CleverCut 5-in-1 Paper Trimmer

Unique 5-in-1 rotary paper trimmer for a variety of cutting styles with the simple turn of a dial.

Highlights

Product Description

Reviews

1. Clever Rotary Trimmer

   
   By Beate Johns

   I was really excited when I heard that we were getting a paper trimmer to review. For paper crafters, finding the perfect paper trimmer is almost like finding the Holy Grail for templar knights. It is a quest.
   
   There are a lot of wonderful features on this trimmer. I like that the CleverCut has an extend-able base to make measuring 12" x 12" paper easy. It has measurements listed in metric as well as inches.
   
   Switching the blades is so easy. I am absolutely loving that. Just open the lid, flick the dial and BAM...different blade! That is so, so cool. I like that you can cut several pieces of cardstock at once. As with my other rotary cutter, you may have to go back and forth a couple of times to cut the cardstock if you are cutting more then one piece.
   
   The one drawback to this trimmer (as well as any other rotary blade trimmer I ever tried) has, is that it is hard to cut strips from a starting piece of paper that is slimmer then 2 1/2". The 2" guard does not allow for an edge to butt your paper against.
   
   The scoring impression is rather thin and not very deep. It will help you fold the cardstock, but it won't replace my regular scoring tool for boxes or other three dimensional projects.
   
   The corner rounder gives a nice shape and cuts through two pieces of cardstock at once. Great if you want to corner round both the front and back of your cardstock at the same time. I LOVE that it features a tray underneath to catch all the corner clippings.

2. A Clever Tool

   
   By Julie Campell

   The Crafter’s Companion CleverCut reminds me of a one-man band! I love the concept of having one tool that can do the work of many. This tool can cut, score, & perforate, and can also round corners and create scalloped edges. The trimmer is very light (weighing only two and a half pounds), which makes it great for toting to crops or crafting get-togethers.
   
   One of the really neat design features of the CleverCut is how easy it is to change tools. With a simple click of a dial, you can change from a cutting blade to a scoring tool. Dial it again and you can create a wavy edge or a perforated line. It literally takes a second to go from one tool to another.
   
   One of my favorite features of this trimmer is the perforation tool. Being a seasoned crafter, I already have tools that can cut and score, but this is the first time I’ve ever found something that could create perforated lines. I also like the scalloped (or wave) cutting option. It creates a subtle decorative edge that is quick and easy.
   
   The corner rounding tool creates a small rounded edge. There is a small reservoir under the tool that collects your paper until you’re ready to discard it. I would love to have the option of having a small or large rounder available, but it still is very handy to have any tool like this to work with.
   
   This tool boasts of being able to cut three sheets of paper at one time. You really have to push down on the rotary cutter as you move down your paper edge to get a clean cut. I found that sometimes my edges were nice and straight, but other times they were not. There are several grid lines to use as guides (which I love), but it is difficult to cut small pieces of paper because there isn’t a guard that goes past the 2-1/4” mark.
   
   My least favorite feature of the CleverCut was the scoring tool. The score that it creates is very faint and extremely shallow. I like to use heavy cardstock and found that every time I scored and tried to fold my panel, my cardstock would crack.
   
   I don’t think I’ll be replacing my current cutting and scoring tools on an everyday basis, but I’m sure I will continue to use some of the other unique features that this tool offers. Overall, I think the 5-in-1 CleverCut is a very smart tool. I love the idea behind it and think it would be a great tool to take on the go.

3. CleverCut is Pretty Clever!

   
   By Jimmi Mayo

   OK, what do you think is one of the most sought after items in a stamper's arsenal? Well, I don’t know for sure, but I am going to guess it’s the perfect paper trimmer! I know when I started stamping a few years ago, I went through many trimmers in my search, as I’m sure many stampers have.
   
   I currently use a guillotine style trimmer, which works great, but is pretty basic. The box the Clevercut comes in makes it look like a paper trimmer that comes with all the bells and whistles, and I tried them all out.
   
