Interview with Miniature Patisserie

One day on etsy I was searching through various doll house pieces, and found Pei Li's Dollhouse Miniatures. Not only were they beautiful, but they were pastry themed-- and perfect for a doll house bakery or cake shop! I was amazed by the detail she recreated in 1:12 the size, and wanted to find out more.

How did you get started in creating miniature pastries?

Pei Li: My interest started a few years ago, when I collected a few Japanese miniature toys. After collecting a few, I discovered it wasn’t enough for me and I was more interested to learn how they were being made. Since young, I have always been interested in art and craft. My first experience with creating miniature pastries was two years back using paper clay and since then, there was no turning back.

Where do you find inspiration for the miniature pastries you create?

Pei Li: I find inspiration from visiting interesting upscale bakery shops in where I live, nothing beats looking at the real thing and figuring how to create and capture that realism into miniatures. I look at the texture, color, trying to remember all the tiny details as much as I can! I also surf the internet to look at beautiful pastry photography for inspiration. There are many websites, blogs I found that are my inspiration. I also collect a few books on cakes, pastry making where I have a habit of looking and browsing at them while in bed before I go to sleep.

Do you have a culinary background? (Because your pastries look like the real thing!)

Pei Li: No! Haha. I would love to learn to bake, but I don’t have an oven at home. One of my goals in the coming new year would be to enroll in a few classes of pastry making classes from a pastry chef.

Is this your day job or something you do on the side?

Pei Li: Crafting is my side line, I do have a day job. I am seeing if there is a possibility to expand this further, and I am thinking of teaching a few classes next year.

How did you discover etsy?

Pei Li: I don’t exactly recall that, but it was a few years ago. I believe I was looking for dollhouse miniatures and came upon “etsy”. I did not start selling or buying till recently.

To see more of Pei Li's work, visit her shop.

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