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Blonnie:
This is an interesting technique and product if
you like different textures and effects in your quilting or
whatever you are making. I found it very simple to use
and it was fun. Just make sure you have a steam iron when
you use this product or it will not work. Be creative when
you are marking your grid. I did a cross-hatch but you
could do all sorts of designs if you dare to be different. I
myself will not be using this product on anything because I
just don’t make contemporary quilts or crafts. But I can
see the technique used in many of the quilts that my fellow
quilters dare to experiment with. So, if you dare to be
different, and you want something fun and new, try this!
Blonnie's Rating: 
Carla:
I've been curious about this product after seeing
projects made with it on some of the quilting blogs. After
sewing Texture Magic to the wrong side of a
piece of fabric or even a pieced block using a
grid, meander, or other design of your choice,
use your steam iron to shrink the Texture Magic
being very careful not to touch it with the iron.
I found that I had to hold the iron within an
inch or so from the Texture Magic in order for
the fabric to shrink well. The fabric shrunk
uniformly creating an interesting crinkled effect.
Actually, it was fascinating to watch the
fabric magically shrink up but it doesn't take
much to entertain me. You can also put batting between
the fabric and Texture Magic before steaming for a puffier
look. I used the product when making an outside pocket
on a tote bag and liked the look. There are even patterns
for bags, accessories, and quilts specifically designed to
use Texture Magic. I'm sure that I'll be using this product
again sometime.
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Blonnie and Carla:
The Rotary Circle Cutter uses an
18mm rotary blade to cut circles from 1 7/8" to 8 1/2". The
package claims that it can be used to cut materials such as
fabric, paper, vinyl, film, leather, and more. The blade
pivots around a sharp tack-like point Olfa calls a spike.
The directions on the package don't tell you how to
actually use the cutter but you can either grasp the black
handle and move it around or you can move the back end
of the tool. It really depends on what feels comfortable and
what size circle you are cutting. You can cut 4 layers of
fabric at one time which was great when we needed lots of
circles for a Christmas gift idea we had for our stitch group
friends.
Olfa did not do a good job providing clear and adequate instructions for using this cutter. Carla had used it first before Christmas and had to search the Internet in order to figure our how to use it correctly. She was then able to cut consistent circles with no problem. However, we took the cutter to the TVQA retreat and weren't too successful. No Internet this time to provide direction and the circles were pretty choppy. We were using way too much pressure and the blade couldn't make a clean consistent cut around the entire circle. We knew we weren't doing something correctly and were frustrated.
We both agree that the Rotary Circle Cutter has the
potential to be an efficient and time-saving tool.
Stop by the Gadget Girl table on guild night and try
your hand at it.
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