MyScrapChick.com Baby Belly Boxes

Aren't these so cute! I made them for Greta's Craft Fair which was hosted by Baby & Tot Show in Abbotsford, BC last weekend.

They are part of a trio of svg cutting files from myscrapchick.com - check out the site, they are having a Dollar Sale this week until April 2nd.   With Cricut Design Space it was so easy to upload and resize these images for cutting.

I used CTMH Champagne, CTMH White Daisy & CTMH Whisper cardstock. I sponged lightly around the edges of the Champagne Cardstock with CTMH Champagne Ink.  The soothers and pin heads were cut from scrap paper I had in my stash.

All online orders placed through my Close To My Heart website will have 15% of the sale donated to help Greta

Last Two Days Of CTMH Seasonal Expressions I Catalogue

Certain items in the first CTMH Seasonal Expressions catalogue are retiring on March 31, 2015.

Last chance to place your order before they are gone for good!
 Don't miss out - order yours at http://nancyhelmer.ctmh before 11 pm MT tomorrow.

All orders placed through the Greta's Craft Fair link on my CTMH website will be eligible to win March Mystery Hostess Rewards and I am donating 15% of sales to help Greta a 5 year old with a rare form of Cancer.

 Retiring Items:

Heartstrings WOTG Cardmaking Kit - $27.50

Heartstrings Paper Pack - $10.95

Heartstrings Complements - $5.50

Heartstrings Assortment - $6.50

Heartstrings Picture My Life - $9.75

Hopscotch WOTG Scrapbook Kit - $32.95

Hopscotch Paper Pack -$10.95

Hopscotch Complements - $5.50

Hopscotch Assortment - $6.50

Cut Above Valentine Treat Bag Kit  - $16.50

Cut Above Birthday Card Kit - $10.95

Lovestruck Mini Clothespins - $5.50

Happy Day Mini Clothespins - $5.50

Junebug Puffies - $5.50

Stuck On You Puffies - $5.50

You're the Bomb - Operation Smile Stamp Set - $15.25

Visit my Close To My Heart Website today to order these products before they are gone for good.

CTMH March Highlights

Close To My Heart March Highlights

1.  During March, sign up to be CTMH Consultant and receive a FREE shoulder tote -  plus the opportunity to earn a rolling tote.

Visit my CTMH website for more details and to sign up today!

2.  Seasonal Expressions Idea Book -  only available from December 1 - March 31, 2015.  View it on my CTMH website or contact me for a copy.



Order online at:
http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com


Sign up for my Monthly Newsletter:
Link in right hand column below Blog Archive list.

Bunny & Chick Lollipop Holders

Aren't these just adorable!  I made them with svg cutting files that I got from myscrapchick.com

I made these for Greta's Craft Fair - a fundraiser for a little girl with a rare form of Cancer

I cut them with my Cricut Explore, inked around the edges of the cardstock and added the lollipops. The twine & ribbon hold the lollipop sticks in place. 

They are having a Dollar Sale right now at myscrapchick.com but it ends soon! Be sure to check it out right away - they have so many cute images that will work with all sorts of cutting machines.  

15% of online purchases made through my CTMH website in March will be donated to help Greta, a 5 year old with a rare form of cancer. Learn more at:

https://www.facebook.com/events/544383795664870/

For more information on Close To My Heart products visit my website at:

http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Get Inspired this Easter with Cricut

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. 

Easter is coming, are you feeling crafty?

Get out your Cricut Explore Air and take a look at these different Easter projects you can create! 

Think decorations, invitations, gifts and party favours, there is no limit to what you can create. Here are a couple of my favourites!

Fun Easter Egg Dye Stencils Cute Easter Yard Signs

And there are many more fun ideas in the Cricut Design Space. 

Get your inspiration now and remember you can get Free Shipping on anything you buy now through March 31st, when you use the code MARCHSHIP.

Monkey Belly Box from MyScrapChick.com

Here's a cute Monkey Belly Box that I made with my Cricut Explore for Greta's Craft Fair.  The svg cutting file is from myscrapchick.com

I used CTMH cardstock and inked the edges in CTMH Chocolate & Desert Sand Inks.  I love how these turned out.   

