Friday, May 25, 2018

Distressed Flag SVG

I was playing around with the idea of making myself a 4th of July shirt this year to wear to the annual 4th of July party and posted a picture on Facebook of a file I made and there were some people who were interested in purchasing the file. I didn't want to just offer one little image and got to work on  designing several different ones. The patterns on the flags can best be described as distressed, wood grain and tattered.

I have to laugh a little because I had posted a picture of the original image in the Cricut Design Space group on Facebook and one lady commented that I should put it on Etsy for sale and some other woman came along and said "it's already on Etsy" and I told her that I was pretty sure there were a lot of files on Etsy but I had made mine. I think sometimes folks just doubt that people have the ability to make their own files.

If you are going to apply to a white shirt you can of course leave off the white layer. I did try to clean up the image and get rid of the tiny pieces so it would be easier to weed, it's never easy to weed a distressed file and when there are tiny pieces it sure makes it a pain!










If you would like to purchase this file you may do so and once purchased it is yours to do with what you wish, as long as you are not re-selling or sharing the file.

***IMPORTANT PURCHASE AND DOWNLOAD INFORMATION - READ AND FOLLOW DOWNLOAD INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE REPORTING ME TO PAYPAL THAT YOU DIDN'T GET YOUR PRODUCT***

Once you hit the "BUY NOW" it will take you to Paypal where you can pay for the item. Once purchase is complete Paypal will redirect you to "Return to Merchant" where you will be given the link to download the files from Google Drive.

The file includes:
  • 4 heart flag images
  • 3 flag images

Price: 2.50 

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Cherry Blossom Hello Card - Weekly SVG Project

I'm a little late getting this posted for this week, well not actually since I never said there was a specific day the SVG projects would post but I usually like to have them available by Monday so in my mind it's a little late.

For this weeks project we have a card, maybe that's a little obvious, but of course the cuts could be used for whatever project you want.


Supplies Used:

Make The Cut (for designing)
Cricut Design Space (for cutting)
Various Cardstock
Transparency Sheet
Mounting Foam
Stampin Up Regal Rose Ink

At first I thought about stamping a clock or something in the background but then I decided the cherry blossoms would probably cover them up so I just left the "wallpaper" alone and kept the focus on the blossoms.



I cut two of the window frames and glued the transparency sheet in between the frames and one frame probably would have been fine. I added mounting foam on the back of the frame and transparency sheet so it would give a 3D effect to the window.

I used Stampin Up Regal Rose ink to color the vellum and did this after cutting the flowers. To help shape the flowers I used my McGill Paper Blossom Tools, if you like making flowers these are a life saver and really aid in bringing flowers to life. I also used them on making the vein on the leaves down the center. With the leaves I needed to lightly mist with water but for the vellum no misting was necessary and it often curls quite a bit if misted. I used one of the small balls to add the veins in the cherry blossom and it probably wasn't necessary to do but I do like how it looks. 

Hope you guys enjoy this one and someone uses it! And once again this file is only available though the Cricut Design Space Paper Crafting group and will be available for download until next week's file is posted. 

AND PLEASE...IF YOU DOWNLOAD THE FILE PLEASE AT LEAST LEAVE A THANK YOU!

Wednesday, April 4, 2018

How I Choose Colors - My Creative Ink Website

I use a lot of paper collections so I don't have to stress about choosing the right color combinations but there is a website I use frequently when using random papers that I have acquired and I've been using the site for a few years now.

I have quite a bit of Stampin Up products so I do have a good reference base for when I want to use a different line of cardstock, such as Bazzill, Coordinations or what other cardstocks that are over on my shelves but I have found it is very handy to use for all cardstocks. 

The My Creative Ink is a bit of a Godsend as far as I am concerned. I generally pick one or two colors from the patterned paper I am using and then find something similar in the list, hit the "search" button and POOF! I have some suggestions of other colors to use. In this example I chose Pumpkin Pie and Pacific Point and you can see below there are a number of color combinations that were generated. 

So if you are having problems with choosing colors you might check them out! I try to donate a few times a year hoping it will help keep the website going because I sure don't want it to go away!

