simple dreams

Pierceability Strips

Now that I have shared the very basic edge cut, emboss and pierce that you can obtain when using the Pierceabilities I am going to share another option - creating paper strips. Remember my excitement with the Create-a-cut last year - well some of the elements in these designs came from my desire to offer an alternative to that look. First the shaped cards with the Nestabilities and now more detail and edge options with the Pierceabiltiies - insert big silly grin Ü Detail is one of those things that I love and so to be able to offer new and different detail elements is always a part of what I am trying to achieve. Texture is another element and I have found that the subtle texture that piercing creates just adds such a fabulous detail to our projects.

On the July 4th I shared a red/white and blue apron project with you using the exact same elements that I will share today. Different papers and embellishments provide a different look. For that example I used Basic Grey Boxer papers, for today's look I am using Basic Grey's Euphoria collection and some items from this month's Stamp of the Month Packet.

To create this card I used two of the new Pierceability dies from the S4 167, Victorian Pierceabilities Set. Many of you have asked when the new dies will be available for purchase - we project August some time. Rather than holding your $$$ for a preorder and experiencing the chaos of last July we are hoping that patience will be a better method this go round. We would be thrilled for you to express your interest in purchasing these from us so that we make certain to order enough, but please know that we will do our best to have an inventory supply that will meet your needs (yeah like that ever happens, right - LOL!) You are welcome to write us at customerservice@ellenhutson.com and put your name on a list indicating your interest. This will help ensure that we order enough product to meet your needs.

Several questions have arisen by my confusing addition of "flipping" the Wizard sandwich from it's original version, so I am going to try to verbalize this again to hopefully make this explanation a little clearer.

The Original Wizard cutting sandwich is as follows:

• Embossing Mat (This one of the thick white mats that comes with the original Wizard package - when you first get the package we recommend using a Sharpie to write on your plate so that when you are creating you will hopefully avoid cutting into this mat. Being it looks identical to the Cutting Mat it can get confusing and this is the reason for labelling your Mats.)
• White Spacer Plate (Again this is a plate that is not designed to be cut into, it is the thinnest of the white plates included with the Wizard)
• Die - cut line or blade FACE UP (see picture below)
• Notecard or cardstock
• Cutting Mat (This is also a thick white mat that we designate for cutting only so that we keep the other white mat fresh and clean with no cuts. We do this so that when we emboss, the lines of the cutting will not be transferred to our work. I kid you not when I tell you that you can easily emboss a thread into your paper using the Wizard, perhaps even something as small as a human hair. I haven't tried it, but it might be an interesting experiment. Therefore we need the embossing mat to remain pristine.)

I have inserted the above picture to show a close up of the dies shown FACE UP to hopefully avoid more confusion.

Here is where I confused people - I actually flip the entire sandwich, so below is Ellen's Wizard Sandwich:

• Cutting Mat
• Notecard or cardstock
• Die - cut line or blade FACE DOWN
• White Spacer Plate
• Embossing Mat

Now you ask - why do I do this? I do this so that I can see precisely where it is that I have stamped an image and am placing my die. Being that you can see right through the dies I find that I am able to be much more precise doing it this way. My die still has the cut line or blade going directly into the Cutting Mat and therefore I am keeping my White Spacer Plate and Embossing Mat in pristine condition. I hope this makes sense now, but if it doesn't please keep asking. I will continue to try until it makes sense to everyone. Thanks for your patience with me as I try to get this explanation sensible - LOL!

So here we go again. We start in a very similar manner to the basic project I described a couple of days ago. Start with the cutting mat, then your cardstock and followed by the Pierceability die with the cut BLADE DOWN. Remember I have added a TINY bit of removable mono adhesive to the corners of my die to hold it firmly in place.

Follow this with the white spacer plate. Hmm - I think you can tell by this picture that I have even used not so temporary adhesive with some of my experimenting - LOL! I think I need to give it a good cleaning so that I don't embarrass myself in future posts Ü Now place the embossing mat on the top of this stack and send it through your Wizard.

Pick up the die and remove the tiny cut strip from the edge. Pick up your die and turn it around on your project. Align the edge of your cut paper with the edge of the die. The cut blade is now on the opposite side. See arrow for indication of where the cut line or blade is now.

Once again layer your white spacer plate and embossing mat on top of this sandwich and send through your Wizard.

You now will have a strip as shown above. It can be left as is or sent back through to be embossed. For the picture above I should have changed my plate out before taking the picture and I apologize for this slip. This particular project is fine being embossed with the strip laying here on the cutting mat as shown because the metal completely covers the bottom portion of the paper, but if you actually had a cardfront extending above this strip all the lines from my cut plate would be embossed into my paper project. So for your embossing sandwich I would like you to use the following sandwich with your Wizard.

Ellen's Wizard Embossing Sandwich:

• Embossing Mat
• Pierceability Die
• Notecard front or cardstock - in this case the Pierceability paper strip you see above
• Tan Embossing Mat
• Cutting Mat

Another question I would like to clarify is the big question - do these dies do the actual piercing? No, they do not. You will still need to pierce the holes.

