A Few Tips about Making Boxes

When I saw this cute take-out style box on the Art Philosophy cartridge, I knew I had to give it a try.  This is a fairly unusual shape and it isn't found on very many cartridges. 

I first cut the the box using the cartridge directly in the Expression machine set at "fit to page" on some blue cardstock.  The size the machine would cut was 11 inches.  This makes a fairly small box but I knew that I could use Design Studio, the Gypsy or even the Cricut Craftroom online design tool to manipulate the image and cut a larger size.

By rotating the cut about 45 degrees, I was able to cut the box at 13 1/4 inches.  Those two inches make a big difference in the finished box.

Here is the side by side comparison of the two boxes.

This view shows the tops of the boxes.  You can see that the brown box is much larger.

I find the little "tick" marks that show you where to score a box or card to be unattractive and generally unnecessary.  For most cards, there is no reason you can figure out where to fold the card - just fold it in half!  Boxes and bags can be a little trickier to figure out.  If I am not sure about all of the folds, I will cut a box from surplus cardstock with the tick marks and fold it up.  This sample box then serves as a guideline for folding and assembling the finished box in my chosen cardstock color.

Even if you fold directly on the lines indicated by the tick marks you will still see the little cuts.

I much prefer the smoother look as seen on this box.  I scored all of the lines so it would fold nicely using the blue trial box as my guide for the fold lines.

There are two ways to get rid of the tick marks.  If you check "weld" on the item in Design Studio or on the Gypsy, the lines will not cut.  You can also hide all of the lines individually using "hide selected contour."

Here you can see the scored and folded larger box - with no distracting little cuts in the sides of the folds.
I assembled the box using Scor-Tape - any sort of strong adhesive will do.  I generally avoid liquid adhesives because they can  get messy and leave marks on the project.

I did have to slightly enlarge the slit for the two top flaps to join evenly and give the box the proper shape.

I tied a wide, wired ribbon around the box.  I thought that the colors looked very nice for Autumn.

 I wanted to use another stamp from the CTMH Art Philosphy bundle for a tag.  It was a little but difficult to tell which cut was the correct one for the stamp.  I would recommend marking the page in the book for the shape that corresponds to each stamp shape to save time.

The stamp sheet does tell you the size to make the cut for the stamp to fit properly.  In this case that size was two inches.  The first shape I chose was "almost right" but the stamp was a little too large and didn't line up nicely to the shape.  I then found another shape which turned out to be the correct one for the stamp I had chosen.

I added a tiny gem to mark the "friend" category and then used one of the stamps from the double set that was available as a gift with purchase from CTMH last month.  I only inked the section that said "thanks" to fill in the label for my box.

It is very handy to have the stamps and the Cricut cuts coordinate so easily.

I used some foam squares to pop up the tag and a small leaf that I stamped and cut when I first tried the set.

I also added a few gem stickers to the leaf cut.

This is a perfect little box to hold a gift card along with a few candy treats for a friend.  Who says Halloween is just for kids!

The Art Philosophy cartridge is available exclusively through a Close To My Heart consultant.  My friend Melanie is a consultant and she sent me this bundle to review.  I have to say it is a great overall cartridge.  There are so many types of things included - 3D projects like boxes and flowers, mesh pages for backgrounds, lots and lots of cards and tags, two fonts and lots of labels and medallions.

Melanie has posted photos of the entire cartridge handbook on her blog - click HERE to go directly to that post.  You will be amazed at all that this cartridge has to offer.

You can visit Melanie's Close to My Heart website by clicking HERE.  To go directly to the page for the Cricut Art Philosophy bundle click HERE.  You will find many more sample projects and tutorials on Melanie's blog, Courtney Lane Designs, and you can contact Melanie directly with any questions at melliemel77@gmail.com (just tell her I sent you!).

Our floors are still not finished so I am a crafter in search of a place to work for the next few days.  I hope that by the end of the week things might be back to normal!

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Easy Party Invitation - Art Philosophy Bundle

Today I have a super simple holiday party invitation to share with you.  I wanted to try the chipboard pieces included in the CTMH Art Philosophy bundle that my friend Melanie sent to me to review.   One of the interesting things about this cartridge bundle is the coordination of the cartridge shapes with stamps and precut chipboard shapes.  The correct sizes to cut each shape are listed on the clear backing sheet for the stamps and on the packaging for the chipboard.

