Showing posts with label die cuts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label die cuts. Show all posts

Thursday, October 15, 2015

New Embossing Machine

I am so excited! Here's why...

I had been wanting an embosser for a while and had done the homework.

There are 2 big name competitors when it comes to (folder) embossing. (Not to be confused with powder/heat embossing.)
  • Sizzix - 
    • Big Shot
    • Texture Boutique
  • Cricut
    • Cuttlebug
I didn't need anything fancy. I already have a Silhouette Cameo cutter (which I absolutely LOVE, by the way), so I didn't need it to die cut...just give some texture to some of my cards.

The Sizzix Big Shot has a wider opening that lets you use larger embossing folders like the 5" x 7" size, and it also is big enough to take large die cut dies, However it was too large for my tiny crafting space and limited storage space. It also came with a fairly big price tag too.

The Sizzix Texture Boutique was small and simple. It uses the standard A2 embossing folders (4.5" x 5.75" (Large enough to do the entire front of a note card.)

The Cricut Cuttlebug can accommodate the A2 and the larger 5" x 7" folders like the Big Shot, but it is not quite as big and bulky.

I had decided that for my needs, the Texture Boutique would work just fine. So, I had been keeping my eyes peeled for holiday sales.

A few weeks ago, I saw an e-mail from my local  Stampin' Up! demonstrator mentioning the sale going on to make room for all the new holiday scrapbooking and stamping kits. And the Stampin' up version of the Sizzix Texture Boutique was on clearance! I got a SWEET DEAL - less than $25 even with shipping!

But, when my Boutique arrived in the mail a few days later, I realized that I had no folders to test it out with. Thankfully a friend and fellow crafter, Liz Carlin, let me come by her craft studio, and "play" with her folders and die cuts. I brought paper scraps and my embosser, and she had a huge storage bin of folders!

I am going to use this one on a flip card I'm putting together for Halloween. I tried adding some black sparkles but then changed my mind. (I haven't removed them all in this picture, as you can see.) I think it might look really cool with BLACK card stock as the base.



Well, that was 2 weeks ago. Since then, I have been scouring the the internet for deals on A2 embossing folders. My eBay find just arrived from Canada today.

It is a two folder set: Dots/Zigzags and Flowers.

I tried them out on a few different papers that I have. The first is a heavy 140 lb professional watercolor paper. (I had some small pieces that I had used to "practice" a wet into wet blending technique before applying it to a large painting. They were completely dry and had been sitting there just waiting for me to figure out what to do with them.)

The other two are Canson 98 lb mix media paper scraps. One is plain the other I used a chalk pastel to emphasize the embossing image.



Unfortunately, embossing does not make for good photography. You can't really see the texture here. Especially not on the thicker painted watercolor paper. Take my word for it, they are great!

I also found another deal on eBay a few nights ago. That one should get here early next week.

I'll post more pics then. Please be sure to check out Liz's crafting blog too. (CraftItWithLiz.wordpress.com) She is so creative with so many different materials! Until next time...Keep Calm and Keep Crafting!

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