Hi Heidi, I have an upcoming wedding in July of 2019. Awe, the end of a great machine. Cricut Maker can cut over 300 materials including leather, acetate, foil, balsa, bamboo fabric, basswood, boucle, broadcloth, burlap, calico, canvas, cardstock, cashmere, Chantilly lace, chiffon, duct tape sheets, copy paper, corrugated cardboard, cotton, craft foam, crepe paper, delicate fabrics like tulle, double knit, denim, EVA foam, faux fur, faux suede, felt, flannel, flat cardboard, flocked paper, iron-on, poster board, gauze, glitter cardstock, vinyl, gossamer, heavy chipboard, jersey, Kevlar, linen, Lycra, magnetic sheets, mat board, mesh, nylon, parchment paper, poster board, rice paper, satin silk, suede, tissue paper, tweed, vellum, velour, washi sheets, wax paper, wrapping paper and window cling.

What a great and exhaustive post for choices of electronic cutting machines! They work like the Maker for paper, card and vinyl. You'll see two metal bars going across the centre of the space. While the design software is fairly easy to learn, it does now allow lots of manipulation of your own projects.

im beginning to think i made a huge mistake and that the machine is only useful for stand alone cutting using cartridges.

So, not having owned, seen, or used a cutting machine before, I am new to the whole arena. I have a few questions. These machines are compatible with the the 1212 mat or the 1224 mat (sold separate), scanning mat (sold separate) or purchase the vinyl roll feeder separately to cut up to 6 feet long of vinyl without a mat.

I like car decals an I have bought so many t shirts car decals mailbox decals pretty much everything. Position the text over the square cut layer and adjust the text to the size you want.

If it is cardstock, either the Cricut Explore or Silhouette will work, but keep in mind, the mat area is only 1212 inches or you can get the extended mat of 1224. Now to figure out which package to get:) Or engrave detail into metal sheets.

Insert the loaded mat between the two slots and press the flashing arrow button. I am having a hard time deciding which one. I am hoping to create some of these things in leather and am torn between the preferred deep cutting ability of the Maker and the preferred flexibility of the Silhouettes software. It is called Offset. The Cricut Maker has a rotary blade attachment that is included. It really depends on what you are doing. This will be a huge time saver if you are making cards and such that require both of these features. It has 5000 grams of cutting force, which is 1000 grams more than the comparable Cricut Maker (4000 grams), which helps cut through thicker materials. Does it need to be straight or can it cut in curved? Even for the simplest designs (basic shapes), it would not accurately cut in small dimensions. Overall, the Cricut Maker is a great machine and a step up from the Cricut Explore 2 or 3. (Cricut does not have a stock right now, I'm afraid). The great thing about the software is that you arent required to work with an internet connection. Can you use it to cut letters for your boat? Im confused on which one to get I have 5 kiddos an 3 are girls who always sees shirts they like or they want their name or initials on them my 2 older girls like decals on their bdrm walls but we can never find anything they like. Ive been considering investing in a cutting machine and this post helps compare my options. Do you know if any of the manufacturers do community demontrations? Electronic cutting machines are just not strong enough to do a lot of wood cutting. All Silhouette machines run off of Silhouette Studio software, which comes with it. I use the tracing feature a lot. The Cricut Explore Air 2 can only do print and cut on white paper, so this is a great upgrade. Not sure if I should go with the Silhouette or the Cricut Maker. Watch as your Cricut machine gets to work! Users can enjoy cutting and drawing up to 2 times faster with the Explore Air 2 wireless Cricut machine. When the machine is working, the bottom bar turns to move the materials you are cutting forward and backwards. She has a Cricut Explore Air Machine, and she's happy with it, and is enough for her for now. Can I achieve anyhow the same with Cricut? There are numerous tutorials on how to create your own designs or import design files on Youtube. But it's paper and card projects where the Explore excels. (Materials).

I give some tips on where to buy and how to use heat transfer vinyl here: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/133067363976295600/. The Explore 3 can work with rolls of smart materials too. Do you think its a good idea to just buy the machine and then start looking into the extras? Cricut Explore 3 Machine The Cricut Explore 3 is the newest Explore machine to join the Cricut family. Larger mats are available to purchase separately, The unit only has a single clamp, so you'll need to swap tools if you want to both draw and cut on the same project, Fast Cut mode that's great for mass producing designs, Cuts a wide range of materials up to 2mm in thickness, Easy to use Smart Selector material sector dial lets you visually see your machine is set to the correct material, Coloured versions let you get a brilliant Sunflower Yellow, Mint or Peacock Blue Cricut machine, The Explore 3 model lets you use smart materials for cuts of up to 20 feet long, It can cut vinyls and decals up to 12 x 24 inches, which makes it great for designs intended to cover large areas, like the front of t-shirts or window panes, The machine will cut and score complex gift box designs for a quick and easy finish. There was still a slight learning curve for me when learning the Silhouette software, but I was able to learn quickly by watching YouTube. It makes them last longer.

