AccuCut Craft Blog

New Dies Are Here!

Posted by Tara Smithberg

We have an amazing group of new, versatile dies that is sure to get you in the mood to create. I love all of them; it's hard to know what to show you first! You can see them all on our website now.

New Creative Cafe Dies

We are psyched to bring you more delicious dies from Creative Cafe. Many are perfect for holiday projects, like these cute Holiday Trees and Layering Stars shown here. Plus, this is a brand new album--Mix & Match Album #3! Its larger size, 5 1/2"w x 10 1/2"h, will really make creating unique albums easy and fun. Plus, you can use the page shapes on other projects.

 

Introducing Designs by Cheryl Mezzetti

We are ecstatic about these brand new album dies from designer Cheryl Mezzetti. These dies are perfect for album kits and classes and helping retailers sell more products. Check out this adorable Pail & Shovel Album. It comes with two different pail topper shapes and an ocean wave border that can be used anywhere.

 

More Bags, Boxes and More

We're also bringing you plenty of other versitle dies, like some really cool favor boxes and accent shapes. I'm so excited about this Convertibles™ Box #1. It is the very first box that is compatible with our Convertibles Dies, Series 1 inserts, to be exact. This one was made with the new Square Frame Insert. So cool. It's perfect for cookies, candies and other fun treats. 

 

 

We are currently accepting pre-orders for these dies. Initial stock will be available the week of July 27, so be sure to order yours now!

Check Out Our Clearance Section

Posted by Tara Smithberg

Happy Friday, everyone! Just a quick note to let you know we've added more than 30 dies to our clearance section where you'll be able to save up to 50% on some really great dies. Check out a few of my favorites here.

Album 6 1/2" x 8" Tabs (2-Die Set)

You can't beat 50% off! This album coordinates with the 6 1/2" x 8" Convertibles Cover.

Regular Price: $115.00
Your Price: $57.50
You Save: $57.50

Here's a project made using this album with the Convertibles Wink Insert die.

 

 Butterfly #10 - Super Jumbo

Save $16 when you purchase this die. Plus, you get two butterflies on one die. These shapes look great layered or on their own on scrapbook pages, as albums and much more.

Regular Price: $80.00
Your Price: $64.00
You Save: $16.00

This album looks great with the two shapes layered together and combined with the Butterfly #8 die.

 

Be sure to check out all of our clearance iteams. Hurry! These deals are limited to the quantity currently available in stock.

Have a great weekend!

Last Call for Spring Projects!

Posted by Tara Smithberg

You still have time to enter our Spring Design Challenge! All entries will be entered into a drawing to win our Dragonfly #2 die (a $70 value). Just share a photo of a project you created for spring that uses at least one AccuCut die. See the post below for more details.

The deadline is today!

Here's a cool card designer Traci Armbrust made that features the Dragonfly #2 die. She used the A2 Convertibles™ Card die with the 1" Circle Borders Insert die. I like how she used ribbon to tie between two of the circle die cuts and added a rub-on to show through the top circle.

Other dies used on this card include the Flourishes #3 and the Borders #3. Combining different colors and patterns of paper really make this card unique.

 

Have a great weekend everyone! We will be announcing the winner of the drawing next week, so stay tuned!

Photo cards made easy

Posted by Tara Smithberg

There is still plenty of time to make your own cards for the holiday season! Here is an easy photo card you can make using Convertibles card dies.

 

Designer, Traci Armbrust, walked me through the easy steps to make this card. To begin, you will need the A7 Convertibles Card #2 die with crease, the Convertibles Photo Frame Insert die and the Convertibles Photo Holder Insert die.  

 

Place the Convertibles Photo Frame Insert die on the left side and the Convertibles Photo Holder Insert die on the right.

 

Place your paper, then the cutting plastic, on top of the die and roll through the machine to cut. Here you can see how the paper looks after it is cut.

Fold at the crease in the middle to form your card.