Monday, April 2, 2018

Gable Box House - Weekly SVG Project

After making the Gable Boxes with the oval windows as Easter gifts I got the idea to make one that would look like a house and off I went into Make The Cut to design just that! I think this would be great at Christmas to decorate as a Gingerbread House, or Halloween as a haunted House...well you get the picture!


Supplies Used:

Cricut Maker
Gable Box House SVG file
Cardstock in Red, Grey and White
Double Sided Tape
Sizzix Brick Embossing Folder

I cut this one at 11.25" tall and it's approximately 6" wide and 3" deep.


**Cricut Maker Review Comment**
I cut the window frame out of white cardstock and also the Comic Book Board, which is a bit more sturdy than most chipboard in my possession. I used the "Mat Board" setting in Design Space and OMG! The precision was excellent! 

I did decorate the back of the box I made but I think it really wouldn't be necessary if you didn't feel like it or if you wanted to save paper. I think I did it more just to see how it looked. I had to cut the roof shingles twice so I would have the shingles for the back.


For those in the papercrafting group I am including the instructions so you will know how to put the box together if you download the file. This is the Weekly SVG for the week of April 2, 2018.

1. You will need to score as pictured. I can't give you exact measurements because I don't know what size you will be cutting your gable box. You can click on the picture and make it bigger if you need a closer look.

2. Next you will put your Acetate Sheet down on the area where the window is. Now if you aren't doing a decorative layer you will need to make sure you place the acetate on the inside of the box.

3. Adhere your decorative front to the box. I used the Sizzix Bricked embossing folder and lightly inked over it with the Mini Blending Tool and black Memento Ink to give the brick a bit more depth.

 4. Score across the largest strip of the roof shingles at the straight edges, not sure that makes sense but just look at the picture and it will make more sense. I also inked the shingles a little, but of course that is a personal preference.

 5. I found it easier to use the edge of my craft table to help me line up the shingles.

 6. I added little score marks on the shingle layers so it would be easier to line up the shingles. Just line up on the sides and use the score marks as guides of where to line up layer, making sure to cover the score mark just slightly.

7. Finish applying the shingles.


8. Adhere the window frame to the front of the box.


9. Add glue or tape to the tab on the side of the box and line up and adhere. I find glue works better unless I'm using the super sticky Thermoweb Super Tape. Repeat the other side.


10. On the bottom flaps add glue or tape to the outside of one flap and the inside of the other flap, this gives the bottom a good strong bond.


11. For the small flaps fold inward and add glue and then push to the bottom flap. I stood the box up and held the flap down for a few seconds so I could make sure it was stuck together good.


And there ya have it! This Gable Box could be decorated so cute and using pretty much any theme! If you don't want to use the window you will just need to cut two of the solid layers. The Gable Box Oval Window is put together basically the same way so just refer back to this post if you need instructions.

Sunday, April 1, 2018

Happy Easter! And A Last Minute Project!

First of all let me wish everyone a Happy Easter! My Easter is being spent with my family in Seminole. We generally get together for holidays and always have a wonderful time!

This year I decided that the adults deserve to get something a little special and came up with these gable boxes. I made one for my daughter, aunt, cousin and 2 nieces. My sister doesn't get one...remember she got the frame! Inside each box is a small Bath and Body Works hand lotion, 6 plastic eggs with candy and then some other candy tossed in. 

The box measures 6" x 8.5" x 3" and used 2 pieces of 12x12 cardstock to make the base, 1 sheet of cardstock to make the patterned area and then 2 pieces of cardstock or patterned paper that measured about 3.5 x 5.5" for the scallop oval. I used a piece of acetate and put it between the cardstock base and patterned paper. The little tags were made using a Stampin Up punch and I used some bakers twine to attach a tag to each box. 

I had to schedule this post for this afternoon since if I did it for the morning the gals might see them before I, errrr....the Easter Bunny, delivers them. I'll have to let you know later what they said about them!

Saturday, March 31, 2018

An Altered Frame For My Sister - Webster's Pages

I was transferring pictures from my phone to my computer and came across this picture of my sister and myself that was taken at her son's wedding back in September. I think it might be one of the only pictures we have together by ourselves and I decided to print it off and make a frame to give to her tomorrow while we are at our Aunt Betty's for Easter. Since she doesn't have the internet this will still be a surprise for her! I thought it would be nice if we both had one of these frames so I made one for myself as well...something I rarely do! I made a matching gift bag and card with the scraps left from the frames.