In terms of machine quality, is buying a second hand cricut or cameo a good idea? I had an older Cameo and I just got the newest Cameo 3 for Christmas and I dont have any issues with either machine not cutting through. You would have to make it into a cut file in some other program. Will sell my old cricut personal cutter (hardly used), because I had no personal design capability. I dont think its very special in terms of cutting, its just UV stable and has a high quality low tack adhesive that sticks to the vinyl but even after years will not stick to the product. A busy mom to two teen girls living in metro Detroit, MI.

Hi Vicki, I bought a Brother Scan n Cut last August, after two trips back to the workshop they are now saying I purchased the wrong machine (mine is a CM110). I am hoping with your vast knowledge you may be able to assist me in determining which, if any, machine will meet all my needs. Are you just gonna use card stock or thinner materials like construction paper? The latest in the line of their cutting machines: it's as fast as The. Besides from paper flowers, are you also planning to make and cut crafts that use thicker materials? The cutting speed is the biggest difference between the Explore Air Wireless 1 & 2. Most crafters opt to purchase a Silhouette or a Cricut machine, but there are more options out there.

This Cameo is stronger and faster than ever. This opens up a whole world of ready-to-craft projects for you to explore! I use Youtube quite a bit for tutorials. You may be better off with a stronger machine.

Thanks for sharing at the #HomeMattersParty hope to see you again next week.

I design using attributes of both GIMP and Photoshop and have a printer print all my color (CMYK) designs on 8.5 x 11 white cardstock.

Thanks and keep safe Can one draw a seam allowance before cutting a shape? The Maker and the Explore also have a print and cut feature. So this is your very basic right here, if you don't have a budget, and is just looking for a tool to help you cut on your projects, then go for this one.

You can purchase online cut files for newer machines.

The Silhouette Cameo Pro would be a great option for those who are looking at starting a vinyl business.

I can make shirts, vinyl decals for my husbands business with the Silhouette software by tracing his logo and making a cut file. Pinterest is also a great resource for cutting machine projects. Like the Cameo 4, the Silhouette Cameo Pro machinealso has a built-in roll feeder, a built-in crosscutter for trimming off materials, it accommodates 3mm of material clearance for thicker materials, it has automatic blade and tool detection with the built-in sensors. You can trace images you find on the internet. The Cameo 4 has a larger clearance (3mm vs. 2mm) for thicker materials like balsa wood, leather, but will still cut things like cardstock, vellum, acetate and paper. Heidi, It works with heavy-duty materials like wood, leather and thin metal as well as more papercraft-friendly ones like vinyl, cardstock and vellum. but Im still a little confused on what machine is best for me, Ive never used any of them and Im looking to mainly make stencils for wood signs, but also would love to learn how to make other things, you mentioned something about logos and I would love to do some of those things for my husbands business! August 21, 2021 By Heidi 109 Comments This post may contain affiliate links that help support this site at no additional cost to you. Tracing is one of the best and most unique features on a machine (only the Silhouette), as far as using your own images or images found online. The drawbacks with the Cricut are less creativity for specialty projects and you must have internet connectivity to use your machine. If Im cutting felt, Ill probably need more than an average number of adhesive mats. Looking on Amazon, there seem to be packages you can get, but I tend to not like packages. The Silhouette is the only one that will trace the logos! The newest Silhouette Portrait 3 machine boasts an 8-inch wide cutting area, cuts up to 60 feet long and automatically detects Silhouette tools for cutting, sketching and more. If this is your first Silhouette machine, I would recommend the Cameo, but if you want to try some specialty crafts, the Curio is for you. With that said, Ive never used Adobe Illustrator (not that Im opposed to learning) and only have limited Photoshop experience.

I was going to purchase a Scan-n-cut 2 but Im concerned about the cost for accessories. This alls seems pretty intimidating and I dont want to get ahead of myself! Hi Jamie, Ive always wanted a cricut, and just recently found out there are other options. I would try and find someone local to you to help you run a few test runs.

The kids are doing a country theme,burp, old apple crates and cherry lugs. I gave pretty detailed articles here on all of those machines. The roll feeder pieces and support platform, nestle together for easy, neat storage while not in use. But we think the very best accessory for all the Cricut machines is a Cricut Access monthly membership. So, What will you use it for and how, my dear? If you wish to cut fabric, check out the sold separately Brother ScanNCut Fabric Mat, Fabric Blade Holder and Fabric Blade. We are all busy and my goal is to help you celebrate life and look great while you are doing it.

Be sure to check if your PC or Macs operating system is compatable. file and then print and cut. Will you use it for the business of paper flowers?

Brother offers the only series of home and hobby cutting machines with a built-in scanner. I have never used a cutting machine. She makes her paper flowers as a sample for her template business and she occasionally makes few pieces of large flowers and small ones for bouquets like probably once a month. Which machine would work best for designs to etch on glass & designs on thin metal? Shoot me a message at hello@deaneyweaneyblooms.com if you have some comments and/or thoughts with regards to what I wrote here! Your choice will heavily depend on what type of crafts you want to do and what type features you will want in a machine. It comes with an autoblade and autocut features where the machine will detect the thickness of the material you are cutting and adjust itself on its own-no fiddling with settings if you choose. The Silhouette Curio machine is a cool little machine and I believe it is meant to be a machine that compliments either the Cameo or Portrait. You can definitely do sign stencils with both machines. The Silhouette Cameo offers a tracing feature and you can trace your logo that way.

