Forums
Questions about what you can (or cannot) post on this site (aka our Terms of Use) or our Privacy Policy? Post them here! But first, please review those documents located in the pink links above. You may find that we've already answered your question. From time to time, our Cookie Connection administrators will also post important site updates here.
If you're new to the site, this is a great forum to review before you post. Setting up your member profile and posting to the site are handled pretty thoroughly in our Site FAQ, here. But you'll find plenty of other startup questions (like how to change email notifications, how to credit sources, etc.) answered here as well.
You can always email us with suggestions for site enhancements; ideas for new blog, clip, or forum categories; requests for live chats; or feedback of any ilk. But it's generally a better idea to post those ideas here, along with a survey to the Surveys area, to see if others agree or disagree with your suggestion! The more information we have about interest in a new feature or chat, the more likely we are to implement it! Positive feedback is welcome here too! 
Undeniably the cornerstone of cookie decorating, outlining and flooding are crucial to master before you start layering on other techniques. Still trying to figure them out? Ask here.
Aside from marbling, there are many other effects and designs possible with the wet-on-wet technique. Chat about them, and their challenges, in this forum.
Is your marbling a mess of bleeding colors and randomness? Learn how to make the most of marbling here!
Kopykake has been a great addition to cookiers' tool kits, but there are other ways to project and trace images too. This is the spot to talk about the various options, their pros and cons, and other nuances.
Struggling with stenciling? Or do you consider yourself a stenciling expert with lots of tips to share? Either way, don't hold back!
So you caved to peer pressure and bought that airbrush, eh? And you still have no idea what to do with it, double-eh? We thought so! 
Ask away!
Rubber-stamping is a great way to add intricate detail to cookies - and fast! Share tips for getting the sharpest, most perfect stamped effects here.
What the heck is the difference between wafer paper and frosting sheets? Where can you get pre-printed papers, and how can you print your own? These are just some of the topics that are fair game in this forum!
Looking for tips to help hone your handpainted cookies? Whether your preferred paint is thinned icing, food coloring, or decorative powders extended with alcohol or extract, this is the place to seek and give painting pointers.
Want to give your cookies a lift - literally?! Here's the place to share the ins and outs of getting cookies to stand up and into other 3-D shapes. This is an especially good place to post questions related to gingerbread houses and other gingerbread constructions.
Got a clever decorating tip that you think the cookie world should know? Share it here, along with photos if you've got them!
Can't find tips for the technique that's troubling you in another forum? Or facing a design dilemma and need some immediate advice? Hammer it out here.
No idea why your cookie recipe is not working? Seeking a cookie recipe upgrade? Want to make a substitution, but afraid of the consequences? Fire away!
Oh, we've all had our fair share of icing issues, right? Here's the place to share tips for eradicating air bubbles, avoiding nasty craters, getting the right consistency, and eliminating other types of icing strife!
Ribbons? Heat-sealed bags? Tags? What are your favorite ways for packaging cookies solo? 1-2-3 go!
Got a uniquely creative or clever way to put together cookie platters, or any other platter-ing tips? Please spread your wealth and share!
A term that Julia likes to think she's coined (though probably hasn't), "cookie-scaping" explores the art of larger scale tabletop and architectural presentations. Hear about others' latest cookie-scaping adventures (or mishaps) and reveal your own.
There's a ton to understand about launching a cookie business - cottage law, local licensing and permitting, copyright law, Department of Health build-out requirements and regulations . . . the list goes on and on. Help others cut through this clutter here.
That is the question! Granted, your place of business is only one decision that you'll need to make when starting out, but it's such an important one that we thought it deserved its own special forum. Don't forget: location, location, location!
Etsy is just one of many ways to market and sell your cookies, but it's become an increasingly influential one in recent years. Ask other Etsy users their best advice for getting the most out of this platform.
Confused about whether you can legally make character cookies? what hoops you need to jump through to protect your business name or cookie designs? the licenses needed to operate a legit cookie business? All such questions are fair game in this forum. Disclaimer: We don't profess to be lawyers here, only good conversation starters!
Ahh, pricing can be the cookier's nemesis. Need help learning how to price so you don't lose your dignity, enthusiasm, or your shirt? Please ask.
What's the best way to spread your cookie-word, especially if resources are limited? Swap your best marketing practices in this forum.
Packaging and shipping can be time-consuming parts of the cookie business; yet the overall eye appeal of your cookies can have a HUGE impact. Talk about lessons learned in getting cookies neatly tied up and out the door!
The work doesn't end after the start-up is over! Every veteran bakery owner will tell you that expanding a cookie business presents its own unique growing pains. Chat here about best and worst practices for taking your business to the next level.
