Finding Your Signature: Why Authentic Style Matters More Than Trends Ever Will

Want To Build a Brand That Feels Effortlessly Yours?

There's a certain magic that happens when your creative work finally starts to look and feel like you.

When people recognise your cookies before they even see your name, or when social media feeds start to flow effortlessly-that's when you know you've found your style.

But getting there takes time, and for me, it was anything but instant!

When I first started my business-back when it was Cobram Cookie Co-I tried a little bit of everything.

Bright colours, playful fonts, themed sets, trendy designs...it was fun, but often I felt like I was chasing something that didn't quite fit.

It took a lot of trial, error, and quiet reflection to finally discover the look and feel that would become Vintage Sugarcraft by Catherine.

And if there's one thing I've learned along the way, it's that style isn't something you copy-it's something you uncover.

My Journey: From Somewhat Confused to Cohesive Brand

In the beginning, I followed what everyone else was doing. I studied trends, recreated styles I admired, and filled my feed with whatever seemed popular that week.

But eventually, I realised that none of it felt like me.

My turning point came when I decided to stop chasing trends and start listening to my own instincts. I was drawn to simplicity, muted tones, and timeless design-and slowly, those elements began to appear more consistently in my work.

The more I refined, the clearer my brand became. Neutral colours, vintage touches, and a sense of calm elegance. It felt authentic, grounded and most importantly-true.

So...What 's Your Style?

Your style is a natural combination of:

• Your colour preferences

• Your design choices

• Your level of detail

• Your themes

• Your decorating techniques

• The emotions you want your work to evoke

• The personality you bring to your creations

• It's NOT something you choose

• It's something you discover

Why Finding Your Style Is Hard (But Normal)

Cookie decorators often struggle to find their style because:

• You're flooded with with inspiration. Pinterest, TikTok, Instagram, tutorials, reels....it becomes noise. Beautiful noise-but noise.

• You are influenced by customers requests. Your work becomes a reflection of what clients want, not what you want to create. I'll say it again here...standalone packs are your key to creating what you love and driving your clientele towards that style.

• You're scared of getting it wrong. Perfectionism kills curiosity. You play it safe instead of exploring.

• You compare yourself to others. It's hard to hear your artistic voice when you are busy listening to everyone else's.

• You're still learning techniques. Firstly...we all are but when you're building a skill it's hard to build identity.

  
  

None of this means you don't have a style. it means you haven't given it the space to emerge yet.

A Brief But Relevant Digress

When I started baking and decorating cookies as a little hobby to share with my loved ones during COVID, the cookie world was "a designers world".

There weren't a great deal of them at this time, well nothing compared to how many talented little businesses have popped up today.

In my world of Instagram, there were possibly three to four businesses that I considered the absolute bees knees.

They were the ones that I followed, hung off every word, purchased all of their new releases and kept a keen eye on what "the latest seasonal trend" was going to be.

They were the pioneers of our industry, trusted, admired and so fabulously creative in every way.

But then...something changed!

Cookie decorators got creative. They grew in confidence, they tried new things, they pushed boundaries like never before. These sisters were absolutely "doing it for themselves".

No longer waiting to be told what the trends would be, they created their own!

And we see this today. Cookie creatives leading the way, either designing and making their own baking products or showing the designers what they want. It's an absolute sign of an empowered, progressive community and I LOVE IT!

WHY?....because it means growth and sustainability

Why Does Finding Your Own Style Matter?

Your decorating style is more than an aesthetic. It's your creative identity.

A clear style helps you:

Attract the right customers

• People buy from decorators whose work feels consistent and recognisable.

Build confidence

• When you know your style, choices feel easier-colours, shapes, embellishments, everything.

Work faster

• You're no longer reinventing the wheel with every order

Stand out in a crowded market

• In an industry where trends change weekly, your style becomes your anchor.

Feel creatively fulfilled

• Because your designs finally feel like YOU.

Step One: Find What Inspires You

Before you can define your brand, you have to understand what speaks to you.

Look beyond the baking world for inspiration-vintage fabrics, architecture, ceramics, or even the way light falls through an old window.

Create a mood board that captures the essence of what you love. include textures, tons, and imagery that make you feel something.

