A True Story

Inspired by some of the hangy things my friend Linda has been making, I decided to make something tonight that used more embellishments than is the norm for me. I used one of my shield designs from a little while ago, cut twice and layered to make it stronger.

Tim Holtz type charm, memo pin, Stampin' Up large eyelets, TH ball chain and a copper paper clip frame - not exactly overloaded, but more than I would usually use! :)

Background colours are Wild Honey and Barn Door Distress Inks, tree was stamped and embossed with a grainy white embossing powder before inking. Click on the image if you wish to see a larger view :)

Tutorial Video - Editing Nodes in Sure Cuts a Lot (SCAL) 2

I received an email today asking how to remove gaps left in pages when making wordbooks in SCAL (such as those you might get with a letter A or C). This led on to a general investigation of how to edit paths in SCAL. It was much easier to make a quick video rather than type a lengthy explanation, so here it is! I hope some of you find it useful :) If you want a clearer view, there's a full screen button in the toolbar below the video.

Freebie 50# - Daisy Gift/Favour Box

[Edit - I've started to make my files available from my blog again and am adding a new set each week. Check out the "Cutting Files" tab at the top of the page to see which ones are available for download.]

I can't believe we've reached the half century - 50 free templates given away so far! And that's not including a few extras that weren't in the regular cycle!

These fun favour/gift boxes are perfect for Easter with the spring daisy on top, or use them for wedding or party favours, the choice is up to you! :)

Please remember you are only allowed to download this file for your own use and may not distribute it to others in any form. I spend a great deal of time creating my designs, please respect the terms under which they are given.

Again, this template will be "live" for 1 week. Next week it will be taken down, and new ones will replace it. Don't forget, if you have any requests, pass them on! I can't promise, but I will take suggestions into account when planning future templates.

These files may not be uploaded to a group, forum or website for sale or redistribution, or shared among individuals. They are expressly for the personal use of each person that downloads them from this blog.

There is 1 file but I have put it into a zip file to make downloading easier. After saving it, open in the usual way, and drag the file out onto your desktop or wherever you wish to save it.

There are 2 versions of each template:

• An SVG version which can be imported into the Sure Cuts a Lot or Make the Cut program and then cut out on your Cricut.
• A DXF version which is Craft Robo friendly, and ready to be imported into your Robomaster software (I'm not a Robo user, so if there are any problems with this, please let me know!)

Simply click on the appropriate button below to download the file!

Any feedback on the templates is more than welcome, and if you have any suggestions for possible future templates you'd like to see, please let me know! If you make anything using one of the templates, please post a link to it here so that others can be inspired by how you've used them!

I hope you like the templates - let me know how you get on! :)

Templates © dan99crafter@gmail.com 2010

Work in Progress

Another Ikea frame covered using the template I gave away here a few days ago. I do plan on putting something in the frame eventually, but for now it's empty.

I dabbed Bundled Sage and Stormy Sky inkpads onto a nonstick craft mat and spritzed with lots of water, then dabbed each card piece into the inky watery mess! The result looks quite bold and dramatic in this scan, but in real life it's quite blurry and dreamy and the join lines between the sections aren't nearly so obvious! :)

Mind your own beeswax!

The theme over at the Sunday Stamper's Challenge today is "Time", so (tenuous link here, lol) I'm entering this, because it has a clock on it! :)

I covered a piece of chipboard with torn newsprint, which I painted with melted beeswax to hold it in place (being deliberately heavy handed and messy with it :)

The stamped chipboard tiles were coloured with Promarkers, placed on the background and painted with wax to hold them in place too. The text items were stamped on white card, cut out edge-distressed with Walnut Stain distress ink and then attached to the piece with some of Tim Holtz's memo pins (which I'm loving btw - my favourite item of the new idea-ology selection!).

Click the image for a larger view, comments welcome!:)

Freebie #49 - Ornate Bookplate!

[Edit - I've started to make my files available from my blog again and am adding a new set each week. Check out the "Cutting Files" tab at the top of the page to see which ones are available for download.]
There are 3 layers to this ornate bookplate, but of course you could separate them into 3 single layer bookplates, the choice is yours! :) Use them on mini-book covers or as a decorative surround on a birthday card message - the only limit is your imagination! :)

Please remember you are only allowed to download this file for your own use and may not distribute it to others in any form. I spend a great deal of time creating my designs, please respect the terms under which they are given.

Again, this template will be "live" for 1 week. Next week it will be taken down, and new ones will replace it. Don't forget, if you have any requests, pass them on! I can't promise, but I will take suggestions into account when planning future templates.

These files may not be uploaded to a group, forum or website for sale or redistribution, or shared among individuals. They are expressly for the personal use of each person that downloads them from this blog.

There is 1 file but I have put it into a zip file to make downloading easier. After saving it, open in the usual way, and drag the file out onto your desktop or wherever you wish to save it.

There are 2 versions of each template:

• An SVG version which can be imported into the Sure Cuts a Lot or Make the Cut program and then cut out on your Cricut.
• A DXF version which is Craft Robo friendly, and ready to be imported into your Robomaster software (I'm not a Robo user, so if there are any problems with this, please let me know!)

