Archive for September, 2009
5 Reasons the Silhouette is better than Cricut
Which is better, Silhouette SD or Cricut Expression?
I just spent hours comparing the two machines word for word, feature for feature. I’ll tell you what makes them so similar, then I’ll list out 5 reasons why the Silhouette SD is better than the Cricut Expression.
How are they alike?
They’re alike in many ways actually. They’re both personal digital cutting machines that work very much like home printers. Except instead of printing, they cut. However, both machines can use pens instead of blades to draw the image if you don’t want it cut out. Both the Silhouette SD and the Cricut Expression can cut fonts as well as pictures. They are both very portable and can be taken to scrapbook parties. Both machines can cut many different kinds of materials including paper, card stock, and vinyl.
So what makes the Silhouette SD better?
The Silhouette SD is loads cheaper. The Cricut Expression is regularly $499.99. However, I saw it at A Cherry On Top, Scrapbooking Shoppe for $299.99. The Silhouette SD is regularly priced at $299.99. But A Cherry On Top, Scrapbooking Shoppe has it for $249.99. Use coupon code SASMC9 before 12/31/09 to save 40%! That makes the Silhouette SD cost around $149.99 . So the sale price of the Cricut is what the Silhouette SD’s original price is!
The Silhouette SD doesn’t require cartridges! Let me say that again, no cartridges required! With the Cricuit Expression, you have to use cartridges. Each set of designs requires its own cartridge. These cartridges are expensive! The Silhouette SD connects to your computer (or you can use the on-board SD card reader) so it’ll cut almost anything you ask it to! The Silhouette SD comes with an installation CD for your PC. As soon as the software is installed on your computer, you can immediately start cutting any font you have! That right there is worth hundreds of dollars in Cricut cartridges, except you can cut other things on your computer also!
The Silhouette SD has an online design store. If there’s something specific you’re looking for, chances are, it’s in the Silhouette store. You can purchase individual designs for $1.99. With the Cricut Expression, you have to buy the designs in big groups that come on a cartridge. So if you don’t need all the designs on the cartridge, you still have to pay that terribly high price for the whole cartridge. With the Silhouette SD, you can buy individual designs or, if you think you’ll be doing a lot of downloading, they also have an unlimited subscription.
The Silhouette SD is not limited to cutting out solid shapes. It can also cut out images and clip art. If you have a graphic or clipart on your computer that you want to print and cut out, why not let the Silhouette SD cut it out for you? All you have to do is open the image you want to print in the Silhouette software. Get it all lined up the way you want it and print it out. When the Silhouette software prints the image, it prints it with little tick marks outside the image. This tells the Silhouette SD how to get lined up and where to start cutting. You’ll never see these tick marks on the cut out and you’ll be so impressed with the accuracy of the cutting the Silhouette SD makes.
This might be a minor detail to some people, but there’s less little accessories you need to store, transport, and keep track of with the Silhouette SD. There’s no cartridges or funny keypad overlays, you can keep all your designs organized in the Silhouette software on your PC. Overall, the Silhouette SD is 5 times better than the Cricut Expression.
Finding Scrapbooking Supplies
Never before has it been easier to create your own memory book using scrapbooking supplies that are readily available in stores and online, making your own scrapbook designs if you choose.
First, you should decide on what sort of scrapbook you would like to make. There are various sizes that are available in bookstores and on the Web.
The most common sizes are the 8×12 and the 12×12 inch formats. These formats are a bit costly but they have good qualities and can hold a giant amount of collections.
The 8×11 format works the best since it can fit the inkjet printers that are generally of the same size. You can also use three ring binders, which is a great option for a scrapbook.
You’ll even position the pages similar to the format of a post type binder where you can create a double outline. The pages are attached closely so that they can be used as 1 outline. You can compose footage on that format even if they are not separately placed on the printer.
Also available are far more inexpensive scads that you can get in the 8×12 format. They can be employed as college supplies, art, and office supplies too.
