Mini Madness: Sizzix Sidekick!

Aaaaaand Tuesday has rolled around once again folks! Huzzah! This week's blog is super short and sweet- we are looking at our Sizzix Sidekick! While some of you may already have one or know what it is, for those of you who don't, here's the skinny: it's a tiny Sizzix BigShot (die-cut machine)! I just think it's adorable and perfect for small projects or people on-the-go! So, let's get to it, shall we?

Materials

• Sizzix Sidekick
• Paper Cutter/Trimmer
• Paper
• Acrylic Stamping Block & Stamping Inkpads (optional BUT highly recommended)

Product Info

• Before we begin, let me just say one very important detail- when I say the Sidekick is like the BigShot, I mean exactly that! If you have a BigShot, you will know exactly what you are doing, for the most part.

• The whole kit comes with 2 regular cutting pads, an embossing pad, a Sidekick machine, 8 dies, adorable photo-polymer stamps (no acrylic block though), and 2 cute embossing folders.

• Handy Feature! The Sidekick boasts a suction lever on its side, allowing you to vacuum seal it to the table, allowing for no-slip ease of use! 

• Cross-Compatibility: The Sidekick can be used with any other dies, so long as they are small enough to fit in the cutting pad.

• Paper Sizing: for the most part, I use my paper trimmer and cut paper down to a width of 2.5 inches! That seems to be the ideal size!

 Instructions

• To cut dies, simply use the two clear cutting pads (they will be teal in color) and create a "sandwich" of: cutting pad 1, die, paper, and cutting pad, then run this through the Sidekick- easy peasy. 

• The use the embossing folders, use the grey embossing pad and 1 cutting pad. This sandwich goes: embossing pad, embossing folder (paper sandwiched inside), and cutting pad. Run this through to get the cutest embossed paper pieces!

•  For some extra cuteness, I used the stamps to embellish the pieces I cut out! The "Hello" and "Thank You" stamps nest very well within the included circle die, and the heart die has a matching heart stamp. Mix and match, have fun with this, the possibilities are endless! Happy Cutting!

•  *TIP* I have found that when embossing, solid colors look best compared to prints! And if you are not familiar with photopolymer stamps, fret not! Simply peel them off the plastic, stick them on an acrylic block, and voila! You are ready! Don't worry, the stamps can be removed from the block- it's 100% reusable. :)

 -Helen C-
Kahului Ben Franklin Crafts