A Layout TWO days in the making

I spent yesterday working on creating svgs and picking out papers for this layout of pictures of the grandkids dressed up for the vintage look photos. I had lots of thoughts in my head and I just couldn't decide what I wanted to do.

Probably the biggest challenge I faced was coming up with some type of decorative mat for the 5x7 photos. I ended up starting with an svg from svgcuts.com and modifying it to suit my needs. The svg is one of the 12x12 designs from the Mrs. Robinson collection but I modified it to remove the word Love, the flowers, the frames and then resized the remaining solid piece to fit the photos I had. I also removed the vertical bars since I had a vertical stripe pattern paper.

The hats, gloves, tie, suitcase, and vintage camera are my designs. Forgive the bad pic of the layout - lighting wasn't great but didn't feel like scanning and stitching all the sections tonight. I still have some work to do to get the files ready to upload but if you are interested in any of the items, check back tomorrow or Tuesday and I should have them up.

Halloween Costumes

I've been playing with fabric instead of paper for the past week - making the grandkids their Halloween costumes. Just finished Natalie's and have them boxed to ship - on my way to FEDEX but thought I'd take a minute to share a picture of the completed costumes first.

A few kitchen themed cut files

NOTICE: Please go to the SVG tab at the top of my blog for important information regarding SVG downloads. 

Finally getting to the bottom of my scrapbook desk and getting this room organized - in doing so, I found a few kitchen items that I had cut but haven't posted yet. These are part of my kitchen collection that I did over a year ago. I haven't cut all of the files yet - I will post more as I have a chance to test cut more of them.




No pictures of the cut files to share but I know they cut well because I have used them on a layout. (I can't share the layout as it contains pics of a nephew that I do not have permission to post).

I have a bunch of other items in this collection - if there is something in particular you are looking for, leave me a comment and if I have it, I'll try to get it cut and posted. In addition to cookware, utensils, etc., I also have quite a few food items that I created as well.

Hope someone can find a use for some of these!

Do I or Don't I?

I've been pondering this new Cricut Imagine machine - trying to decide if it is right for me. My Cricut Expression works just fine and cuts everything I ask of it so I don't NEED the Imagine. For the most part, I prefer multi-layer cuts so I design my own and cut using SCAL. I'm assuming I would not be able to use SCAL with the Imagine so I would have to keep both machines.

Anyone have the Imagine yet? Other than being able to basically make a colored die-cut image, what are the great things you've been able to do with it? Would love to see some examples if anyone has some - post a link below if you have Imagine projects to share!

It's almost the Weekend!

Have to work tonight - I close so won't get off until around 8:30. As soon as I get home, we are headed out to meet-up with Jenn, Tom and the kids for the weekend. We are meeting in Clarksville, IN so that tomorrow we can take the kids to the pumpkin patch. We lived at Fort Knox, KY for several years when the kids were younger and used to take our kids to the same farm - I even took my scout troops there. In addition to the pumpkin patch, they have a petting zoo, corn maze, pony rides, a big slide, a small "mining" operation, mini-tractors for the kids to ride, etc. They offer a traditional farm market selling seasonal fruits/veggies. They also have an on-site bakery, ice-cream shop, winery and deli. Saturday, they are even featuring live music on the patio. The farm we are visiting is Huber Orchard and Winery in Starlight, IN.

The weather is forecast for mid 70's and no rain so it should be a much more enjoyable visit than last time. 3 years ago the temps were pushing 90 - and we all got a bit of heat exhaustion from being out all day in the sun.

After dinner, we are planning to cross the bridge into Louisville in order to go to the Louisville Science Center - another place we used to take our kids when we lived in the area. It's a science museum that features a lot of interactive activities for kids - I know many cities offer something similar.

Taking my new camera and hopefully will get lots of great pics.

Have a great weekend!

Cricut Mats

I don't know about all of you, but I have been very disappointed in the stickiness of my Cricut Mats. Half the time they don't seem very sticky when I buy them and they surely don't stay sticky very long. I've tried the washing and letting it air dry trick - it cleans the fibers and stuff off the mat and helps for a while but really doesn't restore the sticky. Same with the baby wipe trick.

As for trying to apply new adhesive, I've tried the wide 2-way Zig adhesive but it was hard to get a nice even coat - seemed like I got too much on and ended up ruining a mat. Then, I tried taping off the edges and using a repositionable spray adhesive - this gave a pretty good result but was messy.

Last week one day, browsing various forums, I found another method and it has produced, BY FAR, the best result. It's economical - 4.99 for the glue, you mix 50/50 with water and since it is thin, you don't use much. You can paint it on with one of those cheap disposable foam brushes and it is easy to get just the right amount. I did one mat as a test on Saturday night. I cut all day Sunday on it, did the Nurses cuts this morning, and IT IS STILL STICKY! What is this miracle glue? Aleene's Tack-It Over and Over. Here's the video.

Nurses Call the Shots

NOTICE: Please go to the SVG tab at the top of my blog for important information regarding SVG downloads. 

I am posting a file this morning as the result of a request on the Craft Edge Forum. I made this last year as a special request. I took the time this morning to cut this before posting it so I am sharing a pic of the cut file below. Pardon the roughness of some of the cuts - I need to get some new blades for my Cricut. I cut a lot of glitter cardstock this weekend and it sure seems to kill the blades quickly.

Need to get some pics of my SIL in her nurse garb so I can use this!