Many people wonder if buying a fringer is worth the investment. That can be a hard question to answer and depends on a number of factors. The cost of a fringer can buy a lot of quilling paper and many wonder if the money is better spent on paper or the fringer. We’ll explore your options here.
There are advantages to hand fringing. As long as you have a pair of scissors you can fringe. The fringing doesn’t always look even which can create a unique look. And many people, once they’ve fringed for a while are very quick.
I know people who fringe by hand and would never use a fringer. But I also know people who, once they tried a fringer, would never go back to hand fringing. So you need to ask yourself some questions before you make this investment. An outlay of money, that for many, is not the best use of limited funds. Even if the $50+ is not a huge amount of money, before spending it on a fringer you may want to answer the following questions.
How do fringers work?
Contrary to what many believe the fringer does not “cut” the paper. Rather it sheers it (tears it) much like many of us tear paper against a ruler or guide. The metal fringers have a very sturdy blade while the new Quilled Creations fringer has a thinner blade to sheer with. All work on this same principle.
Are you a beginner or a seasoned quiller?
If you are a beginner you may want to wait on getting a fringer. Use those funds to buy books, kits, supplies that will increase your quilling ability and skills. Someone who has quilled for a while knows if they are going to continue quilling. If you are going to continue quilling then you may find the fringer a great investment. Fringing with a machines is very quick and easy and an excellent investment if your hands are giving you problems. If you’re an experienced quiller whose hands ache or you do a lot of hand fringing, a fringer may be a good investment. I found it so. How often are you going to use the fringer? If you only make fringed flowers occasionally then hand fringing may be fine for you. Of course I found once I started using my fringer, I was using more fringed flowers, leaves, embellishments then I had before. Before spending the money, make sure you’re going to be using the fringer enough to justify the cost.
Do you have a physical disability that limits your ability to fringe using a pair of scissors? If you have a physical disability that limits your quilling, then I would say buying a fringer is a good investment if you are going to continue to quill. I didn’t buy a fringer until I could no longer hand fringe. But even if you buy a fringer and then find you don’t like it, you can always sell the fringer on an auction site, usually for what you paid for it.
How long will my fringer last? That will depend on what type of fringer you buy. Here are your choices:
METAL FRINGER: I have an all metal fringer I know that is over 20 years old. It has been used a lot (in fact my husband had to re-adjust it as the sheering blade had worn down. ). It was used when I bought it 12 years ago from a person who was no longer quilling due to health.
PLASTIC FRINGER: EBAY: There are plastic fringers being sold on ebay. I don’t have personal knowledge about them but I have heard from people who bought them that they were not a good investment. At least 4 people told me they couldn’t get decent fringes from it and several told me their fringer broke. If you have knowledge on these fringers please email us with your experience both good and bad. How long you had the fringer and what you paid.
QUILLED CREATIONS: Quilled Creations has just put out a new plastic fringer. You’ll know it’s the one from them because it’s a beautiful lavender color. This fringer also allows you to adjust the width and depth of your fringe without a screwdriver which means you can adjust these things on the same strip. Because it’s supplied by them I would trust that it will last. Quilled Creations has come out with a plastic fringer that seems to be a good one.
What should I look for in a fringer?
That will depend on how versatile you want the fringer to be. Most of the fringers will need a small screwdriver to make adjustments. You’ll want the fringer to come with clear instructions on how to maintain it and how to make the adjustments. What adjustments does the fringer make? Can you adjust the depth of the cut? What about the distance between the cuts? Will it cut a variety of widths? Most of the new fringers now have adjustment for both paper width, depth of cut and space between cuts. You’ll want to buy a fringer that will take the punishment many of us dish out simply because we use an item a lot. Personally I would only buy an all metal fringer that has both width and depth adjustments or the new Quilled Creations Fringer.
What type of fringer do I need and what can I expect to pay? There are 2 types. The 90° and the 45°.
90 Degree Fringer:The 90° is used to create flowers and other patterns. This fringer cuts straight up and down slits. The fringed is usually made into a tight coil and glued. Then the fringed upper area is “fanned” out with your fingers. These are very easy to make with your fringer. You can also make a variety of edges for a picture with your fringer. The fringing crated by the 90° fringer looks like this: |||||||||||. These fringers retail new for $45 to $70.
45 Degree Fringer: The 45° fringer cuts at an angle and is used to create leaves as well as other things. The fringe created looks like this \\\ . This fringer retails for around $59.99.
Buying on Ebay
I want to buy a fringer on Ebay. Is it safe to do so? Many people sell both new and used fringers on ebay. I bought my older fringer there for $20 and was very happy with the sale but I asked a ton of questions about the fringer before I bought it. Before you buy make sure you look at the person’s feedback and what type of items they sell. Do they sell a lot of quilling items? If they have negative feedback (and very few people who sell for any length of time have a 100% record) what were the comments given by the person who gave the negative feedback. Did they do it because they’d been given a negative first? No matter how good the persons feedback is I’d also advise you to pay with Paypal or your Credit Card as that gives you more leverage should the sale be problematic. Another important point is to decide BEFORE you bid what is the limit you’re going to spend? Don’t get caught up in a bidding frenzy where you end up spending several hundred dollars for a $50 item. One of the bad things about buying on Ebay is that you can’t handle the fringer but, you can ask for more pictures and answers to questions. Here are some good ones to ask:
How old is the fringer?
