“Stencil Cricut Cartridge”

I felt like painting this week and decided to pull out the “Stencil” Cricut® cartridge. I don’t really have a lot of natural artistic ability, but using the Cricut “Stencil” cartridge helped me to create a perfect project with paint and made me feel like an artist anyway.

Brief Intro:

The Cricut “Stencil” project cartridge is designed for use with paintbrushes or air brushes. This cartridge has a wide variety of images that range from shapes to patterns. Most images come with a layer, which adds interest and dimension to the project. A few examples of images included with this cartridge are: cupcakes, flowers, an argyle pattern, a castle, a train, a crown, an alien, and a skull with crossbones  The cartridge works great with stencil paint or an airbrush to add a design to a wall, quilt block, baby clothes, or home décor.

Project:

For today’s project, I wanted to show how easy it is to use this cartridge with paints and a sponge brush. I pulled out the paint and chose to create a home décor project that could be framed and given away as a gift.  Supplies needed: frame, white felt, silver and red paint, sponge brush, packing tape, blow dryer, adhesive vinyl.

1 Cut a rectangle of white felt to fit a frame. Place the felt onto a table and, using packing tape, tape the sides of the felt down so the material won’t move.

2 Using the Cricut “Stencil” cartridge, cut out a castle from a large piece of adhesive vinyl. Move the blade housing so that the castle is centered in the middle of the vinyl with about 4” around it. Using the same dimensions and spacing, cut out the second castle layer.

3 For the first layer, use the negative space of the vinyl design, pull off the backing and place the vinyl over the white felt. Press firmly around the design to eliminate bubbles.

4 Using the vinyl as a stencil, paint the castle red with a sponge brush.

5 Remove the vinyl stencil from the white felt and then blow dry the image before moving to the second layer. Make sure the paint is dry to the touch.

6 Adhere the vinyl stencil for the second layer over the painted castle. Make sure to line up the layers before pressing down. Paint the second layer silver and then repeat step 5 to dry the painting. .

7 Place the felt inside a frame to complete your project.

Other Ideas:

• Add personal touches to pillowcases.
• Create several stencil artworks and display them together on a framed art wall.
• Create a lap quilt with stenciled blocks.

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Check back next week as I create something magical using Cricut. It’s going to be great!

My Princess Scrapbook Layout Project

One of my favorite ways to de-stress is by creating with my Cricut®. Lately I seem to be creating tons of projects but neglecting to scrapbook my memories on paper. Provo Craft has come out with a new cartridge called “The First Few Years,” and looking through the handbook inspired me to get back to scrapbooking my experiences. I’ve decided to schedule in an hour a week where I can create something magical on paper while I still remember all the funny comments and stories. This week I chose to create a princess layout using one of the many layouts offered in this new cartridge.

Brief Overview:

“The First Few Years” Cricut cartridge provides fifty different scrapbook layout ideas. This cartridge is a part of the Cricut Everyday collection and comes with several images, patterns, tags, frames, phrases, and a font with a shadow. A few examples of the shapes that can be cut with this cartridge are a bow, bear, swimsuit, dump truck, dog, crown, ice cream cone, home, cupcake, diaper, bed, school, tooth, moon and stars, train, sailboat, pants, bib, and clock. A few examples of words and phrases that come with this cartridge are Time Flies, Hello Sunshine, Cuddlebug, Bon Appetit, Special Delivery, Sweet Boy, Kid Style, and the days of the week. Although many layouts are focused on a child’s early years, others can be used at any time in a child’s life. Follow the suggested layouts for a quick scrapbook solution or mix and match pieces of the suggested layouts to customize your scrapbook page. 

Project:

The scrapbook layout I chose to start with is found on page 45 of the handbook and has a chevron pattern in it. I’m in love with chevrons and wanted to use this layout as my inspiration for my first scrapbook page from this cartridge. I chose my papers and decided to switch the phrase to “Our Princess” instead of “Kid Style.” After cutting the princess phrase, I switched the word “Our” for letters spelling “my.” I also used the font shadow to help the phrase pop on my layout. I changed the suggested swimsuit images to a crown and hearts since these shapes fit my princess page better.

