Craftwell ecraft

(If you use this machine with Make-the-Cut, please add your opinions about this machine under the COMMENTS section of this post. Please only comment if you use the eCraft. If I find any comments about any other cutters on this page, I will move or delete it. Thank you.)

picture from craftwellusa.com

MSRP: $349.99

Official website: http://www.craftwellusa.com/

(see their FAQ page for info on the cutter: http://www.craftwellusa.com/frequently-asked-questions

The following 2 user reviews were contributed by Denise O'Connor, the owner of the Purple Paper Paradise Blog (http://purplepaperparadise.blogspot.com/) and Ruthie, the owner of http://gedalovitch.blogspot.com. Thank you, Denise and Ruthie, for taking the time to share your reviews with us!

--------------------------------------------This is Denise's review---------------------------------------

eCraft Review

The eCraft personal cutter has been in user’s hands for about 6 months now and with the recent events involving Provo Craft’s lawsuits with Make the Cut and Sure Cuts A Lot, a lot of users have been inquiring about other cutters including the eCraft. I have had my eCraft since the beginning and I do really like the machine. The machine itself is sturdily built and that is great news for longevity, but may not be the best choice for taking to crops because there are a lot of metal parts and the machine is heavy. The design is really quite innovative since it cuts without the traditional sticky mats. That being said, I do see some ways that the machine could be improved upon, but the improvements that I have in mind would just be to fine tune the machine. Since the cutter does not use sticky mats, there is a learning curve to this machine. I was a Cricut user prior to getting the eCraft and I thought that I would have this cutter going without an issue right out of the box. That was not the case. Since there are no mats, this machine is unlike any other machine on the market today and therefore users have to start at the beginning. I have to say that cutting without mats is fabulous! It is so nice to cut down on the prep time and just feed your paper in and cut. Even though the machine doesn’t require the use of a sticky mat, most users have found that using a cardstock stabilizer makes your cuts cleaner and is necessary for cutting thinner materials. The cardstock stabilizer is simply a piece of cardstock placed underneath your cutting paper and feeding both pieces of paper into the machine at the same time. If you have your pressure setting correct, the machine will only cut the top layer and will leave a score mark on the bottom layer. The cardstock stabilizer sheet can be used several times before needing to be replaced.

The machine can cut thin materials like vellum. I actually cut up a page from a paperback book with no issues at all. The machine cuts vinyl well (just make sure to turn off your tabs). It can also cut thick materials extremely well. It can cut materials up to 1mm thick and most of the materials that I have cut can be cut in 1 pass including cereal box chipboard and American Crafts glitter paper. There are no speed settings on the machine, but so far when cutting from the console the speed does not seem to be an issue in regards to the cleanliness of the cuts. The speed is a good speed; I don’t feel like I am waiting too long for the cuts. I am hoping that as the software programs develop further that some speed control can be added to give us users more control. Some potential eCraft users have expressed concerns about the tabs that the machine uses to keep the cuts in place. The machine does have a setting for no tabs and if you are cutting something that is simple without a lot of interior shapes you can use this setting in conjunction with the cardstock stabilizer. I usually only have to sand off the tabs when I cut thick materials with the tabs. Most of the times this really isn’t an issue and it only takes a few seconds to sand off a tab. Since getting the machine, I have tried to cut lots of different things and so far, the only thing that I have tried and so far have been unsuccessful at cutting is felt. There is one brand of stiffened adhesive backed felt that I have been able to cut, but so far I have been unsuccessful with other felts. Circles cut really well at 1” and bigger, the smaller circles can appear to be slightly off. See picture of ¼” ½” and 1” circles. I have been able to successfully do a Print and Cut using Make the Cut beta, but it requires a bit of set up time to figure out your margins. For more information on how to do it, see my blog post (http://purplepaperparadise.blogspot.com/2011/02/print-cut-with-ecraft.html)

The biggest complaint about the eCraft is the software that Craftwell made to go with the machine which is called eCraftshop Pro. Right now, the software is not even close to MTC or SCAL. The updates have made improvements, but the list of needed improvements is long. The developers have said that they won’t be adding new features until the improvements have all been made. It could be a long time before their software is something that crafters would want to use. Since the software has not lived up to our expectations, many users asked Craftwell to work with Andy at MTC and Todd at SCAL to allow the eCraft to work with their programs. Both programs have released beta versions which are available to eCraft users right now. I have used both of the beta versions and each one has some kinks in them, but they are definitely usable and a big improvement over the eCraftshop Pro software. Once the stable versions are released, I will be doing more in depth reviews on how these programs work with the eCraft. If you decide to get an eCraft and do not already have MTC or SCAL, plan on getting one of those programs! I have enjoyed my eCraft so much more since the beta versions were released!