   First, I tried out basic cutting and measuring - just cutting straight lines using cardstock in different sizes. I found that it cuts perfectly until you get to the two inch mark, then you have to measure and cut backwards or not cut anything two inches or smaller, because the last two inches of the base does not have an edge to butt the paper up to. This works perfectly fine - it’s not the way I am used to measuring, so I had to sort of wrap my head around the idea - but once I did, the measurements turned out just fine. The only problem I could see with this, is that if you have a piece of paper that is really small, you will have a hard time cutting it straight without that edge, so it’s best to get a piece of cardstock that’s over two inches to cut with. You should keep in mind I’m not the best at measuring - but I try! So the idea of measuring backwards may come more naturally to others or you may use this style of cutter and are used to it already.
   
   Next I tried out the different blades. Now this is cool - are you ready? The different blades are all housed in the cutter head - all you have to do is open the compartment and turn a dial to change the blade - genius in my book!
   
   I used to have a trimmer with the blades you have to keep track of and let’s just say I don’t do well with keeping track of small things. Anyway, I tried out the wavy blade, scoring blade and the perforating blade and they all do what they say. The wavy blade is my favorite ,because it’s not like any other edge cutter or edge punch I own, it’s cute and looks fun on a card. The box and directions say it cuts up to five sheets with the straight blade, so I tested that out and I could cut through four sheets of Stampin’ Up! cardstock easily. May not have worked for me with five sheets, but four is pretty great in my book!
   
   It also has a corner rounder right on the base, which is very handy and works well, too. It is not the same shape as any other corner rounder I already have, which I like.
   
   One of my favorite features of the CleverCut are the measurements and guidelines on the base of the cutter. I have never been able to cut at an angle with my current paper trimmer (without going through a few sheets of cardstock til I got it right!) but this one has the lines for different degrees of cutting, 45 degrees, 15 degrees, etc. and this is SUPER handy for me! It also has some measurements of standard card sizes and squares/rectangles.
   
   Overall this paper trimmer is original, sturdy and useful - pretty clever too!

4. Power Trimmer

   
   By Lisa Lara

   I am very picky when it comes to paper trimmers. They have to do two things; cut with precision and allow me to see where I cut.
   
   How did this trimmer measure up?
   
   I liked the corner rounder punch. It has grooves in the trimmer base for guides that were great. Dialing the different blades was wonderful. I did not have to leave to change blades. The trimmer held firmly in place on my cutting surface. The pull ruler locked in place and held. For cutting small pieces accurately, there is a small guide to hold paper against at the top if it's under two inches. But, if the paper was so small it was under the clear plastic guide, I couldn't hold onto it while cutting or see exactly where the blade was. The pull out ruler works great for big paper that extended beyond it so I could see the measurement.
   
   Tips:
   Be sure to hold firmly to paper with other hand while cutting to ensure an accurate cut. Make sure when dialing a blade that the arrows match up or the lid will not close.

5. Wicked Clever Cutter

   
   By Beverly Rousch

   When I saw that we were going to review the 5-in-1 paper trimmer, I was so excited! I have a couple of paper trimmers, but was interested to see what this baby could do. The day it got here, was I ever surprised!
   
   First, it's sleeker than I had expected. Its black and aluminum look is pretty fancy. There are so many neato features, I had to really make myself concentrate on each one while I was reviewing it so I didn't get myself wound up - hee hee.
   
   It comes completely assembled and ready to cut straight out of the box. The cutting blade slides back and forth on an aluminum bar, and to change the blade you just slide the blade to one end or another (a safety feature I appreciate with four little kids running around!), open the blue housing, slide the orange wheel to the blade you want, close the housing and cut, perforate, scallop,or score.
   
