How to Use a Die Cutting Machine

Steps

1. 1. Meet the Machine

   Two rollers, a crank handle, a set of plates and a six inch opening. No cord, no software, no subscription.

   Tip: Some machines clamp or suction to the table edge. Worth using if you have it, especially with thick steel rule dies which take real effort. Watch this step

   

2. 2. Read the Sandwich Chart on the Platform

   The extended multipurpose platform folds open and has the whole reference printed on its face. Each numbered tab tells you which plates to stack for which kind of die.

   Tip: If a stack will not go through, do not force the handle. Take a plate out rather than cracking one. Watch this step

   

3. 3. Build the Thin Die Sandwich

   Start with a cutting pad. Lay your cardstock on it.

   Tip: A little washi tape holds the die to the cardstock so it cannot shift as the stack goes into the rollers. Shifted dies cut half a shape. Watch this step

   

4. 4. Crank It Through and Lift the Die Off

   Push the stack up to the rollers and turn the handle steadily until the whole sandwich has passed through. One pass is enough.

   Tip: Poke stubborn bits out with a fine embossing stylus rather than your fingernail. Delicate cuts tear at the corners very easily. Watch this step

   

5. 5. Switch the Platform for Embossing

   To emboss instead of cut, turn the platform to tab one and get an embossing folder. Slide a sheet of cardstock inside the folder and close it.

   Tip: Run the folder through hinge side first. Feeding the open edge in first can catch and pull the paper out of alignment. Watch this step

   

6. 6. The Pattern Presses Straight Into the Card

   Out the other side, open the folder and the whole pattern is raised on the cardstock. It gives a card front real texture for nothing more than one pass through the machine.

   Tip: Emboss first, then die cut. Trying to emboss a shape that is already cut out usually distorts the edges. Watch this step

   

7. 7. Steel Rule Dies Need No Platform

   Thick steel rule dies work differently. The blade is a strip of actual steel standing up out of a foam block, and the foam compresses as the die goes through the rollers so the blade can reach the material.

   Tip: Steel rule dies live face down in storage so the blade is protected. Check which side is up before you build the sandwich. Watch this step

   

8. 8. Cut Anything Scissors Can Cut

   This is where a steel rule die pays for itself. It cuts felt, chipboard, fabric, thin aluminium, cork and leather, not just paper.

   Tip: Stack identical materials rather than mixed. A sheet of felt and a sheet of chipboard together compress at different rates and neither cuts cleanly. Watch this step

   

9. 9. One Pass and Everything Is Cut

   Open the sandwich and lift the material off. Every shape on the die has cut through at once, which is the real time saving with steel rule dies.

   Tip: Keep a shim sheet of card with your plates. As cutting pads wear they lose thickness and a shim brings the pressure back. Watch this step

   

10. 10. A Six Inch Machine Still Builds Big

    The opening is six inches wide, which sounds limiting until you see what comes off it. Giant paper flowers, layered rosettes over a foot across, felt softies and pop-up greeting cards, all assembled from small pieces cut one at a time.

    Tip: Cut all your petals in one session and store them flat in an envelope. Assembling is the fun part and you want to get to it in one go. Watch this step