traveled to New York City for continuing education and even had the opportunity to work New York Fashion Week one year. I was living a dream I had worked my butt off to create.
Then in 2019, I got pregnant with my daughter.
I had every intention of returning to the salon after maternity leave. My daughter was born in December 2019 and I was scheduled to return to work at the end of March 2020. Of course, we all know what happened next.
The world began shutting down because of COVID-19.
At first, I extended my maternity leave because there was so much fear and uncertainty surrounding the virus. Shortly after that, salons were forced to close completely. Suddenly, the career I had spent years building was put on hold and like so many other people during that time, I had no idea what the future was going to look like for me.
But I had a lot of time at home and a newborn who was attached to me 24/7.
So I found myself in the kitchen, quite literally with my baby strapped to me, creating.
In 2020, I opened my cottage food bakery. I started small; making cake pops and cocoa bombs. At that point, I wasn’t a cake decorator. In fact, I didn’t make my first decorated cake until 2022.
It was a Halloween cake…and it wasn’t great.
I practiced my heart out. I made cakes for family members, tried new techniques, made plenty of mistakes and posted my progress along the way. Eventually, someone trusted me enough to place my very first cake order.
Was that cake perfect? Absolutely not.
And somewhere along the way, I realized that practice doesn’t actually make perfect because there is no such thing as “perfect.” Practice makes you better. There is always something new to learn, a technique you haven’t tried, a style you’ve never done or an idea that pushes you completely outside of your comfort zone.
In so many ways, baking brought me right back to what I loved about the beauty industry. In the hair world, there’s always a new trend, a new color, a new style and another opportunity to make someone feel beautiful. In the cake world, there’s always a new technique, a new theme and another reason to celebrate.
My career may look completely different from the one I originally dreamed about, but the heart behind it never really changed.
I used to help people feel their most beautiful. Now, I get to help make some of the most important moments of their lives feel a little more special.
What started with a newborn strapped to my chest, some cake pops and a whole lot of uncertainty has grown into a business I’m so proud of. When I look at that very first cake compared to what I’m creating today, I’m reminded that success isn’t about being great at something the first time you try it.
Sometimes success is simply having the courage to pick up the spatula, make the ugly cake and just keep going.
Over the years, I continued to grow not only as a baker, but as a business owner. In the summer of 2026, I decided it was time to take another big step and officially formed my LLC. It felt like such a full circle moment. Something that started in my kitchen during one of the most uncertain times in my life had become a real business that I built from the ground up.
But one of the most unexpected and rewarding parts of this journey has been the community I’ve found along the way.
I started going live on TikTok while decorating my cakes, originally just sharing what I was doing in my kitchen. Those lives turned into so much more. I began teaching techniques, answering questions, sharing the good cakes and the mistakes and connecting with bakers and cake lovers from all over the world.
Somewhere along the way, we created our own little family.
People come back to my lives to hang out while I decorate, learn something new, ask questions, encourage each other and sometimes just laugh with me while I figure things out in real time. I never expected that part of my business but it has become one of my favorite things about what I do.
I’ve also learned that success looks very different to me now. I don’t measure it only by how many cakes I sell or how much my business has grown. I see it in the clients who trust me with their biggest celebrations. I see it in the baker on the other side of the world who learned something from one of my lives. I see it in the community that has grown around something I once started simply because I had time on my hands and a baby strapped to my chest.
My original dream was to make people feel beautiful. Somehow, that dream evolved into making people feel celebrated, while also helping other bakers believe that they can learn, grow and create something they’re proud of too.
I may have traded my makeup brushes and hair tools for piping bags and spatulas but the heart behind what I do has never really changed.
There is always a new style. There is always something new to learn. And there is always something worth celebrating.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t always been a smooth road. One of my biggest challenges has been learning to believe in myself while building a business around something I was completely self-taught in.
Balancing being a mom and a business owner has also been challenging. When your business is inside your home, work and family life often blend together. There have been plenty of late nights, early mornings and lessons learned along the way.
I’m also my own biggest critic. I’ve had to learn that mistakes are part of growing and that I can’t compare where I am today to someone else’s journey.
Every mistake, difficult order and stressful day has taught me something and helped shape the baker and business owner I am today. I’m still learning, and I hope I always am.
As you know, we’re big fans of Vermillion Bakery LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Vermillion Bakery LLC is a home based cottage food bakery in Abingdon, Maryland, specializing in custom cakes, cupcakes, cake pops, cookie cakes and sweet treats for all of life’s celebrations.
What sets my business apart is how personal it is. I’m a one-woman show, so every order is baked, decorated and created by me. I love turning my customers’ ideas into something special that not only looks beautiful, but tastes just as good.
I’m most proud of the relationships and community I’ve built along the way.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
One of my favorite childhood memories is being in the kitchen with my mom, especially around the holidays. She was always baking something, but every year she would make Jewish apple cakes for our close family and friends. To this day, it’s still one of my absolute favorites.
I learned so much just from being in the kitchen watching and helping her. But one of my favorite parts was always waiting until she was finished so we could lick the whisk. My brother and I would actually fight over who got it!
Now that I’m a mom, it feels so full circle. When I’m baking, I hand my daughter, Nala, the whisk to enjoy just like my mom did for us. It’s such a simple little tradition but I love that a memory I cherished as a child is now something I get to share with my own daughter.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vermillionbakeryllc?igsi=MXd6ZjN2Y2dzZHEzZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1F2NbB9fWF/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@jennyfromthestovetop?_r=1&_t=ZP-99QRVIlW4wI