Supplies: patterned cardstock, solid cardstock, embellishments (if desired), tape runner, glue pen.

1  Using a paper cutter, cut a 2” border from red patterned paper and a 4” border from green polka-dot paper and place them on the left side of a piece of brown striped cardstock. Using the paper cutter, cut one 6 x 8” solid brown rectangle.

2  Referring to page 45 in the cartridge handbook, cut a 1” tag from the green polka-dot paper and a bow from the red patterned paper. Cut a 2” title block. Cut a chevron pattern and place it on the layout. When cutting the chevron pattern from a 12 x 12” paper, the machine will only cut an 11 ½” (fit to length) image. I cut a few of the zig zags in the middle, moved the strips towards the outside edges of the paper, and then covered the gap in the chevron pattern with my picture frame. This saved paper and gave the design the needed length.

3  Turn to page 40 in the handbook and cut out the following shapes from coordinating patterned paper: a 1 ¾” crown, a 1 ½” solid heart, a 2” solid heart, and a 7” frame.

4  Cut the “Our Princess” phrase found on page 40 and don’t forget to also cut out the blackout image for this phrase. If applicable, cut out the letters “m” and “y” to replace the word “Our.”

5  Lay everything out on the page, making sure the pieces are positioned correctly. Use the glue pen and tape runner to secure everything in place. Add embellishments or stickers if desired. Glue a photo into place and add some journaling.

Other ideas:

• Use any of the frames and phrases on party invitations.
• Use phrases on baby announcements.
• Cut the frames smaller and use as journaling tags on scrapbook pages.
• Copy any of the patterns to a card.
• Cut out any of the phrases with iron-on vinyl and adhere them to a Onesie®, dress, or shirt.

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This wraps up my exploration for the week. I hope you have enjoyed learning about “The First Few Years” cartridge, which is a wonderful resource when creating scrapbook pages. I love how easy it is to create each layout with the Cricut, and I’m going to add this cartridge to my collection of favorites.

Iron-on and Paper

This week I got my hands on the new Cricut® Iron-on cartridges. I love creating one-of-a-kind projects using iron-on vinyl. I’ve used this type of product for the last few years to create shirts for young women groups, pillowcases for my nieces, and cooking aprons. I love how the vinyl looks and feels so soft and that my project looks like it’s been silk screened. I was really excited to see that Provo Craft came out with a few new cartridges with images designed specifically for iron-on vinyl. Today I’m going to show you how to use the Cricut Iron-On vinyl with the “Boho Graphics Iron-on” cartridge.

Brief Cartridge Review:

The Boho Graphics Iron-on cartridge artwork has birds, insects (dragonfly, butterfly), flowers, symbols (arrows, eye, peace sign), and phrases. Some examples of included phrases are “You got the Love,” “hello I love you,” “Shine On,” and “flower child.” Images are easy to cut, and the iron-on material is thin like cardstock so it cuts easily on the Cricut. For beautiful results, use the same mat and blade pressure as you would for cardstock.  Cricut Iron-on vinyl comes in these colors: teal, red, pink, maize (yellow), white, gray, cyan (blue), black, glitter silver, glitter pink, glitter gold, and glitter black.

Project:

For today’s project, I wanted to show how easy this artwork is to use with iron-on vinyl and with cardstock. So I created two projects, a fun cooking apron and a card.

Supplies: apron with ruffles (Hobby Lobby), burlap ribbon, burlap material, embroidery floss, red Cricut Iron-on vinyl, iron, ironing board, cardstock (brown, red), patterned cardstock, adhesive pen.

Cooking Apron Project

Step 1 Cut the phrase “You got the Love” from red iron-on vinyl, size 10 ½”. Cut heart <sktchhrt> from red iron-on vinyl, size 4”. .

Step 2 Iron out any creases in the purchased apron. Change iron setting to medium (no steam). Lay the phrase on the top part of the apron. Place the flat/dull side next to the material; this means the shiny part of the vinyl is facing towards you. Tip: Make sure the pieces are in the correct spot before ironing.

