Cutting tools - what brand??

[piratesmate]

I've been thinking that I'd buy a CM cutting system for my birthday & get the ovals & circles as I thought I'd get the most use out of them. I've used DDIL's & am comfortable with how they work.

However, I keep thinking that I wish I could adjust the size of the circles/ovals a bit more. Several times I had a picture that I want the largest size of the pattern, so then there was no way to use it to cut my mat.

I've watched people on TV scrapping shows use other types & wondered about those. I know Fiskars makes one and there was another that a man developed for his wife & they now sell. I can't remember the name of it, but it looked REALLY neat!

So, what do you use & are you happy with it? If you remember, what did it cost?

Also, does anyone use a personal trimmer other than the CM one? If so, what & how much?

 

[cobbler]

Well I use all CM stuff because it is easy to use and cuts great. The patterns are 14 for the set. I love them and I have never really had a need to go super large so that works for me.

 

[ek_disney]

I have all of the pieces for the CM cutting system and LOVE it!! I do not use their personal trimmer. I have the Fiskars 12" cutter and really like it. The blade is very easy to change and there are a lot of different styles available and it is very portable. I have seen 12" cutters at Staples that look similiar, not sure what brand, but they were under $20.

 

[bananiem]

I use the Coluzzle system. I like it and it gives you a variety of sizes.

 

[piratesmate]

I have all of the pieces for the CM cutting system and LOVE it!! I do not use their personal trimmer. I have the Fiskars 12" cutter and really like it. The blade is very easy to change and there are a lot of different styles available and it is very portable. I have seen 12" cutters at Staples that look similiar, not sure what brand, but they were under $20.

I have the Fiskars 12" rotary cutter (the big one that a 12x12 piece of paper fits on both directions) & thought I wouldn't need anything else. However, I've found that I really could use having the 1/4" markings that the CM personal trimmer has. Cutting large pieces is okay, but anything small or even long & narrow is a pain.

I also like the feature on the CM personal that lets you hold the picture in place while cutting. It seems much more stable.

 

[Franne]

I have the Fiskars 12" rotary cutter (the big one that a 12x12 piece of paper fits on both directions) & thought I wouldn't need anything else. However, I've found that I really could use having the 1/4" markings that the CM personal trimmer has. Cutting large pieces is okay, but anything small or even long & narrow is a pain.

I also like the feature on the CM personal that lets you hold the picture in place while cutting. It seems much more stable.

I have tried everything and I love the CM tools the best. They are the easiest to use and the guarantee is great. (They are guarenteed for a year if they break or anything. I broke my 12 in pattern and sent it back and they replaced it even though it wasn't their fault it broke) I use the personal trimmer all the time for cuttign photos and mats quickly and am really liking the 12 inch trimmer, much better than fiskars! That's just my 2 cents, but I may be a little biased...lol
Franne

 

[Twigs]

THe fiskars circle cutter is not all that easy to use, and once you change the setting it is almost impossible to get it back to the same exact size if you need to. I have had the same problem with the CM shapes, but I love their system.

 

[Fire14]

I have the CM CCS(all the blue sets) and a 12 in friskers. I like my friskers 12in cutter but like someone else said I like the CM personal trimmer for cropping pics or smaller pieces of paper. I do love love the new 12 in cutter that CM came out with in FEB.

 

[scrapperjill]

When your using the CM cutter...are you using the diffent colored blades? I just have to ask because... I have never came across an photo that I need to cut larger than the biggest circle that CM makes...with the blue blade... They did come up with the green blade a few years back...so you had more matting options. I'm a Mat Freak...everything must be matted. But I can honestly say I've never came across a photo that I'd want to cut larger than the biggest one. Matter of fact...It's almost to big for standard size prints. What size photo are you wanting to crop? As you can see...I really like my CM cutters. I'm not to big on the funky shaped ones..but love the circles, ovals, the 12" straight/wavy/swell cutter...and the new wavy pattern. I also just got the NEW 12" paper trimmer from CM. I really like the angled marks...so when your making tags...and need to trim off the corners...you can get them perfect.

Oh....CM also has or had a LARGE oval pattern for Memory Keepers Club members...maybe that would be something you'd be intrested in. It was for at least 8x10 photos.

