SO I'm starting Wilton course one tonight. What should I expect, other than learning to decorate cakes. Is there anything I need to bring? I am taking the class at Michaels and they didnt tell me to bring anything. Of course I know I need the kit but what about a cake or icing or anything?
Well, usually the first night is just listening to the instructor so you don't need anything. During the lesson, the instructor will let you know what you need to buy (this usually involves a trip to the Wilton aisle).
HTH,
Christine
For the first night of C1 all you have to bring is a pen or pencil. The instructor will be doing a show and tell of the products you will be using in class and demonstrate how to ice and smooth out your icing. They will go over the fundamentals of cake decorating with the class. You will receive a lesson book and for the next 3 classes bring in your own cake to decorate with the techniques you will learn during each lesson.
It should be one night a week, but it may depend on the instructor's schedule. The Michael's that I teach at is very flexible about the days I teach, as long as the classes start on the week that they are advertised to start on.
I'm sure the teacher will give you a list of dates on the first day of class.
Good luck!
You're going to have so much fun!
Angie
Each store/instructor is a little different. Your instructor might be doing this one 2 nights a week. Has the instructor called you yet? I call my students 24 hours before the start of the first class.
Yes, in Lessons 2, 3 and 4 you will be bringing a cake and icing. All that will be explained during Lesson 1.
SO I'm starting Wilton course one tonight. What should I expect, other than learning to decorate cakes. Is there anything I need to bring? I am taking the class at Michaels and they didnt tell me to bring anything. Of course I know I need the kit but what about a cake or icing or anything?
Please let me know how this goes because I will be enrolling myself in the class at my local Michael's for next month and I and kind of curious of how it goes.
Good luck to you!! 
I had my first class last sat, and nothing scary about it. the instructor went over supplies and what we would be learning in the class. Took trip to Cake aisle and she showed us things. For my next class on sat I have to bring an iced cake then and we will decorate it in class.
Pretty much the same thing I found out last night. We didnt need anything but next monday we'll need to bring an iced cake plus all the colors we're going to use already made. I'm a little disappointed however because she didnt seem to knowledgable. I guess I've learned so many tricks from all of you guys, she could definately benefit from the ladies at CC.
I just completed Course 1 last night. It is a lot of fun. The very first night, you come with your kit and the instructor will just walk you through everything in the kit. They also bring a cake and demonstrate how to torte, fill, ice & smooth a cake and do the Wilton Rose.
2nd week you bring a cake frosted and ready to go, bring extra frosting for practicing with. You'll learn stars, dots and part of the rose
3rd week, bring another frosted cake (two tone) and frosting again. You will learn how to do clowns sitting on the cake and also drop flowers for next week
4th week, bring one more cake frosted and frosting and learn how to do the full rose and sweet peas, bows and leaves.
You will have so much fun!!!!
I had the same thoughts about my instructor. She didn't level the cake, she didn't tort or fill the cake, and her icing job was terrible (air holes and it wasn't level or smooth, etc.) I was really discouraged after that as I had been on here for a few weeks before hand and already felt as if I knew more than she did...(I know that probably says something terrible about my personality..)
But serriously, to all future instructors out there, the first class is so important because we evaluate what we feel your skills as a teacher are and that sets the tone for the entire course....
But serriously, to all future instructors out there, the first class is so important because we evaluate what we feel your skills as a teacher are and that sets the tone for the entire course....
This is so true and sometimes a shame. I have seen some instructors and wondered why they were teaching but then I remembered that I wasn't very good at the beginning either. (I've had students in my class that I felt were much better than I was and wondered why they were even taking the classes.) A lot of Wilton teachers are just like you and took the same classes you are taking. As they do more teaching they will become more confident and they will get better. So, if you just hang in there (learn all the tips and tricks) and give her encouragement too, you will see a great improvement in your teacher and in yourself. Most importantly, HAVE FUN!