Step 3 Place the iron carefully onto each letter, making sure that the letters don’t move from their original placement. Press each letter for a few seconds. After you have checked to make sure all the letters are pressed, place the heart onto the apron pocket and repeat the ironing process.

Step 4 Let the letters cool to finger touch before gently removing the liner from each letter. Tip: If a vinyl letter pulls off of the apron, replace the liner, press the letter for a few more seconds, and then try pulling off the liner again.

Step 5 Stitch burlap ribbon across the top edge of the pocket and across the top of the apron. Cut a long strip of 2 ½” wide burlap material. Fray the bottom half of the strip, leaving about an inch of fabric intact. Gather and pin the strip across the lower part of the apron to create a ruffle. Sew the ruffle to the apron with a machine or use a few strands of embroidery floss and sew by hand.

Card Project

Step 1 Cut a 4” heart <SktchHrt> from red cardstock, and cut the phrase “You got the love” (size 7”) out of brown cardstock.

Step 2 Fold and cut patterned cardstock to a size 5 x 7” card.

Step 3 Glue down the red heart onto center of the card, and then glue the phrase over the heart.

Other options:

• Use any of the patterns to create a pillow cover for the front room.
• Use insects on the end of a pillow case or child’s t-shirt.
•  Iron on a heart, guitar, or flowers to a baby Onesie®.
• Using any of the Cricut fonts, cut a name from iron-on vinyl and use it to personalize a pillow case.
• Create cards or party invitations using cardstock.
• Cut images from cardstock and use them in a scrapbook layout.

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This wraps up today’s exploration. I would love to see any iron-on projects you have created; make sure to post them on the Cartridges & More Facebook page. See you all next week!

Happy Birthday Banner

Spring brings birthdays, baby showers, weddings, and other occasions that need a banner to help create just the right atmosphere. I always seem to be digging into my craft room in the springtime, looking for a banner that will fit the party I’m throwing. Today I want to tell all my Cricut friends how to create their own trendy banner using the “Pretty Pennants,” “Extreme Fonts,” and “Ribbons and Rosettes” Cricut® cartridges. This banner was inspired by one that my friend Aly created. I quickly fell in love with hers and wanted to add her style of banner to my own collection.

Instructions

Supplies: The Sweet Blossom Stack by DCWV, The Silky Smooth Neutral Stack by DCWV, burlap, twine, hole punch, hot glue, Cricut Tool Set
1 Look through the “Pretty Pennants” handbook and decide which pennant shape you want to use for the base of your banner. I chose Banner 2 on page 11. Cut thirteen 9” pennants from the Silky Smooth Neutral Stack.

2 Using the “Ribbons and Rosettes” cartridge and Sweet Blossom paper, cut a 2.5” rosette piece six times for each pennant. There are a variety of rosettes, so choose which one you like the best for each letter. I chose Rosettes scallop1, <scallop2>, <scallop3>, <Doily>, <bracket1>, <petal>, <crown2>, <scallop6>, <stamp1>, and <scallop8>. Use a Cricut tool if needed to punch out the smaller decorative cuts.

3 Cut one circular center <Scllp1Md> per rosette.

4 To create the rosettes,

a)      Hot glue the ends of each rosette piece together to create one long strip, making sure the ends don’t overlap too much.

b)      Accordion fold the strip of cuts and glue the ends together, creating a circle (see photo). Tip: Fold on tick marks.

c)      Force the bottom of the circle out, while the top folds in to create the center of your rosette (see photo). Tip. You’ll need to hold it with your hand while doing the next step.

d)     Hot glue a center circle onto each rosette. Tip: Rather than putting hot glue directly on the center circle, apply it first to the rosette and place the circle on top.

5 Using the “Extreme Fonts” cartridge, cut “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” in the Junior font at 4”. Glue one letter to the center of each rosette.

6 Hot glue a burlap square to each pennant base. Center a lettered rosette over each burlap square and hot glue it in place.

7 Hole punch the top corners of each pennant. Use twine to string the pennants together to make your banner.

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Now that you have instructions on how to make this craft, I challenge all of you to create your own banner and post it on the Cartridges and More Facebook page. I would love to see what everyone creates!