Simply click on the appropriate button below to download the file!

Any feedback on the templates is more than welcome, and if you have any suggestions for possible future templates you'd like to see, please let me know! If you make anything using one of the templates, please post a link to it here so that others can be inspired by how you've used them!

I hope you like the templates - let me know how you get on! :)

Templates © dan99crafter@gmail.com 2010

Inked and Stamped Ikea Frame

After a trip to Ikea today I came back with 3 of these "Ram" frames - 4"x6" and a bargain at 3 for £1.59. I decided to make a template for the frame, which I would cut from white card and then ink/stamp it to cover the frame. I got busy in Inkscape and the result is a Microsoft Word template that you can print yourself and cut by hand - either on white card as I did, to decorate, or on patterned paper for a quick new look!

Templates © dan99crafter@gmail.com 2010

These frames vary by a millimetre or two, which I guess isn't suprising at 50p a time, so be sure to print the template on scrap paper first and cut it out then check that it fits correctly!

If you use the template, please let me see pics of what you've made! :)

The Proof is in the... page?

Another page of the concertina book that I'm currently working on, and I had a lot of fun making this one :) This page also counts as my entry into this weeks Theme Thursday Challenge, which is "masculine"!

The word PRIORITY was stamped in off-white acrylic paint and then the tag was inked with Rusty Hinge, Wild Honey, Barn Door and Walnut Stain distress ink pads applied with an ink blending tool. The page was then crumpled and spritzed with water then ironed dry. The ornate bookplate was inked with the same colours used previously and the PROOF word was stamped in Timber Brown Staz-on. The photo is froma collection by Darkroom Door and it was folded and sanded to distress it, and Exhibit A was stamped onto it with the same Staz-on colour. The red rays on the left side were stamped with Barn Door distress ink. Finally, the edges of the page were distressed with a Tonic Studios edge distresser. Oh, and the thumb prints were intentional! :) They were "stamped" with Walnut Stain distress ink.

3 pages done, 9 more to go! :) Click on the image for a larger view.

If David Didn't Have Half a Head

Just a bit of fun... I was playing around on the computer and wondered how Tim Holtz's David stamp would look if it wasn't just half a head - here's the result! :)

Bits'n'Pieces

... is the theme over on the Sunday Stamper's Challenge this week, so I chose this PaperArtsy stamp that I've had for a while but not used yet. I thought that the way the wording was cut into bits and pieces was perfect for this challenge! I added some "manly" bits and pieces floating around in the background too for good measure :) The photo is a bit washed out in places, I'll try and do better next time! lol

Click on the image for a larger view :)

[Edit to add - The stamps used in the background were: bike chain and cogs from a set by Technique Tuesday, screw by clevercut.co.uk]

Freebie #48 - Plaques and Shields

[Edit - I've started to make my files available from my blog again and am adding a new set each week. Check out the "Cutting Files" tab at the top of the page to see which ones are available for download.]

Looking back through the freebies I've given away here in the past, I've come to the conclusion that most of the files I design are intended to be the base of a project rather than the decoration for a project. This probably reflects the way in which I mainly use my Cricut - I've got lots of stamps and brads and ribbon and embellishments, what I need is something nice to put them on! :) This weeks collection is no exception to that rule!

Hopefully you'll find all kinds of uses for these plaques and shields. Pictured right is one that I cut out and decorated earlier in the week (yes, I know that shape isn't in this collection, but you get the general idea! lol) Use them as fun pages in a mini-book or as mattes for photos on a scrapbook page. Why not use them as tags, a nice change from the usual shapes we usually see!

Please remember you are only allowed to download this file for your own use and may not distribute it to others in any form. I spend a great deal of time creating my designs, please respect the terms under which they are given.

Again, this template will be "live" for 1 week. Next week it will be taken down, and new ones will replace it. Don't forget, if you have any requests, pass them on! I can't promise, but I will take suggestions into account when planning future templates.

These files may not be uploaded to a group, forum or website for sale or redistribution, or shared among individuals. They are expressly for the personal use of each person that downloads them from this blog.

There are 4 files and I have put them into a zip file to make downloading easier. After saving it, open in the usual way, and drag the files out onto your desktop or wherever you wish to save them.

There are 2 versions of each template:

• An SVG version which can be imported into the Sure Cuts a Lot or Make the Cut program and then cut out on your Cricut.
• A DXF version which is Craft Robo friendly, and ready to be imported into your Robomaster software (I'm not a Robo user, so if there are any problems with this, please let me know!)

Simply click on the appropriate button below to download the file!

Any feedback on the templates is more than welcome, and if you have any suggestions for possible future templates you'd like to see, please let me know! If you make anything using one of the templates, please post a link to it here so that others can be inspired by how you've used them!

I hope you like the templates - let me know how you get on! :)

Templates © dan99crafter@gmail.com 2010

Accordion Book, page 2

Another day, another page for the accordian book I'm working on. Nothing complicated on this one, just basic stamping/inking, with a good strong stamped image at it's centre.

Click on the image to see a larger view :)

Easter Bunny Came Early!

