So I will be making the tripto purchase a cricut expression in the next few days. I have never used one, but I have been wanting one for a long time. I have a business and I know this would help it tremendously. So my question is when I go and pick one up what other accessories should I also grab? Please any tips or suggestions would be wonderful! Thank you so much!

The cricut is cartridge and cricut craft room only. You will need to look and see what cartridges interest you and what you will be making with them. You will need cardstock paper, the tool accessories are good to have. Glue or some kind of adhesive.

Make sure the Cricut is what you want, like said above it is cartridge based, so you cannot import any other images into it to cut, you cannot make your own logo unless its on one of the cartridges. If you read this forum you will see people saying they didn't know it was cartridge based, thought they could cut anything they wanted with it, so make sure its the machine for you. Also you can read above click on New to Cricut.

I've been the proud owner for two weeks so far of a Cricut Expression. One of the things i bought was a Zig 2 glue stick. The mat stopped being sticky after a day or two. I bought it on ebay. I bought alot of card stock paper to practice on from Michaels. I bought 4 cartridges so far off of ebay as well and i bought the tools with the pouch.

Make sure when you buy new mats that they say Cricut in big letters across the middle of the mat.

There are some mats out there that do not work well.
Mine stopped being sticky after a few cuts.
Provo Craft came out with the new Cricut in the middle mats to replace them BUT you can still find them for sale places. At my Joann stores crafters buy the new mats and leave the old mats there.

I like to have at least two mats to work with at a time. That way I can be cutting with one as I take the cuts off the other.

Get some non-alcohol baby wipes to clean the paper lint that will accumulate on your mat.
I also take mine to the sink, run them under warm water and gently wash the paper lint off them.
You will need to wait for them to dry then they will be sticky again.
I have extra mats so I can use some while the others dry.

Make sure you mark your mat cover before you take it off so you will know which way it goes back on. Lots of people have said this helps keep the ahesive on the mat. I write the word top on mine with permanent marker.

And I 2nd the spatula suggestions!!!
The spatula is a must have tool. It helps you get your cuts off easier and it helps to lessen paper curling when you take the cuts off the mat.

Hope this helps.
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Edited by user Saturday, February 16, 2013 8:04:29 AM(UTC)  | Reason: :)

I also HIGHLY recommend the 12x24 mats. They are much more flexible, allowing much larger cuts. They are also great when using Gypsy or Craftroom, as you can often cut all of your layers at once.

They are also more cost effective, as they cost only a couple of $ more than the 12x12, but you get double the surface. Some people think you need to cut them to use with smaller cuts, but that is absolutley not necessary

Thank you for that tip Olivia! I will be looking into those as well.