28/06/2026
Just in case you were wondering About us, Who we are, and why we became a bakery in Dudley. This is our story,. Of how when why I started the bakery. (*its a long un grab a cuppa lol)
Flash-back; Once upon a time a long looong time ago, in a little town called Cradley Heath, in the West Midlands England...there was a little girl (Me, Mrs Samantha. L. Willetts (was Miss Fellows) Baker, designer and owner of The SweetDreams Bakery uk) baking with her wonderful mom.
They both wanted to make lovely cakes together but the cakes all came out flat, awful and so hard they broke your teeth. or sunken in the middle and were turned into fruit flans lol!
So the little girls mom let her get on with it by herself and practice. (did I mention my momma is epic!) The little girl made lots and lots of cakes, cookies, ginger biscuits, muffins, brownies, etc. aaannd had tonnes of fun doing it and ate most of what she made. I also made gookies for a local street association mom was on. Ginger biscuits that were, sigh just the best. Well they had to have sometning to go with the cuppa at break lol.
Growing up when I was a kid (cough back in the late 80s and early 90s) the shop brought birthday cakes that were very simple and not very tasty (as I'd had a few disasters in my childhood..sorry Mom( flashback to a disaster of a cake on a birthday sleepover, that ended up used as fodder for a food fight🤪😇🤣🥳🎂), and I have a big sister (hi kaz👋 who back in the day, (cough when I was 6 turning 7 And adorable😉😇. She baked an epic bart simpson cake for my 7th birthday. By hand, from scratch, and had sent it all the way, in the post! by the epic Royal Mail. All the way from Grimsby!
(which felt like a lifetime away to a 7 yr old!) to reach me in near-perfect condition, in the west mids!, his hair was a little messed up but still looked like bart simpson!, it amazed my 7 yr old self and I was awed!
Cakes were only ever round and this one was a shape!! With eyes and a nose and everything!!! needless to say it inspired me!
so fast forward to my early 20's, when my now eldest daughter came along, I searched out my old baking box from my youth( a tatty ole red plastic basket that held all the precious baking things (yes replaced often regardless) and set to work. I baked a cute pink heart cake for her with shop broughts frosting, and it was scrummy. I made a Christmas cake from scratch, ostensibly to save money( as the supermarket cakes were more than I could afford as a single mom), yeah... I didn't save as much as I had hoped to, but it tasted good lol.
family and friends saw and tasted them (because sharing is caring and that's what you do at birthday parties and family gatherings. its showing the love)and they asked me if I would make cake for them too when it was their birthday/s.
I started this business, as a single mom on benefits. Because I physically couldn't get a 9 to 5 or any paying job for that matter, employers didn't want a liability,(yes they actually said that in a reply email) with few qualifications, and no job references or history.
I tried cleaning jobs, and applied for jobs flipping burgers, I applied for a job in a card shop, stacking shelves amd anything that was going but the answer was always a resounding no..
I had had epilepsy while at school and college and well into my 20s, so I left formal education with very few qualifications. And no real job prospects either. And everywhere wanted experience or grades, I had neither and still dont 😅
I was not content to accept my lot in life, and believed in becoming a better role model for my daughter. I wanted her to grow up seeing that her challenges didnt have to define her life, and that she could make it into whatever she wanted it to be. Smash those glass ceilings baby!!
So I learnt what I could for as cheaply as I could. And so after a few years of making cakes for family and friends unpaid, I opened the SweetDreams Bakery.
My dream for the business is that, it will get to a point where we can open a cafe, selling our bakes. where you can kick back and relax, on soft squishy sofas, with a cuppa of your favourite warm beverage (mine a herbal tea or cup of coffee) and relax and just breathe maybe with a book or paper or not.
A place of sanctuary, from Life, and from the hustle and bustle, where people can order their favourite flavour cupcake/s cakes or deserts and if they wanted to have it/them made into a celebration cake, or wedding cake.
some light savoury bites like warm toasty panninis and some soups, ices and lollies for the kids. A place at the table for the kids to play or colour, while you relax and enjoy a well deserved snack and rest.