This isn't about copying someone else's aesthetic-it's about collecting clues to your own.

Step Two: Translate Inspiration Into Brand Identity

Once you've found your sources of inspiration, begin weaving them into every part of your brand.

Think of your logo, fonts, colours, packaging, photography style, and even tone of your captions as part of the same visual story.

Consistency doesn't mean every photo looks the same-it means they all feel the same.

For me, that feeling is nostalgia, calm, elegant and understated.

From product photography to the thought that goes into packaging your orders.

Every step along the way is a reflection of that vision.

Step Three: Let Your Work Speak For You.

Your style should carry through to your cookies-not just your branding.

The cookie stamps and shapes you use, the colour palette, the photography, and even the presentation all help to tell your story.

Over time, your work becomes recognisable on its own. That's when you know your brand identity is strong-when someone can scroll past and say. "That looks like one of yours."

Step Four: Don't Chase Trends

This is something I've spoken about before-and I'll keep saying it, because it's such an important reminder in our industry:

You don't have to chase trends to be successful

When I first began, I often felt pressure to keep up, to release new sets as quickly as others, to mimic whatever was "in" that week, or to match the colours and styles flooding social media.

It was exhausting. I felt like I was running on a creative treadmill-constantly moving, but never feeling fulfilled.

The turning point came when I realised that trends don't build longevity-style does.

Trends are loud, fleeting and often dictated by what everyone else is doing.

Style on the other hand, is quiet, grounded, and deeply personal.

When you stop chasing trends, you make space to create from a place of calm intention.

You begin to notice what genuinely inspires you, not just what performs well online.

You choose colours because they speak to your aesthetic. not because they are trending on Pinterest.

You design cookie sets because they feel right for your customers and your creative rhythm-not because this is a theme that everyone else is running with this week.

The irony is, once you stop trying to fit in, your work starts to stand out.

Customers recognise and trust consistency. They remember your tone, your visual identity, and the way your designs make them feel.

There's also freedom in stepping away from the noise. You no longer need to rush or compare-you can create at your own pace and let your work breathe.

That's when your business begins to feel less like a competition and more like a creative sanctuary-a reflection of you, not the market.

If there's one thing I want every cookie decorator to know, its this: you don't need to reinvent yourself every season to stay relevant.

Refine what you already do beautifully.

Build trust in your signature look.

That's where the real power lies-not in chasing what's trending, but in building something timeless.

Trends will fade. But authenticity never will.

Step Five: Allow Your Brand To Evolve

From CCCo to VS: The Evolution of My Brand

One of the most liberating lessons I've learned is that your brand isn't something you create once and then leave untouched. It's something that grows alongside you.

When I started out, my brand looked very different to what you see today. The colours were brighter, the fonts were bolder, and my photography was far less refined. But each stage of that journey had purpose. Every experiment, every tweak, every "not quite right" design taught me something about what I wanted Vintage Sugarcraft to represent.

As creatives we are constantly learning. Learning about design, about business, about ourselves. What feels authentic today may shift slightly over time, and that's perfectly okay. The key is to let that evolution happen intentionally, not reactively.

You might start by simplifying your logo, refining your photography style, or softening your colour palette. Maybe your product range becomes mor curated, or your social presence more story driven. The subtle shifts often happen naturally as your confidence and clarity grow.

The important thing is to honour where you are right now, while leaving space for what's next.

I often look back at older photos or designs and feel both gratitude and pride. Gratitude for where I began, and pride for how much more aligned my work feels today.

Growth doesn't mean your past was wrong-it simply means you've become more YOU.

Let your brand breath, evolve, and adapt.

It's a living refection of your creative heart-and just like you, it deserves the freedom to grow with grace.

Final Thoughts

For me, Vintage Sugarcraft by Catherine isn't just a name or a logo.

It's a reflection of everything I love.

Of course it's a uniquely vintage vibe that pushes those little details in my designs as all you need to create something truly beautiful.

I don't do sprinkles, rarely do moulds and that's because I believe my designs don't need that.

I celebrate simple, carefully curated cookie stamps and cutters that are truly timeless, absolutely multipurpose and evoke a feeling or an emotion that reminds you of a place, a time or an experience.

That's what my little business means to me and hopefully to so many others in this beautiful baking community xox