This was one of the areas that we discussed at length and arrived at the conclusion that it will allow the most versatility if we allow customers to choose which portions of the die they would like to pierce and even emboss. Future posts will bring more clarity to these options and will show the amazing versatility you can achieve with the dies. I will show you how to use portions of the dies only and try and help guide you through the possibilities.

These are just two of the completed strips I created with this set of dies.

The other feature I wanted to share with you from today's post is the ability to combine your work using these two dies. They were designed so that you will be able to coordinate and switch out some of the elements between the dies. As you can see above I elected to use the coordinating die to cut the edge on my striped paper.

As you can see from the picture above the "bumps" and "points" are designed to align. Also the size of the pierced circles are designed to accept all sorts of embellishments - gemstones, brads, eyelets - I can hardly wait to see what you discover as possibilities!

Many of you have asked when the entire line of new dies will be revealed - I believe that it will be the first day of CHA! I can't believe that CHA starts this week - it runs from July 17-20. I will be in Chicago from the 16th through the 21st, but the girls will still be here in Seattle keeping things moving along as smoothly as possible. I don't know how I would do it without them - a big thanks to our team that keeps things going when I'm away! Have a wonderful day and thank you for sharing in the excitement!!!

Pierceability - Beginner Basics

Today I would like to share my first tutorial on using the Pierceability Dies. To start I wanted to share the simplicity of the die when used alone. The possibilities are endless, but sometimes endless is overwhelming - so I figured I would start simple and work my way through some of the possibilities.

This card shows three of the four possibilities these dies offer - cut, emboss and pierce.

If you haven't noticed the new links I have added on the left side of my blog please take a moment to observe that there are now links to several YouTube videos produced by Stacey Caron, the owner of Spellbinders. Hopefully these videos will take some of the guesswork out of creating die "sandwiches". A link has also been provided under the Category section to take you to all posts that talk about and share compatibility sandwiches.

Pierceabilities are used in a similar manner to all other Spellbinder dies and therefore the sandwiches will remain the same for these dies as for the Nestabilities and all other Spellbinder dies.

I would like to challenge you to figure out the sandwich that works best for you. Then write it down and attach it to the bottom of your machine or store it in a place you will be able to find it. But, don't be like me and write it down forgetting where you put it - LOL!

I have found that I like to turn my sandwiches upside down, so that I can see where I am placing my dies. NOW talk about confusing - LOL! I am going to share my own personal sandwich for the Pierceabilities with you because this is what I find works best for me. You all know how particular I am about precision - LOL! Well this allows me to be as precise as I possibly can be.

Following is my Pierceability sandwich using the Wizard starting at the bottom and moving upwards:

Pierceability Cutting Sandwich using the Wizard

• Cutting Mat
• Notecard front or cardstock
• Pierceability die - temporary adhesive lightly applied (see below)
• White Spacer Plate
• Notecard back (when using just a single layer of cardstock this element is skipped)
• Embossing Mat

Tombow Removable Mono Adhesive has become my best friend as I use my dies. I'm not certain you can even see that I have applied a very small amount of removable adhesive in the lower right hand corner of my Pierceability. I have found that my hands shake - perhaps its too much coffee or just simply the aging process, LOL, but I really don't want my dies moving at all on me. Being they are so lightweight any miscalculation on my part and my die would scoot out of position. Removable or temporary adhesive has been my answer. I now keep it right next to my work area along with an adhesive removal eraser. When I place the die I firmly press on the two spots that I have applied adhesive and the die magically stays in place for the whole process. When my project is complete I then remove the adhesive by lightly rubbing it off with my finger or specialty eraser.

As you can see from this picture I position the die, cutting blade face down, on the very edge of my notecard. In the closeup view with the adhesive above the die is face up - the line parallel with the top edge is the cudding blade. This blade does not feel sharp to the touch. It cuts due to the high pressure that is exerted on it when run between the rollers of your die cutting machines. (Please know that the pinking points are "pointy" and so you will want to use caution and keep the pointy dies away from small children.) 

What you are seeing above is my sandwich without the top embossing mat in place. First is the cutting mat, then is the notecard and pierceability die as shown in the picture above this one.

Next, I placed my white spacer plate on top - you can see it just peeking out above the word cutting. Then I fold the scored notecard back over top of the spacer plate. The critical part of this "formula" is making certain that your spacer plate is aligned as close as possible to the score line of your notecard to avoid getting markings on your notecard.

Last I place my embossing mat on top of the mix and send it through the Wizard.

