Im a bit confused, forgive me as i know the cricut topic has prob. been covered to death... but the more cakes i see done with it the more im considering buying one... i am the worst at cutting with an exacto knife, hate stencils and cutters.... Can i buy an elcheapo version of the cricut and get by or do i need the super duper cake version? also ive seen bundles on hsn... upwards of $3-400. Do i need that or what exactly do i need. thanks guys

i think the best advice is don't buy it on a whim!

do you find yourself making a lot of shapes from flat fondant / gumpaste / modeling chocolate often? do you have the patience for the unfortunate learning curve? would you consider buying a similar cutting machine that's not made by Provocraft (cricut)?

I bought mine at Michaels for 99.00, and then saw them go on sale even less for 89.00. It is the small personal cutter, but fine for now. A good place to start to get your feet wet...
I have read that Silhouette and Gazelle are as good as Cricut, but have not seen it from personal experience.

I sent my cricut cake back. I didn't like it all. Too time consuming.

I agree with Grandmomof1.....I bought one..tried to fiddle around with it for hours in frustration and sold it on Kijiji....If you have the time and patience it may be worth it otherwise don't bother.

After viewing many of the negative comments here on CC I had pretty much decided against purchasing a Cricuit. It was a fairly easy decision since the price exceeded what I could justify for the product, especially considering how many complaints have been posted. While shopping at Michaels on Sunday 10/17 my DH noticed the price had dropped to $199, and all of the accessories and cake cartridges were 50% off. Before I knew it we were at the checkout buying one along with a slew of Cricuit goodies and gadgets. Yes - truly an impulse purchase

I didnt open the box for three days while I continued to debate whether to return it or not. LOL knowing how I am, hubbie made the decision for me. He opened the boxes, set up the machine, got out my Satin Ice gum paste and prodded me to have some fun with it. Much to my extreme shock the darn thing works great. I havent had any of the problems others have written about. My machine easily cuts designs as small as 1; I just make sure that my patch of gum paste or fondant is at least 3 x 3.

I suspect, but cant confirm since a lot of people dont note which state (US) they reside, that some of the problems folks have are related to humidity. I live in a very dry climate which is great for working with fondant and gum paste.

Im glad I purchased the cake version since it has design elements to protect it from damage due to food particles. I feel its very quick and easy to set up and put away not sure why some find that aspect troublesome. I have a Pazzles cutter for scrapbooking (aka boat anchor) that thing is a piece of crap and was a huge waste of money. Perhaps the Pazzles gave me a higher tolerance for machines and greater determination to master them. Wish I had bought a Cricuit years ago instead of that thing.

Best wishes!

I, like 03FLSTF, winged it first time out of the box. Mind you, I have not used it with fondant, but with Sugar Veil.. it worked like a dream! I do agree with 03FLSTF's comment regarding climate though.. could be a major contributing factor.

There's talk about a cricut mini coming out around Thanksgiving..hopefully that will be more reasonably priced. I figure the longer I wait the more likely the newer versions will get more user friendly and the price will come down.

This is the preview for the new cricut cake mini.

Thanks all, the designs are beautiful and i know for certain by hand its not happening in my case... i think im gonna give it a go. I dont think humidity will be an issue for me. and if the price is 199 now... well, what am i waiting for? Havent had a chance to review the mini... and idk if there is any difference other than size/capacity....

I have the cricut and the silhouette and have great success with both of them. Using the right product and preparing it correctly is the key. If you want to cut intricut patterns or very small letters and designs a pasta roller is a must.

I too bought the cake cricut, I was one of the crazies who pre ordered it. I live in Florida and deal with the humidity issues. My Wilton teacher recommended I freeze my fondant, gumpaste for 30 mins. But I was a bit frustrated with the machine. This last weekend I tried new approach I let it sit out and dry a bit. When I went to cut with it, it made perfect cuts. I bought the SCALE software and look forward to making great cool patterns!

This is a subject that can go both ways ...and is based really, on the person's patience and how they want to pursue it. I personally have NOT bought it due to sooo many complaints of it,,but I'm still not sure yet..I'm more on the side of NO,,but hesitating still..hard to say

I'm so frustrated! I asked my husband to get me one for my bday, then after reading all the negative reviews told him to cancel the bday request! I like what I think that machine can do but it looks like a complete nightmare to learn etc. and I am very computer literate. I guess i will just wait until I feel I can really benefit from it.

I love mine. You need to stick fondant or gumpaste in the freezer and chill it well for it to cut nicely. It (like most cake decorating) takes patience and then it will pay off. Look at my cheerleader cake, I could not have done the cheerleaders without cricut cake.

http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1841548

You don't need to put it in the freezer if you use the right product and prepare it correctly. You do however have to roll it out ahead of time and it must be rolled very, very thin (you should be able to see through it).

I noticed they are still at $149 at Michael's this week.

I agree, you don't have to freeze it for it to work. I live in a high humidity area, and freezing is a no no. Rolling thin and letting it dry until it is firm works great for me. The Cricut is a great tool - I wouldn't trade mine for anything, but it takes practice, as any good tool does.

I just finished watching the you tube video on the mini ciruit, that, I could use. I really just wanted one for letters and intricate scrolls, things that even with cutters are a pain. I wonder what the price will be for that, does anyone here have any idea? I like that it's small and seems pretty easy to use, hopefully the price will be affordable.

The Cricut cake site says it will be available at JoAnn stores November 1, 2010, but don't list a price for it.

ok, googled & saw that the MSRP on the mini is $199. might as well get the larger model on sale at Michael's for the same price I guess!

I just got my Cricut Cake and I LOVE IT!!!!!! i am doing a halloween cake for my daughter now and i am using the Holiday cartridge which has halloween characters and its amazing...it is a little hard at first and I have made a few mistakes, by nt rolling the fondant enough and not cutting it to the correct size but once all that is figured out its pretty easy....I was not going to get it because I was worried it may be a waste of money and time but my fiancee got it for me and i cant be happier. If you do nt have patience then I do not recommend it but if you take your time then its a great tool to have good luck

Thanks mbark, $199. sounds just a bit lower than the big one, hum....what to do....what to do..

oh, and I have seen the cricut cake on sale for 199 at Michaels and Ac Moore

I havent tried letting it dry out and cut it....but I have good cuts when its in the freezer ten minutes I will have to try the dry method

The best thing to do, IMO, is to place it on a greased mat once it's rolled out and store in a ziplock bag overnight. I use the flexible cutting mats from the $ store. Then transfer it the cricut mat (greased) for cutting. I use Linda McClure's gum paste recipe and it works great. If you can't get her recipe try adding tylose to Wilton fondant.

I love my Cricut.........U have to roll the gumpaste really thin to get great results! if i'm using fondant instead of gumpaste i stick it in the freezer for about 3mins.

wouldn't trade it at all!

I posted this in the other Cricut Cake thread, but I work at Jo-Ann and we got our Minis today.