***LOOK AT THIS***

[Just Jon]

First, let me introduce myself. I've been lurking here for a while, gathering information so I can make an informed purchase. I do not have a Cricut yet, but after finding out about SCAL, I think I am ready to take the plunge on an Expression. I was undecided about Cricut vs. Xyron vs. Wishblade. I mainly wanted to be able to cut my own artwork. As a graphic designer, I need to be able to cut my own designs, something that initially turned me off to the Cricut; I do not want to have to be locked into PC's designs. I had ordered the Wishblade on HSN last year when it was a TS. It sat in the box until I decided to return it, mainly because it looked like a pain in the...you know what. What got me looking at the Cricut again was their marketing. It looked oh so easy. And then I discovered SCAL.

I am graphically capable and use Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign (CS4) on a daily basis. That's how I make my living, and have done so for over 20 years. I am passing along something I recently discovered that makes my designing so much easier.

Vector Magic (vectormagic.com). It turns any scanned image (photo, clipart, logo - jpg., tiff., png. etc) into a vector file. And it's web-based. You upload your image from your computer...and voila, in seconds you have the design turned into a vector file. For me, this makes taking customer's artwork and being able to edit, re-color, manipulate, export and print a total breeze. While there are ways to trace an image in Illustrator, it is laborious and tedious. Vector Magic is a life-saver. It costs $7.95/month (billed at $23.85 for 3 months). There is also a downloadable desktop version ($250) that has additional features and is functionable without being connected to the internet. I may eventually splurge on it. But for now, the online version meets all my needs.

So basically for all you Cricut/SCAL users, you can take any image you have, whether it's your own, or something you find on the web, turn it into a vector file, then save as a SVG file and import into SCAL.

Here's something I tried recently. I found an image online of the original Wonka Bar from Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, uploaded it to VM and then edited in Illustrator (or Inkscape for those of you that use that). Here are the results. Vector Magic is totally amazing, and the possibilities are endless. With a Cricut and SCAL, the sky is the limit.

jpg image saved from the internet (Google Pics)

WonkaBar.jpg (65.25 KiB) Viewed 2649 times

WonkaBar.svg

svg file converted to a vector image in Vector Magic

(8.36 KiB) Downloaded 192 times

[MommaBear]

Wow, that is amazing. I don't do enough designing of my own to warrant the monthly rental right now, but I can see where it would be a plus in one's tool box of toys!

[aimitup]

Thanks for the info - like you I am a Graphic Designer on a Mac and use CS.
I just started a photo booth business and plan to cut items for the wedding scrapbooks.
You will love SCAL and the Cricut - I would highly recommend them!

AMY

[Soraya]

Man! too many great things and no money! however, as soon as I start making money i would like to get me this toy.

soraya

[suziscrapper]

First of all, WELCOME to the board! And thanks for sharing the Wonka svg. I can't wait to see what else you do!