Your recommendations for useful books about cookie decorating.
The spot to mention your favorite online cookie decorating resources (blogs, blog posts, apps etc.) and to post YOUR latest tutorials!
Want to do a quick cookie recipe share? Here's the place to swap your favorites without having to do a full-fledged blog post.
Looking for a cookie decorating class in your area? Or traveling and hoping to take a class in your destination city? Ask here. If you're teaching or hosting a class, your class announcements are also welcome in this forum and on our online calendar.
Looking for a cookie decorator in your area to make something special for your next event, or to help you with an order you need to fill? Post your inquiries here! (Note: If you're a Cookie Connection member, you can also download our Decorator Directory here or search our member directory to find members in your area who sell cookies. For more member search tips, check out this forum topic.)
And . . . here's the place to quickly swap your favorite icing recipes without having to do a full-fledged blog post.
Please highlight your favorite cookie decorating tools here!
Know of a great sale, or of an awesome cookie cutter, wafer paper, or other cookie decorating supplier? Or don't, but need to find a particular item or brand in your area to complete your project? It's time to chat.
Have you found particular video series, YouTube channels, or online crafting courses to be helpful in advancing your cookie decorating skills? Tell us about your discoveries!
Dying to know members' favorite sources of anything that we missed? or approaches to specific aspects of cooking decorating? This is a catch-all category for firing off questions of the "What's your favorite . . . ?" sort!
A place to chat about CookieCon 2017, scheduled for March 9-11, 2017. Meet up with other CookieCon-goers, give tips to first-time attendees, and more!
Know of any 2016 events that members should attend? Post here, and also place on the site's event calendar if not already there!
A place to meet other members going to CookieCon 2015 and to ask questions of veteran CookieCon-goers.
Cookie Cruise (January 22-26, 2015) sets sail from Galveston, Texas, USA and cruises to Cozumel, Mexico, with lots of cookie decorating along the way! Connect with other event-goers here!
The place where we chatted about other 2015 events, apart from CookieCon and Cookie Cruise.
As the title says! This is where we had chats about the Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show, various giveaways and casting calls, and other notable cookie events before 2015.
A place to celebrate National Cookie Month by posting about special cookie happenings during the month of October (in any year)!
If you're a new member, this is the place to introduce yourself to the rest of us! Tell us about your involvement in the cookie world and the other things that move you. We'd love to get to know you better!
Please Note: All the rules governing conduct on the site (i.e., being constructive, upholding professionalism, etc.) still apply here. Please re-read our Terms of Use if you are unclear about any of these rules. Posting images of people is also prohibited due to various privacy laws. Personal dialogues that are not cookie-related are best handled via the Private Message feature (under your username), which allows you to privately talk to one or more members at the same time.
A place to swap casual cookie stories, like what, if anything, you listen to while decorating? How you handle cookie decorating on top of normal life? How you get into the cookie zone? And so on. Or just a place to say hi!
Please Note: All the rules governing conduct on the site (i.e., being constructive, upholding professionalism, etc.) still apply here. Please re-read our Terms of Use if you are unclear about any of these rules. Posting images of people is also prohibited due to various privacy laws. Personal dialogues that are not cookie-related are best handled via the Private Message feature (under your username), which allows you to privately talk to one or more members at the same time.
If you know of Cookie Connection members who have hit the big time, but are too shy to tell us, please let us know. We want to hear about their upcoming classes, articles published, and other successes to help us in planning our Cookier Close-ups featured on the blog - and just cuz it's nice to stop and celebrate every so often! P.S. These cookiers can also be you!
Got a surplus of extra cutters or some other cookie decorating item that you'd like to swap with another member? Or give away or sell? Here's the place to post exchanges of this sort.
Got an unidentifiable cookie cutter that needs deciphering? Or just want to challenge members for the fun of it? Post your mystery cutter here and see what we all come up with! To keep this space organized, please start a new thread (aka topic) for each new mystery shape. Simply upload a few pictures of said cutter or shape from a few different angles and post!
Finalists in this contest will be posted here on July 12, 2013. Voting for the grand prize winner will occur between July 12 and July 19, 5pm CDT, 2013. Stay tuned for the announcement of finalists!
Here on December 28 shortly after 5 pm central time, all finalists in our 2013 Christmas Countdown Challenge will be posted, and the final popular vote to determine the top three winners will open. Voting will continue through January 4, 2014, 5 pm central, after which time the winners will be announced in our weekly Saturday Spotlight on the blog. Until then, this forum will be closed to comments.
The place to find announcements and updates about our Practice Bakes Perfect bimonthly challenges.