I'm very dissappointed to hear that some of the Wilton instructors are taking what I would call short cuts. The first night of C1 is a very important night that is filled with information. Your instructor should most definitely be demonstrating how to level, tort, fill, ice and smooth the icing. The Wilton program is a very good one, if the instructors teach the classes the way Wilton has instructed them to do so. Unforunately there are some instructors who don't follow the quidelines Wilton provides them. All of the information you see and read in the first lesson should have been explained and demonstrated to you. Please don't be discouraged. You may want to check around and see if there is another store that has the Wilton program. There are some very good instructors out there!!!
My instructor also didnt tort or level. She did talk about how you could put extra batter in the pan and then cut strait across the top to level it, but I've done enough baking, I think thats a bad idea. Either your cake will end up not level or your batter would have run over. She should have shown the other ladies more. She didnt show the rose last night and said she's not planning to show it until class 3. We'll see how this goes I guess. Then I might take Course II and III somewhere else.
Wow! I am a Wilton Instructor myself, and it worries me that you tell me this. Wether it be their nerves getting to them or what. They should be leveling, torting, and frosting the cake in front of you.
Can I ask you all where you are from? Maybe I could talk to my supervisor and get them some extra training. I am sorry you aren't having a ton of fun.
(If you were taking my class, you would be! )
Hope your classes get better.
mmgiles: I am so sorry to hear about your experience. I know that it is so important to demonstrate how to level tort and ice the cake smooth. Most students don't understand how to do that and it takes the first three classes for them to catch on. Also, I would definitely think about taking the class somewhere else if you are not satisifed and maybe even mentioning it to the management of the store.
There are great instructors out there, but when I finished with all my Courses from the same instructor. I found a lot of holes. I had to learn a lot of things myself and I am making sure to pass that knowledge on and not leave any of my students wondering.
Tris
Last night I went to my first Course 1 class. I have to say that I had a ball! My instructor was great! She gave us all kinds of advice on baking a level cake and tips on icing. She even demonstated the Viva method for smoothing 
!! There was a woman in our class that had already taken the Course 1 class (she was taking it again as a refresher), and she kept saying, "I never learned that!"
Even though I've been reading up here on CC and practicing on my own a lot, I still came away with a lot of great information...and it was only the 1st lesson! I'm very excited about taking the class, and can't wait to learn more next week.
I'm very dissappointed to hear that some of the Wilton instructors are taking what I would call short cuts.
Sandy,
That is disappointing and I agree that Course 1, Lesson one is very important.
Yayaism,
I am glad to hear that you had a great time at your first class and came away with a lot of great information.
Chrisi,
I am a WMI also and it is too bad all instructors don't follow the lesson plan. Maybe they assume that because they don't show the torting and filling at the training sessions, that they don't have to do it. Or maybe their teacher didn't show them. Hopefully they will eventually do better and give their students more.
Did your class run for the 2 hours?? What did the instructor show you during the first lesson? The rose is started during lesson 2. It is done in steps during the last 3 classes, allowing for students to practice. Your instructor might demonstrate how to do the entire rose during the 3rd night, if time allows. This way it will give you the opportunity to practice at home. If time doesn't allow for her to show you the entire rose she will teach you how to do the center wrap around the rose base. She will then concentrate on the rest of the rose during your 4th night. Good luck with your classes!
I'm taking a class in Garland, Texas. She didnt even discuss levelers or anything. The other poor students are going to have some lop-sided cakes for sure. She mentioned the bake even strips and I asked what her experience had been with the heating core the the flower nail and she didnt know what i was talking about. She said she wasnt going to show us the rose at all until class 3 and class 4 is the next day because we moved the schedule around because otherwise we'd have class 4 on Memorial day. So that doesnt really leave enough time. I think this store has more than one instructor and I'll see about getting into her class for course II and III. The talked about fillings and making a "dome" not dam and I dont think the other girls got it. She didnt show it, she just said you can do this. She's been teaching over a year and she's a nice person, but it just doesnt seem like she knows a whole lot.
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