Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog Vinyl EDU Cricut Crawl and Blog Candy!

Welcome to The Stamping Tree and the FCCB Vinyl EDU Cricut Crawl - Fantabulous Cricut's version of a Blog Hop!!

This week we are challenging you to create a project using vinyl you have cut using your Cricut. We have a fabulous sponsor, Cricket Vinyl Supplies. If we get 100 participants in this challenge, Cricket Vinyl Supplies will give away a Cricut Expression package that includes a Cricut Expression machine, deep cut blade, Jasmine Cricut cartridge, ten 12” x 12” assorted sheets of matte vinyl and one 12” x 12” gridded transfer tape. How exciting is that??

If you've come from Emily at Mollie's Motif, you're in the right place!  If you've just happened across my blog and would like to see all the fabulous Design Team creations head on over to Fantabulous Cricut HERE  to start at the beginning.

Make sure to check out each DT member's blog!  There will be Blog Candy along the way at ALL our DT members' blogs, and there will be a Grand Prize up for grabs at FCCB for one participant who submits a project using vinyl at FCCB!

For my project,  I made Thanksgiving wall decor.  I spray painted a wooden plaque from Michael's almond and chose the Thanksgiving subway art from Word Collage.  I cut it at 11", which made it about 9" wide, from several colors of vinyl--metallic gold, burgundy, dark brown, forest green, and orange.  I wish you could see it in person--it turned out gorgeous!  I plan on ordering some more of the gold and burgundy at least--very pretty!

Since it is Vinyl University, I even made a video showing how I made this.  Check it out!

AND to top it all off, I have BLOG CANDY!!! Who wants blog candy?  Why, everybody of course!  Just leave a comment on this post for a chance to win!  One comment per person please, and include your contact info please.  You could win a $10 Joann's gift card!

Your next stop is Ro at Toodle Noodle Creative.  Make sure to visit all the stops along the way and when you get done, make sure you link up your project to FCCB's Fantabulous Cricut Crawl post!!

Happy Crawling!!

Here is the line up in case you get lost (please be sure to make everyone's blog address link to their blogs):

Robin http://robinscreativecottage.blogspot.com

Jilliene http://jillienedesigns.blogspot.com

Heather http://scrappingrunnercreations.blogspot.com

JoNeita http://createwithjoneita.weebly.com/index.html

Jackie http://luv2scrappp.blogspot.com

LB http://www.coolbeansbylb.blogspot.com

Connie http://www.conniecancrop.blogspot.com

Amy T www.craftingwithamy.com

Missy http://www.quickchickdesigns.blogspot.com

Cindy http://www.cindyvernon.blogspot.com

Rebecca craftingmisfit.blogspot.com

Catarina http://blog.docerelashop.com/

Kim ogdendoll.blogspot.com

Emily molliemugsblog.blogspot.com

Amy HS http://thestampingtree.blogspot.com

Ro http://rodonner.blogspot.com/

Lynn http://mycardsnstuff.blogspot.com

Michelle http://justanutterpapercrafter.blogspot.com

Fantabulous Cricut Challenge # 176--Name That Tune!

Happy Monday, FCCB fans, and welcome to FCCB Challenge # 176!  The theme is Name That Tune--just create a music-themed project using at least ONE Cricut cut.  Since our fantabulous Vinyl University starts next week, I thought I would use some heat transfer vinyl to make my project for this week!  Please check back with us next week for some awesome vinyl projects and video tutorials, as well as some Fantabulous prizes from our sponsor.

I  love using vinyl with my Cricut--it really is easy and fun!  I won't go into too much detail about how I made this because--surprise!  I made a how-to video which I will post here next week during Vinyl University.  But the basics are:

1)  Wash and dry T-shirt with NO fabric softener.

2)  Use the FLIP function and cut out your desired Cricut artwork from heat transfer vinyl using machine settings:  blade depth 2, pressure 2, and speed 3.

3)  Weed  your vinyl.  

4)  Apply it to the T-shirt and iron on with a DRY iron using pressure for 15 seconds.  