With comforting inviting decor, cute lil classy teapots and cups and saucers and flowers on every table..I digress..The dream is also to give people a job, who are willing to work and learn, regardless of their background. As no one would give me an opportunity when I was young and (had fewer kids, 6 now and a husband not that he's a kid of course haha!) I dreamt of being that person for someone else, who was desperate to work and needed a break. I also dremt of having outreach support for those in trouble or struggle. With links to womens institutions and help for the homeless. Sadly I've not been able to get there yet but I'm sure its on its way!
So, after having my second child, I developed lactose intolerance, She suffered from it quite badly as a tiny baby and I believe my body changed to accommodate her and her needs, think colicky baby every night for what seemed like an eternity.. we would pace the floor night and day after supplementing with formula (this was before the making of lactose free formula) so I exclusively b fed her.
Bodies are amazing things (especially when B feeding) I was heartbroken, with not understanding what my body and hers was doing, and I.lost soooooo much weight..I was always a size 14 and on the chunky end, and I dropped down to a size 6 in a matter of months. It was hard, and I didnt know what I could eat most days, but I happy my lil cake muncher was ok, ...and I thought all was lost on the cakey front. I thought that I would never eat delicious cake again or chocolate!...this for me WAS A TRADGEDY! of EPIC PROPORTION!!!! And I thought thats it!!, No cake for me! No chocolate yumminess either!!
Untill a simply amazing, epic and beautiful woman from our church, (love you Becky!)showed me vegan recipes and a suitably wonderful man also from our church (love ya Peter!), showed me dairy-free chocolate. They were like angels! professing great news that cake can and will continue!
I also discovered a brand of dairy, dedicated to people like me and my daughter. plus learned to read every label on food packaging for milk, traces of milk, lactose, and what products contain lactose and those that dont. I scoured the fsa (food standards agency's website's) allergen pages I practically had a crash course in food allergies and intolerances and learnt as much as I could about it so I could understand what was happening to me and my Daughter. I took courses and took my food hygine course, and food allergen course, to name a few.
So a few trials later and more chocolate cakes...ok well, just more cakes of any flavour we could think of haha (we like sweet things and we did lots of recipe testing😇😉🤤)
And we found our stride.
Then, after posting my trials on my private FB. One of my friends ( 👋HI FACEBOOK FRIENDS) said "I'm gluten-free (not celiac) what about me, I like cake", so I did what any self-respecting cake-baking friend would do. I researched, practised and made more tummy-happy cakes. So I learnt a few things and organised a bunch of stuff and voila...
The SweetDreams Bakery UK was born.
I can't unfortunately, profess to have culinary degrees falling out of my ears, I wish I did, I would love to go to culinary school, and study the science of patisserie.
Its oit of my reach at the mo. I have six kids and a husband to feed and care for, so degrees are the last on the list.
Now shoes on the other hand... it's almost like they eat the damn things...I digress! I have learnt by trial and error, researching techniques and googling. I also have subscribed to a veritable ton, of amazing cake people and cake teachers(hi Annie👋), and cake business entrpreners(sorry cant spell 😅), who have been before me in the cake arena and know their stuff.
I am always happy to learn. It's a mark of maturity or so I'm told. The older you get the more you learn the less you know in the first place. And it's sooooooo true...I know nada! but I am always willing to learn and admit my mistakes. the degrees are on my list of to-dos. lol!
there is more awareness about food allergies these days, did you know that 2.6 million people in the UK suffer from some food allergy or intolerance? wild! and let's face it, they're horrible and the desert industry needs to catch up. A lifetime without tummy friendly good cake?...
like really?!...ohh heck no!
So in my way, I do my bit to help, as EVERYONE DESERVES flipping good cake (it's seriously p**p when you're the person with the allergy, and all there is available at a party, is the cake that will make you ill. supermarkets are now stocking a range of vegan or free-from but I think supermarket cakes are pants..sorry supermarkets! and not a patch on handmade loveliness.
though that's just my opinion supermarkets please don't come after me!. I'm not doing anybody down, I just prefer handmade, homemade cake, its kinda like you can taste the love that goes into it.) a mass-produced cake or mass-produced anything doesn't have the same amount of time and attention afforded it...the workers do a good job and a lot of effort goes into their products, but they just aren't the same as artisan bakes.
take a factory-produced violin for eg..versus a Stradavarius...I rest my case, artisan handmade products are massively making a comeback. Home cake bakery start-up businesses alone have risen 400% since covid lockdowns happened. Everyone seems to be getting into the artisan baking world.
