Has anyone taught themselves the art of cake decorating without the Wilton courses? If so how did you go about it? Books, Videos, or a combination of things?

The reason I ask is because I took the first course and it seems that a lot of what she told us we could have just read the student manual and practiced. I don't know maybe it was just me. I'm still contemplating taking the rest of the series though, the Flowers and Cake design and the Gum Paste and Fondant. Then maybe one day the Master Course.

I am self taught, with alot of CC and youtube!

I am self taught without the wilton course.

I'm completely CC-taught . Then again, I'm not doing this professionally, and I'm sure there's lots of stuff I would need to know from a decorating perspective if I were to want to go into business (not even mentioning the business aspect, since this is a purely decorating question). But for my purposes, the wealth of information on CC has been enormous. I also have a couple of videos by Sharon Zambito, which are fantastic, but I find that books are quite limiting , as most everything in there is on the internet and has been expanded upon quite wonderfully (a living breathing organism instead of a static paragraph in a book). Good luck!

Self-taught...Even though I haven't been doing this very long. I work shift-work and just don't have the time to take a course since I don't have the same day off every week. I love CC...watched some You Tube...read stuff on Wilton.com...and A LOT of trial-and-error lol

I took all of the wilton courses which gave me a good background. This was before the internet was very accessible and all of the other classes were way out of my financial budget. Then alot of what I have learned now has come from cc and cake club demos. I think it depends on what type of learner you are, for me visual always has helped. I can tell you that I have grown leaps and bounds from the internet. Classes like the ones by mike mccrary, etc. are still expensive but one day I will take one.

I am completely self taught...I learned through tutorials, you tube, CC etc...

HI! Merry Christmas!!
I took the four Wilton courses,for which I am very glad! I got a good teacher and started with a good group of people plus a coupon for the class and got hooked on this hobby!! and I wanted more!!!but then I found CC and You tube, There you can learn a lot.The internet is so full of information!
Ideas, techniques, and support . I have also taken more classes because I need to see personally how it is done, this way is easier for me. Two years ago I could only bake and serve, now I can do so pretty cakes I can make so many happy and I am happy as well! I am very proud of myselft I though there was not anything else I could learn, I was so wrong!
I had a nice time in my classes, and we were the same group for a while.We got to know each other and be friends. I enjoy it a lot! But do not buy all of their products, some are good and other you will never use or poor quality. I bought most all of it, and some of them are still unused!
Rylan, a CC member has a sticky with lots of tutorials, I love him, Edna, Sweetflower they are also very generous, Indydebbie, Leah and so many others to help you learn. I am so grateful to them for all I have also learn from them!

CIAO

Completely self taught from websites such as these. Wanted to take classes but that hasn't happened so far.

I am mostly self-taught. I took two Wilton courses about 25 years ago and just learned by books and now CC and videos. I just kept practicing on my family!haha

Here's a similar thread if you're interested in viewing more people's responses about how they learned:
http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-698050-self.html+taught

I think if you want to learn something bad enough, you'll find a way to teach yourself through trial and error with books or videos. If you'd rather have hands-on experience or enjoy the one-on-one interaction, perhaps the classes would be of the best benefit for you (if you have the time and money) or you could work in a bakery if you'd like to gain the knowledge of what it really takes to put the skills you've learned into real-life practices. Either way, you'll never regret taking the time to learn more. Have fun, and keep learning!

I worked at Dunkin' Donuts from 1979 until 1983. Learned some basic skills there. (mixing icings, mixing, baking, frying donuts)
Apprenticed as a baker from 1983-1987 (Moved from NJ to NC and had my first son) Took the Wilton basic decorating class somewhere in there.
1987 - present Self taught at home...looking forward to opening my own bakery soon!

I would highly recomended taking a class on the basic skills such as stacking and supporting wedding cakes.

Good Luck!

I really learning hands on and always ask a million questions, so I enjoyed the Wilton courses for the basics. Now I love to take classes at local cake shows whenever I can. I use You Tube, DVDs and books as well, but I really enjoy the interaction aspect.

I would love to take classes, but the closest Wilton classes are 75 miles away, and with two kids under 3 and no driver's license, that's a commitment I can't make right now.
I'm (obviously) still a novice, but everything I've learned so far has been from Youtube, CC, and old wilton books I've picked up second hand. I first heard about CC from Serious_cakes awesome youtube channel.

I only took the first wilton course. Bought the second course book and have been practicing on my own. The CC forum and Wilton forum have been great sources for information. And Youtube is great for learning new techniques.

I have never, and will never take a Wilton course. I am 100% self taught! I feel the Wilton courses are more geared to you buying and using their products, which some are nice, but a lot of them are lower quality than what I prefer. I googled everything I needed to know, thats also how I found this website. CC will help you sooooo much with how to, you can ask questions, post pictures and ask how to improve it next time...its a wonderful site!

I am completely self-taught thus far! I'm still learning alot and have only been into decorating cakes for about a year now.

And Happy Holidays

I took a wilton class 20 years ago before my son was born and regrettfully, I fell away from cake decorating. I was still baking, but using the dredded canned icing. I took all 4 classes this year before wilton changed it to only 3. I learned a lot, but find that I learn just as much if not more on the web, this website, and videos. I would still like to go to IL and take the class that Wilton offers there.

I took three Wilton courses, which was a good foundation. Other than that, I am self-taught through books, videos, and learning from others on sites like CC.

I'm just a hobbyist, I haven't had any classes yet, but have learned a ton from all the helpful folks on this site

I've mostly learned from books, online tutorials, and lots of practicing on my dear family.

I would love to take some classes but it's tough to find the time with two little ones. I've been considering saving up my pennies to go to cake camp in reno this july... has anyone done this, did you like it/ think the classes were helpful and worthwhile? I'd love to hear more about what it's like.

Wilton 1 and 2. Making the rest up as I go along! )

Completely self taught. I started by just reading the info in the books

I, too, am completely self-taught, although my m-i-l showed me how to make and use a parchment triangle and decorator tips about 30 years ago (don't think they had disposables avail. to hobbyists back then.) I bought Wilton Yearbooks every year and tried lots of things on my own. I still prefer buttercream cakes, simply because I love piping....love doing it, love how it looks, and love how it tastes.

I am too ; self taught. Although I know I have a long way to go to become good. I do feel that every cake is better than the previous.

Mostly self taught, exception of learning a few things from my cake decorator mother before I left home. But, now we are 800 miles away from each other so I had to take up where she left off. I still talk with my mother for tips, how to's, etc, but mostly now I use the internet... CC, You tube and wilton.com

Self taught. Many thanks to all the authors who wrote and illustrated many fabulous cake books, couldn't have done it without their help. And, to everyone here on CC for their help.