Mini Shadow Box Made of Sizzix Shaker Box Die and Pattern Paper

My son's teacher's birthday was last week.  I wanted to give her something special.  And I just bought the Sizzix Shaker Box Die and I saw a youtube video that a lady using that die to make a shadow box, I think it is super cute and cool.  So I decided to make a mini shadow box made of a vintage looking pattern papers that I bought at Tuesday Morning couple weeks ago.

Here is the youtube video:

Because the teacher is original from UK, so I used Hero Art Stamp Set which has a London and British Flag in the background.  I handpainted the stamps into different colors and stamped on the muslin fabrics which has an interfacing on the back.   Then I glued on the cover of the shadow box.  I also put  a "Happy Birthday" Sticker (which I bought at Marshalls) on it.  At last, I glued a flower embellishment.  I think it looks stunning!! hehe...  I really love the pattern paper I used, because the paper is so think, so I used two sheets of paper.

Mini Shadow Box made of Sizzix Shaker Box Die

Another view of Mini Shadow Box

Side View of Mini Shadow Box

I used "velcro" for the closure.  The velcro I used is the type that they have adhesive.  It works out very good.  I think it is more convenience than using ribbon to close the shadow box.

For picture, I chose a funny picture.

I think it is super funny picture!

 I also used leather heart which I made few weeks ago for decoration.

My son's teacher loved it!  She loved the UK Stamp and the picture.  She loved it so much that she wanted to make these mini shadow box for Christmas gift to parents.  I am very glad that she loved it.  It really made my day.

Cutting Leather with my Sizzix Bigkick

Can Sizzix Bigkick Cut Leather?? 

Answer is ....

YES!!!

I have tested paper, cardstock, fabrics and felt.  Since I am still new to die cut, I am very curious about cutting different materials.  So I always think how can I test.  Then Leather came in my mind.

I have an used leather hanging around in the closet, I bought it long time ago at Goodwill for making soft sole shoes for my son (when he was a baby).  So I decided to give a try.

This time I used Time Holtz Gadget Gears Die:

Tim Holtz Gadget Gears Die

I cut off a small piece of leather from the leather jacket.  It cut easily just like cutting the paper or fabrics.  And the result is amazing, it is a very clean cut.  The gears look very nice.  My hubby was very impressed.

Cutting Leather with Sizzix Bigkick

Tim Holtz Gadget Gears Die

Tim Holtz Gadget Gears Die

Tim Holtz Gadget Gears Die

I really love the leather gears.  It looks better than paper or felt I have tried.  The pattern on the leather adds a special touch.  They are available at my Etsy Store for purchase.

After I tested on Tim Holtz Gadget Gears Die, then I tried on another Tim Holtz Die Bird Cage.  I am a little bit worried when I tested it, because this die has more "detail" and "small" part, I wasn't sure how it would turn out.

Tim Holtz Bird Cage Die

The Result is SO Beautiful!! I am very very impressed!!

Leather Bird Cage and Bird

Cutting Leather with Tim Holtz Bird Cage Die

Close up: you can see how clean it cut

Cutting Leather with Sizzix Bigkick is so much fun!  So I couldn't stop myself.  I tested another die "Sizzix Original Die Hearts Primitive #3".

Sizzix Hearts Primitive #3 Die

I tested on two different color leather jacket.

Leather Hearts Die Cut by Sizzix Bigkick

Leather Hearts Die Cut

Leather Hearts Die Cut

After I test on different leather piece, I noticed that the red leather left a lot of residues.  It is not as clean as the brown leather.  But by all mean, it is still a clean cut.  I just need to wipe off the residue on the side.

I am very impressed with cutting Leather with Sizzix Bigkick.  I never imagined that it would turn out so great. 

Sizzix BigKick

Sizzix BigKick

Can Sizzix Bigkick cut fabrics?

Finally I received my Sizzix Bigkick last Friday.  I have been playing with my Sizzix Bigkick with different dies and different materials like paper, felt, fabrics etc.  The main reason I got the Sizix Bigkick is I want to make "Fabric Embellishment".  I saw a lot of reviews which said it can cut fabrics.

Do all the reviews I read are correct?  Let's see my Sizzix Bigkick Fabric Test!!

First Die: 
Sizzix Original Die: Frame, Hanging w/Scallops (I got it at JoAnn.com with my Bigkick, it was on sale only $6 or so, but now Sizzix.com sells it for $4)

Sizzix Original Die Frame, Hanging w/Scallops

First I tested it on Quilt Cotton Fabric, it is light weight cotton.  Sizzix Bigkick cuts beautifully.  No string attach.  You can see the pictures below.  Very Impressed!  I didn't expect how beautiful it cuts.

