QuicKutz Blog: Adventures in Die-Cutting

Have you ever been asked?

What's the most common question I get when I tell someone I work at QuicKutz?

If you guessed, "Oh, so you're a barber?" then you're right.  But the second most common question I'm asked is "What's the difference between the Silhouette and the Cricut®?"

As interesting as that first question is, I'd rather talk about the second one for a moment.  If you're like me and have roughly three hundred thousand friends on facebook and maybe half that in real life, then you probably get asked about stuff like the Silhouette an awful lot.  Don't get me wrong; I don't mind at all.  I just find myself out of breath rather quickly when I start to verbalize my brain's contents concerning the matter.

So I made this spreadsheet.

It's my best attempt at a completely objective view of the Silhouette and the closest alternatives.  Now when your friends ask you what the difference is or what makes the Silhouette so great you can refer them to this web page and save your lips for something else...

http://www.quickutz.com/qk2/silhouette/cricut.aspx

jake

Q&A with Yvette

Ready for answers to your QuicKutz questions?

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Are you planning on coming out with other colors of vinyl --  blue, green, brown, gold silver, copper?

This falls under the "Anything is Possible" category. I'll be happy to pass along your requests to the product development team.  My home office is a light blue-gray, so I'm rooting for blue vinyl myself.


Is there perhaps a larger stamping foam in the near future? hint hint....

Anything is possible! I'll pass this request on to product development as well.


I would love to see 2x2 numbers that match the Blossom font for my Squeeze.  I love that font so much!

Blossom is one of my favorites as well--both Mini and Grand sizes. I'll be happy to suggest matching Mini numbers to product development, but because Blossom Mini was an exclusive alphabet I personally think the probability of seeing those dies is low.  I think the best style match you can find from our existing library of number dies would be from the 2007 Sophisticate Gift Set. If you don't have that, check with your local retailer to see if they still have any of those in stock.


I cannot get my silhouette to print - I have set up the robo as a printer, I can do a test print, and when I tell it to output to robo cutter, my cutter acts like it is going to work, but once I hit the cut key - it sits in lala land.

This one's more of a technical question, so luckily there is a Troubleshooting Guide in the Silhouette area of the Questions & Answers Database.   Assuming that you meant "cut" instead of "print" in your question, I think the answer you'll need is here. Hope that helps! You can also email silhouette@quickutz.com or call technical support at 888-702-1146 during business hours.

When is Silhouette QK going to upgrade their software?

I think you'll be happy to know that there is an update coming in the next month or so with some pretty cool features. Especially for those of you who have a lot of Digital Designs and want them to load faster...

So, given that I am a loyal Quickutz fan (and constantly recruiting anyone that I can into my Quickutz world!) I am concerned that I see all of the new products are for the Sillouette. Please tell me that you are not leaving the "Squeezies" behind! Thanks!

Have no fear, "Squeezies" of the World! We'll continue to support all of our product lines and expand them in innovative ways, which means that sometimes there may be a product release without any 2x2 dies. Keep in mind that 2x2 dies did get about a 6-year head start on Digital Designs, 4x4 dies and Cookie Cutter dies!  And thanks for spreading the QuicKutz love.

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Okay, that's all for now. Reply to this post with more questions you'd like me to answer on the blog, or you can send your questions to customerservice@quickutz.com for a faster response.

-Yvette

 

Your questions answered (and new Silhouette release!)

New Digital Designs announced in the Silhouette newsletter today: 8 Hanukkah shapes and 12 for the 12 Days of Christmas!

I know that my blog posts are never going to be as popular as Jake's because I don't have free Digital Designs for you. All I can offer is good grammar and a wealth of QuicKutz knowledge!  :)   Questions that were posted in recent comments to this blog are in bold. Have another question? Leave it as a comment to this entry!

I am wondering if you will have the Sweetheart or Jingle fonts for the Squeeze?

Okay, so when it comes to asking about future product releases, the best answer that I can provide is this: Anything is possible. Most of our products are in the works for several months before they are released, but nothing is absolutely certain until you see it in a newsletter.  What I can do, though, is pass along requests (this question indicates that you would like to see these alphabets for Squeeze) to the product development team.

Are these items [Digital Design Portfolios and Adhesive Vinyl] in stores yet?

Both the Portfolio CDs and the rolls of Adhesive Vinyl will be shipping to retailers in the next couple weeks. Vinyl probably will arrive shortly before the CDs. You should be able to have them in your hands by the end of the year!

Can someone tell me how to download the free files into my library?

Helen had it right: Set up a folder to save .gsd files in. Then when you save .gsd files, save them in that folder. When you are in the Silhouette software, Do a FILE => OPEN and look in the folder that you saved your .gsd file in and you will find your file.

That's all for now. Keep the questions coming and please, for my sanity, keep telling Jake that he's great. It keeps him quietly programming new website frills and free digital designs inside his cubicle. ;)

-Yvette