MaryLou's time2cre8

There's something to be said for brand loyalty. I'm not really fanatical about certain brands, as I know some people are, but sometimes you just have to stick with the things that work.

I make these little Captioned Critters notecards (you can see some of them in that slideshow up there), and that means that I'm always cutting up cardstock. I've also been trying to eliminate many years' worth of accumulation of drawing paper, watercolor paper, chipboard, and matboard by cutting it up in to ACEO-sized blanks and listing them in my Etsy shop. So my paper cutter gets used A LOT!

The paper cutter I have is one of those guillotine types, and this one's made by X-Acto. It's cut thousands of cuts, and it's finally beginning to show signs of needing replacement. Yesterday, as I was cruising through the MyPoints site (a pretty neat place, in case you want to check it out), I found an offer for some bonus points for purchases through Office Depot. I figured I'd see if they had paper cutters, and I ordered one that seemed to be even better than the X-Acto cutter I have. It's heavier, has a larger bed, the bed's made of wood instead of plastic, and overall it just seemed like it would be a better cutter. It was also $20 more than what I paid for the X-Acto cutter. That should mean it's better, right?

Well. It was delivered today (awesome delivery service, BTW - next day delivery was FREE!). I anxiously unwrapped it, set it up on my dining room table, and did a few experimental slices.

YUCK!

I couldn't get a straight slice at all. The cardstock kept shifting no matter how much I tried to hold it in place. The guides on the bed of the cutter aren't accurate either, so 2" wasn't really 2" but more like 2-1/8". That might not sound like a big deal, but I need precision.

The new cutter has now been wrapped back up and will be returned to the local Office Depot (at least I hope they let me do that). I'll have to go find another X-Acto.

All of that made me think about the things I purchase and just how many of them are a particular brand...
- Starbucks espresso beans. I've tried others for my daily ration of latte, but I like Starbucks the best.
- Point root beer. It's really good. And the bottle caps are funny.
- Fiskars scissors and paper punches. I like the way they work.
- Miyuki Delica beads. They're so well made, and they come in a bazillion colors. I love 'em!
- Charmin toilet paper. Mr. Whipple was right. There's a new Charmin, too. It's called "Ultra-Strong" and it has quilting or something. Tried it. Didn't like it. Went back to the 2-ply. Nuf said.
- Sakura Micron pens for drawing. Wonderfully precise. I always buy them at Dick Blick, which is a great place to shop for art supplies.
- Skechers and New Balance shoes. I have narrow feet. Really narrow (9 AAAA, to be exact). For some reason the Skechers shoes fit my feet pretty well, even though they don't come in narrow sizes. New Balance is the only sports shoe I can wear. Everything else falls off my feet.

I know I could make a much longer list, but then you'd just be bored reading it all.

Have any brands you particularly like? Tell me. Maybe I'll try 'em. :-)