Madge
I forgot to add that if you buy the cricut cake you do not have to buy a deep cut blade. However, if you want to cut cardstock for cupcake wrappers, you do need to purchase the deep cut blade, housing, and sticky mats. The deep cut blade and housing fit into the cricut cake machine, but the cricut cake blade and housing do not fit into the expression. Again, look it all up on Cutting Edge, and they show and discuss the whole thing.
Kathy

The Cricut Cake is not supposed to be use with paper. Sanitary reasons.

You are not using the same blade or mat. The paper is clean, right out of the package. Therefore, no sanitary questions.

I love mine. Took a little practice, but didn't take me long to get the hang of it. Just haven't had any cakes lately or the time cakes, so not using it as much as I would like too. Love it!

Oh! And do bid on one at eBay!

I saved several in my "watch" list first to see the price range people were winning them ($150 to $250) and vowed not to bid if it got to be more than $200. I ended up getting mine for $197, free shipping, and it arrived in less than a week. It seemed they were going for less in the early morning auctions.

The only thing on either machine that touches food is the blade and both are stainless steel so therefore are food safe. If youw want to check out the silhouette here is Linda's website (without the spaces) http: // www . deseret designs . com / custom . html I use it with Make The Cut software and no cartridges to buy. I print on gumpase with my edible image printer and the silhouette has the capability to cut out the printed image....something the cricut can not do. They now have a cricut image that has that capability but it is $500, compared to the silhouette for $250 (from Linda's site untill Oct. 1st). And the Cricut Image isn't "food safe" either. Most people aren't going to eat gumpase anyway so I don't see it as a problem. As I said before, it's only touched by the stainless steel blade so even if they do eat it it's not a problem. To each their own.

The problems people are having with cutting isn't the machines but the medium they are using and the way they are preparing it. If it isn't rolled thin enough and let set long enough it just wont work and some mediums are not suitable for this application.

If you are going to use it just for cakes I would get the Cricut cake. I have them both so I use the expressions for paper an the other one for cakes.

Is there any where that has the list of websites to learn how to use cricut and the other thing?

If you purchase the silhouette from LInda McClure it comes with a DVD

Is it difficult to figure out how to hook up the scal to the cricut?

Hi Madge
The SCAL program is also peaking my interest! The cartridges for the cricut can get very costly. I read about it once before on cc, and if you read back a few pages in this thread a few people talk about the ease of connecting the cricut to your computer. Also, you can go to cricut.com, and they have a demo on there for the cricut cake. Also, YouTube. If you look in my pics, the Hello Kitty Cake was the first cake I made, and it was with the cricut cake. I think it was Tiggy that made mention about people having problems with the cricut cake, and she said that the problem isn't necessarily the machine, but the medium you use. She's right about that. You also need to roll the gumpaste directly onto the mat, and very thin.
I hope that you aren't getting more confused on which machine to get.
Kathy

Well, I got my Cricut cake today! I know a lot of ppl are not sure whether to buy it because of the cost...me too...but Michael's had it on for $249.99 so I went for it. Now just have to decide whether to get the "Make the Cut" program or the SCAL program. More research I guess!

Hi Madge I thought you were going to get one? Isn't your birthday right around the corner?
Kathy

I bought the Cricut Cake when it first came out. I have struggled to use it. I really can't stand the thought of having to deal with it, it seems to be soooo difficult. However - I have heard that if you just stick to it, then you learn how to deal with it and it becomes invaluable. I really hope to get to that point, because it was an expensive tool to sit in the cake closet untouched!!! I used it for some simple shapes and cuts and it worked well, but when I used it for a big project it was so difficult. I did get the project done (badge cake on my photos) but it took hours and hours. I still hold out hope, though!

trishvanhoozer...are you using any of the computer programs (Make the cut or SCAL) with your cricut cake or just the cartidges? As I posted earlier in this thread, I just purchased a machine and still haven't opened the box. I have a big project coming up too with LOTS of lettering and a school logo and I'm thinking I better get started soon just in case I "don't get it" either. Another CC er on here has offered some help when I'm ready to get started...she uses the SCAL program and loves it. I'm hoping I will too!

I am not using the programs, just the cartridges. I found the lettering to be frustrating and that was what took so long. I was talking to a cake shop supply owner over the weekend, and she suggested doing some research on freezing the gumpaste on the mats before cutting. I have been interested in learning more about these computer programs, but didn't want to pour more money into this thing! I paid full price for the machine, and bought the little kit of tools, extra mats, three cartridges, etc. I really thought I would love it from the get-go!

I have seen a few videos on youtube showing how to use the machine, but the thing I'm hoping for is that the computer program is as good as what I hear because it will save a ton of money in cartridges. I'm not sure about the US, but up here in Canada the cartridges are between $90 and $120 a piece. For less than the cost of one cartridge, I should be able to do pretty much anything with the program....again, this is what I've heard and I'm really hoping it's true. (SCAL or Make the cut programs) I have a cake due in a couple of weeks with a lot of lettering, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed or I might end up being frustrated too having to cut everything out by hand!

I LOVE IT! I got my Cricut maybe two weeks ago and it's amazing. There is a HUGE learning curve, so I can see how some people give up on it easily. It's hard to get it right because there are so many different variables - the thickness of the gumpaste, the pressure setting, the speed setting, etc. But once you get it your possibilities are endless, especially if you use of of the computer programs (like Sure Cuts a Lot). I just downloaded the free trial and can't wait to play with it!

I haven't used it (SCAL) yet, but it looks really cool. You can use free SVG files off the internet, you basically just drop the image you want to cut onto the screen (looks exactly like your Cricut cutting mat) and can rotate it, size it, etc. and then click the little button to cut it! What I'm really interested in is being able to convert a JPG or GIF to an SVG file. I had a friend ask about a baby shower cake and she wanted me to copy the flowers on a napkin. So I'm hoping I can convert the napkin JPG to an SVG and cut away!! How easy would that be? And I would save SO much time!

I'll let you know how it works out, I'm going to give it a try this weekend! Keep you posted!

srkmilklady, the other cool thing about SCAL is that you can cut any font you have in your computer. You have the option of picking any font you already have from the drop down list. You can also download free fonts from the internet and use those as well. So you can totally customize your font to the type of cake you're doing.

Listen to me - SCAL should put me on their payroll!!

yummy_in_my_tummy...I've sent you a pm regarding the svg files.

If you roll the gum pastes thin enough (#8 on the KA pasta roller) and let it sit covered in a zip lock bag over night you will have great success.

FYI - I bought a hand cranked pasta roller (actually got it because I love to make pasta but I bought a second one for fondant/gumpaste) and it works wonderfully. I got it at Marshalls or Ross for $20.00. It is super simple to use and I use it all the time for bows and other little items. I will try this for the cricut. I would love to find anything to make it easier to use!