Nostalgia Cotton Candy Machine - Retro Cotton Candy Machine for Kids with 2 Reusable Cones, 1 Sugar Scoop, and 1 Extractor Head – Retro Red

Easy to use we'll buy it again

I was super worried about this. I bought it on an impulse and then read a lot of reviews that basically made me expect to spend 15+ minutes to get a tiny amount of gritty, low-quality candy. The worst reviews said it broke, it was impossible to take apart, or it just straight up didn't work.I fired it up yesterday when it arrived and could not be more pleased with the results. I used a single Jolley Rancher, crushed up with a hammer in a ziplock bag and poured carefully into the provided tablespoon scoop. I then topped of the rest of the tablespoon with regular old white sugar. Let it heat and spin for 10 minutes, then turn it off for just long enough to add the sugar/candy without it spraying everywhere. Turn it back on immediately.Use the stick vertically only for long enough to attach the cotton candy to the cone. Then pull it out of the bowl and hold it horizontally above the center, rotating it and moving a bit as necessary to make sure you're pulling the candy out of the bowl. Worked fantastically for me. Taste was great, texture was great, after 1 or 2 tries I got the hang of it and it was really easy to use. Takes like 2 minutes or less to go through the 1 tbsp of sugar/candy, and made a reasonably good amount of cotton candy. Don't expect it to be a huge bag like you buy. I let it spin and heat for 5 minutes or so in between adding sugar to make another cone.Later I got a bit ambitious and decided to try about 1.5-2 tablespoons, despite the instructions saying not to use more than 1 at a time. Sure enough, it converted most of the sugar/candy into a ring of melted sugar flung around the edge of the bowl and actually made about 50% LESS cotton candy than just using a single tablespoon. So I guess stick to the directions.Cleanup was surprisingly easy. A little hot water on the bowl sections and the caked on sugar that I was sure would be a nightmare fell right off. I wiped it down with a soapy sponge and rinsed it. Total cleanup time was like 5 minutes.I'm fully expecting to gain 70 pounds in the next month making cotton candy every day. This thing works if you use it right. Don't worry about the bad reviews.

I had this machine for years and it was a hit at every party we had! It’s easy to use and it’s not heavy. It’s a bit hard to clean but it worked great!

Honestly, I did not expect much from a $25 cotton candy maker. I used my kids as an excuse to buy this for Christmas, because I love cotton candy as much as they do, if not more. Our 8-year-old was really excited when he opened it Christmas morning. I couldn't wait to try it out! I read the instructions and I think that's what really helped make this a success for me. I have made cotton candy on 5 or 6 occasions now and I feel like I have a little system down. As the instructions state, I let it run for about 10 minutes before pouring in the floss sugar. I have found that letting it heat up/run between 10-15 minutes ensures that I will get a nice, fluffy product. Then I use paper cones and start turning it around vertically and then switch to horizontally once I've gone around a few times. I got the hang of it really fast. We get 2 small cones of cotton candy per 1 tablespoon of floss sugar. I thought clean up would be a nightmare, but it really is not. Once the water is warm enough to melt the sugar off, I clean the removable piece with some mild dish soap and make sure to dry it thoroughly. I also wipe down the outside of the machine. We love this so much that we haven't put it away since we got it! If you're looking to make candy for several people at a time, or big serving sizes like you get at a carnival, this is probably not the machine for you. If you're looking for a cost-effective way to have a bit of real cotton candy at home, it is worth every penny at under $25. As long as your expectations are reasonable, you're going to love this machine.

After reading negative reviews, I thought this would make bad quality cotton candy. It makes really good cotton candy, and it is overall an amazing machine, but it has some pros and cons.Pros:It is fun to make up fun flavorsIt is really, really easy to clean (in warm water)It is enjoyable to gather the webs of cotton candy and make conesCons:It is so fun making cotton candy, it is hard to stop coming up with new flavors.Makes brittle, crunchy cotton candy if you don't let it heat up enough. (5-7 minutes works really well)The cotton candy is really good, but it makes small cones with 2 candies, but good sized cones with 4 candies.For best results, don't put hard candy in if it hasn't heated up for at least 5 minutes. If you are making multiple batches, make some cotton candy and put it on a plate, then leave the machine running while you get more candy ready. Whole hard candies work the best, so don't use flossing sugar or crushed hard candies, or you have to heat the machine up for 10-15 minutes. It still works well, but whole hard candies work better. I have been experimenting, and some really good recipes for cotton candy are: 1 raspberry lifesavers+1 pineapple life savers, 1 werther's+1 rootbeer barrel, and one red lifesavers/cherry candy (something red and fruity)+ 1 red hot candy. Don't listen to bad reviews, because they are just reviews from people that don't read the instructions. This is a really, really good product. I would definitely buy it again.