   Did I mention that sliding the orange wheel produces this satisfying little click as it engages to the the function you want? I'm slightly addicted to that little click now. It got me interested in how well made this blade housing is, how it works and exactly how you would replace it. Reading the manual, I found that you just remove a well-placed little lid at the end of the aluminum bar and pull the bar out to get the housing to slide off for replacement. The replacement housing is pretty easy on the wallet too. Inspecting the cutting wheels and the how it all works, I'm impressed at the genius behind its construction.
   
   The blades slice your papers on a strip of matting. I was initially troubled at what would happen after a lot of use to that mat, but then I realized it's removable. When it's worn, you can just flip it over to the other side of the mat! And even better? It comes with an extra replacement mat cleverly stored at the bottom of the trimmer. Those Crafter's Companion peeps are wicked smart, I tell ya!
   
   The trimmer deck itself is really well marked with a half inch grid and popular cutting sizes (such as 4" x 6", 5" x 7", 2" x 3", 8.5" x 11") and they are boldly marked too. The corner rounder (the fifth element in the five cutting features) works pretty well too, and holds all the trimmed corners nice and tidy in the trimmer till you're ready to open a door and let all the little junk out of jail. It has angled markings on the deck too, which makes it easy to line up your paper to, say, thirty degrees and cut. Nice.
   
   But really, as snazzy as it seems, how well does it cut? I found that cutting thin sheets of printer paper or designer papers, I could get five or six sheets cut in one slice and the wave, score, skip, and corner took 3 sheets. For Stampin' Up! cardstock (thicker for card making), I could cut and corner round 2 sheets with one slice, and wave, score, and perforate. It's not really made for large quantity per slice. It's made for multiple functions for the everyday crafter.
   
   And THAT it does brilliantly.

6. A Paper Cutter Worthy of Alton Brown

   
   By Lydia Fiedler

   When it comes to paper trimmers, I'm a tough audience. First, because my studio is very small, and second, because I am the Alton Brown of stamping. I really like simple tools that can be used for lots of different tasks.
   
   When I got the CleverCut, I read the instructions, which is not like me, but I really do recommend for this product for a few reasons. On my go-to trimmer I've had for years, I tend to cut and score from bottom to top. On this tool, you need to move the blade from top to bottom. I tested it, and it's true - it works the best in this direction. The other important instruction is that there are only two places on the trimmer where you can switch between the various blades it comes with. Here's where yours truly fell in love.
   
   I have tossed many a rotary blade cutter because I got tired of changing blades, and tired of storing them. The most winning feature of this trimmer is the unique dial system on the cutting mechanism that lets you dial up the blade you want - wavy, perforating, straight or scoring. Complete home run, in my book.
   
   The built in corner rounder is so completely convenient and brilliant, I still can't believe I've never seen it before.
   
   The measuring guides are well thought out and easy to see, with some standard measurements on the grid so that you don't have to do a lot of work to cut a 4" x 6" or 5" x 7" card. What I would change here is the addition of a 4.25" x 5.5" guide. However, my other trimmer doesn't have that either.
   
   Second to the dial-a-blade feature, the feature competing for my affection is the circle on the guide mat with various angles marked on it, like 15, 30 and 45 degree angles. This is truly amazing and so incredibly helpful in making diagonal cuts precisely, which is something I've struggled with for years.
   
   It's about 2.5" wider and 3" longer than my workhorse trimmer so it definitely passes the space test.
   
   The one feature I struggled with, but was not a dealbreaker, was the paper guide/blade assembly's immobility - you can't move it out of the way to precisely position smaller pieces of cardstock against the guides. You slide your paper underneath the guard over the blade, which you get used to very quickly. Anyone who has used a rotary cutter is already used to it, but I was not.
   
   The blade assembly and guide were easy to dismantle for that time when you do need to replace a worn out blade.
   
   I think Alton Brown would approve of this trimmer - its diverse functions are so appealing, and it's well made and not too bulky. I really am enjoying using it, and may never dig my corner rounding punches out of the drawer again.

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