As you can see in this picture I am using my new Wizard, but I am using it with my old mats. I love the new color and the ergonomic features that have been designed in to it. Many of you already know that we have had a delay in the Wizard shipments and some have been recalled. The Wizard itself works great, it is the new mats that didn't work so great with the new Wizard, they were just too soft. Spellbinders really wants to make certain that the product that goes out is 100% functional and universal, therefore we have taken the Wizards off of our store and sent out a notice to either return your new Wizard to us (if you ordered it through us Ü) or the choice to wait and have new mats shipped out to you as soon as we receive the new replacement mats.

I would also like to once again remind you of a post that I did some time ago where I showed how it is that I use my Wizard being I have it placed sideways, as shown above, when I use it. I have found that with my injured thumb it makes it so simple for me when it is turned this direction vs. the direction that is shown in the beginner video included with the Wizard.

Pierceability Embossing Sandwich using the Wizard

• Embossing Mat
• Pierceability Die
• Notecard front or cardstock
• Tan Embossing Mat
• Notecard back (when using just a single layer of cardstock this element is skipped)
• Cutting Mat

Again the important part to remember in the sandwich above is to align the Tan Embossing Mat square with the score line of your notecard. This helps avoid those extra "markings" that can occur on your paper if you have the embossing mat stop in the middle of the card front.

This picture is here just to show you what the project looks like at this point - we have now cut and embossed and are ready to pierce.

Turn your project over and place it on a piercing pad. The Ornare piercing pad and piercing tool work beautifully with these dies. This is the point where flexibility comes into play once again. If you would like to only pierce a portion of the design you could elect to pierce only the biggest square around the fleur de lis, or perhaps you would want to do just the smaller squares - it is entirely up to you Ü.

I hope that you have been enjoying the sneak peeks from all the Spellbinders Design Team members. There are only two days remaining - I can't believe it! I have created several other projects, but unfortunately I realized that I was using dies that had not yet been shown, so I need to wait on sharing them just a little while longer. We have some awesome new dies arriving in August that we are so excited about sharing with you. There are more to come and I can hardly wait to share the full release with you Ü

Thanks for stopping by today and have a wonderful weekend!!!

The Party Continues!

We have just returned from remote Hat Island here in the Puget Sound. I call it remote, even though it is situated amongst some of the most popular islands here in the Sound, being there is a ferry that runs only a couple of times a week to get there. We had the pleasure of spending several days there with our BIL and SIL - thank you Cynthia and Roger for a relaxing stay! The beauty of this area is absolutely breathtaking.

The girls had fun jumping the waves, playing in the sand and watching Jasper experience the beach for the first times.

Now on to why you really have come here - LOL! Sorry, but I do not have the name of the winner of the Pierceabilities just yet. The deadline for entering the contest for the Pierceabilities pictured below has officially ended.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your kind words and support. It is so fun to know that you are excited about the Pierceabilties. I will do my best to share all the knowledge I have gained as to how to use these with you, so that you in turn will be able to make beautiful creations with these when they arrive. My understanding is that we are looking at August for the arrival date, so be certain to let your favorite retailer know that you would like them (we will be carrying them as well Ü).

The party continues - you still have time to enter the following Sneak Peek Party drawings, so head on over to the following fabulous blogs on each designated day!

• Today until midnight: Caffeinated Thoughts by Michelle Klomp
• Today, July 6: Linda's Works of Heart by Linda Duke
• July 7: Mish Mash by Michelle Wooderson
• July 8: Inky Heart by Sally Lynn MacDonald
• July 9: Cookies for Breakfast by Beth Pingry
• July 10: PaperFections by Sharon Harnist
• July 11: Today's Creations by Holly Craft
• July 12: Donya Schroeder by Donya Schroeder
• July 13: Follow Your Bliss by Trudee Sauer 

Good luck and I will be posting the winner later today upon my return today from the Mariners game.

Spellbinders Pierceabilities™!

Happy Fourth of July! It's time to CELEBRATE!!!

I hope you are all having a wonderful time celebrating your freedom with family and friends. I thank you for taking the time out of your busy day to come and visit with me here today. Especially since I believe this is going to be a post of epic proportion - LOL!

Perhaps in taking a glimpse at the card above you will not at first see what it is that I have to share in my sneak peek, but I hope that once you read through my post and send your message off to Spellbinders to enter the contest for today you will be back to take a closer look at the pictures to see exactly how it is that I used Spellbinders brand new product, Pierceabilities™, on these projects.

Today I have the pleasure of introducing a product that I proposed to the Caron's over a year ago when Nestabilities™ were being developed. I would like to say how proud I am to have been involved with Spellbinders in the conception of this product and take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the Caron's. I would like to introduce to you Spellbinders Pierceabilities™ by Ellen Hutson.

 

 

 

 

 

S4 165 Pinking Pierceabilities™ ($19.99)

(approx 5 5/8" long by 3/4" and 1" high)

 

 

 

 

 

S4 167 Victorian Pierceabilities™ ($19.99)

(approx 5 1/2" long by 1/2" and 5/8" high)

Pierceabilities™ - what are they? what will they do?

Each set of Pierceabilities™ will include two dies per package, along with a Transparent Piercing Template to aid in piercing. I will share more information regarding what this is and how it will be used in a future post.

