about

THE ARTIST

Hi I’m Rica (she/her), the Cake Artist behind Alchemy of Sugar. I love creating modern, epic cakes for people across London & beyond, who want to amaze their loved ones & make memories that last forever.

Rica x

About Menu

01.

WHY ALCHEMY?

alchemy – noun [U] æl.kə.mi – LITERARY a process so effective it seems like magic:

By extraordinary alchemy, she turns ordinary ingredients into the most delicious dishes.

– THE CAMBRIDGE DICTIONARY

I transform simple ingredients such as butter, sugar & flour. Baking is an art and a science, whilst the decoration is the magic.

Alchemy was created to bring you more joy and beauty, whilst making the world a little happier. I love helping you make incredible memories and creating beautiful things. It also means I can create the life I want for our family, with the freedom to work ethically.

Everything you see is created individually by me to be so that it tastes and looks incredible, all from our little kitchen in SW London.

Luxury Wedding Cake Artist, Designer and Maker, London

01.

WHY ALCHEMY?

alchemy – noun [U] æl.kə.mi – LITERARY a process so effective it seems like magic:

By extraordinary alchemy, she turns ordinary ingredients into the most delicious dishes.

– THE CAMBRIDGE DICTIONARY

I transform simple ingredients such as butter, sugar & flour. Baking is an art and a science, whilst the decoration is the magic.

Alchemy was created to bring you more joy and beauty, whilst making the world a little happier. I love helping you make incredible memories and creating beautiful things. It also means I can create the life I want for our family, with the freedom to work ethically.

Everything you see is created individually by me to be so that it tastes and looks incredible, all from our little kitchen in SW London.

02.

WHY ME?

My Dad was a Chef and definitely gave me a taste for the finer things, but my Mum was the Baker. She’d create the most amazing Birthday Cakes for me (including a full My Little Pony Castle – the real ones, before they got skinny). She always said I should create Cakes and is feeling quite smug. It started with Cakes for family as a creative outlet, then snowballed from there.

Before all this I worked in the corporate world, commercially managing food brands into Tesco and Asda etc, before moving into the world of beauty to manage brands like Rimmel into Boots. So I guess you could say food, colour & fashion were always there?

Did I mention my name literally means Rich / Delicious / Tasty? (Mum swears she read it in a book, not like she actually used to live in Spain or anything).

I BELIEVE…

The how of what I do, is just as important as the what – my words impact others, my actions and inaction matter.

EQUALITY & INCLUSIVITY

How can I ensure you know and see I’m here for you? How do I help reflect the reality of the world we live in, normalise seeing it and reading it being spoken to? Anti-racism and combating xenophobia are a big part, but this also needs to include all genders, abilities, religious/non-religious backgrounds, body shapes and LGBTQ+.

To me that means Alchemy needs to commit to help starting to make it so we can all…

see ourselves reflected in images and media
feel like we belong because the words we read speak to all of us
know we will all be represented in who I associate with & recommend to others

SUSTAINABILITY

Creating beautiful luxury cakes shouldn’t be at the expense of our beautiful planet. Equally choosing Eco shouldn’t mean limiting yourself to a certain “look”.

I’ve committed Alchemy to not purchasing single use plastics (any plastic that can’t be recycled/reused) and I’m actively looking to replace recyclable plastics where possible.

There is still some residual single use stock, that is being worked through, as I would prefer it was used rather than sent straight to landfill.

this is the beginning

04.

THE HUMAN STUFF

I’m Welsh / Spanish and proud. Yes I grew up in a village, technically in a Valley and yes that makes me the daughter of an immigrant (we get the job done). Now I live & love in SW London (half way between Wimbledon & Kingston).

When I’m not whipping up Cake, I’m Mama to one bundle of terror/joy (she’s awesome, a chatterbox & fearless) and two curly cats, whilst trying to sneak the odd date night in with hubby.

A few of my favourite things: Chocolate, Chorizo, Hot Stone Massages, Berry Based Cocktails, The Handmaid’s Tale, Marvel Movies and pretty shiny things.

05.