I have been making cakes as a hobby and providing family and friends with epic and beautiful cakes (their words) for the past 6+ years. Whilst refining my recipes and skill set. I live in Dudley in the west midlands England (for those international viewers) and My home Kitchen, seemed to be the ideal place to start. Well, it was the onlynplace I could start..and will continue to until the business outgrows our home bakery kitchen🤞🫶🙏.
I started up as an official business, and was registered as a food business with Dudley Council on the 31 of May 2018. I am fully registered and inspected, I hold a food hygiene certificate to level two, currently working on level three. I have held FSA 5-star health and hygiene ratings in two buildings and we're waiting for a re inspection since moving home.. My EHO said becaise you know the standard and you have had 2 5 stars keep the standard up intill we can get you booked for a inspection. She said that the wait list was long. (Ahem 400% increase is pretty brutal tbh and thats not including cake sheds!)
I am up to date on all, the relevant food allergy information and training, and am subscribed to the FSA for food updates and warnings. And I keep an eye on all new training as it comes in, because I take allergen training seriously.
I know first hand how much it sucks, when you're ill from eating something your tummy doesn't tolerate. So we make absolutely, sure that our customers' cakes are safe and made according to the latest info...its not fun and can be deadly in very sensitive cases (see Natasha's law and olivers law, info to name a few). Their legacy has changed legislation on food businesses for the better in my eyes. So very sad that her and his lives were lost, due to lack of labelling, and business understanding of food allergens and intolerances. We have to learn in order to grow. Rest in peace Natasha and Oliver.
on a lighter note We have bakes, cakes, cupcakes, pastries, desserts, and bento cakes too.. which are advertised for availability on our socials and on our websites.
Try us and find out how tasty our cakes are OR check out our social pages or testimonials pages.
The current path of our cake dream is a challenging one. I'm stll aiming our business rudder, towards making enough to open a cafe/sancturary. That was the 10 yr plan from my mid 20s! haha and 20 yrs later I'm stll no closer, but you've gotta have a dream right?! The economy tanked, food prices shot up astronomically, Covid hit and people are struggling to pay bills, let alone buy cake these days! But I'm still out here, doing what I can with what I've got. It's not much, but it's all I have...I throw my heart and soul into my cake work, I stay up late nights or work right through them till dawn, I do the school run covered in food colour, and icing, and I miss time with my family and sleep, and juggle emails and, replying to people while balancing family life and family struggles.
And I do it all willingly, joyfully and prayerfully, I wouldn't ever want to do anything else..
and I do all that in the hopes it blesses you, and your celebrations. So you make the best memories, and my hope is that you feel loved, appreciated and special with every bite. I just wanted to make the world feel a little it more loved and a little bit more special.
I ALWAYS feel honored, when some one asks me to design and create them, something to enjoy on their special day. Whatever that may look like. You're allowing me to make you, something that helps you celebrate, some of your most precious moments. And also make some epic, and beautiful memories.
I always aim to honour that, and respect your occasions. A cake fail in a celebration is my nightmare scenario. and its one of the reasons I started business in the first place. I watched my friend (hi Amo👋)have a cake fail from another baker, and it was so sad and upsetting for everyone. So I always strive so hard, to make sure it doesn't happen. I've had two, and both times I went over and over it in my mind. To learn where it went wrong, and what I could or should have done, to ensure that never happens again. Because your absolute joy in what I make is my no 1 priority.
And I take this buisiness exremely seriously.
P.S WE DONT TAKE ON ORDERS REGARDING A SEXUAL NATURE OF ANY SWAYING.
I have lots of kids and can't be having peckers, bottoms, tattas, or flangees, or even sentances referencing such, in my kitchen.
cause only the lord knows how I would explain that to the kids and the hubs 🤣🤣🤣😇😊. ( so dont even ask, please)
Respectfully at your service, S.L.Willetts