Below are pictures of the actual dies - I am hoping that by sharing this picture you will be able to "see" what these dies will look like and thus get a better understanding of how they work.

 

So what will they do?

• Cut - these will cut just like your other Spellbinder Dies and Nestabilities™. Hopefully you can see the raised line along the lower edge of the die - this is the cutting line. Each Pierceability™ die being released at CHA will have a different edge design for cutting and embossing! 
• Emboss - the Pierceability™ dies will run through the Wizard and almost any other die cut machine. They will emboss just as the other Spellbinder Dies and Nestabilities™ emboss. You will use the same sandwiches which you have already learned (thank goodness Ü). Stacey Caron has put together a fantastic video demonstration for you showcasing how to use the Spellbinder dies in other die cut machines. Please follow this link to YouTube for a wonderful video demonstration!
• Stencil - again this feature is the same as all previous Spellbinder products. Airbrush, chalk, sponge - use the die as a stencil to achieve beautiful and unique results!
• Pierce - now this is where the whole difference comes in to being - thus the name Pierceabilities™ Ü. We toyed with the idea of having the die actually do the piercing, but after much thought we felt that you would be able to achieve SO MUCH MORE if you were allowed the flexibility of piercing by hand. This option allows you to pick and choose from different areas of the design, using the entire die or only a portion - whatever suites your project. Versatility and value have been foremost in our thought process in the development of this product. The looks you are going to be able to achieve... well, I'm jumping up and down in my chair right now!
• Not only can you do each of the above individually, but you can combine the above elements for an even greater variety of looks! Remember, with Spellbinders the difference is in the details.

These cards were made to share the basic looks that you will be able to achieve with the Pierceabilities™ alone. I was absolutely stunned with the beauty of their simplicity. What perfect wedding, anniversary, or thank you notes these would make. Just place a sentiment inside or on the front and your work is complete.

Details will be shown in future posts as to how I created each of the projects. Today is all about the eye candy and the drawing!!!

This card shows the basic function of the die used three ways - cut along the lower edge, embossed and pierced.

Next I wanted to share that you can only emboss and pierce - no need for cutting. This was repeated in two places on the card front to give it a completely different look than one "border" would achieve.

Not only did I want these dies to work on the 5 1/2" side of the card, but much thought was put into how they could possibly work on the 4 1/4" side as well.

With some cardstocks, these dies will also cut through two layers. These examples are created using the Neenah Classic Crest Solar White - a quality, heavy cardstock. I cannot wait to see what other possibilities will unfold with time!!!

Yes, I used the new label, that Debbie revealed to showcase how you can pierce through our metal foil! This is a very simple design that just touches the surface of the possibilities of revisiting the folk-like pierced tin techniques!!!

Last, but not least I just couldn't help myself by sharing this little sneak peek of a clear album that I have made using the new Label 1 set in conjunction with piercing using the new Pierceabilities™. I can assure you that I will share the inside, as well as all the details regarding working with plastic, but there are more dies in use that I cannot yet reveal - you are just going to have to wait for the final reveals and my return from CHA Ü

 

Spellbinders Birthday Celebration

Sneak Peek Party Drawing Information

Drawing Information

Spellbinders will randomly pick one entry from each of the 14 Spellbinders Sneak Peek Blog reveals as stated in the "Rules". This name will be drawn to receive the die being revealed on said blog. These entries must follow all rules stated below to be valid for the drawing.

Entrants visiting all 14 Spellbinders Birthday Celebration Sneak Peek Blog reveals and correctly entering their information into the 14 separate drawings, as described below, will automatically be entered into a GRAND PRIZE give away of a new RASPBERRY WIZARD and a $500 retail value die package!

Rules

Any participant wishing to be included in the daily drawing for the Spellbinders Birthday Celebration Sneak Peek die give away must adhere to all of the following rules:

1. Participant must click on the provided drawing link on blog to enter each individual drawing on sneak peeks between June 30 and July 13.
2. Participant must type in the subject line the name/names of the die/dies being revealed.
3. Participant must send their entry for this blog before 12:00 midnight Central Standard Time on July 5th, 2008.
4. Participant is only allowed to enter each of the 14 Spellbinders sneak peek blog give away drawings one time per sneak peek. Participant must use the same email address daily to be considered for grand prize entry.
5. Spellbinders Design Team members and employees are not eligible for drawing.

Any participant wishing to be automatically entered into the drawing for the Spellbinders Birthday Celebration Sneak Peek Grand Prize drawing, must enter the drawing from all of the 14 blog reveals and follow all the above rules.

Please note:

• Spellbinders will only use email information to contact the winner.
• Spellbinders will not share this email address with any other parties.
• Spellbinders will not use this email information for advertisements of communications other than to contact the winner.
• If you wish to be included in further communications from Spellbinders, please go to their homepage and sign up: www.spellbinders.us.