Supplies Used:

8x10 wood frame
Webster's Pages, not sure of what collection
Paper Studio Poppies & Paperie flowers
Generic paper flowers
EK Success Small Daisy Punch
Chipboard
Mounting Foam
Glue Gun





Hobby Lobby was having an awesome 75% off clearance sale about two months ago and I picked up a couple of packages of the Paper Studio Poppies and Paperie flowers. Of course I have a few flowers in my stash but for the 75 cents that was marked on the package I figured I could make room for a few more and I'm so glad I did because they worked great on the frames. I did use hot glue to attach the flowers as I have found that any other type of glue or tape just doesn't cut it in the long run. I punched out some vellum flowers using the EK Success small daisy punch and added dots of Nuvo Crystal Drops for the centers. I can't find a link for the small daisy punch but it is one of my go to punches for when I need a "filler" on a project, I actually have 3 sizes of the daisy punch and love each one of them!


All the paper is from the Webster's collection and I can't rememember the name and forgot to look before I used the bottom strip as a border on the frames. I know it was from 2012 and was from one of their warehouse sales where you ordered a box for like $40 and got a TON of awesome stuff in the box. 


I didn't have to do a whole lot of fussy cutting on this project but I did do some as there were some good images to use that made the project just come to life *okie wonders if anyone notices she is just typing kinda random shit about the project to make it sound interesting, and then okie wonders if anyone really reads the shit she types anyway*.


I fussy cut the large border at the bottom of the picture area and used chipboard on the back and then some mounting foam because ya know I'm all about dimension when it comes to such projects! I printed the saying "I'm as lucky as I can be because the world's best sister belongs to me" on the vellum and I used my laser printer as it does an excellent job on the vellum. I don't think this is a true vellum, but more of a "kinda like vellum and better for what okie wants to use it for" kinda paper.


After getting the frames completed I made the matching gift bag and card with the scraps left over from the papers I used for the frames. I think my sister will be surprised and pleased!

Friday, March 30, 2018

Graphic 45 Life's A Circus - Envelope Album

I had never made an envelope album before and I totally messed this one up but I still ended up liking it. I messed it up by not allowing spaces to add tags and such in the pockets of the envelope. Next time I make one I won't use as many envelopes so I'll be able to do the pockets and such.


Supplies Used:

A9 Envelopes
Graphic 45 Le Cirque
Various Cardstock
Black Acrylic Paint
Various Stampin Up punches
Michaels Wedding Graffiti flowers
Hot Fix studs and rhinestones
Dollar Tree Pop Up Glitter Stickers
Various Ribbon
Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher
Paper Studio Brads
and probably some other stuff I don't remember



I love looking at all the Graphic45 projects people make and I would love to do one of those super fancy projects one day but the practical side of my brain always overrides the creative side of my brain. I have the need to make sure a project is usable and not just something to look at, especially if it is going to be handled frequently. This issue causes the pages in my albums to be fairly simple and flat.







Another need I have is to have enough spots for pictures. I mean it is an album for cheez-it's sakes and there should be pictures! I do try to balance it out on the pages and think of them as a small scrapbook page. I always include the white paper so people can remove it and use it as a template for their pictures as I know not everyone is a scrapbooker and might get nervous about adding pictures. Well even my friend Carmen is like that and she is a scrapbooker. I have given her mini albums over the years and the ones that have pictures in them are the ones that I printed off the pictures and put in there. She tells me "I don't want to mess it up". 


I always say one of the great things about Graphic45 paper is that there are so many elements that can be fussy cut and used on projects. It makes it so easy to embellish whatever project you are making. The tag on this left hand side has the Maya Road Twine Cording on it. I really love that stuff! It's thicker than regular bakers twine and I have used it on several projects as "rope".





One of the difficulties I have is not covering up the picture area too much since I don't know what pictures people will be using. I try to keep the elements from overlapping that area and have to finagle an embellishment around quite often until I get it to what I think is right.








I like to mix picture sizes up on the pages so it's not just all one size through out the album. I think this allows for some good group photos or some close up shots.











When I make albums I try to keep the back as flat as possible because that is where most people are going to be holding the album when looking at it and besides no one really looks at the backs of books so why work hard to decorate something that is usually ignored. 