For more information on Close To My Heart products visit my website at:

http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com

15% of online purchases made through my CTMH website in March will be donated to help Greta, a 5 year old with a rare form of cancer. Learn more at:

https://www.facebook.com/events/544383795664870/

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Strawberry Lollipop Holder made with CTMH Artiste Cricut Cartridge

Here are some Strawberries I cut with my Cricut Explore and the CTMH Artiste Cricut cartridge to make Lollipop Holders. 

I sponged around the edges of each berry and topper & used double sided tape to adhere the flap so they won't come undone when the lollipop is inside.

Once the lollipop was inside I just tightened the twine so the Strawberry closed around it. I tied a bow then slid the topper on.  The hole in the topper was smaller than the stick so I just made a few small cuts with my CTMH Micro-Tip Scissors so the paper wouldn't tear. 

For more information on Close To My Heart products visit my website at:

http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com

15% of online purchases made through my CTMH website in March will be donated to help Greta, a 5 year old with a rare form of cancer. Learn more at:

https://www.facebook.com/events/544383795664870/

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Cricut Flash Sale: 40% Off All Supplies + Free Shipping

Cricut Flash Sale: 40% Off All Supplies + Free Shipping

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. 

Cricut's Flash Sale is going on now! 

This weekend, shop the Cricut Flash Sale and get 40% off all supplies. Stock up on all of those much needed supplies and throughout March, all orders ship for free with code MARCHSHIP (No Minimum!). 

Hurry over to Cricut to catch these savings before they are gone! 

CTMH Camper Crazy with Timberline

I made this card with CTMH Camper Crazy Stamp Set & retired CTMH Timberline cardstock. 

I inked the edges of the cardstock with CTMH Desert Sand Ink and stamped the RV and the sentiment in CTMH Chocolate ink. The card base is CTMH Bamboo and I used CTMH Twilight (retired) under the wood-grain cardstock strip.  I embellished it with CTMH Durables Triangle Studs and some Twine that I had in my stash.

The card pattern is from CTMH Make It From Your Heart Volume 2 Pattern 23.

For more information on these products check out my website at:

http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com

15% of online purchases made through my CTMH website in March will be donated to help Greta, a 5 year old with a rare form of cancer. Learn more at:

https://www.facebook.com/events/544383795664870/

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

CTMH Artfully Sent Worlds Best Father

Here's another card I've been working on for Greta's Craft Fair.

I used the CTMH Artfully Sent Cricut cartridge with some CTMH Timberline cardstock that I received as samples in my Consultant Kit last year.

I used CTMH Bamboo for the card base and CTMH Chocolate cardstock for the moustaches.

For more information on these products check out my Close To My Heart website at:

http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com

15% of the purchases made through my CTMH website in March will be donated to help Greta, a 5 year old girl with a rare form of cancer.


Learn more at:

https://www.facebook.com/events/544383795664870/

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Cricut Explore Air Now Available

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. 

Just when you thought that Cricut's Explore® machine couldn't get any more amazing, they are now introducing their Cricut Explore Air!

This new machine has all the incredible features of the Cricut Explore®, but now it has built-in Bluetooth technology - so your projects can go wherever you go! In addition to being able to cut just about anything, including leather, balsa wood, fabric, vinyl, craft foam, and even silk, cartridges are also included in the software. So anytime you want to use a different cartridge, you just do a quick search on your iPad and it brings up all the images on the cart. How efficient is that?! 

