Yeah-its expensive. But as a woman who gets mad when thrift stores charge to much, its so worth it. I bought mine from a very popular auction website and saved about 150 bucks, so I will admit I don't have as much as invested in it as others. It is a pricey toy-but I am a teacher and I get my money out of it. It made me love scrap booking and the cartridges are going on my wish list for xmas next year. The lil adhesive pads loose their stick pretty quick, but I cheat and use either a spray or a repositional tape to "refresh" instead of replace.