Baking Away Depression

Back in August, a baker named Emma Thomas, opened up a series of pop-up bakeries across London. Unlike most colorful cakes and cookies, all of the baked goods in Emma’s shop were in shades of grey.She called it the “Depressed Cake Shop.” Local bakers and businesses donated delicacies and proceeds from the sales went to charities that supported people struggling with mental illness.

It wasn't long before Emma’s pop-up idea spread across the globe. Bakeries began appearing in Malaysia, Australia, India, San Francisco and now Seattle. On Saturday visitors to Sole Repair Shop will have the chance to buy a variety of dark baked goods. Fifteen local bakers and pastry shops will be donating everything from cake pops to champagne-flavored marshmallows flown in from San Francisco.

Megan Seling, writer for The Stranger and author of the cookbook "Bake It In A Cake," is one of the bakers donating sweets to the shop. She used baking as a distraction and coping mechanism to help her through depression. Seling said that baking gave her a chance to take the cookies to people and interact with co-workers in a way that was positive and the formulaic process provided a much needed distraction in the dark days of fall and winter.

If you want to indulge in some dark sweets, The Depressed Cake Shop in Seattle will be open Saturday October 5 from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. For more information on the event visit their Facebook page. All proceeds from the event will be going to support the National Alliance on Mental Illness in the Greater Seattle area.Produced by Amina al-Sadi.