Paper Flowers

This week, I thought I would change up the format of my letter to focus more on a tutorial for creating a project. I chose to dig into the wonderful Cricut® collection of cartridges and make a project for Mother’s Day. I created a paper flower bouquet using the new cardstock “Sweet Blossom Stack” by DCWV (found at www.craftjunction.com) and the “Flower Shoppe” Cricut Cartridge. There is something about flowers that always cheer me up, and it’s fun to make a lasting bouquet from cardstock.

Supplies needed for the project:

Step 2 Cut out each flower layer. Set the dial size to 3” or 4”for the center layer and then continue cutting each flower layer from a different paper. If cutting one-sided paper cut a second image for layers 2, 3 and 4 with the Flip button pressed. Glue the reverse images onto the back of the flowers with Quick-Dry adhesive.

Step 3 If desired, use an ink pad to ink all the outside edges before assembling the flower.

Step 4 Now is the fun part: assembling the flower! Start with the center flower and layer and wrap the spiral around the center tab. Use a dab of adhesive to secure the end of the spiral and add another dab of glue to the back to keep all the layers together. Set the flower center aside.

Step 5 Take layer 4 and, if applicable, glue the bubble tab to the back of the flower layer (only certain flower designs have this tab). Once the glue is dried, roll the flower petals over a pen or pencil to curl the petals back.

Step 6 Take layer 2 and roll each petal around a pencil, curling the petals upwards or downwards, depending on the look you want. Bend the petals up at the center of the flower a little and glue layer 2 onto the center of layer 4.

Step 7 Glue each individual petal (layer 3) to the back of the flower. I recommend curling the petals with a pencil before gluing them into place. After the adhesive dries, glue the flower center into place. If desired, adhere a button to the center of the flower and attach a few corsage pins behind the second flower layer.

Step 8 Wrap two green pipe cleaners around each other to form a flower base. Hot glue a length of metal wire stem to the center of the flower base and then hot glue the base to the back of the paper flower.

Step 9 Follow the above steps for each flower and arrange the assembled flowers in a vase on a table.

Tips: Each of the flowers can be mixed and matched form a flower. You can even use two or three layers, instead of all four. If you’re not sure where to begin, start cutting out different flower layers and then mix them up; it won’t be long before each flower takes shape.

I hope each of you enjoyed this flower tutorial. Check back next week as I continue playing with Cricut cartridges.

Brief Overview:

This week I chose to explore the Cricut “Outdoor Man” cartridge. This is a new cartridge that’s designed specifically for the men in our lives. The artwork is all about camping, hunting, fishing, and hiking. I personally can use quite a few of these images; my family loves to go camping, and I have brothers and sisters that are big hunters. I can now make some perfectly manly cards for my brothers birthdays and scrapbook my family’s camping and hunting trips. This cartridge is considered a full cartridge with fonts, numbers, images, phrases, and shadows for the phrases and font. Some of the images that can be cut are a hunting dog, walkie talkies, a knife, a fishing pole, fish, an outhouse, a campfire, a flashlight, a sleeping bag, a tent, hiking boots, trees, and various wildlife. A few examples of phrases are: “HUNTING BUDDIES,” “CATCH of the DAY,” “WHAT A CATCH!” and “GREAT OUTDOORS.” The font on this cartridge is absolutely adorable; I love how chunky the design is on the letters.

Project:

This project came about because a friend of mine was having a rough day. I had chosen another project, but I decided to change the project’s direction so I could cheer up my friend. I love using my Cricut to create something that will make someone smile. This project had to be a surprise, so I quickly cut out all the parts, glued them together, and then taped the sign to her wall. I made her close her eyes, and when she opened them and saw the project, her whole face lit up and she almost cried.

Bullseye Project:

Supplies: Cardstock and tape runner

Step 1 Cut out the base bullseye circle from cream cardstock. I used the Cricut Expression and pressed the “Fit to Page” button, which made the circle 11”. Next, cut out the layer from red cardstock. Glue the red circles onto the cream cardstock, starting with the center circle and moving out.

Step 2 Cut out letters to spell “You Got This.” Cut the shadow letters first at 3 ½” from cream patterned paper. Keep the same dial size and cut out the same letters from solid blue paper. Glue the blue letters to the patterned letters and adhere the sentiment to the target.