You can have more room from the pages if your choice is to use three ring binders for your memory book. But it is better to have top quality binders to help arrange the collections on the pages before arranging them in a post type binder.
It’s not sensible to use a spiral non-removable scrapbook because you’ll be limited on one special page and you may wish to rearrange the pages. Some folk are still purchasing this type of format because they specialize on a specific compilation. This allows them to categorize the collections from each page.
There are scrapbooking themes that may exhibit those fun memories. Your youngsters may enjoy having a look at the pictures so they can see how styles and trends looked years ago. Neighbors and friends visiting your home might enjoy flipping through the pages instead of just having a look at old photograph albums.
Naturally it is always pleasurable to remember the moments in your life by looking at your memory book. Making a scrapbook with more than one themes is straightforward to organize particularly if you use inexpensive scrapbooking supplies.
Each page can have a different theme. Actually, you can save more money and time when you apply an identical color on the background if you want. There are so many scrapbooking supplies obtainable that the possibilities are limitless limit when it comes to design.
Tags: making a scrapbook, scrapbook supplies, scrapbook themes, scrapbooking, scrapbooking supplies
Cricut Vs. Silhouette
For a long time, I thought the Cricut was the best die cutting machine out there. Now, I’m hearing about this other one called the Silhouette. From some of the people I’ve spoken to about this, I’m getting the impression that the Silhouette is better and more cost effective. Here’s some of the things I was told.
With the Cricut, there’s expensive cartridges right? Like video games, you have to buy them separately, they don’t come with the machine. I looked them up, these cartridges are like $80! I noticed that you can get 40% off of any Cricut item at A Cherry On Top, Scrapbooking Shoppe in September with coupon code SEPT947. Even with the discount, I think that the cartridges are expensive.
I don’t know a whole lot about the Silhouette yet, but I do know that it hooks up to your computer. You can make it do anything you want without the extra costs of buying the cartridges!
The cricut has one advantage however. It’s very user friendly. So you don’t have to be a computer junkie like me to use it. But I think that anyone reading online for information regarding scrapbooking is already a computer junkie like me and can probably handle the Silhouette just fine.
Please, leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts! I want to hear from people who have used either of these machines. Tell me what you like about them.
Don’t throw away those last few inches!
A great way to make a spiral bound notebook look fancy is to tie pieces of ribbon to the spine. Save all your scrap pieces of ribbon, you never know when you’ll want them for a cool project like this.
Just knot pieces about 3 inches long to the spiral spine of the book. The looks great on albums, notebooks, journals, and more. It looks really cool when the colors coordinate with the cover of the book. However, it’s still a lot of fun to make it wild and crazy with all the leftovers you can find no matter what the colors are.
Cool Embossing Tip
Want the cool embossing effect without buying all the fancy embossing equipment? I’ve got a cool trick to give your projects an embossed look at a really low price.
You can get all the materials required at ScrapbookPal. They always have good prices.
You’ll need a stamp, colored ink, clear embossing powder, and a heat gun. Take the lid off the embossing powder and keep it close by. When you stamp your card or project, you’ll want the ink to still be wet when you sprinkle on the embossing powder. Otherwise it won’t stick. This is very much like sprinkling glitter on a line of glue. It’ll stick where it’s wet. Then you can pour the rest onto a piece of scrap paper and then back into the jar.
When you’re satisfied that all the ink is covered with embossing powder, hit it with the heat tool a couple inches away with even strokes until the powder is shiny. Let it cool and you’re done!
You can also do the same thing with clear embossing ink and colored embossing powder. This way, you can sprinkle more than one color on the same image.
Stop paying so much for ink cartridges!
Wal-mart carries the ink cartridges I need for about $35. I just checked the ClickInks.com price…It’s only $12.35 for my brand and type of printer! Not only that, but I was able to get free shipping PLUS I bought 2 and got the 3rd for FREE!
See how much the cartridges are for your printer.
Leave me a comment when you find out.