By far this is the most advanced electronic cutting machine on the market with an unbelievable amount of helpful, time-saving features. While there are almost too many to mention, I can't resist sharing a few more of my favorites:

• It's wireless and compatible with Cricut Design Space iPad app.
• Since it's wireless, all projects can be saved to the cloud, which allows users to conveniently swap between their laptop and iPad.
• Cartridges are linked to your Cricut ID and delivered over the cloud. So once you've loaded a cartridge, you have it everywhere you go.
• There's no overlay simply because it's not needed! You just lay all of your cuts out in the Cricut Design Space app and you can see everything you are cutting all at once. So goodbye handbooks!
• It comes with a ton of "make-it-now" projects. You just send them straight to the machine and they are ready to go. You can also customize them with your own font and images!
• Fonts and images can be uploaded for free - the machine can actually print writing that looks just like handwriting! You can also draw and upload pictures to the machine without having to cut anything out.
• 
  

The Cricut Explore Air is really just amazing - and so fun to use! If you've been thinking about upgrading your cutting machine, now is the time to do it! Especially since you can get free shipping with the code MARCHSHIP. Now you can really cut a rug to celebrate!

Cards for Greta's Craft Fair

Just a week and a half until Greta's Craft Fair, a fundraiser to help out a little girl with a rare form of Cancer.

I've been busy working on cards to sell at the craft fair - I will be donating 50% of my sales from all handmade items that day along with 15% of all catalogue or internet orders with Close To My Heart

These cards were made with CTMH Artfully Sent Cricut Cartridge & CTMH Skylark cardstock (retired).   I used CTMH Desert Sand Ink to stamp the sentiment and sponged around the edges of the tag. 

The Dream Big Sentiment is from CTMH Your Own Kind of Wonderful Stamp Set

This card is the other side of the Skylark cardstock,  with a layer of CTMH Kraft cardstock behind the bird cut-out.

I resized the Scottie card in Cricut Design Space Ipad app - the one on the left is slightly smaller than an A2 card.  The one on the right is sized at 5x7.  I used CTMH Ruby cardstock, CTMH Red Enamel Hearts, CTMH White Daisy Cardstock and backed the dog and word bubble with scraps of black and yellow.

On these cards I used the Slice feature in Cricut Design Space to cut off the card front so I could add coloured cardstock behind the cutouts.  I resized it a little smaller than the original card front so it would have a border show around it also.  The card front and the Aliens are all from the CTMH Artfully Sent Cricut Cartridge.  I used CTMH Chalk It Up Cardstock for the card front, CTMH Pear and Sunset Cardstock for the card bases and CTMH Silver Shimmer Trim (cut in half to 1/4 inch) along the top and bottom edges. 

For more information on Close To My Heart products visit my Website:

http://nancyhelmer.ctmh.com

Support Greta - 15% of your online order will be donated to help her family.

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Cricut Explore Make It Now Multi-lingual Thank You Card

Here's a Cricut Design Space Make It Now Card that I made using the Slice Feature to change how the words would cut out.

I have the words cut out from the front of the card and used scraps to make the rainbow on the backside of the front layer.  Then I used foam tape to pop it out from the A2 card base.

The original file in Design Space had each letter being cut out individually and then pieced together on the card front.  

This entire card was made from scraps in my craftroom, even the card base was leftover from another project.   It was fairly quick using the slice feature.   And I just trimmed the rainbow coloured scraps with a pair of scissors then used some Tombow permanent adhesive to stick it down.

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Make It From Your Heart Vol 2. Scrapbook Layout

Here is a layout I made with CTMH Make It From Your Heart Volume 2 Layout Book - Pattern 2.

I had this patterned paper that I had bought from Stampin' Up a few years ago and never did anything with it since I only had 8-1/2x11 cardstock and really wanted to save it for 12x12 layouts.

After I got my Cricut Explore I re-cut the image of the cat in the dresser.  I was impressed with how much better the Explore cut it than my Expression 2 (see previous post to see comparison cuts)

I love how well the CTMH solid cardstock goes with the SU Domestic Goddess patterned cardstock.

 CTMH Products Used:

Make It From Your Heart Volume 2

CTMH Canary Cardstock

CTMH Sorbet Cardstock

CTMH Artiste Cricut Cartridge - Tag on page 69 (#M444F7 Cricut Explore)

Other Products:

Stampin' Up Domestic Goddess cardstock

Stampin' Up Pool Party & Island Indigo cardstock

Cricut Suburbia Cartridge - Title

Cricut Lite Meow Cartridge - Dresser

For more information on CTMH products visit my CTMH website

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Cricut Explore Make It Now Happy Day Scrapbook Layout

Here is another Make It Now scrapbook page from Cricut Design Space.  I love how this page turned out - I am loving this software and machine!