Step 3 Cut out the phrase “HOOK, LINE, & SINKER,” at size 4 ½”. Cut the shadow layer from striped cardstock. Next, cut the phrase from green patterned cardstock and glue each portion of the phrase to the shadow layer.

Step 4 Adhere both parts of the sign to a wall, door, or other conspicuous location to give a friend or family member an extra boost of confidence.

Other Ideas:

• Scrapbook your favorite outdoor adventures using the images and phrases.
• Cut images with fabric and make a pillow for a cabin.
• Use any of the images for a party invitation.
• Create a hiking or camping poster with the images.

Thanks for stopping by and reading about this cartridge. I hope you all had a wonderful Easter and that you can finish up some crafting projects before the summer months begin!

Happy Crafting!!

 Card Inspiration

It is hard to believe that Easter is almost here! This could be due to Easter coming in March instead of April this year, or it could be due to the snowstorm we had today. Either way, I am excited for the upcoming holiday! One of my favorite parts of Easter is watching children look for Easter eggs in the community Easter egg hunt. The joy on kids’ faces when they find an egg is priceless.  For today’s exploration, I made a few cards inspired by the colors and patterns of Easter eggs. I chose to use the “Simple Cards” cartridge that just came out last month. This cartridge is adorable and makes it easy to create beautifully simple cards.

Brief Overview:

“Simple Cards” is part of the project collection and contains several easy-to-assemble cards that are made with just two cuts. The cartridge includes 44 card designs (25 horizontal and 19 vertical) and two different types of envelopes. Some of the cards have patterns (chevrons, circles, arrows, leaves, triangles, for example), and some have phrases (for you, hello!, dream, xoxo, hello sunshine, get well soon, miss you, thank you, be brave, etc.). In addition to making cards with this cartridge, you could use one of the sentiments or patterns as a stencil on a scrapbook page.

Projects:

Creating cards has always been one of my passions. There is something so exciting about designing in a 4 x 6” or 5 x 7” layout, slipping the finished card into an envelope, and sending it to a friend. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this cartridge because I had heard so many wonderful things about it. After using the “Simple Cards” cartridge, I can see what everyone was talking about – I fell in love with the designs and simplicity of the cards. Each card can be easily customized with a few personal touches. I’ve kept the cards pretty simple to show off how easy it is to use the designs on this cartridge.

Card instructions:

Supplies: cardstock, tape runner, embellishments

Step 1 Cut a size 5 inch horizontal or 6 3/4 inch vertical card base.

Step 2 Cut a solid insert, keeping the dial size on the same number.

Step 3 Use a tape runner to glue the solid insert inside the front of the card.

Step 4 Use an ink pad around the edges of the card for extra color and add your sentiment. I chose to use some fun sentiment stickers that I’ve been saving for just the right project.

Step 5 Cut, fold, and glue together a coordinating envelope if desired. Tip: After folding envelope use an ink pad around the edges to cover up any white exposed cardstock.

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Check back next week and see what I create.  Happy Easter, everyone!

Creative Cards Cartridge

The weather has been really nice, and my tulips are just starting to peek through the ground. I am really excited to start working in my flower garden, even though yard work takes me away from crafting with my Cricut®! I will have to budget some creative Cricut time into my schedule as it starts to warm up. Until spring is in full bloom, I still have plenty of time to spend crafting indoors. This week I chose to play with the new “Creative Cards” cartridge. This cartridge has been out for a month, and I have been dying to explore it and see what all the fuss is about.

Brief Overview:

“Creative Cards” is a fun cartridge that includes twenty unique card layouts. There are four window type cards, four A2 size cards, four scallop cards, four square cards, and four cards with rounded corners. Envelopes for each section are also included. Use any of the images or frames, such as the birdcage, bird, flower, windowpane, doily, banners, or butterflies, with “Real Dial Size” to embellish other projects or create borders for photos. Any of the solid layers would also be great journaling cards for scrapbook pages. I want to point out that there is also a layer feature that comes on this cartridge. Refer to the instructions to make sure that you cut all of the layers!

