Originally Posted By 999HAUNTS My aunt bought a CriCut from an infomercial on TV because she thought it looked fun. (We occasionally scrapbook together). For those of you who aren't familiar, a CriCut is kind of like a fancy die-cut machine. I went to her house so we could figure out how to use it....well, let's be honest: she wanted me to figure it out and then SHOW her. LOL!! After about a half hour we were cutting out letters and shapes off of the sample cartridge that was included. Last night, I was visiting her at the VFW where she works on the weekends. She told me that she was very frustrated with the CriCut, because without me to help her she gets confused on what she's doing with the machine. I joked for her to let me buy it off of her at a discounted price. She paid $400 bucks for it with all of the accessories. (Extra color pins, blades, sticky sheets, etc) I told her I would buy it from her for $200. She told me to kiss a certain part of her anatomy and then told me to go to her house and take the machine as an early Christmas present. Woo Hoo! I am now like a kid in a candy store - I've already bought a few more cartridges from Amazon and Ebay, and can't wait for our local craft store to have a coupon sale!! Just had to share my excitement!
Originally Posted By LadyKluck Wow your Aunt is aweome! Those machines are fabulous! Maybe I can convince my Aunt to buy one too..........
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 WOW! Congratulations! I have a Sizzix but a CriCut would be soooo much better! On a scale of 1-10 how hard is it to figure out and use?
Originally Posted By dlkozy 999, did yours come with a spatula? Because if it did not, I would buy one if I were you. I have found it makes life with a Cricut MUCH easier!
Originally Posted By -em Congrats! Welcome to the expensive scrap tools world... I bought one last year on Black Friday but am amazed how little I actually have used it... So far its an expensive paperweight... It is really kewl and the disney carts are fun (I have a princess and the mickey one) Hopefully with my new 8x8 book project Ive started to work on (ordered the sheet protectors last night) Ill use it more -em
Originally Posted By 999HAUNTS dlkozy - yes, I have a spatula! -em, I just ordered the Disney Princess, Disney font and Indie cartridges. Can't wait to try them out!
Originally Posted By 999HAUNTS <On a scale of 1-10 how hard is it to figure out and use? > With 1 being easiest and 10 being hardest: If you know how to read, it is a "1". If you are my aunt and don't want to read but just jump right into it and have no patience, it could be an "6-7"
Originally Posted By dlkozy I love machines and I have a Cricut, Quikcutz, and a Cuttlebug-to name just a few ;0) My favorite is my Cuttlebug-I like that I can use other machine's dies with it such as the Sizzix. It is small enough to haul to swaps without taking up too much table space. AND most importantly-the dies are cheap when bought on sale. I have paid as little as $2.50 a die.
Originally Posted By SoThisIsLove 999HAUNTS, make sure you put the $200 saved into your Olympic trip fund! (And congrats on your new toy. xoxo)
Originally Posted By mj9401 Lucky you!! I have seen one in action at the shops. Sadly they are out of my price range though. Have fun using it!!
Originally Posted By Mary Poppins Well, I learned about a new product today. Never heard of a Cricut before. How exciting for you and it sounds like you are having a blast using it! That's one nice aunt you've got.
Originally Posted By Kira Wow 999! Lucky you! Your aunt doesn't happen to have another CriCut lying around that she doesn't want does she? I have been looking into getting one of these for my mom for christmas. She requested it for her birthday but at the time it was a bit out of league. She never has the time to scrapbook, but she is a librarian (loves to decorate her library for each and every holiday/season etc...) so I figure she MIGHT get use out of it to some extent. I would hate to spend $400 on a machine that she "wants" without knowing whether or not it's just going to end up being a dust collector for years (and in this house that is quite common). When you buy a cricut how many fonts etc... does it come with as a starter, would you recommend buying more fonts than what it comes with? Does it end up being one of those types of machines that will just eat up your money in the end because you have to keep buying accessories for it? Is it more of a gift for an AVID scrapbooker (mom usually tends to have time to scrapbook around once a year lol)? So many questions so little time =)!! I hope you have LOADS of fun with your CriCut!!
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 999 thanks for the honest response. I usually like to "go for it" and hope something works (camera's, computers, printers) and then go back and read the instructions when I get stuck. I admit that I am a scrapbookstuffaholic. Meaning that I love to buy the stuff but don't always use it. Maybe if I just had that CriCut things would be different
Originally Posted By -em If you buy the basic 'bug it generally comes with 1 font cartridge (Mine was a black friday thing and came with 2) All other fonts/shapes etc come separate... They do seem to have good deals now and then but each cart is generally 40-50 bucks It is good for die cut shapes and I could see getting good use out of it for bulletin boards though if it was me Id get bored with the standards pretty quick (though the cart called doodle charms is pretty versatile with basic shapes) One advantage with the bug vs traditional die cuts is you can cut a variety of sizes A quick google search shows the original bug for around 150 now... with the newer and bigger machines 200+
Originally Posted By LadyKluck ^^^wow that kind of pricing seems a lot better than $400! heehee Too bad you're not still out here -em, we could have cricut slumber parties!
Originally Posted By hopemax I have had the baby bug for about a year, and I love it. I use it all the time. I am thinking about upgrading to the large one though. I have a need to cut things at larger sizes.
Originally Posted By 999HAUNTS Oh yeah, you can definately get the original one for about $180 - with accessories. My aunts was $400 because she bought an extra cartridge and spatula and markers and +++. 1) When you buy a cricut how many fonts etc... does it come with as a starter, would you recommend buying more fonts than what it comes with? The starter cartridge has very limited items on it just to get you familiar with the machine. You will definitely get bored if you don't branch out to additional cartridges. 2)Does it end up being one of those types of machines that will just eat up your money in the end because you have to keep buying accessories for it? It depends on how often you use it. For example, the pads that keep the paper in place need to be replaced eventually, and go for about $7.99 for two pads. Each cartridge can run you $20 -$60ish depending if you are Ebaying or not. 3) Is it more of a gift for an AVID scrapbooker (mom usually tends to have time to scrapbook around once a year lol)? I would say if you are a once-in-a-whiler, this product would probably not be beneficial, but when you do go to use it, your scrapping will look phenomenal!!