Again the deadline for entering in the drawing for my sneak peek today, the Spellbinders S4-165 Pinking Pierceabilities™ and S4-167 Victorian Pierceabilities™, is midnight July 5th (Central Time). Don't forget to enter yesterday's sneak peek on Heidi Blankenship's blog Embellished Dreams before midnight July 4th (Central Time).

Click here to enter the drawing. If this pop-up link does not work or you use an email client that does not work with this pop-up box, you may copy and paste this address to send your entry via email to - newdierelease@spellbinders.us.

I hope to be able to share the winner of this portion of the sneak peek drawing with you on Sunday, July 6th. Best of luck and don't forget to enter the remaining sneak peek drawings!

Sharing the Love - FREE Hearts!

ETA: Please be advised - we are now out of the incorrect sizes of Spellbinder's Scalloped Heart Nestabilities! Thank you all for your enthusiasm and support! We will do our best to get as many orders out as possible today and the remainder on Monday. Have a marvelous weekend - I am hoping to finally post something creative here over the weekend - whew - life is BUSY!!! Ü

I also want to update our customers regarding the new replacement sets - those were shipped out to you on February 13th - YIPPIE!!!! If you do not receive your replacement set sometime next week please advise us ASAP so that we can be certain to follow through. We will be receiving our replacements towards the end of next week and will put them back up on the store for you to enjoy at that point. I know that Valentine's is over, but I do think that you will enjoy them for Mother's day and other upcoming events as well. Thank you SO MUCH for your patience with this situation!

Happy Valentine's Day!!! We are thrilled to let you know that we are giving away a fabulous Valentine's day gift with all orders that include Spellbinder's Nestabilities! We have been given the go ahead by Spellbinders to share the Scalloped Heart sets that are the incorrect sizes with you! Being that they are still 100% functional we did not want to relegate them to the landfills just because they didn't nest properly. Spellbinders is a generous and thoughtful company and when I asked whether we could just give these away to our customers who purchase Nesatbilities through us for FREE their response was an immediate, YES!

So starting with the shipment of today's orders of Nestabilities we will be including a FREE set of the old discontinued version of the Scalloped Hearts set, the set that is NOT compatible with the Classic Heart Nestabilities, with each order. All it takes to qualify for this gift is purchasing a set of Nestabilities of any type. We want to be certain that these dies will be given to those of you who have already made a commitment to the line and have the necessary tools to use them.

This offer will be continue until we run out of sets. We will make an announcement on our site and here on our blog when we run out of the discontinued Scalloped Heart Nestability sets. We sincerely appreciate your support and hope that these beautiful hearts will be put to good use Ü

CHA Day 1 and 2 - Spellbinders Listens

Excitement is in the air!!! If you are here at CHA I would LOVE, love, love for you to head over to the Innovations display - I am SO thrilled. To see a vision I shared with others as being innovative - well... needless to say I am thrilled! BUT we need your votes - if you are at the show and you are excited about this product we would love to have you share your opinion with the crafting world, by placing your vote.

Be certain to check out the beautiful framed artwork that has been created by Debbie Olson. It is beautiful in this picture, but the depth when seen in person is truly stunning!

Now the news you have all been awaiting. Yep, I've seen it, touched it, watched it in action and learned more about it. Xcalibur is smooth, quiet and does a beautiful job of both cutting and embossing!

If you have the opportunity to head over to the Spellbinders booth and see it, you really should! They have a questionnaire that your participation in may make a difference in the final product. Spellbinders is a company that cares about what it is that their customer is looking for. They would like to hear your reaction to this machine - do you like the color? What do you think of the fact that it has a handle on the top to carry it? Do you like the fact that there is a drawer in the bottom to hold all your plates?

I know you are all wanting to know the price point of this fabulous new tool. I am thrilled to tell you that it will be less than $150, with the goal being $129!!! Being that it is still in prototype stage it is difficult to pinpoint a final pricepoint.

Will it cut and emboss at the same time? This question has been one of the questions that has been asked most frequently. One of the distinctive qualities that Spellbinders dies offer is versatility - the option to cut only, emboss only, as well as cut and emboss. If Spellbinders designed the Xcalibur to cut and emboss simultaneously that flexibility would be lost. Thus this machine works identical to the Wizard in how the sandwiches are designed. The space between the rollers is the same as the original Wizard - and thus there will be no new sandwiches for Wizard users to use. Yes, you will still need sandwiches. Why? The answer again is simple - versatility. This machine will still have the flexibility to use most manufacturers dies. The only ones that will not be recommended for use with the "X" will be the ones where you would actually need to push the die in further using your fingers. As soon as I can confirm the details I will share them with you. (I learned so much these last two days that it is all beginning to muddle in my mind - LOL!)

