Basics You Need to Know About Die Cutting and Die Cutters

Are you fond of keeping and organising pictures in a book? Do you put your best effort into filling scrapbooks with memories such as a family outing or event? Do you send out a lot of homemade birthday and Christmas cards to friends and relatives? If yes you are a scrapbooker.

A scrapbooker is a person who enjoys creating scrapbooks as a way of preserving memories and experiences. Most often than not, scrapbookers also enjoy creating paper crafts such as cards to send out on different occasions.

One major activity that scrapbookers perform is to cut different shapes and patterns out of craft paper to put into their cards or scrapbook pages. However, if you have many cards to send out, you may end up cutting the same patterns repeatedly. Fortunately, you can make it easier on yourself by investing in die-cutting equipment and purchasing different die sets for your scrapbooking and card-making projects.

What is a Die?

 If you are new to the die-cutting world, you may have many questions about what it is all about. In addition, you may have questions regarding what a die-cutting machine is and how to use them. First, it is important to define what a die is. A die is a design that is placed on a sheet of metal. One side of the metal sheet is flat, while the other side has raised, etches that serve as the cutting etches that will create the design.

How Does a Die Create Designs and Patterns?

 The side of the die with the raised etches will create the design once you placed it on top of your choice of card stock or craft paper. Therefore, it is important to put the side with the cutting edge against your paper before running the die set through a die-cutter when cutting patterns.

The rough side of the die will be the cutting side and will either cut or embed designs on the paper material depending on how high the etches are. Low hedges will embed designs, while higher-raised hedges will cut patterns on the paper.

What is a Die-Cutting Machine?

 Die-cutting machines are gadgets that cut shapes from card stock, craft paper, fabric, corkboard, or other materials. These machines are used for the mass production of cut-out shapes of the same patterns or designs. You can create the same shape and design with die-cutters without repeatedly cutting them using scissors or craft cutters.

A typical die cutter will have two rollers on each side that you can use to put pressure on the die and craft stock as they are pushed through the machine. Die cutters will also include cutting plates to “sandwich” your paper and the die that you want to use. As the sandwiched die and paper pass through the rollers, the pressure will cause the raised etches of the die to set the designs on the paper.

There are a lot of die-cutting machines to choose from, ranging from manual to electric. Some machines can cut through thicker paper or materials such as cork boards, while others are limited to the thickness of the paper. Nevertheless, if you are into scrapbooking and card making, it is best to own a die cutter since you will have access to many different dice sets available in your favourite arts and crafts hobbyist stores.