by Richelle Naegle

I love many of Sizzix’s new die-cut cards lately. Their unique shapes make them stand out without adding lots of extra work.

These cards are great, and you can make them without Sizzix dies, but trust me, they are so much easier when you don’t have to do all that measuring and calculating to make sure you are cutting, slicing, and scoring in just the right places.

For example, check out this Friends Forever Step Up card. I seriously can’t wait to get a hold of it. OK, so back to the project, I used the Tri-Shutter Card from our friends at Sizzix.

There isn’t much to it, so you can quickly learn how to use Sizzix Thinlits. This Card, the Tri Shutter set, is super easy to manage. It comes with 10 dies, the most important being the card. That is the one that cuts your card shape, scores your fold lines, and gives your card all the right dimensions without taking a measurement.

Project Instructions

This die set features phrases like “dream” and “beauty”, as well as shapes like the butterflies and flowers you see here. One convenience is that this card folds up easily to mail it. Here are some tips for using the Thinlits dies:

• If you are working with the standard platform, you must make a sandwich with your cutting pads and dies to cut. If you use the Solo or Essentials platforms, you should use adapters.
• To emboss, get on the Impressions pad and silicone rubber sheets for best results.
• To stencil, all you need is ink or chalk.:

You can find these Sizzix cut/emboss accessories at discount prices here at CraftDirect.com. One of the beauties of Thinlits is that one pass through your embosser will usually get the job done.

I love how my project turned out and how easy it was to create. You could easily throw one of these cards together in just a few minutes. Have you looked at all the NEW Sizzix dies that are coming out from Sizzix yet? You can pre-order them, and as soon as they arrive, you will be the first of our customers to receive these awesome new dies! Oh, and did I mention that when you purchase early, you get a great price on these fun new products? So be sure to check back often for the newest releases from Sizzix. Also, we offer various brands of craft dies. Check them out and save on Sizzix machines, like the world-famous Big Shot.

Happy creating!