What has impressed me most so far? Well it's little things -

• Xcalibur of course - that's a given :D
• We have NEW NESTABILITIES!!! The much anticipated long rectangle series - I believe I asked for them to be 6" in length. Again they reduce in size scaling down to a size that will be PERFECT for sentiments. Wait until you see some of the ideas we have for using these!
• More TAGS! developed methodically by my wonderful colleague and friend Debbie Olson!
• Yes - mine was the first order placed and so I am hoping to have news for you soon as to when they will be arriving in our store!!!
• COPIC has some new prototypes on display. A fabulous new larger sized glitter pen that is quite stunning and works on fabric. A metallic pen that the jury is still out on being I really need to see it in broad daylight instead of under the convention center lights.
• Ranger's new white pen is the talk of the town! It is totally cool! and the new ink pads - I can not wait to give them a whirl today.
• New adhesive - a girl can never seem to have enough glue in this industry.
• Felt abounds everywhere and I have some fabulous ideas I cannot wait to share with you in regards to using rubber stamps and felt together.
• What are the trends - black and white, black and white and color, bright neon-like color, more purple than I have seen in previous years; new chipboard shapes, colors

Oh dear - I am running late again, so I will stop for today. I will get back to answering more questions, probably upon my return home. It is ubber busy here and finding time to blog is extremely difficult. The best part of the show in a nutshell are the people! I am having SUCH an AMAZING time meeting women who I have only had the opportunity to meet over the internet. It is such a thrill to be able to put a real person together with women that I have had the pleasure of knowing for years!!!

Thank you for stopping by and I hope to share more news soon!

Some Xcalibur Answers

ETA: Please note that I am adding questions to the bottom of this post as they come in. I will do my best to answer them as quickly as possible.

What is the price point of the Xcalibur?

Oh how I wish I was at liberty to share this with you, but at this point I am not able to share this information. As soon as I can - I will, so keep watching being that once CHA begins I can then shout it from the rooftops. All I can say is that I believe you will be thrilled.

When will the Xcalibur be available for purchase?

Currently the release date is May 2008. So why are we talking about it now?

The crafting industry can be a very difficult industry to work within at times. It is important to share what new inventions are on the horizon, but the question is always when should we do it to best accomodate the needs of our customers. Many question why the manufacturer does not let everyone know the minute an idea hits the drawing board. I can easily tell you that it is due to the incredibly competitive nature of the industry. If word is leaked to far in advance that a new invention is in the works, another manufacturer will waltz in and take the idea and run with it. So timing is critical in this industry. Do I wish it was not this way? Very definitely yes, but it is what it is and so we must work with it.

The next part of this question is why tell about it so far in advance. My answer to that question is that by sharing this information in advance of the actual release date it then allows new consumers to make a decision as to whether they should wait on their next purchase or buy what is currently available. At times it can be a difficult decision especially when the new product is not even out yet to physically try. It's a catch-22 that unfortunately there are no good answers for. All we can do is try to accomodate as many needs as possible.

So as always we will do our very best to educate you about what is coming vs. what is here. You will then be able to make a decision for yourself as to whether what you currently own is best for you or if what is coming is worth all the hubbub. There are many consumers who currently do not own a diecutting system. This will allow them to reflect on what it is that they want and make the decision that is right for them.

Is the Wizard passe?

In my opinion I believe that the Wizard will always be my go-to tool for any heavy duty crafting. There will more likely than not ever be another machine on the market that can withstand the pressure that is exerted by this Univeral Crafting Tool. This little metal machine can withstand pressure like no other in today's market place because it is all metal.

The Wizard will not be taken off the market at this time. It is a tool that fills the needs of many. That is not to say that sometime down the road it will not be taken off the market - it just depends on you the consumer. Will you still have a need for a tool that is durable? We can't answer that question - only you can. Again I believe that there will always be a place for a strong tool and that is what the Wizard is - a strong, Universal diecutting and embossing tool.

Are we taking preorders?

I believe that it is much too early to take preorders on this product. It is so important to me that I leave your money in your checking account until I am ready to make a fair transaction with you. It is always my intention to be able to ship your product out to you immediately upon receiving any financial compensation.

I also take the trust that you place in me seriously. At this moment I have great confidence in Spellbinders and their ability to make things happen, but there are so many others that need to be counted on for parts and labor that it is out of the control of any one individual or company.

Can we take your name and put you on a list so that we make certain to order enough product to begin with - most definitely! If you believe that you are going to have to have one of these when they are ready to ship and you would like to support us by purchasing it through us, then please send us an email at customerservice@ellenhutson.com. We will put together a special list to keep you updated as to what it is that is happening with the Xcalibur and consider you in a head-count of those we will honor orders of when the timing is right. I promise that we will not bombard you with frivolous "stuff", but will keep you up-to-date on what is that we are learning.

Do I think the Xcalibur is big news?

