Are you wondering if you need to add the Cricut Imagine to your scrapbooking stash? Released in September 2010, this electronic die cutting device was the first of its kind, with the ability to not only cut, but to also print with inkjet printer ink. Would you like to find out more? If so, keep reading to get the inside story.

The Imagine die cut machine is an invention of the Provo Craft company. If that name sounds familiar, there is a very good reason. Provo Craft has brought us unique crafting products such as the Expression die cut machine, Yudu screen printing system, CuttleBug embossing and manual die cutter, and the Knifty Knitter, just to give a few examples. It is a well-known brand, popular with scrapbookers, paper crafters, and artists.

This new item from them is different in that it combines the power of a wide format printer with their electronic die cutting technology.

{No longer do crafters need a stock of of multicolored card stock and paper to make colorful Scrapbookers no longer need to keep on hand tons of scrapbooking paper and multi-colored card stock. {Instead, this machine can transform white cardstock into colorful Using this device, they can take standard white card stock, and make into a colorful stack of die cuts. These can either be printed and cut as one-dimensional images, or the pieces can be printed ala carte, allowing users to paper piece and glue them together in their own unique way.

A computer is not needed to operate the Imagine die cut machine. Instead, die cuts can be made from Provo Craft's first generation cartridge series. These original cartridges can be used at the same time as the new Imagine-only cartridges. {These contain patterns and images for printing, comparable to the digital papers that many scrapbook artists use in their projects.

This machine can be used on a wide variety of materials, including not only paper and cardstock, but printable vinyl, thin wood veneer, iron on fabric, canvas and more. It prints close to twelve inches in size, and there are rumors that it will eventually be able to print and cut up to a full 12" x 12" sheet of paper. The inks used in this system are nearly acid-free, with pH levels ranging from 6.5 to 7. Not only is it compatible with the original cartridges from Cricut, but it can also be used with the Gypsy handheld design studio and the Jukebox.

Operation of this device is very easy and straightforward. Users can browse through the different images on the cartridges, and select the designs they want to cut and print using the LCD touchscreen interface. It also includes a color picker, which has eighteen pre-defined colors as well as a color wheel, so that owners can print cardstock of any color using this machine. For custom-colored paper, and RGB input area is also included.

Will the scrapbooking and paper crafting community welcome the features of the Cricut Imagine, or will they stick with the traditional models which do not offer printing? Only time will tell, but it does offer a lot of versatility that is sure to be not only useful, but also a timesaver as well.