Hi

Hi, Thanks for dropping by.

My name is Eileen but to friends in the card making world I'm known as 'ikki'. (which is pronounced I-KEY) From where or how this came about I'm not sure - it just got shorten from my original craft name of Ikemo by various friends along my crafting way! I started crafting whilst recouperating from an accident, and from my first attempts with peeloffs and paint - I was hooked! Now my passion is my BUG! and now BEADING!

In the Cupboard you will find ideas, news, tips and techniques to help you get more from this fab little machine. So come in - join the fun and Cuttle with me!


Thursday 17 March 2011

Tippy Thursday

Some news from Spellbinders - starting next Monday  for 5 days  (21st  to 25th March) there will be a Bunny Hop whereby you can visit two blogs each day and enter a draw to win the dies that are being shown on that blog.  Always worth a go - and hopefully one of us will be lucky!  I will post the link for you later.

I received a message from Jose saying that she had a problem with the Marianne Creatable Dies in that the frame cuts were difficult to get out of the die and some won't cut evenly,  also that on white card the die left a blue mark on the edge of the cut.  I have had a couple of dies that have left this blue mark, but after giving them a good scrub with a washing up brush and use, it seems to have cured the problem, but you could use a coloured card or paper, or alternatively ink the edges.  It's a shame not to use them because they are lovely designs.   However, I have noticed that new dies are made in a light blue colour, and I have not had this same problem with the one I have.  So perhaps the company has solved the problem for us.  As far as cuts getting stuck in the die - this can be a problem with any intricate die included Nesties!  You can run the die through with a wax paper this will help and will not damage/mark the card you are cutting.  If the cut is uneven it maybe that your plates are worn or warped - try placing the die in a different place than the centre, and running through a couple of times, even turning the die 90 degrees after the first cut if need be!  Getting the cut out - I use a fine needle, or a low tack tape to ease the release - and many of the die have a small hole(s) that also help - but I agree, you do have to be careful.

Jo-Jo has asked me if I have used any  folders in the JT machine other than Cuttlebug/Provocraft.  The answer is yes, but not the Creative Expressions folders - this company have a warning on their site stating that these folders are slightly thicker than others and suggest  in the Grand Calibur that instead of the embossing plate to use 8/10 sheets of A4 card.  (Starting with the lesser and working up until the pressure is sufficient on the folder without forcing the machine). This should be okay in the JT.

Thanks for dropping by, hope your day goes well. 



Thanks Shaz, I forgot to mention the about rubbing and polishing the die after running a candle over it.
Also good tip Aquarius, about the blue tac for geting the cut out.  From Tracy: an untacked 3D pad will lift out the bits, and the candle trick worked to. 
 TFS, ikki

4 comments:

ShazInOzCardsCalligraphy said...

Hi Eileen,I heard/read a tip somewhere but yet to try it if you finely spritz your cardstock with a very light spray of water, it will come out of dies easier.
I have also rubbed a candle end over it as don't have waxed paper and then polished with a soft cloth and I know that works too,
love Shaz in Oz.x

Aquarius said...

Thanks for the tips here - I notice that the lighter blue dies now have small holes in them which assists in getting the card out once cut. I keep a small knob of blu-tack handy which helps in lifting the cut piece out of the older dies with no holes. The waxed paper tip is a good one too.

tracy said...

i use a detacked 3d pad to get the cuts out of the die and the used to get the little bits out as well especially on one of the marrianne butterfly die, i recently tried the candle trick and found the cardstock had lifted before i had removed the plates.

Jose said...

Very useful comments about lifting the tiny bits of waste out, better than trying to dig them out with pins. I am glad to here they have stopped using the dark blue paint on their dies, I might now venture to buy another set.