The Cricut Maker – the granddaddy of them all!
Over the last three weeks I have touched point on The Cricut Joy™, The Cricut Explore Air® 2 and now finishing off this series we’re looking at The Cricut Maker and its phenomenal range and capabilities.
The Cricut Maker
What is The Cricut Maker?
Hark, I hear you, answers are coming, she says while tumbling down the Cricut Rabbit hole.
I’ve long said it, that once you find your passion and your dream, you will find the time to make it happen. The Cricut Maker® in my life falls into that category of passion, and dreaming of happiness.
It’s a cutting machine, a creative companion, and a limitless supply of inspiration. It cuts hundreds of materials quickly and accurately, from the most delicate paper and fabric to matboard and leather. It comes with a wide range of tools for cutting, scoring, and writing. With the machine, you can totally customize projects to your unique style.
It is also a newer and more advanced model than The Cricut Explore Air® 2. It can do everything that the Explore Air 2 can do plus much more! Having said that, both machines are fully capable and will meet your needs no matter if you’re a beginner or an advanced user.
So why should I buy The Cricut Maker® if it is practically the same as the Cricut Explore Air® 2?
There are some capability differences between the two machines and which one you should buy depends on your exact business and crafting needs. Listed below are the advantages of a Cricut Maker over the Cricut Explore Air® 2
Cutting Force – The machine has 10x the cutting force coming in at 4000 grams. That is an epic difference of 3600 grams. This cutting force is why the Cricut Maker® can cut thicker materials like sheet metal, thin wood, thick leather, un-bonded fabric, and more.
Being able to cut these materials also needs new blades, so here are the blades that the Cricut Maker® has that the other machines don’t have:
The machine comes with 6 extra blade options.
· The Rotary blade for cutting fabric and delicate materials.
· The Knife blade, can cut through wood and thin metal. It’s important to note the wood should not be thicker than 4mm.
· The scoring wheel, which creates score lines in papers
· The perforation blade – for creating perforated edges
· The engraving tip – use this to engrave on metal, leather, plastic etc. and
· The debossing tip – used to create debossed paper details
· The wavy blade – will allow you to create wavy effects on your final cuts instead of straight lines.
ADVANTAGES
One of the big advantages for creators who sew or people like me who wish they could sew, is that with the Cricut Maker you can now cut tons of fabric, even the slippery ones! There is a specific pink Cricut mat designed especially for this purpose. You will also find a slew of patterns that have been uploaded to Design Space. It cuts patterns so fast and you can use the pen tool holder with the machine-washable fabric market to make markings.
One massive bonus is that with the Cricut Maker® you can now print and cut projects with patterned and light-coloured paper. That right there for me is a huge reason why you should buy the Cricut Maker®.
My last big sway from The Cricut Explore Air® 2 to the Cricut Maker® is the adaptive tool system. The technology behind this clever innovative system is just mind-blowing and it’s all built into your machine. What it does is intelligent control and directs the blade and cut pressure to match your material. This means that every cut, yes you read that right, EVERY cut comes out perfect.
Now that you’ve read about all the amazing things that the Cricut Maker® can do, lets cover a few technical specs.
DIMENTIONS
Size: 60.96cm length by 24cm width and 24cm height.
Weight: 10.8kg .
Cutting mat: 30cm by 30cm and the longer length cutting mats are 30cm by 60cm.
You can cut over 300+ materials with the Cricut Maker. You can purchase any of the materials listed below
Be assured that all these materials are compatible with your machine.
Glitter Cardstock
Glitter Heat Transfer vinyl
Inkjet printable vinyl
Metallic Heat Transfer vinyl
Oracal 651 Permanent vinyls
IN CONCLUSION
My overall thoughts on the Cricut Maker is that I personally wish I had bought The Cricut Maker® from the start. Now don’t get me wrong, I have managed to start a business and pay back my loan, so I don’t have regrets about buying it. However, if I look back at the Rands and cents I have spent on the Explore Air 2, I could have bought a maker and some.
Remember earlier I said that you should really consider what you want the Cricut machines for? Take the time to write out the pros and cons of all the Cricut machines. Look at what you want to do with your business, side hustle, or creativity, and then decide which machine is best for you. We also have a great overview on Cricut Machines at The Cricut Explore Air® 2 – why you should buy it and The Cricut Maker – the granddaddy of them all!
Have a great week everyone
Cricut and Crafting
