Vendor Spotlight & Giveaway: Martha Stewart Circle Cutter

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Reported by Rachel Johnson

I often need to cut circles for use in my crafts. Previous to owning the Martha Stewart Crafts Circle Cutter, I used my two circle paper punches. For more specific sizes I resorted to tracing cups or other circular objects and then cutting the circles by hand. Needless to say, I was excited to try a more efficient method.

The Circle Cutter consists of a rotating measurement circle and a double-sided blade with a large, comfortable handle. I decided to test out my new tool by making cupcake toppers by layering various sizes and colors of paper circles. I gathered my materials (including my Martha Stewart Crafts Glue and Martha Stewart Crafts Cupcake Stickers) and got to work practicing my circle cutting.

The Circle Cutter comes with three blades, so that you can switch them out when they get dull. It is easy to insert the small blades into the handle using the wide plastic covers that are attached to each blade. The two-sided blades are extremely sharp, so you must be careful (obviously, this may not be the best tool for children to use).

You need a large cutting surface to work on. I used a large cutting board, but a craft mat (like this one) would probably work best. Do not cut directly on your kitchen table or desk. The blade easily cuts through even thicker paper and will scratch any surface it comes into contact with.

To begin cutting, place your paper on your work surface. I found it was easiest to cut from large pieces of paper, but if your paper is small, secure it with some tape or other adhesive. Then, place the measurement circle on top of the paper. You must hold down the outer ring of the measurement circle securely. Insert your blade into the hole that corresponds with the size of circle you would like to cut. You can cut circles from 1 inch to 5-1/2 inches, in 1/16 inch increments. I got the best results when the outer ring of the measurement circle was covering a good amount of the paper and also some of the cutting board. The trick is to hold the outer circle very securely, but to not press too hard with the blade. It takes a bit of practice to start cutting circles with perfect edges.

After some practice, I began to get some lovely circles. I just kept cutting lots and lots of circles of varying sizes so that I would have plenty to mix and match to create my cupcake toppers. Some of my first circles didn't turn out so well and had to be trashed. Sometimes the paper shifted or the blade got caught up and I couldn't budge it, but with practice it got easier and easier. I found that thicker paper was actually easier to cut because it didn't get caught up in the rotation of the tool as easily as thinner papers did.

Overall, the Circle Cutter was not quite as easy to use as I was hoping, but it allows for increased versatility when compared to my previous circle cutting methods and it was quite fast once I got the hang of it. I was able to cut more than enough circles for a dozen large cupcake toppers in a short amount of time.

To finish the cupcake toppers, I glued layers of circles together in interesting color combos and then added a decorative element to the center of each. I cut a corresponding circle from patterned paper for the back of each topper, and glued them to the back of each while simultaneously gluing a toothpick in between the layers.

The end results are cute decorations for the mini cupcakes I purchased for my mom's birthday. Fun! The Circle Cutter saved me a ton of time on this quick project and I know I will use it often in the future.

Pros:

• Allows you to cut a wide variety of circle sizes -- from 1 inch to 5-1/2 inches, in 1/16 inch increments.
• Includes three double-sided blades.
• Works on even very thick paper.

Cons:

• Sharp blades may not be safe for young users.
• Takes some practice to produce circles with perfect edges.
• You need a large cutting surface to work on.

The Martha Stewart Crafts Circle Cutter is available online for $17.99 from the EK Success Brands website.

GIVEAWAY
The kind folks at EK Success Brands will be giving one lucky winner their very own Martha Stewart Circle Cutter. To enter, just leave a comment on one of the Vendor Spotlight: Martha Stewart Circle Cutter. Answer any one of these questions in the Comments Section right below this article on our website.

Have you used the Martha Stewart Crafts Circle Cutter? What did you think? Have you used other circle cutting methods or tools? What are your favorites?

One comment per person, per article, please. You have until Sunday, November 21st 6pm CST to enter.

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