Cakestars, sorry that I'm no help to you on this, but I was looking at the Cricut Cake machine today and thinking about possibly purchasing it. I would like to know what everyone here thinks about it. Is it worth the money? Is it expensive to operate? What is your overall experience with the machine? TIA
I love my cricut. I have used it before they even put the cake model out. I use a program called sure cuts alot. I can use any image and i don't need to buy special cartidges.
where do you get the program "sure cuts" from? You said you can use any image? That sounds awesome to me but want to be sure I can do any image I want before I invest in a Cricut machine... Thanks!
I LOVE my Cricut..it's fantastic!! It is so great for fonts, and borders. Check my pictures the red and black Ninja cake... I cut all of the Chinese characters and the dragon with it I totally love it
What about the expense to operate? Is there a special paper/fondant that you have to buy or can you use regular fondant? How about the cartridges? Do you have to purchase different ones for each type of font or design that you want? How much are they? As much info as possible please. I have everything to buy because I am a newbie, but if I'm gonna do this, I want to do it right. Thanks again for all the useful advise.
I'm loving me some CC! 
Ya'll are the GREATEST!!!!! 
i got the make the cut for my mil and she loves it. she had a customer send her a pic of a specific cake and she was able to upload it and cut out the exact design on the cake. good investment
http://www.craftedge.com/index.html
is for the sure cuts alot program.
I use the regular cricut expression. not the cake. I figured they just use the same model and put color to it.
if your not sure about one. get a used one from ebay. thats how I got my first one. after it used it for a year I then bought the bigger model.
Cakestars, sorry that I'm no help to you on this, but I was looking at the Cake machine today and thinking about possibly purchasing it. I would like to know what everyone here thinks about it. Is it worth the money? Is it expensive to operate? What is your overall experience with the machine? TIA
I have the Cake and love it. It does take trial and error to figure it out but in my opinion it's worth it. I had the Expression before and it worked too with a few small alterations.
If you buy one be sure to check eBay for them. That's where I got mine for $186.
Good luck.
Do you use regular fondant with the expressions, or do you have to buy sheets to use? TIA
I make my own fondant mix. Depending on what color I am using I either mix in gumpaste or tylose powder to my fondant.
Use the search feature for many many conversations on this and some great tips.
this is a long read but so worth it.
http://www.cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=613921&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=
I love my . I have used it before they even put the cake model out. I use a program called sure cuts alot. I can use any image and i don't need to buy special cartidges.
tripleD..I posted this question somewhere else but maybe you can help me. Do you ever downloand fonts and/or dingbats from sites like dafont.com or? If so I have a question for you. Thanks
I love my . I have used it before they even put the cake model out. I use a program called sure cuts alot. I can use any image and i don't need to buy special cartidges.
tripleD..I posted this question somewhere else but maybe you can help me. Do you ever downloand fonts and/or dingbats from sites like dafont.com or? If so I have a question for you. Thanks
multilayered..maybe you could help me as well. Sorry OP, not trying to take over post. I'll PM either of you if you've used these...
I have Make the Cut, an Expression and the Cake (I haven't even used the Cake except for some practice). I love Make the Cut (MTC), it is easier to learn than SCAL, you don't need Inkscape or other editing programs to bring in svg or jpg files, and you can use ANY ttf font you have. I have downloaded fonts from dafont.com and other sites with no problems. And you don't need to install the fonts to your computer, mine are all saved on a thumb drive and I only pull up what I need when I want to use it.
MTC is on sale right now (it's been a "limited time offer" for a long time) it is cheaper than buying ONE cartridge.
As for the "voiding the warranty" issue with PC - their policies are so ridiculous, just about anything you do with your cutter will void the warranty.
You can download MTC and play with it to your heart's content. Until you purchase and register it, it will cut a slash at the end of your project - SCAL does that too in trial mode, but MTC does not have a time limit on the trial. http://svgandmtcfiles.com/
These are a few of the things I have cut with MTC (not cake) http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=22356&id=100000091683036&l=ae41145395
And the fence on this cake was done with MTC and fondant: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=380974&l=56ffafbdeb&id=100000091683036 (OH - I also cut the template for the sneakers on my Expression)
What about the expense to operate? Is there a special paper/fondant that you have to buy or can you use regular fondant?
I use MMF with Tylose added to it. You CAN buy frosting sheets, but I honestly don't know why anyone would. You can't reuse anything from your excess, or that you screw up on, like you can with gumpaste. They also do sell a gumpaste too, by Provo Craft that is on the aisle with all the Cricut stuff. But again, I don't see the need for that, but that's just my opinion. It took a lot of trial and error for me (and a ruined cutting mat) before I got the hang of it. I still have a lot to learn. Which is why I opened this thread.....I had no idea what Make the Cut was. I'm off to google it now
I am not tripleD so I hope you don't mind me answering. I have a HUGE folder full of fonts and dingbats for this very reason. With SCAL you can use just about any image. Vector images from photography sites are wonderful too but with these be careful to read terms of use. Some you have to pay for and some don't allow their work to be used at all.
HTH
Do you use regular fondant with the expressions, or do you have to buy sheets to use? TIA
You don't have to use anything special. It's more about the preparation of the material you're about to cut. You'll find tons of posts about that here. Just takes a little experimentation. I found it works best for me in gumpaste and modeling chocolate. Fondant not so much. But, I've not yet tried it with my favoriate fondant - MMF.
I think it's worth it, but then again...I spend tons of money on my toys. So, I'm kind of a bad influence.
Thanks so much for the info and the past threads. As you can see, I am very new to CC and each day I find something new here. Amazing site with soooo much info. I told my DH that I could spend all day, every day for months on here and not get to all the info that has been shared.
As far as the cricut, I'm thinking that it is a must have. LOL Now to decide which machine and which cartridges, etc. 
Thanks again for all of the help.
Oh...and regarding Make the Cut and Sure Cuts a Lot. Trial versions of both are available. Download 'em and see what you think! I felt MTC was too simplistic. SCAL was more like some of the other graphics programs I've used over the years, so I was more comfortable with it. It's just a matter of what suits your personal style. And trying 'em is free. Personally, I wouldn't have a Cricut without one of them. I never EVER use the cartridges that came with my machines (I have both the Expression and the Cake).
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