5)  Peel off protective backing.

I made this shirt for my niece who is very talented musically.  This subway art is the signatures of various composers (Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Vivaldi, Mozart, Bach and Beethoven), and it is from the Word Collage cartridge.  I sized it at 10.5" high.

Please play along with us this week at FCCB!  And don't forget to check back next Wednesday for my video tutorial on heat transfer vinyl.  Thanks for dropping by!

My First Video!!!

OK, I admit it, it's pretty awful.  Lucky for all of you it's SHORT!  So watch it please and constructive is very welcome!  I know there's too much hemming and hawing.  I don't think I'll be going into the movie business anytime soon, but it's fun to learn something new.

It's a teaser for FCCB's Vinyl University!  I'l (hopefully!) be making another video or two showing vinyl techniques.  So keep checking back!  Thanks for dropping by!

FCCB Challenge 3 175--Heat Wave

Ordinarily, a heat wave is something Kansans know a lot about!  But this summer (so far, knock on wood LOL!)  we have only had a few 100+ days and they were at the beginning of the summer.  July was mostly cool and rainy--in fact we went from drought to no drought during that time.

Well, enough about the weather--our challenge at FCCB this week was to create a project having to do with summer heat.  I remembered this fun lady from Fun in the Sun and cut her out at 3".

I cut the base out of both black and Riding Hood Red and cut off her hair so she would have that brassy red hair.  You can't tell in the pic, but I added Crystal Effects to her sunglasses lenses to make them look shiny.  All CS, ink, punch and brads are SU.  Polka dot DP is PTI.

Is it hot where you live?  Why not join in this fun challenge?  Just make a project pertaining to summer heat and be sure to use at least ONE Cricut cut.  Then upload it to FCCB!  That's all there is to it.  You could win a "fantabulous" prize from our sponsors!

Please come back tomorrow--I will be uploading my VERY FIRST VIDEO!!!  It will be sort of a sneak peek into our Vinyl University Blog Crawl in a few weeks!  

FCCB Challenge # 174--Summer Camp!

 Good morning, Campers!!!  Is everyone ready for a new Fantabulous Cricut Challenge?  This week the theme is Summer Camp.  Make a project having to do with summer camp and using at least ONE Cricut cut.  Please join us!  Visit FCCB for more inspiration.

Being the mom of a Boy Scout, I have LOTS of camping photos.  So I decided to make a layout, something I need to do a lot more of!  These pix are from my son's trip to Philmont Scout Ranch last summer.  This is THE premier scouting experience.  Brad went too.  They backpack through the mountains of New Mexico.

This is a 12 x 12, two-page spread.  I used CTMH Artbooking, Outdoor Man, and Campin' Critters cartridges.  The sort of chevron BG is from Artbooking and cut at 11" in Garden Green.  I think this is my fave BG--it's just too cool, and I have been wanting to use it ever since I saw it on the cover of the CTMH catalog.  I also cut 4 different colored squares at 5.5", laid them on my mat, butting the edges together, and cut it again, so I would have some different colored pieces to fill in places in the lattice.

All the photo mats are cut from Artbooking also, out of Real Red.  I wound up cutting these with Real Dial Size on, to make them closer to the size I wanted.

The letters are cut at 1.75" from Outdoor Man.  

I backed the arrows in the photo mats with some K & Co. DP from their BSA pad and also filled in some of the chevrons with it.  

What says Boy Scouts to most people?  Why, badges, of course!  And Campin' Critters has a nifty badge feature, which I used for some embellishments.  These are not official BSA badges of course, but I felt like they conveyed the general idea.  They are cut at 1.5".

The base of the pages is Creamy Caramel; other colors used are Summer Sun and Night of Navy.

I really had fun with the Summer Camp challenge this week, and I hope it will get me back on track with my scrapbooking.  What are some of your favorite summer camp memories?  Hiking, swimming, s'mores?  Whatever it may be, make a project celebrating it and link it up to FCCB!  Thanks for dropping by today--have a great one!