 

Next, carefully slide your photo into the corners slits to hold the picture in place. This die cut holds a 3 1/2" x 5" photo.

 

To make your card extra special, you can add gems to the photo to give it some sparkle. Also, you can print up seals with a personalized message using the 1 3/4" Circle Seal Pinnovation die.

It doesn't get much easier than this! For more card inspiration, visit our website. 

Happy World Cardmaking Day!

Posted by Tara Smithberg

Today is World Cardmaking Day, and that means the holiday cardmaking season has officially begun!

Cardmaking is swiftly increasing in popularity, and it's a great way to branch out into a new area for your scrapbooking store. Here's an interesting fact for you. According to the Craft & Hobby Association, 86% of scrapbookers also create handmade cards!

So, now is the time to incorporate cardmaking into your business if you haven't done so already. Here are a few quick and easy holiday cards you can make to get your creative juices flowing in honor of this special day.

This modern card was made using the A7 Scalloped Card die with contrasting paper on the inside for added effect. Snowflake shapes were made using the small Snowflake #6 and mini Snowflakes #2 dies. Add gems and glittery rub-ons to make this card sparkle.

Here is a classic Christmas Card made using the jumbo Center Foldout #5 A7 Card die. The poinsettia flower was created by layering flower shapes cut with the Flowers #6 die. Accent with gems for the final touch.

And don't forget about our Convertibles Card System. These interchangeable card dies make it easy to create customized cards for any occasion.

Congratulate friends on their new home with this adorable card made with the jumbo Convertibles #2 A7 Card die and the Convertibles House Insert die.

Or make a sassy birthday card like this one using the jumbo Convertibles #2 Square Card die and the Convertibles Dress Insert die. I love how the scalloped edge of this card gives it an extra girly feel. And be sure to use contrasting paper for the inside to really make the dress pop.

You can find many more great card ideas on our website.

So, how will you celebrate World Cardmaking Day? Here are some ideas:

• Host a class or make-n-take session devoted to cardmaking.
• Using AccuCut card dies, cut out unique card shapes and sizes that would be expensive to buy pre-cut and packaged. Package assortments yourself and sell at a lower price to your customers.
• Use up scrap paper and chipboard to cut out small shapes using AccuCut dies. Package the shapes and sell as bare card embellishments.
• Hold a cardmaking contest. Display participants' designs in your store.
• Send handmade cards to your loyal customers, thanking them for their support.

Post a comment and let us know how you are incorporating cardmaking into your business.

Have a great weekend, everyone! Happy cardmaking!

Tuesdays with Tammy: Back from CHA and holiday projects

Posted by Tammy Miller

Well it’s been a week since I’ve been back from the CHA show and I think I’m getting caught up. Even though it is a lot of work preparing and working in the booth, I can’t tell you how much I enjoy it. I have such a great connection with a number of vendors and lots customers. I would mention you all by name but the list is pretty long. It’s so wonderful to see everyone, it feels like a family reunion. I came back rejuvenated and I’m sure you feel the same way if you're a regular attendee too.

It happened again at this show but I often heard from customers about how great our projects are and about how they help them decide which dies to purchase.

I don't create any of the projects myself, but I use them as a tool every day to show our customers what can be created with our machine and dies. If you're a store owner, you should do the same. You need to inspire people with sample projects so they want to use the tools that you provide in your store.

Are you ready for the holidays? Have you changed out your display projects or are you going to be ready when the time comes?

Here is a card our in-house designer Traci made using the Card-Square-Convertibles #1 die that makes a 5 1/4" square card and my favorite Halloween shape, Cat #3. 

The Be Afraid card below uses A2 Card-Convertibles die and the 1" Squares Convertibles Insert. The insert cuts all three squares, which are perfect frames for epoxy stickers and other embellishments.

I love the new Tree Convertibles Insert that she used in this Happy Holidays card.

