Does anyone else have a Silhouette?

I'm adding a new category to my sidebar- stuff for and about the Silhouette. I love my Silhouette even though I haven't used it (yet!) nearly as much as I could. The links are going into the sidebar mainly because I check each of my sidebar blogs now whenever they are updated- I LOVE this new gadget from Blogger that shows when any of the blogs are updated. No more going through all my blogs to see who has a new post. GREAT stuff!

Anyway. Digital electronic cutters are GREAT! I showed this card before, I know, but I wanted to put it here with my ramblings about my Silhouette just to show that even for my FIRST TIME using the Silhouette for a card, it turned out GREAT- or at least *I* think so.

One of the best things that has developed with electronic die cutters is the many people and companies making files for them. If you are thinking about a Silhouette (or a Gazelle, or a Pazzles, or a Wishblade, or a KNK etc.) do NOT let the files available from the manufacturer deter you. I bought the Silhouette mainly for using with alphabet fonts, not really thinking as much about the die cuts. WOW- was that a silly idea! I have some Quickutz files but what else is available out there is amazing!!!

So, if you use any of the electronic die cutters, check out these links:

http://visualdesignsbychris.blogspot.com/

http://www.paperthreads.com/store/

http://www.scrap-savvy.com/servlet/StoreFront

Scrap Savvy has the class available to get you familiar with your cutter- while I haven't finished all the lessons yet what I got done did make me feel more comfortable with the machine already. There are tons of designers to buy files from, but I really like Chris Durnan's the best of any I've found yet.

If you already have a machine but haven't found a "support" group yet, check out Yahoo groups. The ones I joined, seeming the best for me, are Silhouetteusers, Scrap-Savvy and Easy Wishbladers. I've learned a ton on these groups as well. There are lots more groups for each machine and many cross over for several machines.

I know much of the papercrafting world is Cricut-crazy and it is a great little tool. The portability is a big benefit. However, my darling DH bought me a laptop for Christmas, so I use that for all my Silhouette stuff and it works out great- especially since I now basically take the laptop wherever I go anyway.

My other preference for the Silhouette over the Cricut is the cartridges. I pick up my Silhouette- which is about the same size and weight as the Cricut- and my ever-present anyway laptop, and that's all I need. I don't have to buy cartridges. I buy individual files that I like. I can do any font right from my computer. Much less to buy, sort, store, carry, etc. For me, that was a BIG selling point for the Silhouette.

My craft room was previously a big mess. I've been digging out, sorting and re-arranging the last few days as part of my general house-overhaul. Result= it's a bigger mess than ever, at least temporarily. So, no new projects with the Silhouette are on the immediate horizon, until I get the room set up RIGHT, including a table set-up with the Silhouette having a permanent location ready to use. So, there won't be anything new here to show off. In fact, there won't be much of any crafting of any kind until after Labor Day as I work on the room- and then go away. For the next few weeks the crafting of choice will actually be stitching- I'm going to work on that quilt top as it fits into a cosmetic bag and can be picked up at any time without needing a workspace. Cancelling all other crafting should be an impetus to get the room usable!

Off to update my sidebar!