 

[scrapperjill]

Also...before CM came out with the patten cutters they had a circle cutter...that was very adjustable...and you cut ontop of a piece of glass. I really liked that one also. Although I find their new style easer to use...not to mention the huge aray of shapes now...where as then it was only circles. But the old style was very adjustable...I'd have to pull mine out to know for sure how big you can cut...

 

[piratesmate]

It's not the photo, but the mat I don't have the right size for. Several times I wanted to use the largest blade (blue?) for the picture, but then could mat the thing. As I remember, though, it was more of a problem with the inner rings rather than the outer ones. (then it would have been I wanted to use the red blade for the picture)

My problem is that in most of the pix DH takes, the subject fills the frame so that I can't cut the smaller circles w/o removing part of the person or, at minimum, all of the background....so I end up cropping it square.

That works for me & I really like the CM tool. I was just curious about other possibilities.

 

[WDWAurora]

I've used them all. I honestly can't get the hang of the CM system, and I've tried it multiple places with multiple teachers. Fiskars is hard to know what size the shape will turn out. Coluzzle is my favorite by far. You can tell what size the picture (or mat) will turn out, the sizes are very small increments so it's easy to adjust. It's very easy to use and much cheaper than CM! If you have any questions about it, I'd be happy to answer, but I can't really say anything negative about it, especially since I just replaced the blade after a year and it cuts amazingly again.

 

[Cruise04]

I like the CM system that I have too and I can't remember what I paid for it, it was whatever it was with a CM person. BUT I only had gotten the ovals and I got the circles on ebay for like 1/2 the price. But you have to know how to do the bidding and really watch it for it to be a good deal.

 

[Allabtprincesses]

Originally I used the coluzzle system and thought it was fine, but when it began to frustrate me a bit I took the dive into the CM system. I do like it better. There are times when I wish there were a few more sizes, but it doesn't happen often. Good luck!

 

[Allabtprincesses]

I didn't realize that the CM cutting patterns are guaranteed? I just realized this week that my Star template from the Celestial set is broken. I'm quite sure I've had it for less then a year because I think it just came out last year. Is the guarantee written somewhere? I couldn't find it on the website, and I'd like to have it in ink before I ask my CM consultant about it. Thanks in advance!

 

[Franne]

I didn't realize that the CM cutting patterns are guaranteed? I just realized this week that my Star template from the Celestial set is broken. I'm quite sure I've had it for less then a year because I think it just came out last year. Is the guarantee written somewhere? I couldn't find it on the website, and I'd like to have it in ink before I ask my CM consultant about it. Thanks in advance!

It's written on the back of your sales reciept. Tools are guaranteed for 1 year and albums are lifetime. Call her up and let her know, it doesn't cost her anything to replace it since CM pays for the shipping.

 

[Allabtprincesses]

Thanks for the info!

I will e-mail her and ask her about a replacement.

 

[hilltopfamily]

Coluzzle is my favorite by far. You can tell what size the picture (or mat) will turn out, the sizes are very small increments so it's easy to adjust. It's very easy to use and much cheaper than CM! If you have any questions about it, I'd be happy to answer, but I can't really say anything negative about it, especially since I just replaced the blade after a year and it cuts amazingly again.

Oh, I hope you can help a real newbie to scrapbooking. I just purchased a Coluzzle knife, replacement blades, foam rectangle to cut on, and ovals and circles. I tried it out and I want to know: is the blade in the knife supposed to be "wiggly"? The dang thing feels "loose" in the knife handle and I'm really struggling to get it to cut, but I'm guessing this is because it is supposed to be able to swivel? It doesn't seem to tighten down any more than it already is. Maybe it's supposed to be this way and I just need to practice more and try to get the "hang of it". Any advice or helpful hints? Thanks so much if you can help me figure out how to use this tool.

 

[Stephres]

You are a step ahead of me: I bought the Coluzzle system and couldn't get the blade to stay in. It just falls right out. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong.

I have the Fiskars system with the templates, and have just been using that.

 

[Limmer]

I have the fiskars system with 6 templates and while it is a good system I find I never use the shapes. I am thinking of selling it but don't know how to go about it. Any suggestions?