 

You can use the tree by itself on a scrapbook page or cut it out of the front of a vertical or horizontal card.  Display it both ways to show its versatility. I know, Christmas in July. But it’s never too early to be thinking about it.

See you next week.

UP CLOSE: Convertibles albums and cards

Posted by Jen Cramer

Our most popular insert size is Series 1 and there are multiple coordinating dies to create both albums and cards. (The other sizes -- Series 2, 3 and 4 -- currently only fit in card dies.) If you're interested in the system, I would start with Series 1. So, let's see how it works.

Here you can see our Album 6" x 6" Convertibles Cover die (A1023CJ). It has a hole in the middle of the die that fits a Series 1 insert. There are no die blades in this "hole" area, so if I do not put an insert in, then it will cut a solid page. You can see that I used this die to cut out the back cover for an album that I want to make. I can also cut out inside pages.

Now I want to make the cover page, so I need to choose an insert. We currently have 24 Series 1 inserts to choose from, and one of my favorites is this one -- Square-Scalloped (CV119). It makes a 3" x 3" scalloped "frame" for your album cover. Insert dies range from $20 to $40 each, based on how much steel rule is in the die and the complexity of the shape. This particular insert is $40.

You simply place the insert die inside the hole of the album die. When I put the die on the tray I visualize that I am looking at the "inside" of the album or card, and I put my paper on the die so that the "correct" side is facing down on the die. In this example, I placed the striped side of the paper on the foam and then rolled the die through the machine (not shown). I get an album cover with a scalloped square hole in it -- perfect for a photo or other embellishment to show through.

I can cut a variety of inside pages if I want and then I can put them together in an album.

Before we move on to cards, here is a quick example of that same Square-Scalloped insert in our Album 6 1/2" x 8" Convertibles Cover die (it also appeared in the 2/21 post).

Now on to cards.... Series 1 inserts also fit into a variety of Convertibles card dies. Here is our basic A7 Card-Convertibles #2 die (NC597CJ) that has two holes to fit Series 4 inserts.  I can also use my Series 1 inserts with this card die. For this card we could use the same Square-Scalloped insert if we wanted, but let's go ahead and use a 3" Circle (CV109).

Once again, I visualize that I am looking at the inside of my card. I want to cut a circle frame in the front of the card so I put the adapter in the left side and then add the circle insert die. (In case you are wondering why there is also an insert hole on the right side of the card die, we also have dies to cut gift card and photo holders for the inside of cards.)

I placed the patterned side of my paper down on the die (not shown) and rolled it through the GrandeMARK machine. Now I have a perfectly placed circle in the top center of my A7 card. (I'll save the circle die cut to use on another project.) I just love the versatility of our Convertibles dies and how quickly I can make multiples of a unique card shape. They are such a time-saver.

Here are a couple cards made using the same A7 card die and a variety of inserts.

Hugs and Kisses card using Square #2 (CV106) insert:

using two Series 4 inserts, which are also good basics: one to cut the frame in the front of the card and one to cut slits to hold a 3.5" x 5" photo.

The Album 6" x 6" Convertibles Cover that I showed at the beginning of the post was very popular at CHA and I highly suggested to store owners to buy that die along with the coordinating Album 6" x 6" Round Tabs & Page 3-die set (A1036J) and 3-5 Series 1 inserts to get started. Shown below, the tabs and page set includes one die with a non-tabbed page and a spacer. The spacer can be used between pages or it can also be used as a "spine" on the front and back. Then there are two tabbed pages on separate dies. The die with the tab at the top is used for both the top and bottom tab (just flip the cut page over to get the third tab).

I hope that helped to explain how our Convertibles Card & Album System works. If you want more information, go to the Convertibles category on our site and click on the "download" link underneath the card image to see the Convertibles section from our 2008 Craft Catalog. There are new charts to help you see what the inserts look like in each card/album die -- that's a big improvement we added this year based on your feedback. You can always call our Customer Service department (800-288-1670) for more information too!