Prima Prize Drawing: What is the big secret? closed

I just stumbled upon this prize drawing over at the Prima blog. Apparently, they have a big secret to share, and this is their promotion. I love Prima flowers and use them on my covers and my pages. Here is a picture I just did of a cover with one of their flowers and a page with a Prima flower. Aren't they beautiful? To get in the on the prize, you must enter tonight at the Prima Blog. And maybe you want to stop over and check out the secret on Monday. I thought I saw some of there clear stamps at Two Peas. Wish they were in the crafting budget! My fanasty for their secret: a Cricut cartridge! Think I'm dreaming?

Wall Hanging Be Inspired: My 2nd Cuttlebug Challenge

Now that I have realized I have time for challenges that coincide with my crafting goals, I'm am on a roll! Here is my second entry into a Cuttlebug challenge. This week you item had to be a wall hanging. I see that several of the CB designers took their pictures on doors, so I am too. But I will move this to the wall, when the dear hubby has time to hang it. He has anxiety issues when it comes to dry wall.
I have been wanted to organize my cords ever since I got the Gypsy. I have just found that there are too many thrown in the bottom of my Jukebox and it was time to coral the cords.
I found this over the door organizer at Walmart on clearance for $6.00. I cut my marquee shapes from the Storybook cartridge, and added labels cut with my Gypsy font, Hannah Montana, and used my Locker Talk cartridge for the camera and the cell phone. I adhered my labels to the white cardstock marquees, inked the edges and ran them through my Cuttlebug using the Swiss Dot folder. I am addicted to the Swiss Dot folder and I loved the classic dot with the stripes! I then adhered the embossed marquee onto a navy marquee, also Storybook. I used brads to adhere the labels to the organizer and embellished it just a bit with ribbons and buttons. The ink is Close to my Heart White Daisy, and Spring Leaf.
Hope you like my cord organizer idea! I have room for more cords, as I get more gadgets. But I could also cut the bottom off and make a second organizer. Because this organizer is fabric, I can take it down and fold it up to bring my cords to the crop!

Don't Throw Away that Clam Shell! Organize!

Sometime in January Cindy McVey had a post on organizing your Cricut Cartridges with a cut file. She made a cut file for the Snapware tote and you can find her post with the cut file here.
I had thought about making a cut file for this awhile back and was happy to see Cindy's post. However, I wanted my dividers cut from clear plastic. I searched Lowes and Menards looking for something to cut last year. No luck. When I saw Cindy's post I began to think on it again. And then it hit me, my Clamshell packaging from my Cricut Cartridges. What's a clamshell? You know the plastic cover that surrounds your cartridge? That's a clamshell. So, when I got my last cartridge, I carefully cut around the outside edges, and decided to give it a try. Be careful with this piece as hand cutting the plastic with scisors give a very sharp edge.
I downloaded Cindy's file and quickly realized that I have a different size Snapware caddy. I got my caddy at JoAnn's and have found the same one at the Container store. Cindy's is four carts wide, mine is five. I am not sure how many Cindy's is deep but mine is 8. So, my Snapware caddy holds 40 carts. I then made my own cut file for the bigger snapware container and I am sharing it here. Maybe, some of you need the cut file for the larger container.
If you decide to cut your dividers in the clear plastic, you will notice that the longer strip in my cut file will not fit on the cartridge clamshell. So, I dug through my stash and used the package from my Fancy Pants 12 x 12 acrylic stamp set.
If you bought the Christmas wrapping paper set from Target this year, this was stored in clear plastic. Take a look around the house and see what you have.
Use your Deep Cut housing blade on a setting of 6. Your machine pressure should be at the highest setting too. It will not cut through the plastic the whole way, but gently fold the plastic along the cut and you will find it works like a dream. Also, it seems to help the edges from getting too sharp. The plastic stayed on my matt well too. My inside cuts needed a little bit of help to get started and I just snipped them with a scissors at the start and finished pulling open. My Fancy Pants plastic was a little stiffer then the clam shell plastic and a bit more brittle. Just take your time. You need only open the inside cut on one side and don't need to remove the whole mini rectangle. Here is the cut sheet, before I broke it apart.

I like that I have made the world a little greener, recyclying my plastic, that I can see through the dividers, and that it does not come apart as easily as the needlepoint canvas. I used to have to take my dividers out to use as a pattern for cutting a new divider. Every time I would take my dividers out to make one for the shop or a friend the dividers would fall apart, and then they would catch in the wrong spot when reassembling. This cut file made with the clam shell is better!
Would love your comments!

Celebrating Christmas Noel! Thanks Provo Craft!

