Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this after getting interested in sewing, which my mom is helping me with. I bought this for two reasons: the first being I thought my mom would love this after I showed her how to play with it, as she is a technophobe,and secondly I had been wishing for something like a Cricut for sewing because I suck at cutting shapes for quilting. I bought this at the local Hancock Fabrics, and the staff didn't even know how to use it yet. They were kind enough to let me see the owners manual that came with the demo machine so I could find out how thick of a fabric it would cut. It cuts vinyl upholstry fabric. Please do read the manual, it actually tells you how to set the blade depth. I would err on the side of caution and start shallow. You don't want to cut the mat, which is easy to do if you set the blade too deep. You start off by placing the blade in the cartridge, then turning the click dial all the way to as deep as it will go and back to shallow. Then check the manual for suggested settings, adjust depth, and put it in the cartridge holder in the machine. It had a tab you pull down like a mini roller coaster bar that locks it in place. After that, it will orient the blade automatically for optimal cutting. You do need to adjust the depth manually as you change fabrics. There is also a standard blade for quilting or light weight fabrics, and a heavy duty blade for heavier fabrics, like 14 oz denim. So far I have been learning on the fly, as with sewing. My mom is showing me the basics on sewing and the quilt block feature is fabulous. The drawing of the seam allowance is awesome for a beginning sewer like me. You can purchase the extra blocks and patterns and use the usb and scan function to upload them. I will tell you the scan feature took me some getting used to. I would place it in a well lighted area to scan. You can also register for an online scanncut tool that works with vector files (they call them SVG and FCM files) and helps you create, or even draw, your own templates. I have gotten more use out of this feature than the scan feature. I think my mom will enjoy the scan feature more. I have not tried to scan a pattern piece yet. The machine has a pop up lcd style touch screen. Get a stylus or a pencil with a good eraser. My nails didn't work well with the small buttons. But in its defense, I have long nails. The lcd screen will lock in a couple different angled upright positions. The screen was easy for me, as a nearsighted person, to see. It comes with a standard letter, simple shape, and decorative edging (like you see in scrapbooking) designs. These designs can be altered with that screen, but it is easier to use the above mentioned tool brother offers on their site. Re-sizing is easy with those pre loaded designs. You can choose to size it by length, width, or the default that does both length and width. If you have re-sized a photo on your computer, it works the same way. Placing the design has a couple options, which may sound odd at first. After you first select the design, hit ok, a grid screen appears. If you use the stylus to move that design immediately, it kind of works. Fine tuning can be done by selecting one of the edit buttons. It will allow you to turn the design, flip it, move it up, down, left, or right, and to add more designs. I had fun playing with these items to see how the repeat button feature worked. You can save the edited design and even its place on the mat with the save option. You can save it to the machine or to a usb if you have one. The mats are pretty nifty. Since I had two mats (I used the standard mats), I could set one piece of fabric for cutting, then position the second fabric on the second mat while the first was cutting. Saved lots of time. My only wish is that someday they can cut more than one layer at a time. To load the mat, you hold it flat, slide it into the channel under the cartridge holder and press the little grid button on the upper right hand side of the lcd. It will automatically load and position the mat. Cleaning the mat was difficult for me due to the fuzzy and shedding fabrics I used. The manual says to not use water, but you can use a microfiber cleaning type cloth without any cleaner or solvent in it. If the mat gets to the point that it is losing the sticky-ness, I would either get a new mat or use the high tack support sheet. You do not want the fabric coming off during the cutting process. It can get the mat stuck if that happens with a heavy fabric. You do not want to break the machine doing that. The machine came with two standard mats and one low tack mat, a standard and deep cut blade, pens, spatula, applique adhesive type roll, and a really handy support sheet for the mats. Fuzzy fabric, or fabric that tends to shed, will kill the tack on the standard mat. The support sheet helps. It is actually a high tack sheet that you stick to the standard mat. I have had a blast with this, and my mother really looks like she wants to learn, but is waiting for me to show her how to do it. She is a very big technophobe, and prefers to have me show her how to do things a couple times before venturing on her own. I don't think she has anything to be afraid of. It is simple to use, offers flexablity in sizing and placing designs, and there aren't a ton of buttons to confuse. If you can use a smart phone, even just a little, you will have a great time with this machine.