A little package dropped through my door today - the 12 new colours of Distress Ink pads, courtesy of the Easter Bunny. I know, I know, it wasn't really from the Easter Bunny - he's busy right now house-sitting for the Tooth Fairy, who's gone to Cancun for a few weeks, but this is how I justify my spending to myself, so don't burst my bubble! lol

Obviously, I had to try them out immediately, but I was very restrained - I only used 2 of the new colours, Bundled Sage and Forest Moss - I didn't want to make my other Distress pads get sibling rivalry! :)

This is a panel for a book I'm currently making. The panel itself, the inner panel and the leaves were all designed by yours truly and cut on the Cricut. All the stamps were from Stampers Anonymous, and the black pad was Versafine. That's about all there is to say about it, click on the image if you want to see it a little larger :)

Autumn Toned Thank You Cards

Usually when I take photos of a project for my blog, they're either taken with my phone or scanned on my scanner. This is the first time I think I've mixed a photo from each, and what a difference! The 4 cards were scanned and the white cardstock is gleaming. Compare the stack of cards which I photographed with my phone, the cardstock is almost orange! LOL I know now not to do that again!

The panels were cut on the cricut and then stamped/masked/stamped again/coloured. Thanks for taking a look! :)

White Rabbit

The Sunday stamper theme over on my friend Hels' blog is taken from the song White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane. My entry is this plaque, made entirely with Tim Holtz stamps from Stampers Anonymous. I had fun making it, hope you like it! :)

Freebie #47 - Tag, You're It!

[NOTE - I've started to make my files available from my blog again and am adding a new set each week. Check out the "Cutting Files" tab at the top of the page to see which ones are available for download.]

I had a lot of fun making these - and I think they look pretty stylish, if I say so myself! :)

Cut them twice, once normally for the top layer, then again in blackout mode to get the base tag shape. I cut mine at 6x3 inches, and the winter tag ripped a couple of times, it's pretty intricate. I changed to a newer, stickier mat and it cut perfectly first time, so keep that in mind when you're cutting!

Please remember you are only allowed to download this file for your own use and may not distribute it to others in any form. I spend a great deal of time creating my designs, please respect the terms under which they are given.

Again, this template will be "live" for 1 week. Next week it will be taken down, and new ones will replace it. Don't forget, if you have any requests, pass them on! I can't promise, but I will take suggestions into account when planning future templates.

These files may not be uploaded to a group, forum or website for sale or redistribution, or shared among individuals. They are expressly for the personal use of each person that downloads them from this blog.

There are 4 files and I have put them into a zip file to make downloading easier. After saving it, open in the usual way, and drag the files out onto your desktop or wherever you wish to save them.

There are 2 versions of each template:

• An SVG version which can be imported into the Sure Cuts a Lot or Make the Cut program and then cut out on your Cricut.
• A DXF version which is Craft Robo friendly, and ready to be imported into your Robomaster software (I'm not a Robo user, so if there are any problems with this, please let me know!)

Simply click on the appropriate button below to download the file!

Any feedback on the templates is more than welcome, and if you have any suggestions for possible future templates you'd like to see, please let me know! If you make anything using one of the templates, please post a link to it here so that others can be inspired by how you've used them!

I hope you like the templates - let me know how you get on! :)

Templates © dan99crafter@gmail.com 2010

Creativity

I read a great quote by Sir Isaac Newton today (you know, the apple-on-head-I'll-call-it-gravity-guy), which inspired me to create this piece. The quote reads:

An essential aspect of creativity is not being afraid to fail.
—Isaac Newton

I created an 8"x8" mosaic of 64 one inch stamped tiles and then cut a mask on the Cricut to fix over the top. I have mixed feelings about it, in some ways it works and in others it doesn't, at least to my eye. Still, Isaac told me not to be afraid to fail, so I'm not! LOL

O Lucky Man!

I actually made this little guy last night, but left him out of the set - he didn't really fit, with the other 3 cards being based on female faces! Then came today's Three Muses Challenge, with it's "men" theme, and I realised it was his lucky day, and he gets his moment in the spotlight! :)

Once again a 5x5 card, stamped/coloured image with hat from my Hats and Crowns collection and moustache from the font I linked to yesterday :)

Fun Note Cards

I was inspired to make these silly note cards earlier tonight when my friend Barbara from one of the Cricut groups posted a link to a moustache font (it's here if you want it!).

I cut several of the shapes in several sizes on my Cricut. The bowler hats are from my Hats and Crowns collection (google "My Crafty Files" to find them, or email me).

I hope you like them, I had a lot of fun making them! LOL Feedback welcome, click the image to see it larger :)

Watch the Birdy(house)!

I was having a play around with some stamps tonight when I decided to cut and decorate one of my Cricut/Robo birdhouses. (You can find 3 of them on my other site, email me for the address or google "my crafty files"). I don't have many supplies with me so couldn't do much more than stamp and colour them - I wanted to add glossy accents to the "stiches" holding the panels together, but didn't even have that with me.

I've tried to make a little animation so that you can see all sides of it - I hope it works for you! :)
Feedback welcome, click any image to see it larger.