My first opportunity to get my hands on the
New Quilting by Design came in Minneapolis at Spring Quilt Market. I had heard it cut so many different mediums I was very interested to see for myself how it worked. You probably want to know there is more than one option for Cutting Machines. There is the
Big Shot and
Big Shot Pro. Both of those are hand cranked. For those of you can not or do not want to use the hand crank there is the
Big Shot Express that simply plugs into your electrical outlet. (The word on the street is there is another new one on the horizon.....The
Sizzix Vagabond Machine - inspired by Tim Holtz)
Click here for the You Tube Video- I've seen it and it is definitely worth looking at. For those of you who are interested in cutting fabric you will want to know the
Cutting Dies work in both machines.
Cheryl Adam is the designer of the quilt behind her. You will see her pictured below because she also attended the
Checker Distributor 62 Anniversary Open House.
The
Big Shot Pro has a cutting bed and comes with two acrylic cutting pads. It also comes with an adapter pad that is used for embossing....see below.
Depending on how you fold your fabric you can also make the above designs without using a special die. It is all in how you fold your fabric :)
Here
Sizzix had cut some rubber foam to make a rubber stamp. I like the variety of things these machines can be used for because I'm also a scrapbooker. (Yes, I have an obsession with paper....I've had it since I was a young child...shhhh our secret!)
This was Mrs.
IHAN (very tired) in Minneapolis using the
Big Shot to see how it worked. I also used the
Big Shot Pro but I decided I have so many photos here that you don't need to see all of them. If you want to....just ask :)
Now these are the photos I took at
Checker Distributor after returning from Spring Quilt Market. One thing I noticed when I used the
Sizzix Bigz 2in Hexagon was that there seemed to be threads that did not cut through. I called it the "dangling chad." I was curious why this was happening. I have since learned that this can happen with all die cutting systems and if it should occur, put a piece of paper on top of the fabric and that will eliminate the issue.
NOPE....it was a clean cut.
Now fast forward to the recent
Checker Distributor 62 Anniversary Open House (that is a long phrase and I'm about to just refer to it as "the CH-OH")
*
Dennis Horcher from
Sizzix and designer Cheryl Adam gave demonstrations of the
Big Shot and the
Big Shot Pro.
Here is the
Sizzix Bigz Pro 25 - 3-1/2in Strips die. Cheryl gave me a great tip, she suggested that when the acrylic mat is removed to slide it off as pictured below. This cuts down on static cling.
During the
CD -OH* I purchased the
Big Shot and brought it back to
IHAN Headquarters to give it a whirl.
Some assembly required. I actually read the directions, aren't you proud of me? The handle has to be attached and I found that to be quite easy. The instructions are clear easy for me to understand.
The Big Shot Machine itself weights apx. 7lbs 9oz and it stands on 6 small rubber feet. It is very sturdy and does not move when I put the dies through the machine. The instruction booklet does have Tips for using Fabric and it says to use paper on top of the fabric as well as other tips.
I sandwiched one mat, the die, fabric and the other mat together and put it on the bed of the
Big Shot Machine. I laid it down and with one hand held it in place while I used the handle to move the die sandwich through the
Big Shot Machine. No I did not iron my fabric, I could have but for the demo I did not bother. This is what I got the first time.
I now know the remedy to this so I took another scrap of fabric and put some of my used paper (I only use recycled/used/junk mail etc for the paper).
The results.....perfect Poinsettia and Daisy petals :) No "dangling chads." The only problem is I used green....had I been actually thinking I would have used yellows and golds. Next time :) I was a Gal on a Mission.
The machine's I used did not move when I was cranking the handle to get the die through the machine. The weight and the rubber feet seemed to keep them in place. I was able to cut (using the
Sizzix Bigz Sunflower and Poinsettia Petals) up to 10 layers of cotton fabrics and still get precise cuts. It also cut 4 layers of denim without a problem. Once the fabric becomes too high the "die sandwich" will not go through the
Big Shot any longer. So there is a limit on the layers of fabric it will cut. I cut one layer of woof felt and up to 4 layers of card stock. I liked the price of the Cutting Machines. The prices of the dies vary from 19.99 all the way up to 89.99.
I really like the repeating dies that cut one shape in the same size several times.
If using your hands has become difficult you can get the
Big Shot Express that simply plugs into the wall.
Although I have not done any embossing in my scrapbooking or fiber life both of these machines have embossing plates. I like that I can cut paper, cardstock as well as a variety of fabrics. The machines are compatible with most everything
Sizzix makes, I don't own any of those other items so I can't give them a review at this time.
I"m sure I will learn more as time goes by and I use my
Big Shot more. None of the items I reviewed were given to me, I purchased everything and was not asked by anyone to do this review.
Smiles,
Kelly