Since there are no mats, there really is no additional expense tied to that. The blades are very reasonable. You can get a 20 pack for $30. I will say that the blades don’t seem to last quite as long as they did on the Cricut, but at $1.50 per blade, I don’t have an issue with this. I purchased my eCraft and any of the accessories from cutterscreek.com. Kim is the owner of that store and she is wonderful, she really cares about her customers and has the best customer service. Kim was also a beta tester for the eCraft and she runs the eCraft_Crafters Yahoo Group. The group is has a lot of great people in it that are always willing to help. Right now Kim is also offering (while supplies last) a free SD card with each eCraft purchase (use coupon code FREE SD CARD) and shipping is also free! That is a savings of approximately $70.

One thing that has really impressed me since getting the machine is the customer service that Craftwell provides. There have been a few complaints about it taking a long time to get back to people, but once they do it seems like everyone is satisfied. When they come across a defective machine, they have been very quick to send out a replacement. They listen to the crafters and because of that, we can now cut directly to the eCraft using Make the Cut and Sure Cuts A Lot. They are developing the eCraftCentral website (in beta mode right now) that allows users to purchase images individually. The SD cards that you can purchase for the machine containing images (no computer necessary) are in the $40-$50 range so if you like the whole set, you can get the SD card. If you want only one or two images, you can purchase those from the eCraftCentral website. This is a feature that crafters requested. They are also planning on having an IPhone app that will allow you to design on your IPhone and then link them to your online account for cutting. Overall, I am very happy with the machine and I just love that Craftwell wants to encourage all of us to do what we want to do with our machines.

For more information about the eCraft, join the eCraft_Crafters Yahoo Group and you can also visit my blog www.PurplePaperParadise.com for videos, tutorials, etc.

-------------------------------------------end of Denise's review-------------------------------------

Here are a few things that Denise has made with her eCraft:

Here is some additional info from Denise that was sent to me after the review above was written:

The beta plug in for MTC was just released at the end of January.  Some of these projects used MTC for the designing part, but actually all of these ones were cut either from the console using one of the eCraft’s SD cards or from the eCraftshop Pro software. For the Mickey Mouse gift bag, I pixel traced the clip art in MTC, broke it out into layers and then exported each layer as an SVG and imported those into eCraftshop Pro for cutting.  The Yellow flower box is made from the Handled Boxes SVG set from LD, the flower is a cut from the Fundamentals 1 SD card (included with the machine) and I cut it out several times and then “patchworked” the different papers together to get this look and just layered from small to large.  The Happy Birthday gift tag was made in the eCraftshop Pro software using a flower from one of the SD card (I think this is also Fundamentals 1) and then I used a TTF font to add the Happy Birthday on top of it.  The star shaped box was created with a SVG from SVGCuts.com, the paper rosette I did by hand following a tutorial from Jennifer McGuire, and the balloon is from the Balloon Craze SVG set from LD.  I had to bring the balloon into MTC and break out the layers there before importing them into eCP because eCP doesn’t even have the basic function of ungrouping.  When you bring an SVG like this into eCP, it comes in as one image and there is no way to separate it.  The yellow box and the balloon box were projects that I made for a contest that Craftwell had and these were selected for display at their booth at CHA.  I have attached a couple pictures of eCraft projects that I did that includes the cutting from MTC.  The dinosaur treat bags were using the Love Pets SVG set from LD, I just simplified that dinosaur down to two layers since I had to mass produce these.  The sentiment (also from that set) I actually just printed that directly on the toppers to again save some time on this project.  The card uses a frame from the Felt Owl Right set in which I added a shadowed black out layer and the funky scalloped border is from the LD scalloped border set.  Can you tell that I love LD?

-------------------------------------------end of Denise's review-------------------------------------

=======================This is Ruthie's review==========================

I love my ecraft by Craftwell!  Ok, so now you know where I am coming from!

