Category: Tutorial

Digital Life Cards and Print Elements with the Cricut Explore with Karin

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I worked on a series of videos to show you how I am using Lori Whitlock’s digital life cards in my Project Life binder. I combined the videos into the one below and will add another in two weeks showing how far I have progressed in a very short time.
I had started a Project Life binder in 2012 and had it very well organized, but then I never kept it up. Since it is now so much later, I have decided that I won’t organize the binder by date. Instead I will just work through all my images and journalling using digital life cards and make my binder look nice and complete the project.
I literally have hundreds of files to work with so I need to organize them before I get started. I used Adobe Photoshop Lightroom to do this because it makes it so easy to find what I need. Also, if I want to tag elements for specific topics or themes, Lightroom makes this very easy. The image above shows how the thumbnails look in Lightroom.
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The image above shows how I took an element, uploaded it into Design Space, cleaned away the outer white area to have the scalloped edge and inner portions as a print element that I cut out with my Cricut Explore.
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In my video, I show you how I set up the element in the upper left corner of the print then cut image above to use it as a card in a 3×4 pocket.
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This image shows you how the cutting line goes around the outside of the card.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Be sure to check back in two weeks when I post a flip through of my Project Life binder so far.


Oven Cookie Box Assembly

Hi everyone!  Corri here today with a quick assembly tutorial for Lori’s adorable oven cookie box.   This cute box can hold a stack of cookies plus something else in the drawer.  So fun!

Let’s get started.

The pieces in the file are sorted by color.  These are the light pink pieces which form the base of the oven box.

Fold along all the score lines, apply glue to the  tabs to make the individual boxes that form the oven.

You will end up with the lid, the oven, the two pieces that make up drawer and the little part where the oven dials go.   You can add some brads or enamel dots where the little holes are before closing up the tabs.

Glue the oven portion on top of the drawer part.  You will use cover panels to hide the seams in the next step.

Next you can cut the cover pieces (they are dark pink in the file). These can be from patterned paper.  You can cut them all on one 12 x 12 sheet.    I used this cute polka dot print from the Echo Park’s Happy Summer Collection.

Match the cover pieces up to the base layer and glue in place.

These extra panels give the box a nice finished look.

There you have it!  I hope you’ll give this fun box a try.  Be sure to stop by Lori’s SVG Shop to check out all the newly added files.

 

Guest Blogger Melissa Viscount from Silhouette School

Hi! I’m so excited that Lori has allowed me to take over her blog today! My name is Melissa Viscount and I am the blogger behind Silhouette School and the author of The Ultimate Silhouette Guide ebook/book series.  I love teaching crafters how to use the Silhouette CAMEO, Portrait, Curio and Mint machine! Lori has so graciously allowed me to share a few of my tips and tricks for cutting paper cleanly with you today!

Paper crafts are hugely popular with Silhouette CAMEO and Portrait users – the problem is paper can be a bit tricky to cut with the Silhouette cutting machines.

Getting a clean cut on paper starts with having the right Silhouette cutting mat. A new mat or gently used mat can be overly sticky which can spell disaster for paper cuts.  A mat that’s too sticky will keep the paper in place while cutting, but it will likely create a mess and a headache while trying to remove the paper from the cutting mat after the cut.  The paper may curl as you try to release it from the cutting mat – or worse – separate leaving a thin layer of paper on the mat.

To avoid this common problem while cutting paper with the die cutter, de-sticky the Silhouette cutting mat by blotting it with a clean cotton pillow case or t-shirt before placing the paper on it.  This will keep the mat clean, while gently taking away some of the stickiness of the mat.

Another option is to cut paper using the Silhouette Light Tack cutting mat. This cutting mat is specially designed for cutting paper with Silhouette CAMEO or Portrait. It’s not nearly as sticky as the regular cutting mat making it perfect for paper – which doesn’t need quite as much stick as vinyl or other materials to stay in place while cutting.

The next thing you want to do to get a better paper cut with your Silhouette machine, is make sure you are using the Line Segment Overcut feature in Silhouette Studio.

You can find the Line Segement Overcut option at the bottom of the Cut Settings window in Silhouette Studio. Use the scroll bar after you select the material type, to scroll down and you’ll see it.

After selecting “ON” in the Line Segment Overcut area, adjust the distance of the overcut.  Adjusting to 0.1 mm and 0.1 mm is usually plenty.