I actually made 4 of these *okie knows there are some folks saying "of course she did"* and did them quite some time ago but never got them posted. I have another album I'll be posting soon that is using the Graphic 45 World's Fair collection.



Tuesday, March 27, 2018

Lolliop Happy Birthday Card and How To Glue Small Pieces

This week for one of my Facebook groups I am posting  a birthday card it's a recreation from a card I did a few years ago. If you are a member of the group you know where to find the SVG file for download. 


Supplies Used:

Make the Cut (for designing)
Cricut Design Space (for cutting)
Paper Studio Quatrefoil folder
Various Cardstock
Transparency Overlay Sheet
Teflon Mat (read below for information)

Back in 2014 I posted a card from the Stampin Up Sweets for the Sweet stamp set and I really liked that card. Even though I still have the stamp set I wanted to recreate that card and cut it with the Cricut Maker so I could test how the Maker cuts Transparency Overlay sheets. It is something I never cut with the Explore machines. I was pleasantly surprised how well the transparency cut! 

The only issue with cutting this card was the mint paper and that was not the fault of the Cricut Maker but the cardstock. The cardstock fine sheen layer to it and it separated in a few places on the lettering when I was taking it off the mat but a dot of glue fixed any of those problems. The letters are a little less than a 1/16" thin and the Cricut Maker cut them beautifully!


Here is a close up of the lollipops and you can see the Cricut Maker cut those beautifully as well as the transparency overlay material that I used for the lollipop "packaging". The Art Glitter Glue is simply wonderful and I have started using it as my #1 go to glue. The big bottle is much cheaper in the long run and you can always pour some in a smaller bottle for easy handling. It doesn't seem to warp paper like many glues do and it doesn't leave a shiny film if you over glue. To glue the transparency on I added a small dot of glue on the lollipop stick right below the circle and then added a small dot at the top of the circle on a raised part of cardstock. On the pink candies I used Diamond Stickles on the swirl top layer and on the purple I used Starry Night Stickles on the pinwheel top layer. Oh I also added a couple of squirts of Glimmer Mist Pearl to the circle layer and the sentiment. I think the pearl is my favorite of all the Glimmer Mists and I tend to use it more than anything else, especially when shaping flowers. 



**TIP OF THE DAY - GLUING SMALL PIECES TUTORIAL**



Now let's talk about gluing small pieces! There are so many fantastic things I would like to do but then I think "UGH!! I don't want to get glue everywhere!" and I will avoid a project or cut but while I was making this card I tried something *okie wonders if she might have tried this years ago but then forgot about it* for the small cuts. Instead of turning the cut upside down and applying glue I put a little Art Glitter Glue on a teflon sheet and then used my Tweezerbee's to dip the piece into the glue and let me tell you...GAME CHANGER!! I didn't have to worry about excess glue all over my cut and wiping off glue after I put my cut down.


I searched Amazon and found a 5 pack of 16" x 24" Teflon Sheets for $9.99. If you pick these up in a craft store you can pay that much for just one sheet. These are also larger than the sheets they sell for "heat press teflon sheets" and work wonderfully for that purpose as well. I know because I actually have this same pack that I found at a bargain store. The piece I used for making this card was what was left over from cutting a sheet down to use with my heat press. I keep this little piece in a drawer so it is handy for me to pull out when I need a non stick surface.

Saturday, March 24, 2018

Graphic 45 Time To Celebrate - Happy Wedding

This is the last card of the Time To Celebrate series of cards and I'm quite sure you guys are all going "THANK ALL THAT IS HOLY!!!" Obviously this is a wedding card since the banner says "Happy Wedding" and there is a woman in a wedding gown.

Supplies Used: 
Various Cardstock
Stampin Up Itty Bitty Punch Pack Flower
Mounting Foam Squares
Westcott Titanium Non Stick Scissors 









I cut the bride from the waist up and then glued the waist area down and then pop dotted the upper part to help her come off the card a bit, once again inking really helps the emphasis on this.















Ya know the drill by now about the little flowers, punched, Nuvo Drops, yada yada yada. To be honest I am getting tired of even trying to explain the cards because it seems like I just keep repeating myself so y'all aren't the only ones that are glad this is the last card of the series! And with that...GOODBYE TO THE GRAPHIC 45 TIME TO CELEBRATE SERIES!




