For about six months now, I have been contemplating getting a die cutter. The way I see it, I have
2. Get a manual die cutter.
3. Get both an electronic AND a manual die cutter.
4. Do nothing.
In Part One, I explored my interest in electronic cutters in general and the Cricut Expression more specifically. With this post, I want to move on to manual die cutters.
Option Two: Get a manual die cutter.
There are several reasons why I am drawn to manual die cutters: embossing folders, nestabilities, QK border and cookie cutter dies and their overall simplicity, to name a few.
Embossing Folders: Several companies are now making embossing folders for die cut machines and I love them! They are such a quick and easy way to add texture and interest to cards, pages and more. I would just love to be able to add some of these textures to my projects.
Nestabilities: Okay, so if you've been watching my videos, you know how much I love my big Marvy Uchida scalloped circle punches. My only complaint about them is they don't go up in size in 0.25" increments ~ they increase in size in 0.5" increments only. This is a little annoying to me because I would love to be able to layer them more tightly together & have an eighth of an inch border all the way around instead of a quarter of an inch border.
That's why I love the Nestabilities so much. They would allow my to layer frames and shapes in the way I'd like, AND they give me more options for less space/money than those huge Marvy Uchida punches. Plus, they'd be less hard on my hands, which is always a plus. Sometimes I struggle with those big punches.
QK Border/Cookie Cutter Dies: I love the 12" border dies that QK has. They have a huge bracket that I would just love to get my hands on. Lots of great shapes for my to play with. And their cookie cutter alphas are nice and big and come in really great fonts ~ I'm already half in love with a few of them {Stardust! Mary Jane OMG! Love them!}. But these dies are so long that they won't work in my die cut machines, so that is certainly something I need to consider.
Simplicity: I am the kind of person whose creativity is hampered by too many choices. This is one of the many reasons why I scrap from page kits instead of directly from my stash ~ I need to limit my choices or I will never accomplish anything. While the idea of "no limitations scrapping" presented by an electronic cutter appeals to me on one level, it concerns me on another because I don't want my creativity stifled by too many choices. I don't want to be spending all my scrapbooking time choosing the perfect font from 1000 other fonts ~ I'd rather choose the perfect font from 10 other fonts and then get back to work.
I used to be on a local scrapbook store's design team {before moving to Miami} and used the diecut machine there frequently. They had one of those big Accucuts, which I loved, because it could cut chipboard pages for mini albums in seconds. I remember it was easy to just choose a die, choose some paper and run it through. Done in literally seconds!
I definitely feel myself leaning toward a manual die cutter over an electronic one at this point. The question now becomes which one? I think I will hold off on a decision until I see the QK Epic 6, since I would love a die cutter that can cut all QK dies and all competitor dies. Unless the Epic 6 has some major problems, I anticipate going with that one over any other. If the Epic 6 does have major problems, I will probably end up with either a Cuttlebug or a Big Shot AND a QK Revolution {gotten cheaply on clearance, I hope, once they bring out the Epic 6}.
Kathryn
Life's a beach. Scrapbook it.
Hi Kathryn,
ReplyDeleteI don't know the QK epic 6 so I cannot tell you about it. I don't know if it is correct what I am writing now but I thought that the big shot is form sizzix and that sizzix has also a longer plate to use with longer dies. You wrote that you think about a big shot and a QK revolution but I thought that you can use any die you want with the big shot. Maybe someone else know more about this.
Recently I found the embossingdies and I love them! They are great and I can also use them on the zip-e-mate.
greetings, Nanda
Nanda, thanks so much for posting!
ReplyDeleteYou are right ~ I did some more research and it seems the Big Shot can cut up to 14" long with the right plates, which means it will handle the long QK border dies! And that pretty much means that the Big Shot will cut everything I want to cut! Excellent!
I guess now the question that remains is whether or not to go with the crank Big Shot or the {electric} Big Shot Express?
Kathryn
Life's a beach. Scrapbook it.
So the Expression is not an option?.. I really love mine... You can do so much with it!
ReplyDeleteI think that the option of getting just an electric die cutter such as the Cricut Expression option has been shelved for the time being. The possibility still exists that I could end up with a manual and an electric machine eventually, though!
ReplyDeleteYou are a whiz on your Cricut ~ I saw all the cool things you made in your scraproom tour videos!
Kathryn
Life's a beach. Scrapbook it.
I am glad you are considering a big shot. You will most certainly be able to use the border dies. And besides the QK border dies, there are the sizzix borders. They also have many alphas. You can cut chipboard, material, thin plastic, the possibilities are what you want them to be.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Genny! I didn't realize that the Big Shot met all of my "requirements" for a die cut machine until Nanda pointed it out. It sounds like an awesome machine & you have given me even more ideas for things to do. You have all been so helpful to me, answering questions, giving advice ~ I really appreciate it!
ReplyDeleteKathryn
Life's a beach. Scrapbook it.
Hey Kathryn, It's so nice to find someone else that has the same issues over diecutting machines as I do. I've spent the last year trying to decide which option to go with too. I already have a quickutz squeeze and an original sizzix machine both of which I do use but they also both limit what dies etc I can use and like you I want to be able to use the embossing folders/texture plates and the border dies. But my biggest reason for wanting to change is a safety issue for me, my daughters love to craft and help with the sizzix machine but one day my youngest was pushing down the handle and it slipped out of her hand, the handle suddenly sprung back up and if I hadn't of got my hand there quick enough then it would of hit her in the face. She is alot older now but that doesn't change how I feel about the machine anymore. After alot of thinking on this subject I seem to have decided on the bigshot because it can do more than the cuttlebug or the spellbinders wizard. But when it comes to electronic cutters I still cannot decide if I want one or not and if I do which one. I've narrowed it down to the cricut expressions and the quickutz silhouette, if I ever decide I'll let you know.
ReplyDeleteCrafty hugs
Donna
Thanks, Donna! I, like you, he pretty much decided on the BigShot as well for the manual machine. It just seems like it is the most versatile of them all. I am still undecided about an electronic machine for now ~ as to whether or not I will get one ~ but I do believe that the Cricut Expression + SCAL is the most versatile combination. I'll keep you all posted on what happens with the electronic cutter decision.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
Kathryn
Life's a beach. Scrapbook it.