Accuquilt go big dies
 

Good morning, I have so many tubs of scraps that I am considering purchasing a go big Cutter. Do You have any suggestions as to which dies to purchase in order to make a dent into these tubs of scraps? The website is so hard to navigate any help would be great.

I thought you meant it stopped working. :D

Carry on.

Watson

It really Depends on the size of your scraps. I have a Studio, a big cutter. The dies for it are heavy, but they work well. So if your arms and hands don't like heavy or don't work like they used to, get the Big electric. The dies are lighter and I don't think they cut as many layers, but they work well.

Types of dies: I use strips a lot, followed by triangles and squares. I don't applique, so not applique dies for me.

Dies are expensive, so buy what you need when you need it - and when it is on sale.

I agree that the website is confusing. Sometimes I think confusing web sites are confusing to get you to 'look' longer in hopes you will buy more!

I agree with cathyvv. An alternative would be the Big Shot Pro from Sizzix. It is like Accuquilt Go or Studio but much easier to crank then the Studio or Go. I also run the Go and Studio dies on it except some for the Studio or Big Electric if they are too wide. The dies made by Sizzix are much lighter then the ones for the studio. Like the Studio from Accuquilt the Big Shot Pro from Sizzix needs a designated space as it is not very portable. Take your time and maybe check some out before buying. I ordered several Studio dies and ended up returning them because they were way to heavy for me to handle. You can run most Accuquilt dies on the Big Shot Pro Sizzix so you can shop a big variety. I do agree maybe buy as you go depending on your need. I bought a good amount and some I have not used yet. Also dies need to be store on their side like books. The Studio dies take up a very large amount of space. They are in a big piece of wood and often have a lot of space around the actual cutters. Not very efficient and making it even more unyielding. The good part of the Studio is that you can run the Go dies on it too.

As for types of dies, I like the basic ones that cut multiples of the same shape. I first invested in dies that made 12 inch blocks. finnished sizes-2,3, 4, 6 inch squares, quarter square and half square triangles that made those measurements, dies that made flying geese for 12 in. blocks, and block F. It is the center for the square in a square block that fits in the center of a 12 in. block or can be used on its own. I also have several strip cutters but generally prefer to use my June Taylor shape cutter with a rotary cutter. Oh don't forget the isosceles triangle for some stunning blocks.

Sorry the die that makes the 54-40 or fight block. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AruEqCMZBUU

What size blocks do you generally make? Here is one the guides that matches to dies to the size of blocks.

https://www.accuquilt.com/patterns/block-patterns.html/

I started with the dies for a 12 inch block. Then added some additional dies for even more options. The concept of mix-and-match work well as you can create different block designs. It's a fun project to make a sampler quilt.

These guides show the options for 72 different blocks in the different sizes.

https://www.accuquilt.com/patterns/b...s.html?cat=878

Don't forget the strip dies can also cut squares and bias bindings too. You can always share a die with a quilting friend if possible.

Hope that helps!

I agree that their site is difficult to navigate and it's annoying to me.
You could buy the die that cuts charm squares. (5x5) That's a good one.
Also triangles, rectangles.
I bought the Go and like it a lot. I haven't gone wild buying dies. I have a strip die for making binding, and mostly just blocks that I will use a lot, like the above mentioned.
It's fun cutting them out!!

It depends on what types of quilts you want to make.

Personally, I like the Accuquilt Go most for odd shapes that are more difficult to cut with rotary cutter methods. The tumbler shape was very popular for scrap quilts for awhile, and it comes in different sizes now. The hexagon dies are really nice if you like hand piecing (machine piecing works for the bigger hexies) and also works well for cutting the papers for paper piecing.

Several quilters have methods for cutting up scraps so that all the scrappy pieces fit together in quilts, but I think this was usually done with rotary cutters. I remember some books published on the topic, and there are some videos on Youtube also.

Joann's has dies in many shapes and sizes.

I have the 9" cube and its companion as well as the 2 1/2 strips. I thought this would be basic to start since the cube has squares and rectangles. I haven't purchased any of the other dies.