I had never tried making macarons myself because I was too intimidated, but when I saw the new Macaron 101 e-course on A Beautiful Mess, I threw caution to the wind and purchased the course ($8) and all the needed supplies (about $30).
I'm only going to go through the highlights of baking macarons here since the process is so complicated and others can explain it much better than I can. A Beautiful Mess has also done a quick tutorial you can see here, but if you're really serious about making these delicious cookies, I recommend splurging on the e-course. Seeing the video and all the trouble shooting tips was really helpful.
There were a lot of firsts I experienced baking these macarons - first time whipping egg whites, first time piping cookies, first time using powdered food coloring. I was pleased to discover all of these things were way easier than I had anticipated!
I added some buttercream icing as a filling and let most of the macarons sit overnight. You're supposed to let the filling soak into the "shells" before eating them, but I had to try at least one of them! It cracked and melted just perfectly, and oh man...my tastebuds and heart were very happy.
This was my first attempt at macarons, and I was so shocked/happy/amazed that they turned out practically perfectly. I followed the Macaron 101 e-course directions to the letter, and I highly recommend the tutorial. You can purchase it for $8 from A Beautiful Mess.