First, let me share the sandwich I build for all my dies (from the bottom up):
- Magnetic platform
- “Scratchy pad” (the one that will be cut into by the die)
- Card stock
- Die
- “Clear pad” (always on top, never cut into) that you’re able to see through to ensure your die is correctly aligned
It looks like this (but of course I align everything before running it through the machine):
You can see that the cutting pad (actually called a cutting plate) on the magnetic platform and under the paper is very “scratchy,” but the “top of sandwich” cutting plate is relatively clear. There will be an impression of the die in that plate, but it will not be cut.
Note that this particular die should be aligned with a vertical orientation and at one side of the machine, where the squeeze is a bit tighter. I ran this forward and backward through the machine, without moving the die, and it cut perfectly.
However, the Stitched Lace die is a different story. Running it through just once, towards the left side of the machine, yielded this unsatisfactory result:
I think you can see the areas at the bottom where the die did not cut through. Even if I had run it through forward and backward, I still would not have achieved satisfactory results.
So!
I believe I saw this tip shared by Patty Bennett: before you run the sandwich through the die cutting machine, turn the entire sandwich (but not the magnetic platform) upside down so the cutting is up, not down. The order (from the bottom up) is:
- Magnetic platform
- “Clear pad”
- Die facing up
- Card stock
- “Scratchy pad” (the one that will be cut into by the die)
This time I ran it forward and back — and actually whacked the die on the side of my table before I remembered to take a picture. What a difference!
You can clearly see how the die has bitten into the paper much more deeply than when the sandwich was not upside down. Only another whack and a little bit of brushing got nearly all the little pieces out!
I would never “cut up” when using outline dies, which cut easily and usually are cutting around stamping that needs to be aligned. But this is a great solution to this die, and others, that are beautiful but can be a bit aggravating!