How much did you use it?
Was it dropped or abused in any way?
Do you guarantee it and if so what is the guarantee? Will you give me a writen guarantee?
If you don’t offer a guarantee what happens if it doesn’t work after I get it?
Does it work now? Can you send me a picture of paper fringed with it?
Does it come with directions?
I lost the directions to my fringer and I didn’t buy it from you.
If you know what brand of fringer it is then we would be more then happy to send you directions for the fringer. If you don’t know what the brand is or who you bought it from send us a picture of the fringer (top, bottom, front, back and side views). We should be able to figure out which instructions belong to your fringer.
Care and Feeding of fringers.
Taking care of your fringer is not real difficult. Keep your fringer in a protected place so that it doesn’t get banged around. Many people mount their fringer on a board. This can make the fringer easier to use. ALWAYS Keep a strip of quilling paper in your fringer. This protects it. And last but not least follow the manufactures directions on the maintenance of your fringer. Oil it as directed. I also clean mine every so often with a soft rag.
BROKEN FRINGERS:
If you have problems with any fringer, first try all the maintenance procedures. If that doesn’t work, make sure you contact the place you bought it from to see if they will exchange it or will repair it. If they won’t stand behind the product, contact the manufacture of the fringer. The place you bought it from should be able to supply that information.
What fringers do you carry? We are very lucky to be able to carry several types of fringers. Here is what we currently carry. We have 4 types of 90° fringers. 1 from Paplin, 2 from Lake City Crafts and 1 from Quilled Creations. We have only 1 type of 45° fringer and it’s from Paplin. To see pictures of the fringers go to our site at Http://Too-Bad-Dogs-Inc.Com and look under tools.PAPLIN
The Paplin 90° fringer is all metal and made in the USA. It will accept paper strips of widths from 1/4 in to 3/8. You can adjust the width of the fringe by slightly loosening the screw behind the cam. With the cam in the desired position, hold cam in place and then tighten the screw. NOTE: ONLY MINOR ADJUSTMENTS ARE NEEDED TO VARY THE WIDTH OF THE FRINGE. You can adjust the depth of the fringe using the Allen wrench provided. NOTE: ONLY SLIGHT ADJUSTMENTS NEED TO BE MADE. AS THE SCREW BECOMES MORE VISIBLE UNDER THE ARM, THE DEPTH OF THE FRINGE WILL BECOME SHORTER. TIP: When using your fringer with coated papers (gold, silver, etc) feed the paper white side up as the coated side is too slippery to feed through. The Paplin Fringer suggested manufacturer price is $59.99.
The Paplin 45° fringer has both adjustable width and depth of fringe. It will accommodate 1/4 inch to 3/4 inch folded papers. The suggested manufacturer price is $69.99 You can adjust the width of the fringe by slightly loosening the screw behind the cam. With the cam in the desired position, hold cam in place and then tighten the screw. NOTE: ONLY MINOR ADJUSTMENTS ARE NEEDED TO VARY THE WIDTH OF THE FRINGE. You can adjust the depth of the fringe using the Allen wrench provided. NOTE: ONLY SLIGHT ADJUSTMENTS NEED TO BE MADE. AS THE SCREW BECOMES MORE VISIBLE UNDER THE ARM, THE DEPTH OF THE FRINGE WILL BECOME SHORTER.
LAKE CITY CRAFTS
The Lake City “Fred” fringer is a 90° fringer made in the USA. It will accept paper strips of widths from 1/4 in to 3/8 in and will provide a preset cut spacing of approximately 1/32 inches. The depth of cut will vary from 5/16 inches for a 3/8 inch wide strip to 3/16 inches for a 1/4 inch wide strip. An adjustable guide is provided for use with strips less then 3/8 inch wide. The fringer may be mounted on a wooden base for greater stability during operation. This fringer should require minimal maintenance. Occasionally lubricate the advance finger with a tiny amount of an automotive type grease. Slight adjustment in cut spacing may be made by loosening the screw at the rear of the fringer and turning the bearing post as required. A clockwise turn decreases the spacing. These fringers come with detailed instructions. The “Fred” Fringer suggested manufacturer price is $70.00 The less expensive Lake City Fringer is an all metal adjustable fringer and the suggested manufacturer price is $45.00.
QUILLED CREATIONS:
The Quilled Creations fringer is plastic but seems to be very well made. It has two adjustment knobs {one creates the depth of the “cut” and the other controls the space between the “cuts”} that do not need a screwdriver! This means it’s easy to change both depth and width in mid-fringe!!! We found that the fringer is easy to use and light weight yet sturdy. We haven’t had a customer returned one yet!
In closing I should advise anyone who is going to quill for any length of time to evaluate their need for a fringer before investing in one. Personally, I wouldn’t trade my fringers for anything in the world and don’t miss hand fringing one bit. But for every person who loves their fringer there is a person equally passionate about hand fringing and there are even people who do both! Happy Quilling!
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