I just got my Cricut Rewards order delivered. I have been watching the Rewards site since November, waiting for the Christmas Noel cartridge. I ordered the morning they listed it in stock, and the next day Provo Craft announced they are retiring the cartridge. So, to celebrate my free cartridge and enable some of you to buy it; while it is still available, I am sharing my cut files this week.
Take a look at this idea! I took the window shape, and lined up 7 of them, welding them to a rectangle in George. Now I have a page border. I think this would look beautiful with a ribbon woven inside the holes, or a overhead sheet, carefully covered with glitter to look like a frosted window. If you download the file, I would love your comments! Here is the link for the border cut file.
Then I am picturing a file I shared a while back, a snowflake created with Christmas Noel's Tree shape. Find the post with this file here.

Scalloped Swirl for my SCAL2 & SVG friends

Well my scallop obsession continues, this time with a file for my SCAL 2 and SVG friends. I did a version for the Cricut users here. Here is the version for the SCAL 2 users and it includes two pieces, the base with scallops and the top swirl. The file labeled Swirltest has the scallops, and the Singleswirl the inside plain swirl. Files are svg and available where you see the highlighted link above.
Please leave a comment if you download any of the files. I am in need of some encouragement today!

My 1st Cuttlebug Challenge Entry: Stitch-it-be-inspired

I have always thought that I would like to enter an online challenge, but did not have the time. When I participated in the Crop Out Diabetes On line crop, I found I really enjoyed challenges, and best of all, I got pages done. And so, I have come to realize that I do have time for a challenge and participating will help me get things done.
I started with the Cuttlebug Challenge's Stitch-it-be-inspired challenge. Are you surprised, I would choose to try my first challenge when it involves sewing? LOL! I needed to work on my Christmas card album, I scrap all my family Christmas cards, and as you can see I am behind (2006). I made the blue frame, using my Gypsy and DS and the Black Letter and George Basic Shapes. I am quite happy with this cut file and think it worthy of sharing. Find it here. This file is in the Gypsy format, DS users can open it too! Just change your file format when you are opening the file to the Gypsy format.
Here is my supply list:
Cricut Black Letter Cart
Cricut George Basic Shapes Cart
Blue Cardstock Archivers brand
Red wood grain patterned paper Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses Woodland
Holly patterned paper Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses Snow Globe
Stripe patterned paper Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses Glazed Apple
Provo Craft Cuttlebug Swiss Dot Ribbon Folder
Leaves and berries fuss cut from Basic Grey Dasher Centerpiece patterned paper
Stamps all Close to My Heart include True Friends & Elegant Script
Ink is Close to My Heart White Daisy (Water based ink) & Dutch Blue
Micro pom pom trim, was purchased from an Etsy store I will have to look up.
Thread.
I inked the inside scalloped edges of the cut file using the White Daisy water based ink. I thought it looked more frosted then if I used the pigment based ink. I sewed the micro pom pom trim on using white thread and my zipper foot. I embossed the blue cardstock, one half at a time, being sure to line up the dots so it was longer than the folder length. I then high lighted the Swiss dot pattern with the same CTMH ink. I faux stitched this ribbon like trim, using my Uniball white pen. I adhered the blue frame with trim using pop dots so that the trim would sit well on the page. I placed the ribbon like trim carefully inside the frame and placed my Christmas card on top. I stamped my mini frame using Dutch Blue (stamped off once)on the frame (only). This frame is adhered with pop dots as well. I fussy cut my Dasher paper (Centerpiece). I love mixing my old and new Basic Grey papers in my Christmas pages!

I'm a Basic Grey Devotee, who may go digi!

I love all things Basic Grey! I was so happy to make this cover yesterday, and may end up back at the fabric store for more. I love how it turned out and think I want to try more BG Fabric.
I so love BG that I am seriously considering going digi, so I can use BG digital items. Waiting for the tax return so I can get photoshop and use the digital BG items. Oh, BG you may have converted me to a hybrid scrapper!

An inside scallop frame file for the DS user

Here is a version for the Cricut Design Studio User. You must have Hannah Montana and George Basic Shapes. This file is not adjustable, but if you have the Gypsy, you could make it adjustable.
Notice on my close up that my scallops are a bit wonky (that's what the MB calls them). Here are some tips to avoid wonky scallops: 1) Make sure your matt is loaded straight. If your matt does not load straight and can't fit when moving and cutting, you may get wonky scallops. 2) Make sure your blade housing is screwed in tightly. I have found after cutting chipboard with the deep cut housing blade, that my blade housing clamp loosens. Be sure to check this too.

Cut File to Share after much help and many struggles

I finally have a cut file to share, after much help and many struggles. Take a look and select the SCUT or the SVG file as desired. Be warned, that the SVG file will need some tweeking. The inside piece looks good in Inkscape, but is not centered in SCAL2. You may have to break it apart and center it yourself. The SCUt file is ready for cutting. So, let me start by thanking all those who helped me. The top not shape came from Scrapped Lives, thanks Carla! If you want the plain top note cut please visit Scrapped Lives. The scallops, I created using the tutorial from Cutting Time. Thanks Carolyn! I'm afraid, I will be using it to put scallops on all my svg files! And thanks to Penny Duncan, who gave me another method for making scallops and helped me get my file to the correct size with her mat tutorial.
Look at the close up picture of my cut and you will notice the cut has the scallops on the inside, like the page by Gerry Van Gent (see my last post). I will be heading back to Inkscape to see what else I can add scallops to. Be encourage you fellow Inkscape newbies, I am finding that there is more than one way to do some things. While I did not understand one method of adding scallops, I found one I did understand. Wish I had more time to play and learn!