 Project:

I am a true fan of cards; one of my favorite pastimes is creating cards while sitting in front of the TV. I wanted to show everyone how cute and easy this cartridge is, so I stayed to the designs of the cards instead of adding my own personal touch.

Birdcage Card:

Supplies: cardstock, ruler, scoring tool, adhesive

Step 1 Cut out the card base. Use a ruler and scoring tool to score the fold lines. Note: The biggest card I could cut on a 12 x 12” paper was 5 ¼”. If a bigger card size is desired, try using 12 x 24” paper.

Step 2 Cut the solid layer, making sure the layer button is pressed.

Step 3 Cut the birdcage. If the image doesn’t cut cleanly, try adjusting the pressure and speed.

Step 4 Finally, cut out the bird and glue all the pieces together. Cut a matching envelope if desired, score along the fold lines, and glue it together.

Other Ideas:

• Build a scrapbook layout based around one of these card designs.
• Create a matching game, cutting the cards from one of the solid layers. Add an image to each one and laminate the cards to make them last longer.
• Use cards for party invitations.
• Cut any of the images for journaling tags for Smash books or scrapbook pages.
• Make an advent countdown calendar using envelopes to hold sentiments or small prizes for each day.

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Check back soon to see what I explore next.  Happy Crafting!

Brief Overview:

The Martha Stewart “Elegant Cake Art” cartridge is a full cartridge and comes with three fonts, several phrases, and many lovely accents and borders. Some examples of included phrases are “Bon Voyage,” “It’s Your Day!” “Good Luck,”“Congrats,” “Best Wishes,” “Bride to Be,” “Surprise!” and “Miss You.” The Flourish Frame font comes with a font inside either a square or round shape. The “Champagne Toast” font is feminine and has beautiful swirly lines. Any of the charming art (which I fell in love with!) can be used with Easter or Mother’s Day cards, invitations, or scrapbook pages.

One point I would like to mention is the difference between the main die cuts and the cake feature die cuts. As I cut out images from both of these areas, I found the “Cake” art comes with a thin border and the images have more details, whereas the main artwork has thicker frames and fewer details.Miss You.” The Flourish Frame font comes with a font inside either a square or round shape. The “Champagne Toast” font is feminine and has beautiful swirly lines. Any of the charming art (which I fell in love with!) can be used with Easter or Mother’s Day cards, invitations, or scrapbook pages.

Project:

When I first started cutting images with this cake cartridge, I decided to create Easter cards with more of an elegant look to them. Because of the classic elements I used in the cards, I realized that I could simply change out the sentiment to create a Mother’s Day card in the same style.

Supplies: Cardstock (multiple colors), pearls, glitter glue, ribbon, Easter stamp, ink pad, glue runner, foam adhesive.

Square butterfly Card

Step 1  Cut a 6 x 6” card base from white cardstock. Cut a 5 ¾” square of pink patterned paper.

Step 2  Press “Cake” feature and cut two 6” borders (HrtBdr2 – page 78 in the handbook). Make sure to press the “Fit to Length” button so the length of the die cut will be 6”. Cut both layers of the border and glue them together.

Step 3  Cut out both layers of a 3” butterfly. Glue the layers together. Add pearl embellishments to the center of the butterfly and some glitter glue to the wings if desired.

Step 4  Assemble the card by first gluing the pink layer in place. Glue the borders down the left side of the card with the scallops facing out. Glue a ribbon where the two borders join. Stamp “Happy Easter” on the bottom right of the card and use foam adhesive to attach the butterfly above the senti

Long Flower Card

Step 1  Cut a 3 ¾ x 8 ¾” card base from white cardstock. Cut a 3 ⅜ x 8 ½” rectangle of green gingham cardstock and adhere it to the card base.

Step 2  Cut a 6” rose flourish image (Rose3 – page 64 in the handbook) with the “Fit to Length” button pressed. Cut out the flowers from pink patterned paper. Glue the flowers onto the flourish frame and add pearls to the center of each flower.

Step 3  Glue the design onto the top of the card and stamp “Happy Easter” below it.

