new toy

I finally broke down and bought a die cut system. What is that, you ask? Well... it is a way to cut alphabets and shapes quickly and easily. There have been many different die cut systems marketed towards scrapbookers in the past 7-8 years. But I never bought in. Just couldn't justify (to myself) spending the money.

The "early" machines required purchasing actual dies, which are expensive and take up lots of space, which were then pushed thru the machine with your paper to cut the shape. In the past couple years, new alternatives have cropped up . Some machines require a computer hookup, which is bad for portability, but great for flexibility, since all ttf's (true type fonts) can be cut with those systems. Some machines still require proprietary equipment (cartridges, memory disks) that hold the alphas and shapes that can be cut; these machines are great for portability since they need no computer. Machines come in a variety of sizes too, from one that cuts max 2.5 inches, to others that cut up to 23.5 inches.

Well, as I said, I finally broke down and bought one. And man, am I loving it! :-) I bought a Cricut Expression, (pronounced like the cricket, therefore folks call them Bugs) which "is a way to cut letters, shapes, and phrases from .5" to 23.5" simply by touching a button. No computer is required, just plug it in. Place your favorite cartridge in your Cricut and choose from hundreds of designs." So yes, there are proprietary cartridges that can be purchased at an additional cost - but wow! these cartridges have tons of options. AND... drumroll please... there is 3rd party software that enables the Cricut to be attached to a computer, to print any ttf. For folks who are really into this, it is even possible to create your own design or shape in other software and cut it with the Cricut.Two of my most recent LOs had assistance from my new Bug. I'm still in the basic usage state, but as I get more comfortable with it, I look forward to trying not only more fun and funky features, but also using that 3rd party software to cut fonts that reside on my computer.