Tools - Cutting & Trimming

If you're like me you'd rather spend your dollars on stamps, dies, and inks, tools may not make it to the top of the list when your shopping.  I tend to research and ponder the purchase of tools.  Rarely do I buy them on a whim, like I do with a stamp set.  As By Grace Everett pointed out to me not too long ago, tools help make the end result easier when we're creating.   Today I want to talk about die cutters, scan and cut, and trimmers.

Die Cutting Machines:

In 2015, I purchased the We R Memory Keepers Evolution manual die cutting machine.  The Evolution has been retired, but I adore this machine, as there's no "sandwich" making.  There are two plates and a dial to adjust the pressure.  I'm sad that it's getting harder and hard to find replacement cutting plates so will be looking to upgrade in the near future.  

I am currently researching Spellbinders' Platinum and Platinum 6.  Spellbinders has also recently come out with a universal plate system that makes their machines more appealing to me.  While I'm not crazy about moving to a "sandwich system" this one seems more appealing that the others on the market. 

Brother Scan & Cut:

I mentioned that I have the Brother Scan and Cut CM250, a discontinued model, in Monday's post. This machine makes cutting my own stencils a breeze and has eliminated any need to buy coordinating dies completely.

Most of the things I cut take one to three minutes, making cutting multiple images quick and easy.  My Scan and cut makes creating multiples of a design a breeze.

Paper Trimmers:

I've had a Fiskars Premium Cut Line trimmer for YEARS (left photo in collage below).  I still love my Fiskar trimmer with the wire guide and I use it regularly.  

I bought the smaller Fiskars guillotine style trimmer a few years ago.  It was an experiment, to see if I would really like having a guillotine trimmer (top right photo in collage below).  It's perfect to do fine trimming on a project or cutting a quick sentiment strip.  

The third trimmer in my studio is the large 12" Tim Holtz Trimmer.  I used this trimmer most often for cutting card bases and panels (bottom right photos in collage below).

Scissors:

My go-to scissors are the Fiskar Easy Action Scissors.  They are small with a micro point and are easy on the hand because of the handle style.  They're great for fussy cutting too (scissors on left).

My scissors for sticky tape are a pair of what I would call school scissors.  They're from Academic and have a slightly rounded tip. (scissors in middle).

The backup fussy cutting scissors are the Small Precision Scissors.  They have a tiny tip with a sharp point (scissors on the right).