You had to be a Big Shot.

Now that I've had plenty of time to use my trial Sizzix Big Shot, I'm ready to do a review of it. The way this post is structured is that I'll give a general overview and my impressions of the Sizzix Big Shot followed by comparisons to Accuquilt's Go! Baby. If you haven't already done so, you may like to read my initial impressions of Accuquilt's Go! Baby.

I've had Billy Joel's Big Shot running through my head for weeks preparing for this review.

For disclosure, I'd like to explain how I came to own both cutting systems. As I described in the Go! Baby post, I was approached by Accuquilt. They wanted to give me a machine to try, review and possibly give away. Even before it arrived, I realized that it would great if the machine were multifunctional. I set off with Google to find out what paper cutting dies might be compatible with the Accuquilt Go! Baby. I still haven't found the answer to that as I was sidetracked by a forum post. In late 2010, someone mentioned they were excited for the Sizzix fabric dies as they already owned a Sizzix machine and many compatible dies. I was curious.

I had heard of Sizzix machines, but wasn't aware they cut fabric or had a quilting range. Like many others, I was under the impression that Accuquilt was the cutting machine for fabric. I was almost giddy to learn that I had other options. I popped over to their website, had a look around and decided to boldly ask them for a machine to review. I explained that I had an Accuquilt Go! Baby arriving with three dies. I was interested in a comparable machine in their range. A few weeks ago, it arrived. I've put it through its paces and am now happy to tell you about my Sizzix Big Shot co-branded with Westminster Fabric.

Anyone who regularly follows my blog has a pretty good inkling that on first glance, this probably isn't a machine that I would have picked up at a store. It's purple, bedazzled and looks a bit juvenile. It doesn't fit with my vision of design and modern quilting. Sizzix has multiple Big Shot machines available in assorted colour schemes, frankly none of them appeal to me visually. That said, I'll just tell you up front that I'm glad that I got to trial this machine. If they called me and told to ship it back, I am likely to go out and buy another Sizzix machine.

I was baffled about the design decision to make a purple multipurpose cutting machine. When I think of this shade purple, I think of red hats or unicorns. Neither of those images, reflect what I believe to be modern quilting in affluent middle age bracket. After a few days of thinking about it, I think I understand where the design stems from. This Big Shot machine is co-branded with Westminster Fabric, the umbrella that includes Kaffe Fassett, Amy Butler, Ty Pennington and FreeSpirit Fabrics. In my experience, purple is particularly popular with older quilters including some who lack the dexterity to work with rotary cutters. The resemblance to Anna Maria Horner's Bohemian is also evident and may lure in a few modern quilters. Visually though, I wasn't impressed with color or shaping of the Big Shot. It also requires hefty footprint in my limited craft room.

The only preparation work required with the Big Shot is attaching the handle. It comes with all of the tools for that job. Included with the Big Shot is a multipurpose platform and cutting plates. It wasn't until this arrived that I realized just how many functions the Big Shot is capable of. I see now that it's can cut, emboss and texture multiple materials. It can work with paper, fabric, felt, cardboard, craft aluminum and more. I'm sure it does things that I don't even know about.

When I initially looked at the Sizzix website, I had limited my die selection to their quilting range. I now understand that the machine is compatible with a large portion of their range and many of those dies also cut fabric. I watched multiple videos by Tim Holtz, an independent designer who works with Sizzix which gave me a much better understanding of the available die types and embossing tools.

I've been weighing up ideas on how I could use the machine aside from quilting to enhance my crafting experience. Because the Sizzix works with multiple materials, I realized it could be used "outside-the-box" to help me with everything from machine foundation pieced paper templates to market displays.

For the review, I selected the co-branded quilting dies that would give me a fair comparison to the Go! Baby. I was a bit limited by stock availability at the time, but ended up with four dies including a small dresden plate, an XL quarter square triangle dies for 8" finish, an XL 3.5" square die that cuts 5 squares and an unexpected 2.5" strip die.