Yes, I think it is huge. What an incredible innovation! There are many crafters who have a difficult time using tools that require manual labor, so to have a completely mechanized machine is huge. I am personally VERY excited about it being I have noticed arthritis setting in to my hands and I wonder at times how I will continue to do what it is that I do into my more "advanced" years - LOL! Well - I believe that the solution is within reach with this machine Ü

I thank you for your questions. I will most certainly be trying the Xcalibur for myself at CHA being that I have not had the opportunity to personally test the machine. We all work so hard to make a living and I respect you all so much for wanting to know what the "right" thing to do is. I hope to be able to share my perspective and knowledge with you as soon as I can have some "hands-on" time with this latest, greatest innovation. As always I will give you as much information as possible and I thank you once again for placing your trust in me. I hope to never let you down.

Will the Xcalibur Cut and Emboss Simultaneously?

Being that the dies are designed to be utilized in three possible ways it will still require two passes through the machine to first cut your cardstock and then a second pass through to emboss it. As with the Wizard you will be able to cut and emboss, only cut, or only emboss. Versatility is so important and this is the only way to achieve the flexibility we would like to see from the dies.

Dress It Up Valentine

Bells and whistles went off in my head when I saw Sharon Harnist's gorgeous "beribboned" (is that even a word?) creation on her blog the other day. It reminded me so much of the Southern Living "Dress It Up" collection that I believe is now retired and how I need to remember to look to home accents for inspiration - there is so much out there just begging to be translated in to card format. I knew I just had to make a card using the new Hearts and Scalloped Hearts with this design - I just loved it too much. So here is my version of a "Dress It Up" Nestie Heart.

Valentine's are mostly pink, but the soft yellow just seemed like the right touch with the new Basic Grey Two Scoops paper.

I have heard that some of you are having trouble with your dies slipping and so I thought I would share once again how it is that I use the dies and magnetic plate in hopes of helping you. I guess I really need to learn how to make those videos - but I just haven't had the time to learn, so hopefully these photos will do the trick.

To begin with I have cut my magnetic placement mat to be the same size as the white spacer plate. This seems to help me keep things perfectly aligned. I then lay the master plate on the table, followed by the white spacer plate and then the magnetic placement mat. I place my dies in to location precisely as I would like them cut - they "snap" to the magnetic placement mat and have held firmly in place. I do not lift the magnetic placement mat without having a solid surface such as the white spacer plate beneath it. If you do lift it alone it will bend and move your dies.

Next make certain that the edges of the magnetic mat are aligned with the edges of the white spacer plate.

Then place your paper atop this stack pattern side, or right side, facing down. Top this sandwich with your second master plate and send it through the Wizard.

One tip that might be helpful is to note the position of your die on the master plate before sending it through. I typically have the thickest portion of the sandwich towards the back and start my sandwich with the end that does not have as many ingredients. Note how most of my ingredients are towards the bottom of the plate. This allows for the machine to get a good grasp on your plates without shifting the product that is within. I believe that some of the shifting that may be occuring is due to the force that is placed on your sandwich. If the thick part of the sandwich is right at the start the machine may be shifting your layers within. I wish I could observe others working first hand so that I might be able to better figure this out and give better tips.

After passing through the machine I can then lift my plate and the dies are lightly embedded in to the master plate or still attached to the magnetic plate. If embedded in the master plate I use my fingernail to lift the die out, and then flip it back over on to the magnetic placement mat as shown below.

Once again note how the thicker part of the sandwich is located towards the bottom end of my master plate - the end that enters the die cut machine first has minimal product located there.

The detail of your heart should be crisp and clean.

To complete I flipped the heart over and made light pencil marks to locate where I would punch my holes and then using my crop-a-dile punched those holes, threaded a beautiful silk ribbon through them, backed it with yet another patterned paper from the Two Scoops collection, added my sentiment, dew drops and piercing.

I hope these pictures might help some of you with your shifting problem. I would love to see how you "Dress Up" your nestie creations Ü Link me up in the comment section below :D

Spellbinders Design Team Call

A wonderful opportunity awaits YOU! This is an opportunity that is incredible! I highly encourage you to try out for this position if you are interested in furthering your career! Jeff and Stacey are wonderful to work with and you will be given opportunities you've never had before. Go for it girls!!!! Send in your best work NOW.

Spellbinder Die Compatibility Sandwiches Updated

Today I took the time to review the compatibility sandwiches that I had posted back in July and I have updated the information to include the new Magnetic Placement Mat in the machines that I own to let you know how it will affect the sandwiches. I am happy to tell you that it will work in the Cuttlebug, but you will need an additional white spacer plate to accomodate for the added thickness. It will also work in the Big Shot with only slight modifications needed. I would like to suggest that you find your machine below and then copy and paste your needs to a Word document and print them out to reference when you use your new dies.

The Magnetic Placement Mat is an ultra-thin layer, much thinner than the xyron magnetic pads I made to store my Spellbinders dies in. See this post for my storage examples. It is important to me that I always research any idea that hits my brain and so I did try those mats in my Wizard and found that they did indeed hold the dies in place. But after several uses the die shapes were "embedded" in the magnetic pad I had made. I don't know what the outcome of this will be after repeated use, but I wanted to let you know that initially this does work. Unfortunately the depth of my magnetic "creation" is too deep to use in other machines without creating significant snapping and popping. In comparison the Spellbinders Magnetic Placement Mat retains its original shape much better than my homemade version.