The way overcut works is instead of the blade staying down in the paper and turning at hard corners and angles like it would at each corner of this square…

….it instead overcuts the corner by a small distance (0.1), then lifts up out of the paper to make a new connecting cut.

The overcuts will NOT appear in Silhouette
Studio.  I have drawn them in here so you can more easily understand.

Think of it cutting a corner like an X rather than a V.  That slight overcut is small enough that it isn’t noticeable to see on the paper once cut, but it makes a huge difference in preventing the paper from being torn up, chewed and pulled while cutting.

Look at the difference in how the Silhouette CAMEO blade cut this small triangle on nearly-impossible-to-cut-cleanly construction paper!  Both triangles were cut with the same exact cut settings – except the Segment Line Overcut was turned on for the triangle on the right.

Finally, consider a double cut when cutting paper with Silhouette CAMEO. A double cut is often the difference between a soft ‘furry’ edge and a clean, sharp cut. Imagine cutting with a dull blade vs a super sharp blade.

You can find the box to turn on the Double Cut in the Cut Settings window. After you select the material type, use the scroll bar on the right side of the window to scroll down and check the box.

Of course, before you commit to any or all of these tricks for cutting paper, you will want to be sure to use the test cut option to ensure the settings you are using will provide the best quality cut. If you skip the test cut, you risk wasting a whole lot of materials, as well as time.

Thanks again to Lori for allowing me to share a few Silhouette CAMEO tips and tricks with you today! Be sure to get schooled on all things Silhouette related at Silhouette School blog! You can also find Silhouette School on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest!

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Cricut Cut + Write Tutorial with Courtney

Hello!!! This is Courtney Lee from Court’s Crafts here with the new (and adorable) mason jar box card. I wanted to show you how to personalize it and make it your own using the cut and write feature of your Cricut Explore Air.

Change the marks on the jar lids to “write”.

Personalize by adding text.

I’m never one to throw away a die cut so… shrink the “love” to fit on the bottom.

Personalize further by adding your name. (This is going to be CUTE!!!)

See that “attach” button top right? Attach all layers together by holding down “shift” and clicking all the pieces. This will make it so the cut and write feature happens at the same time. Do the same thing with all of the other pieces just to make sure the scoring marks are attached to the correct pieces, etc.

Cut out and check it out!!!! The Cricut Explore is AMAZING with the write and cut feature (with the dual tool holder!! I did it at the SAME time!!! ugh. love..)

Check out how awesome the Cricut Explore Air did at the “cut and write” feature!!!

I adhered the “love” to the card and popped the jar top to the first layer.

Then I glued the stems to the leaves and curled the ends up on one layer. I adhered those with pop dots too.

Use the enamel dots to add dimension. Paste layer one directly to the inside front of the card.

Ink the edges of the pink flower and the yellow flower centers.

Layer 2

Card complete!

 

 

I hope you enjoyed my tutorial today!!! It’s so much fun to use the Cricut Sketch pens on cards in neat and creative ways!

Recipe:

Lori Whitlock’s Shop: Box Card Mason Jar Bouquet

Silhouette Shop: Box Card Mason Jar Bouquet

Lori Whitlock’s Happy Summer collection for Echo Park Paper

Lori Whitlock’s Happy Summer Enamel Dots


Glitter is my Favorite Color with Karin

Hi everyone! Don’t you just hate when work gets in the way of having fun? That’s what it has been for me for way too many weeks now, but when I saw this design in Lori’s SVG shop, I had to use it to decorate my water bottle. You could use this design on many different things, such as a coffee mug or Yeti cup.

For this project, I used Cricut Glitter Vinyl in Crimson Red and their Premium Outdoor Glossy Vinyl in white.

I had to make sure that “Glitter” and “Favorite” cut in the exact position I had it on screen and that “is my” and “COLOR” also cut exactly where I had them placed. To do that, first I grouped all the gold letters and attached them. Then I grouped all the black letters and attached them. I changed the gold letters to red letters to remind me which words would be cut out of the Glitter Vinyl.

Once this was done, I clicked Go and above is how my mat was set up for me.

Here is how the red mat was set up for me.

After I cut both colours of vinyl, I weeded the vinyl and then used the included Strong Transfer Tape to pick up the white vinyl and place it where I needed it on the backing of the red glitter vinyl. I then picked up both the white vinyl and red glitter vinyl and placed both on my water bottle.

This project shows you that although this cutting file was designed with a baby in mind, many of the cutting files in Lori’s shop can be used for other purposes.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Karin