Dave creates the most beautiful, intricate dies on the market! I am sure most of you will agree with that statement. Because of the small detail, sometimes it is hard to use thinner paper or thinner cardstock because the papers sometimes rip as they are being removed from the die. I wanted to show you a tip that I discovered the other day that really works well.
How many of you have scrap cardstock lying around? I bet 100% of you can answer yes to that one. LOL! Anyway, I love using my Memory Box dies to cut felt, cork, chipboard, old dictionary paper, etc. I find that the thin, old dictionary paper (or similar thin paper) really has a hard time coming out of the die. I usually use my piercing tool through the small holes on the back of the die to remove the cut piece but with the thinner paper, sometimes that still does not help. So, I decided to back my thinner papers with scrap cardstock before running the die through my machine. Here is what I did:
1. Adhere your thin paper to the top of a piece of old cardstock using your preferred adhesive.
2. Run your scrap paper with the thinner paper adhered to the top along with your die through the machine. Here you can see I cut out the Memory Box Fresh Foliage die {98502} on thin dictionary paper that was adhered to a scrap piece of Memory Box paper.
3. Remove the die cut piece from die. It should come out very easily now because there were two pieces of paper adhered together first. Here is how my die cut turned out:
Doing this makes the intricate die cut much sturdier and easier to apply adhesive. I will share this creation on Thursday on the DT blog so be sure to come back.
Note: Valerie asked "Do you put the cardstock closest to the die or the thinner paper? Or does it matter."My Response: "You know, I didn't think about that but I put the die on the cardstock side so I could push it out with my piercing tool if needed. I do think that works better but didn't think to mention it. Thanks for bringing it up."
Also, don't miss out on the DT Blog Blitz going on this week! Daily prizes are being given away so you don't want to miss out! See you Thursday! Thanks for stopping by, and I am glad so many of you are finding this tip helpful!
Thanks for the tip - some dies seem easier to use than others but I love them all! Looking forward to seeing what you do with your special die cut above!
Posted by: Maureen Chandler | 01/08/2013 at 04:46 AM
I heard using wax paper between the cardstock & die helps too. What do you think? :)
Posted by: Becky Green | 01/08/2013 at 12:23 PM
Did you use an all-over adhesive to hold the two pieces together, or did you attach them only around the edges or in the corners? Which adhesive did you use? Love this tip -- looking forward to the completed project!
Posted by: Alice | 01/08/2013 at 12:57 PM
Thanks! And Alice, I used my 3M Tape Glider and made a square around the edges of the paper then an 'X' through the middle. That was enough adhesive to catch parts of the paper. Worked great for me that way.
Becky, I am not sure that I have heard of the wax paper idea. I haven't tried it. With thin book paper, I think the paper would probably still tear though, not sure. The book paper would still be flimsy though for applying adhesive to attach the die cut to the card or layout. Having the added cardstock already attached to the back makes the die cut nice and "sturdy" for attaching. I hope that makes sense. :)
Glad y'all find this helpful! Let me know how it works for you!
Posted by: Patter Cross | 01/08/2013 at 01:32 PM
I hadn't thought of doing it that way. I use wax paper between the die and paper. The wax paper is slick so it easily comes out. Thanks for your idea!
Posted by: Nancy Jensen | 01/08/2013 at 05:35 PM
Thanks for the tips!
Posted by: Dixie | 01/08/2013 at 06:07 PM
Great idea, thanks for sharing!
Posted by: jan m | 01/08/2013 at 07:17 PM
Wax paper works! With thick and thin paper, even thin vellum. Place the wax paper down first, then the paper you want to cut, then the die.
Posted by: Gloria Stengel | 01/08/2013 at 07:22 PM
Thanks Gloria. Glad to know wax paper works; however, I know the paper would still be flimsy though if you use wax paper as you don't keep it attached to the thinner paper. I like the cardstock because it is permanently attached to the thin paper thus making it easier to handle and attach to creations. :) Plus it helps me use up my scraps. LOL!
Posted by: Patter Cross | 01/09/2013 at 02:31 AM
The wax paper works great, but, I agree, any thin paper would still not be very sturdy. I use sheets from old vintage books and I use a glue stick to adhere the sheets to 80# cs, let the glue dry a bit and then cut. I learned from Dave's tutorials to spot shim, too, if you just have areas that don't want to cut. He suggested putting small pieces of scotch tape (stacked until you get the right thickness needed)on the back of the die...just in the difficult to cut areas and then cut like you normally would. I don't even bother removing the tape from the die since I would have to repeat next time I use the die.
Posted by: Jan Douglas, Florida | 01/09/2013 at 06:41 AM
Another tip is to cut several layers of cardstock, and stack them to make these look like laser cut chipboard! I love reading all these tips! Thanks, Patter. It's been a long time since I visited you, and I am so happy I dropped by the other day! God Bless!
Posted by: Gloria Stengel | 01/09/2013 at 09:02 AM
thanks for the inspiration! a very beautiful card...will share your technique with card friends!!
Posted by: rosemarie | 01/11/2013 at 02:06 AM
Gorgeous card. very romantic
Posted by: Vicki Scott | 01/11/2013 at 08:20 AM