New toy

This photo doesn't do her justice, I can't get the colour right. She is in fact a gorgeous deep pink, could say fushia pink or hot pink but looks much redder in this photo. I have altered it but still too red. I could put the daylight photo studio lights up and try again but there might be too much glare as she won't fit my mini photo studio. If you nip over to the Craftwell site you can see the true colour, if I get a better photo I will put it up.

This is the latest technology in home craft cutters called the eCraft by Craftwell. It is so much larger than the Robo I had to move my TV and other stuff round and get her nearer to the craft end of my bench, the Robo was in the far corner under the printer shelf as the lights upset the optical eye when I did use it.

I have an SD card so I can play but the actual software to enable it to be used from the PC either with the SD card or from your own designs is due out on 1st Sept. I was initially pleased that the machine was on the way earlier than I expected it, but disappointed that the software wasn't and I think had it been explained that the machines were being released ahead of the software to allow people to play I would have understood and am now eagerly anticipating the software, shame I have to work that day. Once you get your machine you have to go register it to get the software download and you need the serial number that is underneath so as this is a heavy machine it is best to make that the first thing you do and write it down before assembling the feed tray on the back.

As with all brand new devices there are bound to be teething problems at first, if you buy at the launch price (as I did) you expect this to some extent. I haven't got fully to grips with my machine and I am still trying to understand it but thanks to Tom on his Create and Cut blog and Nicki, on Nicki's Cardstock Creations blog, who have both put up tutorial videos and tips to help I am slowly getting there and might actually cut a shape without problems soon.

I don't find the manual easy to understand and I hope Craftwell will reissue a better one or an online one as soon as they manage to draw breath from getting all the machine orders out. This baby is in big demand being the one we have all been waiting for.  It cuts either a sheet or smaller piece of card stock at a time manually fed, can take a stack using the sheet feeder at the back or can feed in a roll and cut banners to any length with the rollers provided.

It has a neat little drawer at the back to hold spare blades and pens and a few SD cards. You can buy more designs or use the software or combine the two. In time you will be able to load up your designs to sell and buy others from the Craftwell site. Check out the catwalk fashion made using this machine!

The most revolutionary thing is that this machine does not use sticky mats, though if you read Tom and Nicki's blogs you will see that for thin paper you need to add a sheet of card underneath, doesn't need to be sticky.

The other thing that this machine does is hold a pen as well as a blade and draws as well as cuts without needing to change. You can buy additional colours to the black provided with the machine.

I know that Oyster Stamps (one of the two U.K. sellers so far whom I bought her from) do demo's of the machine but I live too far away to get to one of those.

eCraft by Craftwell are on Facebook too where there are lots of comments and links, they seem very helpful and suggested I ring if I have problems, but that is an international call so not doing that just yet.

I have so many questions like: what are tabs exactly, what are they for and why do I need to change the settings? Will it cope with U.K. size card in the sheet feeder? What pressure is needed for which card, how can I tell which I need?

Quirky Crafts Challenge 33 - recipe

The recipe for this challenge is use: shrink plastic, ribbon, at least two eyelets and two patterned papers.  I used double sided paper so two designs, and after getting through 3 sheets of shrink plastic finally ended up with a bloom I could use, stamped with a Wordsworth poem also stamped in the background corner, the bloom was inked on the back with Stazon pastel ink, words in Stazon black - I did try Memento ink but it ran after shrinking!

Found this great paper in the folder with the shrink plastic then had to find this stamp to go with it, they are perfect together. Paper is Junkitz Fanciful and Stamp is by Paperbag Studio, ribbon by Crafty Ribbons, eyelets from stash and brad by Papermania. Hop on over to Quirky Crafts blog and enter your creation now, it is a mixed media challenge so any project can be entered.

Some idiot hacked my blog

I have deleted the post and changed my password, I hope that keeps the B***s out.

Craft Robo for sale - any takers?

I have decided to sell my Craft Robo which I haven't used for a year. This is the CC200-20. It has a still useable blade, and a couple of sets of new blades, the software (Cutting Master, DXF Art Collection Source DVD and training DVD) that came with it and the additional Design Master software, print outs of instructions and UK Scrapper tutorials for both Cutting Master Robo Master software and Design Master Software and I hopefully still have the box, which I will need to go and look for.
 It has the original cutting mat, I just respray it with re positionable glue when it needs to be more sticky.
I am not sure of the going rate right now and would appreciate suggestions of what they are going for but I need to find out the postage rate unless collected.

This is a marvellous machine that will cut all your own designs, and loads of designs you can download free or can buy online too, but I am not making enough use of it, used it for butterflies for the wedding last year and not a lot else really.

Any ideas on price?
  

New home (bad blogger)

Oh I am a bad blogger, not blogged for ages! Well I did go away to Torquay for a few days, but have been back for a couple of weeks so no excuse really but I am struggling to find my mojo.

In Torquay we were on a bus when there was a bang and I watched a large seagull tumbling over and over coming to rest on his back with his feet in the air on the pavement (sidewalk). I assume he was trying to steal some food from someone on the top deck and didn't realise about glass. I wonder if this was the silly bird, probably not.
We went into Paignton to watch Inception (or Conception according to the hotel receptionist) which was awesome, and then we waited at the bus stop for our ride home, we had enquired where the stop was when we got off the bus at the cinema. We waited................and waited, tried ringing the number on the sign but no answer, in the end started walking. Got to the next stop and found the buses stopped 10 minutes ago in Paignton! We had seen an open top bus speeding by but he didn't stop at the bus stop, in fairness we didn't flag him down but he wasn't really looking at the stop anyway. We assumed that the open top bus was a special tourist bus now I think it was maybe the normal service in summer and we just missed it.
We were due back at the hotel for our evening meal, so I had to ring them to say we would be late and rebook a later table, and then we kept walking back to the main road to look for the other bus - every 10 minutes. We saw plenty of buses but all going the other way, finally a little bus turned up and it was going our way, yippee at last!
No sign of the seagull who fell, so he either got up or had been removed.

This card was for my Son and Daughter in Law who just bought their first own home, and it is white with a green roof and door. I used a set of Dario stamps for this and stamped onto black card with white Versamark as my first choice seemd to have dried up, and then added white embossing powder. I cut the house out and stamped another one on white card and coloured the roof and door before cutting them out and layering them. The tree, sun and blooms are were coloured with my Marvy wet look pens straight onto the stamp but not embossed. The butterflies are because it is was also the first wedding anniversary and the fence is a Sizzix die cut.