In this photo the top shape is one of the chipboard pieces that came with the bundle and the bottom red shape is the cut that I made with the cartridge. 

 Here you can see the shape after I adhered the card stock to the chipboard.  They are a perfect match.

I pulled together some pieces to make a quick party invitation.  The metallic card stock base is a pale green from DCWV and the Christmas striped patterned paper is by K and Company.  I added some gold grosgrain ribbon and a few embellishments from Creative Charms.

I simply wrapped the ribbon around the patterned paper before adhering the paper to the card.  This adds more color and texture to the plain card.

 I used two silver tree sequins from the Creative Charms Winter Medley on either side of a Christmas Twinkle Sticker  to embellish the paper covered chipboard.

This side view shows the thickness of the chipboard (you can also see the tiny gold gems I added as "stars" at the tops of the trees!).

I used some of the stamps from the Art Philosophy bundle for the inside of the card - it's ready to fill in the information.  Two bits of advice:  The tiny stamps for the date-time-place and RSVP are tricky to line up so be patient if you have big fingers like mine.  Also, the inside of the card (the back of the metallic DCWV cardstock) is a little bit slick so you have to be sure to let the ink dry well before you close the card.

There are just a few days left to get in on the super deal that adds a free double stamp set to your order - free with orders over $75.  You can also buy the stamp of the month set for only $5 when you buy the Art Philosophy bundle.  

Melanie has posted photos of the entire cartridge handbook on her blog - click HERE to go directly to that post.  You will be amazed at all that this cartridge has to offer.

You can visit Melanie's Close to My Heart website by clicking HERE.  To go directly to the page for the Cricut Art Philosophy bundle click HERE.  You will find many more sample projects and tutorials on Melanie's blog, Courtney Lane Designs, and you can contact Melanie directly with any questions at melliemel77@gmail.com (just tell her I sent you!).

I have been designing up a storm and I can't wait to show you what I've been making.  We have another family celebration this weekend so I probably won't be able to cut out any of my designs until next week.  I also have a few cards to finish before we go.

I'd love to know how many of you have more then one type of electronic die cutting machine. If you'd like to leave a comment with the other types of machines and programs you are using and why, that would be interesting.  I'd also like to know whether your first machine was a Cricut or another brand and what led you to buy a different type of machine?  Thanks and have a great day!

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Gems make everything prettier!

I just love blue and white and snowflakes.  Now that the season is changing there will most likely be lots of snowflake cards and projects on my blog.  This card is one of several winter cards that I have posted for my second Creative Charms Design Team post this month.  You can see the post HERE on the Creative Charms blog.

The snowflake design is one of my original designs that I created using the Silhouette Studio software.  I have been experimenting with the software and enjoying the freedom it gives me to hand draw a design and create the layers and shadows for the design.  I know that, just as in nature, there will not be an identical snowflake if I hand draw my own designs.  The top layer here is Core'dinations gemstone card stock , the dark blue is Bazzill and the pearl dotted light blue is from American Crafts.

The card base is Stampin Up cardstock that came in a grab bag - I don't know the exact color name.  The patterned paper is from the Heirloom imagine cartridge.  I printed a few sheets of paper recently and this was one of my favorites (here is a LINK to that post if you are curious about printing paper with the Imagine).

I cut the paper into four inch strips and then cut off the ends once I had found the center of the design on the 5 1/4 inch long layer.

I added various sizes of gem stickers and a clear vintage jewel to make the snowflake twinkle.

The word "winter" is from the Winter Seasonal Sparkles.  The words on these sets are made up of individual gems and are held together with a shaped adhesive.  The clear backing lets you "audition" the placement of the word before you adhere it to your project.

If you lift the word with a tool you can gently place it on the paper - you do have to be careful not to stretch it too far.

This card is another one that is tricky to photograph however, it is "oh so shiny" in real life!  Do you like the snowflake medallion shape?  I have been designing lots of these with the Silhouette Studio software.

 

This round scalloped card is another cut from the CTMH Art Philosophy cartridge.  (Click HERE to go to my friend Melanie's CTMH site for more information. You will find many more sample projects and tutorials on Melanie's blog, Courtney Lane Designs, and you can contact Melanie directly with any questions at melliemel77@gmail.com (just tell her I sent you!).

I cut the card and the filigree layer at five inches.  The dark green card is Bazzill cardstock and the layer is Core'dinations gemstone cardstock (one of my favorites for cutting intricate designs like this).