Inspired by a new FB friend

Yesterday while trying to avoid my housework and lurking on Facebook, I found a wonderful scrapbook artist on the Prima page. Her page is pictured above and her name is Gerry Van Gent. I found out she is a designer at My Creative Scrapbook She used a shape pp to hand cut the outside edge and then the inside. I want to create a cut file for my Cricut. I started in Design Studio, but the scallops are too big and take too long to group!
I remembered that Scrapped Lives had some top note shapes. Thanks Carla for the cut file! Then I went to SCAL 2 and got the look, but can't figure out how to get the inside to cut. I am posting this print screen in an attempt to get some help from a SCAL2 guru. I will leave a post in the SCAL groups on Yahoo, but can't figure out how to add pictures. I have tried to burp the image (like you do in DS) and I have tried to change the order in which I create my shapes (this also works in DS). Please gurus, tell me how to get the inside cut in SCAL2! See my cut file below, made with the Scrapped Live Top not cut file. Thanks!
I have tried the path union and the loops go to the wrong direction. Here is the screen capture of that.

Double Prizes! I won! Thanks so!

I won two of the challenge prizes for the Crop Out Diabetes on line crop. I won the Color Challenge, and would like to thank Amy Chomas for donating the prize to the event! The prize is a package of Staples Brand Mini Gel pens and a Mini Gel pen holder to fit into my Cricut. Please look for a post in the future when I show you how I use these pens!

My other prize was for the Alter It challenge and I won a paper kit by Paper Secrets. I will try and post what I make with this as well. As near as I can tell, Paper Secrets is an online scrapbooking community. I signed up last week, but I have forgotten my password and userid already (apparently). They have weekly challenges and forums for sharing your scraping life.

It has been an interesting day here! I experienced my first earthquake. I had no idea that I lived near a potential earthquake epicenter. But it turns out, even Northern IL has its quakes. No one hurt, and no visible damage. Just most of the community woken up early, picking up books and picture frames. I had a neighbor whose garage door opened from the quake.

My Crop Out Diabetes Challenge Entries

Stamp above is by Hero Arts.

Carts in card above are Wild Card, Graphically Speaking and Lyrical Letters, paper is Chatterbox.

Mini album made with lunch pail from JoAnn Fabrics and Me and My Big Ideas paper, flowers are Jolie (above), stickers Basic Grey.
Cut file in card above is by Jing Ma can be found at her blog.

Stamp on speakers is Ink a Dink a Do Damask.

Loop lace paper is a cut file I made in SCAL 2. Reminds me of the Martha Steward punch around the page.


In the page above I used Close to My Heart Gratitude stamp set and paper.

The boxes above are Close to My Heart embellished with cut files on my Cricut to organize my stamps.

Above I used Autumn Leaves paper and my Cricut to make a 1st Communion page. I love how the paper and the Wedding cartridge have a Celtic pattern to them. I wanted to emphasize the pattern and journaled along it to help it pop out.
And the last two pictures are my favorite item I made, a page with Basic Grey Blush and Prima flowers. Love this! Thanks for looking!
Just thought I would share some of my Crop Out Diabetes challenge entries. I really enjoyed my first online crop! Here's why:
1) What a great cause!
2) I got to scrapbook! I got 6 pages done, two mini albums, 3 cards, altered my speakers for my MP3 player and created labels for my stamp storage.
3) I met new friends!
4) I may have won prizes...drawing is Tuesday night.
5) It was the perfect way to scrapbook during the middle of winter! I didn't have to leave the house.

Contest closed. Another Blog Candy Giveaway at: Scrappin N Style!

Found another blog candy give away to share! Find it at Scrapin N Syle. She is giving away a Love Struck Cricut Cartridge. You will have to sign up to follow her blog, create post about the give away, and leave a comment with a link to your post including your contact info. Her drawing ends on February 6, 2010, so move fast!

Another Cover to Love!

Just finished up another Expression Cover. I am always happy with any cover made in Michael Miller. Hope you enjoy this picture. I have been busy making cut files to share this week, but I am sharing the with the Crop Out Diabetes members only. Why don't you check it out?! When was the last time you went to a 9 day crop with prizes and freebies for $5.00? And it is all for a great cause: Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation! Click on the banner above to check out the crop!
One of the files I shared there is a set of labels to go on the Close to My Heart Stamp Storage boxes. Great way to organize and glam up your storage!