In addition, the machine will cut 2x faster when cutting these Smart Materials. Then even the Explore one* can do, so you can choose between the four machines, just consider if you plan to use it for a different purpose later on. So now I've somewhat explained the machines, let's answer the questions I listed above: (*Disclaimer: for the sake of familiarity, I just used what I would normally call the machines, air 2, air, the maker, etc). As far as Silhouette bundles, I prefer the ones with extra mats and blades or just the plain machine.

Like cut without using a may, and long sayings? There are several different types of cutters on the market and they all have very unique features. Here is the stuff you use to etch with! It is so easy to cut out printed decals or precision cut around detailed artwork by scanning and having the machine cut around your image. Or make large iron-on and vinyl designs, big enough cover the whole front of a t-shirt or big window panel decals.

Best for large paper, card and vinyl projects like gift boxes and t-shirts.

Here's my brief summary per model based on the chart above: It only has one tool holder (that houses the fine-point blade that is included in the set) you can then purchase a scoring tip with housing if you want to score your paper. The Cricut will do great with all of the projects you mentioned and so will the Silhouette if that is the route you want to go. As far as hand-drawn designs, the Silhouette would be best for that. You can use fonts you have installed in your computer system, or download Cricut fonts in Cricut Design Space. Click for the cutting writing project and make these lovely kitchen items. This is one of my favorite features of the Silhouette machine as you can create truly unique projects. I have a Cameo 3 and love it! So if you want convenience and have an extra budget, go for this one. Also, when doing the heat transfer, how long does that last on a shirt???? Best for everyday crafting of cards, labels and vinyl stickers. The Explore will cut fabric. I did forget to ask, would you recommend the Silhouette or the Cricut for what I mentioned I am looking to do? SAVE up to 79% on US shop price and pay in $$! You will need to create your stencil for the air erasing and use an air erasing cabinet.

I would like the machine to be versatile, easy to use, and cheap maintenance. I just found this article while searching for Cricut alternatives. or fabric for fabric flowers? They offer so many more features than the older machines and the motors are much stronger. The most versatile machine is the Cricut Maker. The latest in the line of their cutting machines: it's as fast as The Cricut Explore Air 2 but has the capability to cut broader set of materials like fabric, crepe paper and thicker ones like wood and chip boards.

How cool is that? The Silhouette really has the most design capability out of all of the machines. The second feature that this one has that the first machine doesn't have is the double tool holder.

Do you know if the Silhouette, Cricut or Scan N Cut will work with 3mm neoprene?

The Designer Edition upgrade allows you to cut SVG(vector files) files, unlocks the rhinestone features, has better eraser, knife and shear tools and more. If you use the upgraded software, you can also find tons of free SVGs. I am an artsy kind of person but havent dabbled much in crafts. I'd end up not using the full capability of the machine. It is best to use vinyl as a stencil to etch glass. Or are you gonna be like me (Deaney) who makes digital templates and just make samples? Like previous models, the Cricut Explore 3 works with 6 different tools for cutting and embellishing 100+ materials, including cardstock, vinyl, iron-on, glitter paper, cork, and bonded fabric (sold separately). I clean the area with rubbing alcohol or Windex to remove any dust/debris. Can you elaborate a bit about the type of projects you can do on each machine? Also, there are many places to find free files for the Silhouette.

There is a learning curve, but it can be done! Thanks so much! Which machine would you recommend please. The Maker has the most tools available and can cut the most materials. The Cricut maker machine is the best for fabric. The new Cricut Maker can also do print and cut on colored paper vs. just plain white paper. The iPhone X of crafters. I have unique cutting needs though. I will link them. The Cricut Joy is the entry-level crafting machine. Tracing is another unique feature of the Silhouette machines. But with Infusible Inks, the design is embedded into the fabric rather than attaching to the surface of it. These machines are perfect for quilters and stampers! I love baking bread, cookies and cakes. Cricuts have less of a learning curve, but you would have a harder time manipulating a custom file like a logo. Does the silhouette cut leather, or only the cricut? I would love to make some signs with cute sayings to hang in my house. Thank you so much! The Cricut Explore Air 2 Wireless machine has bluetooth capability that is built-in and the user canmanipulate and cut images wirelessly from a PC, Ipad or MAC, just like the regular Cricut Explore Air Wireless. This is usually a cutting blade or a pen. As for t-shirt vinyl. Learn how your comment data is processed.

The new Cricut Maker can also do print and cut on colored paper vs. just plain white paper. The older machines have weaker motors than the newer machines. The Explore 3 and The Maker 3 both work with rolls of Smart Materials. I just couldnt decide which machine to purchase. But with the Cricut design software, would I be able to type my own sayings, or make modifications to their stock designs. Thanx for the info Is the Brother machines the only ones that scan to accept free hand drawing designs?

It would probably cut car wrap vinyl since it does well with all other types of adhesive vinyl.



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