Here is the filigree topper that I used (the card base is on the same key with the "Card" feature selected).

The offcut left on the mat will work perfectly to make a second card with the same base or it can be used for another project (I wonder who will spot it when I use it...).

The design is pretty just like this...

When you add lots of red gradient gem stickers (in three sizes and two shades of red) it becomes very elegant.

The round card can be side opening or you can rotate the fold to the top.  I added a red satin ribbon bow - when it is at the top, the card looks like a tree ornament.

If you came over from the Creative Charms blog to get more information about the card with the three trees, you can find all of the details HERE.


Creative Charms Mini-Giveaway winner...

The winner from the comments on my last Creative Charms posts chosen by random.org was surfnfroggie

Could you please contact me with your mailing information as soon as possible?  I'll be sending you...

...this package of Clear Vintage Jewels.

Please stop over to the Creative Charms blog HERE to see all of the Design Team projects.  Be sure to leave a comment on my post with these projects. Once again, I'll  have little giveaway for someone who comments here or on the Creative Charms blog (leave a comment in both places to double your chances).

You do not have to be a blog follower to win, however, if you like my blog and want to show your support for my work, please do follow or subscribe.  I also have a Capadia Designs Facebook page HERE and if you "like" that page you will see my daily posts in your news feed.

Don't forget about the Creative Charms Design Team call - you can find all of the details HERE.

a few more things...

click this image to find out more about the program

I just got information about a new program that Lettering Delights is offering exclusively for teachers.  This is a terrific offer that they are making to help teachers who often spend a lot of their own money to provide extras for their students.  This is a PILOT program and is only available for educators (teachers, home schoolers, student teachers) and an educator will need to send in proof in order to qualify.

Here is the information about the program from Lettering Delights:

Get hooked on UNLIMITED teachers-only access to thousands of fonts, colorful alphabets, graphics and clipart sets, printable tags and candybar wrappers, plus cut-it files for cutting machines at LetteringDelights.com all for just $130 for a whole year.

Hurry! This pilot beta program is available for a limited time and is reserved for a select number of professional teachers only**. Those eligible are teachers or student teachers of public, private, or charter institutions, or those who can provide proof of homeschooling their children. Please note, subscription will not be activated until proof has been received and approved.

Pay your annual membership fee to access the images you love in our easy-to-use online library. You can also download files directly to your computer to tackle all kinds of creative projects!

Build beautiful bulletin boards. Create darling student journals and scrapbooks. Personalize newsletters and notes. Design clever gifts and art. Customize practice pages and worksheets. Add colorful clipart and images to reports and assignments. And more!

Our teachers-only subscription allows you access to thousands of products in our current online gallery and dozens more added each month. This pilot program, available exclusively for teachers, will give you unlimited access for one full year to the following products:

• Over 600 fonts valued at close to $2000
• Over 700 colorful alphabet images valued at $2800
• Close to 300 dingbat fonts valued at almost $900
• Over 500 color graphic image sets (15 coordinating images per set) valued at $2100
• 1200 pieces of clipart (in both black-and-white and color) valued at $300
• Over 4000 cuttable files compatible with most electronic cutting machines valued at over $6000

***Click here for the teacher subscription licensing information.

*Occasionally we will have licensed artists whose product will not be available via subscription.
**All sign-ups must provide proof of status as a professional teacher before online access will be granted. Burden of proof is on the teacher, we will accept proof of employment by written letter (submitted on letterhead), a copy of a teacher badge, paystub, teacher contract, etc.

Today is the last day to get the special 30% off pricing on the new custom album covers from Creative Memories.  If you are not sure about the photo or layout you want to use for the album cover, you can still order a product credit at this great price.  You will have 180 days to use the credit and Creative Memories sends email reminders.  You can go back to the blog post from last week HERE to see more about the albums (scroll down a bit) and these links will take you to the pages twhere you can order a product credit.

12 x 12 album with side loading pages

12 x 12 custom album with pages and protectors

You do need to set up an account at the Digital Center to order the credit (very easy to do).  You will need a consultant ID to set up a new account - my number is 82352282.

I'll be ordering a couple of product credits since I haven't yet decided on a wedding photo to use for the cover(!) Please let me know if you have any questions about these albums.


Have a happy Tuesday - it is a particularly happy day for me because when I called the juror hotline Monday afternoon I found out that all jurors were cancelled - so I don't need to go to the courthouse for jury duty today after all! 


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