FCCB Challenge # 173--Cool Treats!

It's Challenge Me Monday over at FCCB again and I just realized I goofed on the theme of this week's challenge.  I thought it was Sweet Treats, turns out it's Cool Treats!  Oh, well, I'm going to say since gingerbread houses are made when it's COLD, and the icing on the roof is meant to look like SNOW, it's going to have to count! Besides, I need to get cracking on Christmas projects! LOL!  Our sponsor this week is Cri-Kits.  They make all kinds of nifty gel pens and markers to be used in Cricut and other electronic cutters.  So stop by their website and check them out!  

I thought it would be fun to make a box for treats with a Christmas theme.  Wrap It UP has an adorable gingerbread house box, so I used that.  I cut the box and its layer at 11.5 with my Gypsy.  This box was extremely easy to put together and at that size makes a box that would hold lots of candy or 3-4 large cookies or a cupcake.  The main image has several layers but the box only has one.  I used a red Cri-Kit glitter gel pen to outline it, then cut it in white and then used punches and scraps to add color.

Here is the front of the box.  I used a scrap behind the door frame.  I cut out the door so it would be brown.  I punched some strips for the "curtains" over the windows and the porch roof and trimmed a little piece for the top of the chimney.  I colored the cut out pieces of the square windows and the arched window yellow (to look like candlelight).

Here is the side.  The front and back match and so do the two sides.  I used some old SU Christmas DP, Cherry Cobbler and Whisper White CS, Nesties,  and Gumball Green ink, plus some old Dress It Up buttons I had in my stash.

 

Here is a detail of the little wreath I made--I think it's so cute!  It's an old SU punch with a hole punched out of the middle and some stickles.  The tree punch is current SU.  You can also see the Cri-Kit outline a little in this picture.

Here are some close-ups of those cute little cookie cutter buttons.

Other CS used is Gumball Green and Close to Cocoa.

Well, thanks for dropping by today, and don't forget to play along with FCCB this week!  Remember, be sure to use at least one Cricut cut on your project!  And if you have some Cri-Kit markers, use 'em!  They are really fun and can add a lot to a project.

Fantabulous Cricut Challenge # 172--Make A Splash!

Good morning and happy Monday!  Today over at FCCB, the challenge is Make a Splash--make anything having to do with water and make sure to use AT LEAST ONE Cricut cut.  Our sponsor today is The Paper Nest!  

They make darling digi stamps and they sent us 5 freebies to choose from!  I chose Mermaid Ellie.  There are several super cute Mermaid Ellie's on their site--I think I'm going to have to do a little shopping over there...

I chose to make another shaped card--I hope y'all are not too sick of these LOL!  I used the shell shape from the Splish Splash Lite cartridge and welded 2 together with my Gypsy.  I sized the card to be 5.25" wide, which made the height of a single shell 4.72", so I cut my layer at that size.  The color is Crisp Cantaloupe.  I cut another shell 1" smaller out of watercolor paper and ran that through my printer to print out Mermaid Ellie.  I sized her at about 2.25" high by 2.75" wide.  I heat set the printer ink.  Then I used my Aquapainter and Twinkling H2O's (boy it's been a while since those have seen the light of day LOL) to watercolor my image.  I wanted her to be all shimmery, and she is IRL, although I'm sure you can't tell from the photo.  While she dried I scored some lines on the scallop shell, sponged the edges with Baked Brown Sugar, and spritzed it with some glimmer mist.  Then I popped up my main image on foam tape, attached it, and added the pink pearl flourishes (Recollections--Michaels brand).

Here is a shot from the side.  I like how this turned out, but I definitely need to practice with my Twinkling H2O's some more!  I didn't put a sentiment on the inside, so I can use it for whatever comes up.  I do have a stamp that says "Just sittin' here thining of you" which I thought would be cute since she is sitting on a rock.

Well, thanks for stopping by today, and please pop over to FCCB and take a look at the other DT creations.  They are all fabulous.  Then play along with us--you might win some adorable digi stamps from The Paper Nest!