Friday, March 23, 2018

Graphic 45 Time To Celebrate - Congratulations Wedding

By the time I got around to doing this card I was running out of ideas on how to embellish the cards so it's pretty simple.

Supplies Used: 
Mounting Foam Squares
Westcott Titanium Non Stick Scissors 









The "congratulations" banner was added over the main image and I made the banner "wave" by slightly bending in places and to make it stay that way I glued the the lower areas to the image.

The left edge of the main image was cut from another paper and was necessary to make the image fit on the die cut frame.












I know ya are probably tired of hearing about the Nuvo Drops but I just want to show you how awesome they are! The tiny flowers on the brides veil have teeny tiny dots of Nuvo drops on the flowers. I know it's hard to see in the picture but in person they show up nicely and really made the veil pop! Oh the groom's boutonniere has the same thing done to it.

You only have to put up with one more card from this series, which posts tomorrow, and then we shall move on to something else!






Thursday, March 22, 2018

Waterlily 3D - FREE SVG FILE

One of the members in my Cricut Design Space Paper Crafting Facebook group asked if anyone had a 3D waterlily and since she wasn't able to find one I thought I would try and make one.


I had to tweak the file a few times to get it to assembly easily. The flower has 6 layers, 2 of 3 different sizes, a center and there is a lily pad that has two layers. I did the two layers on the lilypad to show veins in the lilypad. I always think details make all the difference.

SUPPLIES NEEDED:
White cardstock
Green Cardstock, 2 different shades
Yellow Cardstock
Hot Glue Gun
Quilling Tool
Water or Glimmer Mist




Assembly Intructions:

1. I used a quilling took to wind up the center of the the flower but if you don't have a quilling tool you can use whatever is available to you, such as the end of a small paint brush. Run a line of glue along the bottom before winding the paper.


2. This one is simple, just glue the top layer of the lily pad to the bottom.

3. I used a hot glue gun to put the flower together. I find hot glue seems to work better when making 3D flowers. Spritz water on the flower layer so you can bend it easier. Bend the small tabs up toward the center of the flower, add a drop of hot glue to the large tab on the petal and then adhere to the petal making the flower round. Your flower layer will have a bit of a cone shape to it at this point. Repeat step with all layers.

4. Glue one of the large flower layers to the circle that is cut.

5. Glue the other large flower layer to the bottom layer, staggering the petals and then add the 2 medium layers and finish with the 2 small layers.

6. Add the yellow center with some hot glue and fluff out the fringes. If you don't like how your petals are shaped then just spritz them with a little water and shape as desired and allow to dry.


I am offering this file for free and all I ask is that if you download the file please leave a comment of thank you, much appreciated or some sort of acknowledgement.

SVG DOWNLOAD - WATERLILY 3D

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

Graphic 45 Time To Celebrate - It's Party Time

I think this one is definitely a birthday card!

Supplies Used: 
Various Cardstock
Stampin Up Itty Bitty Punch Pack Flower
McGill Paper Blossom Tool Kit
Fiskars Threading Water Punch
1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon
Mounting Foam Squares
Westcott Titanium Non Stick Scissors 


This balloon was a pain to figure out. I wanted it pop dotted but the "string" was so thin I was afraid that it might tear during handling so I glued the majority of the "string" to the paper and then pop dotted just the balloon.

This was another card that I cut out the background and replaced it with something I liked more. It's amazing how you can make things look so different with Graphic 45 papers!









I used a stamp image on this card because I need to add something besides the main image and the little stamped images seem to work well for such purposes. I used my flower making tools to add dimension to the punched flowers and the fussy cut flowers. Of course I used the Nuvo Drops!

You can't see the Fiskars Threading Water punch border in this picture but I have to tell you a story about using punches while making these cards. So like I said at the beginning of the series, these were made after my hand surgery and each one took quite awhile due to how my hand was wrapped up and then the soreness I found it impossible to use some of the punches. I tried using my left hand to punch but it was still sore and my right hand was totally out of the question, so how did I do it? Well I put the punch on the floor and use my foot! YES...MY FOOT! Ya know the old saying...where there's a will there's a way!