A little intimidated by Accuquilt
 

Well, this was a huge score -- I was gifted with an Accuquilt Studio cutter with about 20 dies to use for our local Project Linus chapter. And I'm almost afraid to bring it into the house!

I've watched a few videos from Accuquilt, but I really have no idea how to use it. It's pretty big, so I don't know how I'll ever find a permanent home for it in my sewing room, but I'm not sure about storing it in the garage? Also, my sewing room is upstairs, so I don't want to have to haul fabric back and forth for ironing and cutting, should that prove necessary.

I was musing to my kids that I don't know where to keep it, and my son quickly spoke up and said "Not in my room!" lol. He already has to give up his floor to me for sandwiching quilts and until recently his closet held my batting. So I guess the Accuquilt can't live in his room.:rolleyes:

Would love advice and encouragement, thanks!

I keep mine set up in the garage. Yes, I have to go back and forth but for a little inconvienance I get accurate cuts, fast.

My Studio/Grande Mark cutter is set up in my sewing room and yes, it does take up a lot of room. But, I use it often enough that it's well worth the space.

As long as you keep it covered when not in use you should be OK in the garage. Remember that you will need room on both sides for the tray to feed in and out. Also, as with most quilting tasks, the height that the machine sits will affect your usage. I would try it on the kitchen counter and also on a dining table to see what height works well. You didn't say if your fabulous gift included extra cutting mats. If not, you might want to look into getting some extras to have on hand. Think of the mats as consumables, like rotary blades. You can extend the life of your cutting mat greatly by using both sides, and flipping the mat end for end etc. The quickest way to wear out a mat is to cut the exact same shape in the exact same spot. You can mark the die on the rubber side with a metallic sharpie (I like silver). I make a mark where the blades end so I can quickly and accurately place the fabric. For the best cuts, treat your fabric the same way you would do for rotary cutting. Press it, and if you starch or size your fabric now, continue to do so.
And finally, Ebony, at love bug studio, has a lot of info on her blog and also some great you tube videos.
http://www.lovebugstudios.com/fabric-die-cutting/

Thank you so much!

Is there someplace in your sewing room that you could keep it out of the way - maybe under a table and then bring it out when you are going to be cutting. I know that it is not light weight but if not moving it very far (or have help) and then cutting all you can at one time, that might be a solution.

Congrats, I agree as long as it is well covered it should be fine in the garage!! I have this set up, you are going to love it!!!!

Also, if you need some great info on die cutting not only does Ebony Love have videos on YouTube but she as just written a new book on die cutting tips. You can read about it here: http://www.lovebugstudios.com/the-bi...-cutting-tips/.

I would love to have the studio!! I adore my Go!

I keep projects I'm currently working on in another room on purpose so I have to get up and down while sewing. You're supposed to take 10,000 steps every day so I use this as a way to sneak in a little exercise. Going to the garage and back would be even better!

I resently did 3 lone star quilts and my accuquilt cutter was a life saver. I even did the 45 degree cuts on it. made fast work of all those 2 1/2 " strips. love mine.

I'm gearing up to try it this weekend. I could possibly fit the cutter in my sewing room, but I don't know about the dies. She gave me about four packages that are almost as bulky as the cutter, which I think are the dies. I've tried to consider what I could get rid of in my sewing room, but can't come up with *that* much space, lol.

The garage is downstairs, which might be more steps than I want to take, but I agree the exercise would be good. Plus I'm not looking forward to dragging the stuff upstairs in the first place. I am starting to think of some blocks I've never wanted to make because of all the cutting and squaring of pieces, and if there are dies for them, I might be tackling some new projects soon...

Wish me luck!

You will love the Studio! The dies are more expensive then the Go dies but will cut many more at a time. I have the Go. I cut 8 1/2" rag squares enough for a double size quilt in about an hour. It took me longer to cut the batting squares then it did to cut and sew the blocks together. I started cutting and sewing at 6 pm and the quilt was in the wash by 10 pm. I love the pre cut snips.

I've had my Studio for two years and absolutely love it! All my children (ages 8-22) use it also and think it is a phenomenal tool. It is very easy to use and such a time saver. Hope you can take the time to visit Ebony Loves site as it will definitely shorten your learning curve. There is also a pretty comprehensive Yahoo Group that you can join. As far as storing the dies, I pick up file holders (that are suppose to hold manila folders upright) at thrift stores and store the dies upright in these. Please feel free to email me if you have any specific questions that I could help you with.