Does anyone have..

[Former_Member]

the Sure Cuts Alot 2 program for their Cricut? It is a program that allows you to plan your cutting mat on the computer and pull fonts from the internet.

I was thinking about asking for it for my birthday from the hubby and just wanted some reviews from someone who has used it.

[Former_Member]

I don't have that but I have Design studio. It can do tons but its hard to figure out. There's a gal at the store where I work that does Cricut classes. I'll ask her what she knows:-)

[Former_Member]

I've never heard of it until now, but I don't have a Cricut either. I've been curious about the cricut and it's options for creating your own shapes and patterns, but haven't heard to much about doing your own designs and fonts.

I ended up deciding to get the Silhouette SD, which I love for doing your own designs. I'm curious to see what everyone else has to say about the programs for Cricut as I would be curious to try it at some point.

[Former_Member]

I have SCAL - there is definitely a learning curve - but you can do a lot with it.

[Former_Member]

No, i'm computer challenged!

[Former_Member]

Jumping into this a little late, but I have a Cricut and SCAL and LOVE what I can do with SCAL! If you have a Cricut, I think it's a must-have. You should also download Inkscape (it's free) if you plan to design your own cuts. I've had a lot of great success designing things in Inkscape, then importing them and cutting them through SCAL. Definitely a learning curve, but there is a ton of really great and easy-to-follow instruction on the internet to be found.

I used to have Design Studio and after getting SCAL, it never got used again. It opens up so much more you can do with your Cricut. (Especially when you're a font dork like me - 2,000+ fonts and still can't stop downloading new ones!)

[Former_Member]

Thanks for all the information ladies :) I did do a little research and apparently there is a lawsuit with the Sure Cuts a Lot people and ProvoCraft who make the Cricut and because of that they do not have a version for sale that works on the Cricut :(
You can still get it for machines like the Silhouette and others though.

[Former_Member]

That sucks! I guess provocraft was very threatened by them.

[Former_Member]

I am sure they didn't like the idea that you could buy 2,000 fonts for the same price as ONE of their cartridges :)

[Former_Member]

whats the difference between the SCAL and the Gypsy? Just curious:-) I have neither, as I'm still getting to know design studio.

Font dork, huh? me too! lol
Sue

[Former_Member]

Gypsy is a little machine that you can load and save all your cartridges in, but you do have to buy them, or borrow them from a friend to load them. Gypsy was put out by Provocraft to work specifically with Cricut.

SCAL is a computer program that you can plan your mat on the computer and then cut it on your Cricut. It comes with 2,000 or more fonts and anything you can download online you can also use such as other fonts or clipart items. SCAL was put out by some other company and not approved by Provocraft.

[Former_Member]

There are actually 2 programs out there that originally worked with cricut - SCAL and Make The Cut.
Provo said those programs used part of their proprietary codes - so they made an out of court settlement with Make The Cut so that they post on their site that they don't work with Cricut.
SCAL is denying that they are using proprietary codes and they are still - at least as of the last time I checked - selling their program for use with Cricut.
I had planned to get SCAL but when I heard about this I decided not to invest the money.
Provo was supposedly setting up a free online craft room. They had advertised it to be available in April but April has come and gone and still no craft room. So who knows when or IF it will ever be available.

[ThroughThePaperStash]

I have a Pazzles Inspiration and I love it! There are no cartriges to buy and the only limitation of its capabilities is my knowledge. The program and cutter are computer based, you can cut, emboss, engrave, write, pierce, and even do perforated lines. There is a bit of a learning curve but the site offers classes and there is an awesome lady who does classes online for free! Thought i'd share.

[ButterflyFeetDigital]

I have a friend who went in with her sister to buy a cricut - and they let me use it when we were together at a crop. It was a pretty basic model, not the one you mentioned, but is did some pretty nifty stuff. I made a birthday card for one of my sons with it.

Pazzles sounds interesting - the main reason I've resisted buying a cricut is the cartridge prices!

[Former_Member]

So I have had a cricut forever I got mine when they first came out and love it but… im not sure that I will be buying another one.

I bought SCAL about a year ago and Love it but that is not an option for people now. You can no longer buy SCAL 1or 2 and those are the versions that are compatible with the Cricut. SCAL 3 does not work with the cricut but it does work with the other types of cutters. I use a lot of fonts as im sure you can tell so going back to just what cricut will let me use does not work for me. If you have SCAL 2 you can still use it as long as you do not update your cricut firmware. So when my current cricut of 7+ years dies I will be looking for other options.

Now having said that, I really do love my cricut and would be happy to walk people though how to use it if you need help. It does take some practice to use it right. I also have the cricut design studio but no longer use it.

[Former_Member]

For those of you concerned about the price of Cricut cartridges, it's not quite as bad as it looks. By going through eBay and http://ohmycrafts.com I've never paid more than $25 for a cartridge. (I forget the eBay seller I usually use and the name of the other discount site I check often. If anyone's interested I'll totally dig those up.)

The difference between the Cricut cartridge system and something like the Silhouette is that for the Cricut, you buy tons of images on one cartridge. So that costs more. But on the Silhouette, you can buy one image at a time. So if you were to buy the same number of images as a cartridge contains, the price would at the very least be comparable. However, you only buy what you will use on a Silhouette and with the Cricut, you're stuck with the set whethjer you like it or not.

I was eyeing SCAL2 before the lawsuit and I wish I had bought it. Because now there's absolutely no way to get it and I'm a sad camper. It should cut any font on your computer which would have made it worth it to me right there.

[Former_Member]

Ya SCAL 2 is really great im very sad that it is no longer around.... I would have bought like three copy's had I known.

[BennBooCreations]

I'm a Cuttlebug owner and that's as far as my die cutting goes and I'm quite happy with it. I always think about taking the next step into something like that, or similar but feel I may let the machines do my creativity instead of me.
Interesting thread tho....didn't know all the capabilities.

[Former_Member]

Wow, sounds like SCAL was the way to go! If only the legalities of stuff didn't have to rain on our parade!!! I guess if I was Cricut I'd be miffed too though, but still.....!