Happy expletives came from my mouth when I first turned the handle. I was quite surprised by the effectiveness of the Big Shot. The die blades strongly engaged and did a superb job of cutting things. I trialed multiple materials - patchwork cotton, shot cotton and decorator weight linen. The machine worked fantastically with all of the fabrics. In all cases, the cuts were true. The cuts were complete in every case except the Liberty. Oddly, the machine struggled most with the delicate fabric. It went easily through 4 layers of heavy linen/cotton. With patchwork fabric, I successfully cut 10 layers at one time, though the recommended limit is 8. The die blades are extremely strong and sharp, so much so that I unexpectedly cut through an entire cutting mat while experimenting. More on that later.

The dies come in different sizes and die cost is reflective of the die size. They range from $19-$79USD each (Apologies. I haven't found the Australian RRP. Ebay prices are in line with this range.) I really liked the extra large (XL) dies that are capable of cutting multiples of the same shape in very large sizes. I had a whole quarter square triangle quilt cut in minutes though didn't bother to sew it together. Due to the extended die real estate, I managed to cut 40 3.5" squares in one go. The XL dies were extremely practical and quick, though will present storage issues due to their 26" length. I really enjoyed using the Big Shot which surprised me as it's quite a different reaction than I had with the Go! Baby. My husband remarked "you need to stop or you might run out of fabric."

XL 8" finished quarter square triangle die

What has me most excited about the Sizzix is that it is a multipurpose machine. I realized that I could cut paper with it instead of fabric and quickly make foundation piecing templates. The image isn't a great representation, but you can see how I could quickly make the 8 paper wedges needed to create a mariner's compass. The Go! Baby might also be capable of this but because it isn't marketed as a paper cutter, it hadn't occurred to me to use it in this way.

The traditional die that I picked for review was the Dresden template. It works well, though I could have used more instruction for it. The die makes tiny notches at the side of the fabric which indicate where to sew your curves. I worked it out eventually, but I suspect a beginner would need more input. Curved dresdens are a shape that is tedious to cut by hand. The benefit of the die cutter is obvious here just as it was with the Go! Baby drunkard's path.

Due to my own sewing inaccuracy, I flubbed my first two dresdens. They had giant centers and 14 blades instead of the expected 12. I was so perplexed by this that I mailed their customer service to find out exactly how many blades I should have. They mailed me back within a business day and let me know the small dresden should have 12 blades.

I would have liked to have a sample of the small dresden die sewn up on their website. Generally speaking though, the Sizzix die sales pages include quite a bit of reference with measurements and 1/4" seams which are helpful when selecting products, but I would have liked to seen a finished project with the small dresden for reference. I did look at directions for a project which uses their large dresden blade and worked on the assumption that the techniques would be similar.

I chuckled quietly to myself when the directions said "Make a 3" to 3 1/2" circle out of cardboard. (Hint: measure a glass or cup to use as a template for this). " On one hand, it's a quick cheap solutions. On the other, it would have been a great opportunity to sell a circular die template with the project. I would really like a 3-3 1/2" circle for other projects and the link would have helped. But that's certainly not important or relevant to the review. I was quite hopeful that I'd find similar size requirements for the small dresden circle but didn't see them.

Below is my first failed attempt which has 14 blades instead of 12. It lays perfectly flat and looks good, but is the wrong size all together. This was most definitely my own fault and not the fault of the die. I tend towards scant seam allowances, and I was so busy trying to accurately match the curves that I let some of the bottom angles slide. I eventually unpicked and corrected it.

Right or wrong, it brings up an interesting point. I think I am more likely to buy dies that are different or special to what is currently available in the quilting template market. Instead of 12, 16 or 20 blade dresdens readily available as plastic templates; die cutting machines open up the possibility of getting 13, 17 or 19 blade dresdens. My gut feeling is that the odd number would make them just quirky enough to seem more natural. I do hope die manufacturers create some non-standard quilting templates in the future. Similarly, I'd like see other unusual shapes that would be otherwise difficult to cut. I haven't looked into them, but apparently both manufacturers offer a custom die service (this might only be for their higher end machines). I'm toying with looking into them to find faster ways of cutting hippo legs and blythe dresses.