Here is the Make It Now project page in Design Space.

And here is my finished page.  

The solid cardstock is all CTMH:

Pacifica, Sky (retired), Canary, Sorbet & White Daisy & Pear.

I sponged Sorbet ink on the edges of the Butterflies.

I used some yellow chalk on the sun and light blue chalk on the white clouds.

I used CTMH Silver Shimmer Trim under the clouds.

The patterned paper is:

Recollections Light Blue Distressed

Recollections Teal Butterflies

SU Domestic Goddess (retired)

The images are all Design Space Make It Now except for the pennants which come from CTMH Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge.

For more information on CTMH products visit my CTMH website

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Cricut Explore Make It Now Mickey & Pluto Scrapbook Page

In my last post I went over the calibration of the Cricut Explore for the Print & Cut feature.

I had found a scrapbook page in the Make It Now section that had a Mickey & Pluto image that was on the Mickey & Friends cartridge that I got back in January.

When I chose this page I didn't realize that it was a print & cut image.  The Design Space software prompted me to calibrate my machine and once that was finished it took me right back to the project.

The Make It Now project page gives you a list of materials needed to complete the project along with a few instructions on putting it together.  If you want to make a project but don't have all the images you can select the Customize button on the bottom right and substitute with your own images.

Since I didn't need to make any changes I selected the green Make It Now button.

It took me to the page with all the mats for my project.  The top mat is for the printed image.  I put cardstock in my printer and printed the Mickey & Pluto image then put it on my mat and inserted it into the Explore for it to cut it out.  

My printer had printed the registration marks quite far down the page so I trimmed the page by about a quarter inch and then the Explore scanned the marks and started cutting.  

Here it is after it finished cutting. 

The black part left on the cardstock are the bleed lines.  Good to have so there is no white outline showing on your finished cut.

I was impressed with how well the Explore cut this image.  Especially the tips of the tails on both Mickey and Pluto.

The image on the left is the Print & Cut and the image on the right is one that I cut out with my Expression 2 in January and pieced together by hand.  I like the dimension on the hand-pieced images but it a definite bonus having the option to print and cut. I have problems with the tendons in my left thumb/wrist and the piecing together of the small cuts was difficult. 

After that I loaded the other papers onto my mat and had the Explore cut them so I could quickly assemble the page.  They were simple cuts and only took a few minutes to put together.

Here is my finished page. Just need to get a photo printed for the left side.  

I've been working on an album from our trip to Walt Disney World in 2003

 so I should have lots to choose from.

Here is a short video I took of the Explore doing my first Print & Cut.

Check out my Close To My Heart website for more information about these products.

Close To My Heart Products used:

Black Cardstock, White Daisy Cardstock,  Canary Cardstock

Disney paper is from an EK Success Paper Pad I bought at Joann.com

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.

Free shipping over $35 with code:  MARCHSHIP

Cricut Explore Calibration for Print & Cut

I made a couple of cards with my Explore then I decided to check out the scrapbook pages in the Make It Now section of Design Space.  I found a cute page with Mickey & Pluto on it so I decided to test it out since I have the Mickey & Friends cartridge.

I chose the project and right away the program prompted me to do the calibration for print & cut.

I was able to print this out on a piece of white cardstock with my Canon inkjet printer, then stuck it on my mat and followed the prompts in Design Space. 

The machine goes through a series of cuts along the top and sides of the cardstock then cuts out these two boxes.  

If it doesn't cut properly you can adjust the settings and try it again.  It was pretty easy to set up by following the instructions on the screen.  

Quick video I took while the Explore was reading the registration marks and doing the calibration.  

Once the calibration was finished I was able to start my Make It Now Mickey & Pluto page.  

See the next post to see the Print & Cut and the finished scrapbook page.  

Check out the Cricut Explore & Bundles at Cricut.com

They also have the wireless adapter and other accessories available online.