One thing I did notice is that the Magnetic Placement Mat is larger in size than the White Spacer Plates. Therefore where the Magnetic Mat extends over the edge of the White Spacer Plate I made quit an indentation in my Mat right at the edge where it extended over the Plate. So I trimmed my Magnetic Placement Mat using my Carl Cutter to be the exact same size as my Spacer Plate - problem solved.

In the following Compatibility Sandwiches the products listed below are referred to repeatedly - I thought I would link you to these items to help you gain a better understanding of what they are.

• Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat
• Spellbinders™ White Spacer plate
• Spellbinders™ Tan Emboss Mat
• Spellbinders™ Dies
• Spellbinders™ Dies also include the Nestabilities

Most directions below recommend that the Spellbinder™ dies be placed on your work surface blade side up. Be certain to check your machine sandwich before cutting to ensure correct usage.

All recipes are placed in stacking order starting at the bottom moving upwards. After cutting do not remove paper from die to emboss, proceed with paper remaining in die.

Cuttlebug™
This machine is capable of cutting and embossing any Spellbinders™ die. I can not guarantee that the B plates will not break in the Cuttlebug, but when testing my B plates were fine. They did make that ever present cracking noise though and therefore my hesitancy to say that they will never break being I have broken many B plates over the last few months. I do plan on testing the Spellbinders Thick White Mats and the Blue Mats included in the Wizard Charm Embossing Kits to see whether I can find an alternative to the acrylic plates. The white and blue mats provided by Spellbinders are so much sturdier.

How to Use a Spellbinders™ Die in the Cuttlebug™:
Cutting Sandwich
1. A plate

2. C plate
3. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
4. Paper or cardstock

5. B plate

6. Roll through Cuttlebug™

Cutting Sandwich with Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat
1. A plate

2. B plate
3. Spellbinders™ White Spacer plate

4. Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat

5. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
6. Paper or cardstock

7. B plate

8. Roll through Cuttlebug™

Embossing Sandwich
1. A plate

2. 2 sheets cardstock to act as shim. Add extra pieces if needed.

3. B plate
4. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
5. Paper or cardstock

6. Spellbinders™ Tan Emboss Mat
7. B plate

7. Roll through Cuttlebug™
Embossing Sandwich with Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat
1. A plate

2. B plate
3. Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat

4. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
5. Paper or cardstock

6. Spellbinders™ Tan Emboss Pad

7. B plate

8. Roll through Cuttlebug™

*Shim with extra pieces of cardstock if needed.

Big Shot by Ellison Design™
This machine is capable of cutting and embossing any Spellbinders™ die.

How to Use a Spellbinders™ Die in Big Shot™:
Cutting Sandwich

1. Multipurpose Platform

2. Acrylic mat

3. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
4. Paper or cardstock
5. Acrylic mat

6. Roll through Big Shot

Cutting Sandwich with Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat

1. Multipurpose Platform

2. Acrylic mat

3. Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat

4. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
5. Paper or cardstock

6. Acrylic mat

7. Roll through Big Shot

Embossing Sandwich
1. Multipurpose Platform, Tab1

2. Acrylic mat

3. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
4. Paper or cardstock

5. Spellbinders™ Tan Emboss Pad

6. Acrylic mat

7. Roll through Big Shot

Or Embossing Sandwich 2

1. Big Shot Impressions Starter Kit White and Black Mat

2. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
3. Paper or cardstock

4. Big Shot Impressions Starter Kit Black Impression Mat

6. Acrylic mat

7. Roll through Big Shot

Embossing Sandwich with Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat
1. Multipurpose Platform, Tab1

2. Acrylic mat

3. Spellbinders™ Magnetic Placement Mat

4. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
5. Paper or cardstock

6. Spellbinders™ Tan Emboss Pad

7. Acrylic mat

8. Roll through Big Shot

*Shim with extra pieces of cardstock if needed.

Big Kick™
This machine is capable of cutting and embossing any Spellbinders™ die.

How to Use a Spellbinders™ Die in the Big Kick:
Cutting Sandwich

1. Universal platform (thick white mat from Sizzix)
2. Clear acrylic mat
3. Spellbinders™ White Spacer plate
4. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
5. Paper or cardstock
6. Clear acrylic cutting mat

7. Roll through the Big Kick™

Embossing Sandwich
1. Universal platform (thick white mat from Sizzix)
2. Clear acrylic mat
3. Spellbinders™ die, blade side up
4. Paper or cardstock

5. Two (2) Spellbinders™ Tan Emboss Pad
6. Clear acrylic cutting mat

7. Roll through the Big Kick™

*Shim with extra pieces of cardstock if needed.

Magnetic placement pad not yet tested.

Zip