I used to have a wishblade which I used rarely.  I would faff around finding the leads etc, getting the image designed, finding the software (yep I can lose software!) and then I would be ready to cut.  Hmmmmmmm, but that was sometimes an issue...because I used it so rarely I forgot what colour blade cap I needed, then I couldnt remember the right pressure setting...or the speed.  So when I did try and cut something out, I was rarely successful first time!  Normally by the 4th or 5th try I would have something usable.  Well, that was if I didnt tear it getting it off the sticky mat!   Now, let me be fair - I know that alot of people used the wishblade very successfully - in fact I still have mine and may return to use it at sometime - but I never really mastered it.

I have a big-shot, but wanted to be able to design my own stuff (hey, I have aspirations!).  I ALMOST got a cricut, but didnt because I saw the ecraft advertised as coming soon....and I am an absolute sucker for getting the latest thing!  When I first saw it, it was being promoted as automatic pressure and no mats....answer to my prayers I thought.  The final version does not have automatic pressure but is so simple to set that I really dont find it a problem.  Hmmmm, lets try to be a little more logical about this....

MATS - the ecraft cuts without using sticky mats!  The way it achieves this is to put in little tabs so that the cut-out stays attached until you "push it out"....kind of like decoupage that you push out.  It does leave tiny, tiny little tabs on the paper, but I can just "scratch" these off with my thumb nail and they are gone...they are really, really tiny!  However, I dont use the tabs at all - yep, you can turn them off altogether!  What I, and lots of other ecraftie people do, is use a scrap piece of card under their card or paper they are cutting.  If you set the pressure for the material you are cutting then the "mat card" you are using stays intact for lots of uses.  I loved this idea - no paying out for mats that I damaged when I set the pressure too high!  AND no ripping bits off my design when I pulled it off the mat.  Oh and no fluff and cat hair sticking to the mat either - yukkkk!  I do have to add that I also sometimes just take a chance and cut with no tabs and no card underneath - alot of times it works, sometimes it doesnt, but then thats the thrill-seeker in me!

PRESSURE - the pressure is adjustable.  This was changed from the auto pressure system because people wanted to kiss-cut vinyl and the auto pressure just cut all the way through - Craftwell really listened to feedback!  I was a bit sad about this when I first heard about it - I wanted that auto pressure (remember the issues for me and the wishblade???).  Then I heard about the blue light....mmmmmm the blue light!  The blue light on the cutting carriage lights when you are cutting right through your card/paper etc.  Now, because I often use a card mat, this blue light is more of a warning light to me now!  If that blue light is lit, then I know I am cutting through my card mat and not just what I want to cut!  Pressure adjustment is super-easy though....1-8 (although you can choose 1.5 etc) - I tend to cut thin paper at 3 with card being about a 5 or 6.  Once you get used to the weight of the card you use most then you will tend to know instinctively what pressure you need.  There are pressure charts out there for you to use though if you want to be more certain of your outcome.

DESIGN CARDS - Craftwell produce design cards.  I got one with my machine and used that a fair bit while I was waiting for the software to get sorted (more on that in a minute!) and it has your swirls, flowers and stuff on it.  I do use it when I just want to cut out a couple of flowers to go on a card, a butterfly etc.  There are a whole lot more of these cards coming out now and you can see what is on each card in the ecraft software which updates from the internet.  I found that really useful to be able to see what was available out there. The cards cost about $50 each so they are not cheap - but perhaps still cheaper than some cartridges?  The designs on the cards have preset minimum cutting sizes, they have been checked to see how small they will cut and that information preset on the card...Craftwell really do want us to have a good experience!   AND now, Craftwell have opened ecraft central, where people can upload their own designs to sell and where you can buy individual designs - no more buying a whole cartridge for one design!  Craftwell recently sent out a $10 voucher and that bought me 9 designs, so they are reasonably priced....but I did really buy it so that I could design my own stuff!

SOFTWARE - oh my word!  OK, this is where Craftwell fell flat!  The ecraft was meant to be able to cut from the computer and import svgs to cut.  BUT it wasnt always very successful at that!  Some of us early adopters had a wry old time with that software, let me tell you!  I was lucky in that the majority of my svgs cut out fine...but there were the odd ones that would (for no apparent reason) cut a circle (or 3) in the middle of the design!!!   Now, I have to say that I am very chilled about all this, but then I am not designing and making stuff for a living so can afford to be!  AND I had the faith that they would sort it all out eventually.  We had a release or two on the software which certainly didnt resolve all the issues (and still left a very basic software) so Craftwell listened to their customers again!  They have worked with Andy at MTC and Todd at SCAL to allow their software to cut to the ecraft!  Oh, the day they announced that was a good one!  I plumped for mtc and love it!  Having worked in inkscape before, alot of the commands were intuitive to learn and it does what I want it to!.....and then it cuts out!  Eeeeeee!  Massive kudos to Andy for his fabby software - but also to Craftwell for listening to their customers, recognising that they couldn't offer the level of sophistication their purchasers wanted and not being too proud to admit it and seek help!   Takes a big company to do that!