Quilt Cotton Fabric

Quilt Cotton Fabric

Then I tested it on Wool Blend Felt (20% wool and 80% Rayon), it is medium weight, it is thicker than the "Craft Felt" you bought from chained craft stores.  Like the cotton fabric, Bigkick did a great job on cutting this wool blend felt.  It cuts beautifully.  You can see the closeup of the picture.

Wool Blend Felt

Wool Blend Felt

Because it was so much fun, I tested the other die I just got at JoAnn clearance.

Second Die: 
Sizzix Originals Die - Hearts, Primitive #3 (I paid $4.99 for this die at JoAnn Clearance)

This die comes with 4 sizes of heart shape.  I tested it on the cotton fabrics I have, the top row fabric is lighter weight Cotton, the bottom row is regular Quilt Cotton Fabric.

Top Row: Lighter Weight Quilt Cotton Fabric; Bottom Row: Quilt Cotton Fabric

I tested the top row first, because of last test, it cuts the cotton fabric beautifully, so I tried to cut 2 layers of the fabrics instead of 1 layer.  And result....

Cutting 2 layers of Cotton Fabrics

You can see from the picture, the edge is not as clean as 1 layer.  You can see the string still attached on one of the hearts.  After I tested 2 layers, I went back to test 1 layer.  It cut beautifully.

Third Die: 
Sizzix Bigz Die - Old Jalopy by Tim Holtz Alternations

The pictures didn't come out too good.  So I used the stock picture I found online instead.

Sizzix Bigz Die: Old Jalopy by Time Holtz Alternations

Since I know it will cut fabric beautifully, so when I tested this die, I used different types of felts.  I tested on three felt pieces, two of them are "craft felt" which you can buy 8"x12" sheet from chained craft store like Michaels and AC Moore etc.  The other felt piece is the Wool Blend I tested on the other die before.

If you have touch the 8"x12" felt, you know how cheap and thin are they.  I thought because they are so thin, it should cut it without any problem.  However, it is not quit true.  For most part, it cut well.  But for the small or delicate area, it actually didn't cut well.  The small part is broken into two pieces.

Brown is Wool Blend Felt.  Green and White are 8"x12" Craft Felt.

As you can see on the picture, there is missing part on the Green Car.  Even though the white car didn't miss that small part, but it is just barely attached.  Except that, the main car body cut very nice on both types of felt.

 

You can see that the Green Car miss part of it.

Conclusion:

In General, Sizzix Bigkick cut fabric beautifully when you use Original or Bigz Dies.  However, cutting fabrics with dies which has dedicated or small part, the fabric choice is very crucial.  The thinner the fabric it is more likely not do well with these types of dies.  But I haven't tested enough with these type of dies.  I will try to test more in next couple weeks.  Also, I heard mixed reviews about Sizzlits and Sizzix Framelit cutting fabrics.  I bought a Sizzix Framelit die, I will test it soon.

If you have experience with cutting fabrics with Sizzlits or Sizzix Framelit dies, please share your experience.  I would love to learn more about it.

Sizzix Dies and Embossing Folders Clearance at JoAnn!!

I am new to Die Cutting!  I want to get a die cutting machine for a while, I mainly want it for cutting fabrics.  I am not really into paper crafting.  After all the research I did, I decided to get Sizzix Big Shot or Big Kick.  I just waited for it on sale.  Anyway, I found Big Kick on sale at JoAnn.  It is only $49.99.  But my local JoAnn is out of stock.  So I ordered it on JoAnn.com.

Since I ordered my Big Kick, I started to look for Sizzix Dies.  And I found JoAnn are clearance some of Tom Holtz Dies and the other lines of dies, embossing folders as well.

Sizzix Tom Holtz Dies are $4.97 each, Hero Arts Stamp and Dies Set is $5.xx (Don't remember exact price), the other dies are $3.97 each.  Embossing folders are $2.97 each.

Let's see what I got!!

Sizzix Tom Holtz Dies

Sizzix Dies and Sizzix Hero Arts Stamp and Dies

Sizzix Tom Holtz Embossing Folder

Not all the JoAnn clearance out Sizzix Tom Holtz Dies.  My closest JoAnn sell the same dies, but at the regular price.  In order to buy the clearance dies, I went to the other JoAnn which are 30 and 45 mins away from my house.  But I think it is worth it.  Because it is like 75% off. 

I can't test out these dies yet.  Because I am still waiting for my Big Kick.  I really don't recommend to order from JoAnn.com.  It takes forever for them to ship.  It has been 3 business days.  Finally they shipped out my order.  Amazon has Big Kick for $57 or so, but I tried to save money, so I decided to order from JoAnn.com instead.  I have prime membership with Amazon, I got free 2-days shipping.  If I ordered from them, I would get my Big Kick yesterday. 

I can't wait to play with all these dies, I have a lot of ideas for my coming projects.  Hopefully I would receive my Big Kick by the end of this week.