Spellbinders Series: Butterflies and Brackets

I don't have a Cricut.

I don't have a Cuttlebug.

I don't have a Silhouette.

I don't have a Cameo (yet...like I mentioned, I DO want this)

I don't have a Sizzix Big shot.

I don't have a Gazelle (don't even know what this is, but it popped up when I search cutting systems).

I don't have the Epic (Quickutz)

I DO have a Slice, which you will find me occasionally using. It was the first edition model, no Elite here.

And something else I have been wanting for a long time is the Grand Calibur from Spellbinders...and looky what I just got....

What I loved about this machine was how big it cut...I like my die cuts big. :) I've had a little bit of time to play with it now, and I plan on doing a series of blog posts on what I have created with my Grand Calibur and different ideas for using die cuts. I wanted it to something creative like "Spellbinders Saturday" but I have noticed that not as many people go blog hoppin' on the weekends, so I chose Fridays instead. So every Friday (for 4 or 5 weeks) I will have a Spellbinders post up on my blog. Hope you stop by for each and every one of them. :)

First up...

MY REVIEW of the GRAND CALIBUR machine from Spellbinders:

This machine is very easy to work. It walks you through the few simple steps it has. It can cut very detailed images out perfectly. As I have already mentioned, it is capable of creating large die cuts for your projects as it can cut and emboss up to 8.5 x 11.75. If you don't want to cut that large of die cuts, you can cut several smaller die cuts out at once (even using multiple pieces of paper).

You DO have to crank it to move the plates through the machine.

According to their site, this machine is compatible with Sizzlit™, Cuttlebug™, and Quickutz™ sized dies, as well as Cuttlebug Embossing Folders and Fiskars® Texture Plates when used with the W-025 Raspberry Spacer Plate. I have not tried anything but the Spellbinders dies in mine so far.

Tips for the Grand Calibur (just a couple of things I noticed):

* When embossing a die cut after it has been cut, make sure that the piece of paper has not moved or is snug in the center of the die to emboss correctly.

* When removing a die cut after embossing, if you lift the pink embossing plate first, separating it from the rubber embossing pad (rather then pulling both the plate and the pad up together), you will get less curve in your die cut. However, it is easy to work with curved pieces, simply use a strong adhesive and glue down well or place it under a book to flatten it.

* I was able to cut a butterfly from a piece of canvas. I put it through first and it did not cut all the way through, so I placed a piece of cardstock underneath it (as a shim) and tried again. It still wasn't completely cut so I did this once more (so I now had 2 shims) and this time it worked. It's harder to crank, the more layers you put in though. But if I can do it, you can do it. :)

Now let's take a look at a couple layouts I made. Both of these layouts use papers and embellishments from BasicGrey...mostly from their Indie Bloom collection.

On this layout I used the Grand Labels One die to cut my 6 bracket squares, and the Wonderful Wings die to cut the butterflies.

Here are some close up's:

(See that piece with the flowers and buttons? That is exactly how these BasicGrey buttons came, packaging and all. I thought it was cute that way, so I just cut the packaging and adhered it all on there.)

And then on this next layout, I took it a step further and layered the Grand Labels One die cuts...

Pretty much uses all the same products. :)

Here are the close up's:

I loved how I added the journaling to this page. At first I wasn't sure where to put it...but then I got a bit creative. :)

Ok, well thanks for stopping in today!!! I will be up next Friday with more from my Spellbinder's series. And at the end of my series, there may just be a cool giveaway. ;)

Have a fantastic day!!!