WHAT IT CUTS - well there is alot of information out there on what the machine cuts and doesnt - I only use it for paper and card, but hope to try it on vinyl soon.  It also cuts some kind of sugar gum (???? we dont have it in the uk I dont think!) for decorating cakes and will do thin chipboard, adhesive felt etc.  It wouldnt be fair of me to add much more to this as I havent tried out the other things personally.  I do remember someone saying that if it fits under the rollers then the ecraft can cut it!

SIZE - I dont do scrapbooking so havent had the need to cut out 12x12 - I suspect that it doesnt cut a true 12 x12 but I am not sure...I use A4 for the majority of the time...although you can insert a 12 x12 into the machine as I use a piece of this as my "mat card".  However, it cuts long!  Really long....there is a roller attachment that fits on the back of the ecraft (and comes with the machine, so no extra cash to pay out!).  This is something I hope to play with at sometime but havent used yet.  I am not aware of anyone having used it yet...but sure the minute I type that someone will leap in and say they use it everyday.  Whilst we are on the subject, the ecraft also comes with a tray feeder.  The idea is that you load the tray, choose your number of cuts and then leave it at it!  Again, because I am not commercial, I havent needed to do this yet.  I tried getting everything set up for my tray when mtc first released their beta version because Andy said it worked better from the tray...but I failed miserably - dont know what I was doing wrong.  I did briefly chat to customer service who said they would talk me through it all, but I have yet to have the conversation!  Not their fault, mine...just got to playing with mtc...oh well, sure you all know how time flies once you have mtc!

BLADES AND PENS - the blades are cheap!!! But not CHEAP!  They are inexpensive!  You buy them in a set of 5 and they seem to last really well - obviously it depends what you are cutting (as with any blades) but they seem to last longer than my wishblade ones (or is that because I had to cut things out so many times cos I kept messing them up?).  The ecraft does not do print and cut (well, not without using a workaround!) but it does draw without having to change the blade out.  There are gel pens available for it too (although I havent tried these yet).  You just designate lines as draw or cut within the ecraft software and off it goes.  The design cards have images that use both, so these are fun to play with.  Also, when you would like to test cut something to "see how it looks" in real-life - you can just ask it draw so you save paper!

CUSTOMER CARE - I really do think this is important, especially with a new machine!  Craftwell have been great with their customer care to me.  I had a machine initially which was faulty and was dreading that they were going to ask me to send it back to US for it to be exchanged.  But they didnt - they authorised my dealer to just swap it out for me..no fuss, no bother!  I know that for a period their communication went a little awry....they stopped updating information etc about the software and it happened very shortly after the machine was shipped.  Not great and lots of people lost faith in the company at that point...but speak as you find...I found them excellent, I think they care about their customers and are happy to do what it takes to give you the product you want, to use in the way you want to.

PRICE - $349 is what is showing at the first website I went to.  Not sure how that compares...lower than quite a few I guess.  For me, it was a good price for what it offered - and it looks cool too!  Not that I am judging it on that of course..No!

Bottom line for me, is that this machine is out all the time....therefore, I dont need to hunt for the leads, the software, the mat, the software...the machine (yep, didnt mention that one did I???).  I get very little time to craft and this meets my needs...I can switch it on and use it from the design card if I just want to cut out a flower or a swirl...or if I want something specific I can find an svg I like and use that...or even design something special

I do think that people need to take the time to see any cutting machine demo'd, read lots of reviews and really think about what they would like it to do - you are going to spend alot of money on this machine so you really should take the time to find out the good (and bad) points about it.

Ruthie - http://gedalovitch.blogspot.com/

=======================End of Ruthie's review==========================

Thank you, Denise and Ruthie, for the detailed reviews.

Everyone, if you are using this machine, please add your own review to the COMMENTS section below.

Thanks so much!