I'll hold it at that for now. Despite it's ghastly visual appearance, I am inclined to recommend the Sizzix Big Shot for it's power, effectiveness and versatility.

How it stacks up

Product Design

From a visual standpoint, I feel Go! Baby is the hands down winner. While I was disheartened by the scratches appearing in it's surface, the overall form form factor is a well-thought out design that addresses both portability and storage issues.

Functionality

From a user perspective, the two systems produced differing results. From my limited experience for the review, the Sizzix Big Shot offers superior cutting ability and performance. Theoretically, it also offers the most extended performance as a cutting system.

The cutting mats give us a clue that although the process is the same, there is something fundamentally different about the way the systems work. Go! Baby has a malleable plastic mat. Please excuse that it's bent, that was a factor of my testing something unorthodox, not an expected effect of the system. The Go uses harder transparent cutting shims. Both are consumables which would periodically be expected to be replaced. My testing did not give any indication of how long these are expected to last for both systems.

The system dies vary in size. The Sizzix Big Shot dies are narrow, but thicker than the Go! Baby dies. The dies are not designed to be interchangable among systems. Accuquilt's Go Baby dies are too wide for the Sizzix. Though I was able to send a Sizzix die through the Go! Baby it had detrimental effects to the Go! Baby cutting mat and I wouldn't suggest doing so. As with all technology, users are finding ways to hack their dies to make them work with other systems, but I wouldn't endorse this as you are dealing with sharp blades.

The most notable difference in dies for me is that orientation of the die blades to the edge of the fabric. In all for Big Shot dies, the layout seemed logical and orientated parallel or perpendicular as expected. For me, the orientation of the Go! Baby dies was troubling

I think it's worth noting that both systems only accept narrow dies ~6". This limitation obviously reduces the types of cuts available. For example blocks with larger pieces (wedding ring centers, large drunkard's paths) and large circles would not fit on the system. If you are interested in particularly large cuts, they you may wish to consider other Ellison (Sizzix) and Accucut (Accuquilt) models.

If you were selecting a machine today, die availability would be something that I could encourage you to consider. In this case, I cannot weigh one system as better than the other. It depends on your needs. Patchworkers, appliqueists, ragrug makers and textile artists all work differently. I would encourage you to look at both the Accuquilt and Sizzix websites to see what alternatives they have available and assess how they might fit into your crafting needs. If you can't find what suits your requirements, both companies have custom dies programs available for some machines. Don't forget to look in your area to find out what dies are locally available. Also consider is availability of dies in a secondary market.

On a personal note: I have been (and still am) looking for a secondary source aside Ebay for general Sizzix dies in Australia. If anyone knows of a good exchange forum, please let me know.

While I could probably have written a bit more, I feel this gives a fair introductory comparison of the the Accuquilt Go!Baby and the Sizzix Big Shot systems. Both have their merits and downfalls. Though I am drawn to the aesthetics of the Go! Baby system, I feel the Big Shot has better performance and versatility. When I first used the Sizzix Big Shot, I had a moment of amazement about how powerful it was with cutting. At that moment, I was able to look past the purple, bedazzled exterior and saw a worthwhile addition to my craft room.

If you can, I encourage you to try out both systems for yourself to choose what is right for you. Scour the net and look for other reviews and information. Also, I'm happy to field any questions about the machines. As the last post on this subject generated quite a bit of response, I may need to consolidate those answers into a post instead of email. Definitely look around and think about your own crafting process before making a purchase.

If you don't hear from me for a bit, I'll busy scouting around for Sizzix dies. I've been reeled in, hook, line and sinker.

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Curious why the Sizzix machine uses the hard cutting mat? In my "experimenting", I put a Sizzix die in Go! Baby system with the Go! Baby cutting mat. The blades went clear through and slices a line clean through the cutting mat. The Sizzix dies are sharp indeed...

** Many thanks to Accuquilt and Sizzix for making their products available for review.

Edit: I now buy all my Sizzix dies online and at Australian quilt shows Annie's Designs.