Metal cutting die
A metal cutting die is a piece of metal with a sharp edge on one side that can be used in a die-cutting and embossing machine to either cut out a shape or make an impression.
Aside from the standard thin metal dies (or wafer-thin dies), some companies make thicker dies (more than 1,5 cm or half an inch thick), but those don't fit in all machines.
Storage
Storing your dies
Since dies are made from metal, they can be stored on magnetic sheets. This is useful to keep track of which dies you have in a set, especially with alphabet dies or dies that match a stamp set.
Note that a "magnetic whiteboard" is magnetic in the sense that magnets stick to it. You will not be able to store metal dies directly on a whiteboard.
A good alternative for storage is zip-top (Ziploc) bags. These resealable bags are available in 90 micron, which is sturdy enough not to get damaged by any sharp corners or edges of the dies.
Marking dies
You can scratch with a needle, pushpin, or pokey tool into the non-cutting side of the die to mark where the die belongs; what letter it is (d or p, q or b, …), what stamp it goes with, …
You can also use a permanent marker, but those might fade over time or leave ink on your cutting plates due to the pressure of the machine.
Swatching
To keep an overview of what you have, and because looking at a die doesn't always clearly show what the die is used for or what the die cut will look like, you can swatch your dies. Use printable sticker sheets and give them a color wash with some watercolors or some light ink blending. Then make a cutout of all of your dies and stick them in a book or binder. This will also allow you to make notes on what set the dies belong to, or to stamp the matching stamp on the swatch.
Colors
Most dies are not painted and have a gray color. However, some dies have a coat of paint on them. This paint might flake off or give off a bit of color, which will be visible on white paper.
Cutting apart attached dies
Some die sets contain multiple dies. A lot of brands sell their dies as one piece of metal that you can or have to break apart.
Breaking apart a set of dies will always give you more options. You can always arrange the dies in their original design if you want a different effect. To make sure they don't shift during cutting, you can use low-tack tape.
Wire cutters
Flush wire cutters come in different sizes. Especially those marketed for jewelers will have a very fine tip. This is useful if you need to snip apart dies where there's only a little bit of room between them.
When snipping off a small die or the end of a piece of the connecting metal, be cautious. The metal you cut off might jump away. To prevent this, push the part you're snipping off into a towel, cloth, baby wipe …
Bending
If your dies are only connected in one or two spots, you might be able to break them apart by bending. However, the connecting bit of metal might stick out and either cause wounds on your hands or push through your paper or into your cutting plates. Try to remove as much of the connecting bits as possible with wire cutters.
Rotary (multi) tool
You can file off the sharp edges of your dies with a rotary tool. This makes the die safer to handle, and you won't get any indentations in your paper or cutting plates from the extra bits sticking out.
A rotary tool can also be used to file down the cutting lines you want to remove permanently if the design of the die is not fully to your liking.
