Big Catch-All Post including Cuttlebug/Sizzix Info

I want to address a few things that have come up in comments and make some observations.

One question had to do with the Double Cuttle and how I get the different colors between the designs of the two folders. I run my cardstock through inside the first folder, usually the busier pattern. I accent that embossing either direct to paper using Cats-eye inkpads or a dauber. I then put that through my second embossing folder. The new image is embossed and the "background" embossing is flattened somewhat, but not lost entirely. I then accent that second, more prominent embossing by inking it in a different color or colors. That's it!

Another comment had to do with Bigz dies and the Cuttlebug. I know there's an renewed interest in Sizzix dies, particularly the bigger dies, because of the recently announced association between Stampin' Up and Sizzix. There's a misconception out there about which Sizzix dies can be used in the Cuttlebug. They ALL can. They all fit through the machine. It's the Sizzix plates that won't fit through the slot of the Cuttlebug. They're too wide. You can put the dies through between the C'bug plates though. Need proof? I took pics, 'cuz why should you believe me over someone else who says that they won't fit, eh? But hey, if you trusted me already, then cool. :-)


Here's my Cuttlebug. The opening is 6" wide.


This is a Bigz die, which measures 5 1/2" by 6". It'll definitely fit through...


even sideways, though it's a tight fit. Hey, you never know when someone might need to put the die through sideways, eh? But it'd work.


This is one of the XL dies. Though according to the Sizzix site info it's 6" wide, it isn't quite, and as you may have seen in some of my other posts, these dies will easily fit through the Cuttlebug. The issue is not having plates long enough to cut these dies in one pass. I showed how the B plates can be used with the scalloped card die without getting a crease where the plate ends. You can cut the XL card dies that use the Movers & Shapers, too.


Here's the horizontal card die with the opening for the Movers & Shapers dies. I'm pointing out the scoring bar in the blurry photo above. Sorry 'bout that.


Put the folded edge of a piece of 4 1/2"by 12" piece of cardstock that's been scored and folded in half next to that scoring bar. You're just going to use this half of the die to cut out your card. Half of the die fits nicely between the B plates.


That's how it looks after you've made the first pass. And now as I look at this, it looks like you could maybe get away with using an 11" length of cardstock.... Nifty!


This is the other end of the die, the side where the metal "floor" holds the magnetic Mover & Shaper in place to cut out windows in your card. This is the end you'll use this time.


Place the open card so that it's aligned inside the cutting blades and over the Mover & Shaper die and run this half of the die through between your B plates. In the photo above I wanted to point out that you'll want to align the card's fold with the edge of the top plate so that it won't leave a noticeable crease in your card as it passes through the machine.

But wait! Even if you don't have one of these card dies, you can still use the Sizzix Movers & Shapers dies. I've posted about this before, but I'd like to repeat myself here since Amy made a comment that reminded me about magnetic paper as a useful tool.


Pictured above are 2 B plates, a sheet of magnetic paper and a Movers & Shapers die. The die tends to slip without metal to grab onto, so to make using this die more foolproof and less frustrating, use a sheet of magnetic paper to help hold it in place. You can see how I've marked mine so that I can place my dies fairly accurately. That's just the outline of an A2 card. The dotted lines help me with placement and making sure the die is straight or centered etc.


This is my sheet of magnetic paper. It doesn't add much thickness to the sandwich at all.


This is that same stack with the card and another cutting plate on top. If you have an extra B plate you can use that. This is one from my Sizzix supplies because I don't have a spare B plate.


This stack worked fine for me, but you may need to shim.


And this is the card with the window cut out--all done with the Cuttlebug.

While we're on the subject of magnetic paper (Thanks so much for the reminder, Amy!), I thought I'd show how I sometimes use this with my Nestabilities dies.


Here you see plate A, plate C, sheet of magnetic paper, card open and face down on top of die with cutting side up, plate B. Again, I have some lines drawn to help me make sure that I can place the die right where I want it. There's just enough pull to the magnet to hold the die in place. I prefer this to using tape to keep things from moving.


Here I've run that stack through the machine.

This is the way the card looks from the front once it's been folded. It's a nice easy way to add a window to a card front.

Sorry about the length of this post and the number of photos. I try to keep things short and not have too many pics to load at once, but so much of this was inter-related that I hated to break things up. Hopefully there was enough useful info up there to make the loading time worthwhile. :-)