Step 4  To create a coordinating envelope, cut a ⅜” strip of green gingham paper. Wrap the strip of paper around a white envelope and glue it in place. Cut the solid flowers again from pink patterned paper. Glue the largest flower to the front of the envelope and top with a pearl.

Like so many of the images in this cartridge, the images for these cards have two layers and are easy to assemble. I challenge everyone to pull out those Easter decorations, create some holiday cards, and send them off to friends and family. Everyone loves to receive a special, handmade card.

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Check back next week and see what I create. Happy crafting, everyone!

Brief Overview:

The “My Quiet Book” Cricut® cartridge is a wonderful cartridge designed to be used with fabric and felt. Yes, the Cricut machine can cut material and felt if a stiffener is ironed to the back of it. The stiffener helps to hold the material so the blade can cut more easily. I would recommend using a newer blade and a newer mat, – the stronger the adhesive on the mat the better. This helps to hold the material in place so the Cricut can cut it. The handbook comes with instructions on how to use each piece you cut, so it’s easy to create a quiet book for any child. The cartridge includes images for several activity layouts. Some of my favorites are a clock where a child can set the time and arrange the numbers; faces where the child can change out the eyes, mouth, nose, and hair; baby shoes that the child learns how to tie; and pages where a child can match up shapes, put flowers and leaves onto stems, and place a duck and a fish in a pond.

Projects:

I wanted to create a project that used the quiet book images for a card or scrapbook page. I came up with a “Save the Date” card using the sunglasses image and created another project using the image

s from the children’s faces. I wanted to share a few tips about the Real Dial Size (or RDS) button. The standard default for this button is off. When RDS is off, images will be cut in sizes proportionate to each other. When RDS is on, all images will be cut to the exact height set on the machine. For example, if you cut the snail from this cartridge with RDS on, the spiral layer for the snail’s shell would be as tall as the snail itself. If RDS were off, the spiral would fit the snail’s shell perfectly. Because most of the images in this cartridge are designed to be used in a book, the images will, by default, be cut small to fit the proportions of the page. I turned Real Dial Size on in my second project so I could cut a larger image.

“Save the Date” Project

Supplies: cardstock, sewing machine if desired, brads, foam squares, marker, and adhesive.

Step 1  Cut a 5 x 7” piece of gray cardstock. Cut a slightly smaller piece of white cardstock.

Step 2  Sew or glue the white cardstock onto the base of the card.

Step 3  Cut ocean-colored cardstock to fit inside the sewn white area. If desired, cut two small strips of the same cardstock to glue over the edges of the white cardstock.

Step 4  Cut the glasses image at size 8” (it’s on the row where the children’s faces are). Cut the sunglass part by holding the shift button while pressing the same glasses button. Glue the sunglass lenses to the back of the glasses. Adhere the sunglasses to the card with foam squares.

Step 5  Cut two flowers, add brads to their centers, and glue them onto the ends of the sunglasses.

Step 6 Using the “Extreme Fonts” cartridge, cut 1” letters for “Save the Date” using the Little League font. Glue the letters in place on the card.

Step 7  Write the name of the family vacation using a fine marker. Make sure to put the date on the card as well. If desired, make this the front of a card that opens up and has the vacation details inside.

Photo Accents Project

Supplies: wooden skewer sticks, cardstock, and hot glue.

Step 1  Cut glasses, mustaches, and mouths in a variety of sizes. Make sure to turn on the RDS before cutting out the images. I cut mustaches in sizes 4”, 3”, and 2”. The glasses are size 7” and 8”. The mouths are cut at 4” and 3”.

Step 2  Hot glue skewer sticks to the sides of the die cuts.

Step 3  Place the props in a small flower vase filled with some sand. Use the embellished sticks as fun accents for a group photo shoot or as a party centerpiece.

Other ideas:

• The shoes would make a darling baby shower invitation.
•  Use the trees to scrapbook pictures taken at the park.
•  Create a party invitation with the clock.
• Any of these images would be perfect for a baby scrapbook page.
• Cut out the geometric shapes, glue them to the back of some cardstock squares, laminate   the cards, and you have a matching game.

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I hope everyone has enjoyed these tips; check back next week as I continue exploring and creating with Cricut cartridges.

Happy creating!