Ready... set... GO!

Three things to be happy about:
(1) mechanical pencils
(2) date bread with cream cheese
(3) mandarin orange jello

Don't you just love opening packages?? Me too!

I had been thinking and thinking about getting an Accuquilt GO! cutter... last week I decided I might as well go ahead and get it, especially after Linda (Sew-n-crazy quilter) in my bee told me about Quilting Warehouse.  I'd never shopped at Quilting Warehouse before and I'm glad she told me about it; they had a great price on the GO! cutter that included a really nice the starter set. 

I got five squares with the starter set  - 2-1/2",  4-1/2", 3-1/2", 4-3/4", and 6-1/2".  I was trying to figure out what was with the 4-3/4" size but I saw on one of the packages that it's really an on-point die.   

There are two half-squares that finish at 2" and 3", those should come in handy enough!  6-1/2" and 4-7/8" triangles; a 3-1/2 x 6-1/2" rectangle; a 3-3/4 x 3-1/2" parallelogram, hmmm.  The three cutting mats that I need for those sizes were also included - 5x10, 6x12, and 10x10.  The dies in the starter set are meant to be mixed and matched - clever!  Each one is designated as A, B, C, etc.   No strips were included, so I ordered the 2" and 2-1/2" dies.  Evidently the 1-1/2" strip is very popular, they were all out of that size; I'll have to get that and the circle die later.  

After unpacking I wanted to cut something!  I used a piece of fabric I got from our last bee meeting to practice cutting 2" strips.  Those of you with GO! cutters, do you press your fabric first?  I think I've seen pictures of cut strips that looked a bit wrinkled and I wondered if it made a difference...  Wanda and Gene, do you always press yours??  

The instructions said to cut an 18" piece but I didn't measure exactly, I just folded a piece twice to get four layers and placed it on the die. The handle wasn't as hard to turn as I thought it would be, it just scooted on through and I cut perfect 2" strips!  I actually had to nip the bottom ends with my scissors but that's not important, it was in the selvedge area anyway.  Note to self:  make sure the fabric is completely on the cutter... but that's what practice is for!


But the strips came out beautifully -  it's so nice to cut fabric and know you won't have that annoying v-shape at the fold area! I only had a little waste, plus an extra piece for my string bin.  Now I'll get a chance to go through my stash and the large scrap bins to see what I can cut into usable pieces. 


Moving right along...

I'm enjoying my new printer, it has a double-sided print capability that will come in handy, that'll save some paper!  Also I like the large window on the control panel, and it even has animated instructions. 

We'll see if I'm still grinning when I go to buy more ink, ouch!

That's all for today, have a great Friday and  be careful on the snow if you're having any.  Sew forth and sew on til later!