I am very, very new at this cake decorating but it's always been a dream of mine to do. Anyway, I called my neared crafts store about taking a Wilton decorating class - I have a few questions about these classes for you all. First, would you all recommend taking these courses?

Couldn't I just buy the Wilton Course (I beleive there are Courses 1-4) books and practice on my own? The course schedule is weird and I was hoping to do it at my own pace with just the books. Also, the cost of the class is $25 plus the cost of supplies. Has anyone ever taken a course and know the average amount for supplies?

Thanks!
SAra

I took the first class and it does teach you some things that you wouldn't figure out as easily on your own. Also the teachers sometimes have great hints that help. I was able to "buy" my class with the 40% off coupon and they were running a special where you got the class kit free when you signed up for the class. Check with your store to see if you can use coupons on the class and the kit. The supplies are pretty much in the kit and then cakes and icing you bring in. I would recommend the class if you're totally new to decorating.

saraf,
I am sure you will get many different opinions on taking the courses. It will really depend on you. I took the first three and am signed up for the fourth. I had not really done any decorating before those classes. I do not regret taking them because I am a visual, hands on learner. Here where I live I took the classes at Michaels and they were all 1/2 price. I used coupons to get my supplies so I didn't spend a great deal of money on the first course. I did use a 50% off coupon and bought the 101 pc. Professional Decorating kit and have not regretted that purchase at all. The course books were provided to the students at the beginning of each class. I didn't have any supplies when I started so my out of pocket expense was probably more than some, for example I didn't have any cake pans, cake boards or a turntable so those things I had to buy but if you use coupons you can get a pretty good discount. I say if you need visual examples to help you learn then I would definitely take the classes.
Bradymom

Hi there! I took the Wilton Courses in 2005 and now I,ve been a Wilton Instructor at my local craft store for 1 &1/2 years. The course is fun because you have peers who can share ideas and tips with you that are not offered in the book or who can tell you shortcuts to the harder techniques in the course booklets. Not taking the course is kinda like expecting to learn how to ride a motorcycle by only reading an instruction booklet. It can be done, but the classes as so much fun and the personal interaction sprarks creativity in the students in ways a book just can't do.

As far as the schedule, if you miss a class for whatever reason, you should be able to work it out with the instructor to make the class up later. I tell my students that if they go out of town during week 2 and miss my class, they can make plans with me to join next month's class during week 2 for free. They have paid for all the classes and have the freedom to redeem them in a non-traditional way if needed.

The $$ factor is what you make it. Yeah you need the kit but if you don't want to spend money on getting icing colors then you just go thru the class with colorless icing, which is not as fun but perfectly fine. You still learn the techniques so it doesn't hurt anybody. Other than the kit, you will need the ingredients for your cakes and your icing. So that "plus supplies" part is referring to the ingredients also. Imagine how fun cake decorating would be with no icing. And depending on where you shop,whether it's Publics, Kroger, Wal-Mart, you can control your cost more than you may think. You can spend as much or as little as you wish, depending on your personal interest and dedication to this particular hobby.

I bought the super-duper kit cause I knew I wanted to go above and beyond with cake decorating, but others did well with just the essentials. The cost is hard to calculate cause some people use store coupons and some don't. Some people may have some tools at home and just need to add a few items, while others may need to buy everything new. Your neighbor may have a kit you could borrow for free, so the price can vary for everyone.

By the time my students complete course one, they have bonded with each other and find it sometimes hard to part ways. Bottom line, it's about having fun and learning from each others mistakes. You can't learn from others or share with others, alone in the kitchen at home. Give ithe courses a shot!

I highly recommend the classes I took all 3 of them and can't wait for the last one to come I'll sign up for that also. On some of the things I'm sure you can figure out on your own but it's always been easier at least for me to have someone show you how to do something rather then reading it and trying to figure out how to do it. Also the friendship I made with the other women in my class was nice someone to bounce ideas off. As for the cash out for the items needed for the class. I bought the "tackle box" I wanted the 100 piece set but they didn't have any in stock at the time so I ended up getting the 50 piece box. Use the coupon and get 40% off or if you time it just right you can use a 50% off coupon. I also used these coupons to get my book and kit for the class... only other thing is the sugar, shortening and vanilla, I bought a small bottle of the vanilla and it was enough for all my cakes for classes. Also use a coupon and get the box of 100 plastic decorator bags you will go through many bags it's just easier and faster then having to make them from parchment. Hope this helps

I loved taking classes. Hobby Lobby every week has a 40% OFF COUPON ON COMPUTER. Every once in a while they have a 50% wilton coupon for as many products as you want. I'd watch for these they really help as for costeach course is very reasonable BUT-----------------------------IF you become an addict you could lose the farm LOL Needless to say I'm an addict.

Everyones comments so far have been great. I have a question though. What about the schedule is weird? I ask because the "normal" schedule is a 4 week course that runs once a week for four weeks. With the way the stores put out the calendars it can look confusing and I'm wondering if maybe you got the wrong information. Often cashiers don't know the answers.

I'm a Wilton instructor so I'm probably biased, but I think you'd like the classes. Can you buy the books and learn on your own? Sure. The books take everything step by step and have pretty good directions. But, like everyone else mentioned, you do get lots of tips and tricks and hands on help by taking the classes.

As for expense I usually say you're going to spend a minimum of $25-50 depending on if you use coupons. You can get along with bare minimum. I do strongly recommend the 101 piece kit using the coupon because you get a great deal on lots of stuff. I try to give my students options for those that are trying to save money or just aren't sure if cake decorating is their thing.