Craft-e-Corner Blog * Celebrate Your Creativity

New Craft-e-Corner Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 16:20:00 +0000

Hello Loyal Craft-e-Corner blog followers! We recently changed our blog platform and have a brand new blog! We're still committed to providing you with fun new project ideas, keeping you up to date on all the new releases and more! Please make sure you visit our new blog and most importantly- SUBSCRIBE! We don't want you to miss anything, so make the move with us and check out the new blog - http://www.craft-e-corner.com/blog

Easy & Inexpensive Father's Day Gift Idea and Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Wed, 10 Jun 2015 18:15:00 +0000

Father's Day is coming up! Skip the tie and make dad something special this Father's Day. Check out this functional, quick & easy, inexpensive gift idea that you can personalize just for him!

What dad wouldn't love tools for Father's Day? And who doesn't love to give or receive a personalized gift? This Father's Day hammer is easy to make with just a few supplies and -bonus- it's easy on the budget!

First you'll need a hammer. This can be any hammer- grab a used one from Goodwill or go shopping for a new one at the hardware store- just make sure you pick up a wooden handle hammer. My hammer has seen better days, but it will work perfect for this project!

Grab some sand paper and give the hammer a good sanding. You want to take the finish off the handle so your paint will stick.

Once you've sanded, grab some paint and paint on a thin layer. Just about any brand of paint will do, in this case I used some left over house paint! This step doesn't need to be perfect, just one coat will do. (This is a great step to let the kids help you with!)

Once you finish painting, let your paint dry and then give it a good sanding. I was going for a distressed paint look. If your dad prefers a less shabby chic look, you can certainly give the hammer another coat of paint at this point and don't sand it (sanding between layers will give you a smoother finish).

Next I measured my hammer. At the widest point it was about 1.5 inches and at the smallest point it was about 1 inch. I decided to make my letters 1 inch, you may need to adjust based on the size of your hammer and your quote length.

I opened my Silhouette Studio and typed out my saying. I decided on "Let's build some memories!" I used my favorite "manly" font- Stamp. You can download Stamp from dafont.com for free. (Remember when I used the Stamp font for this faux stamped washer necklace? I love a versatile font!)

TIP: To import a newly downloaded font into your Silhouette Studio, open Silhouette Studio and go to File>Import>Import To Library. Next, find your file (mine was a tff file). If you do not see your file where you saved it, you may need to change the file type you're searching for to "All Files" to bring it up. Double click on your font file and it will be added to your "My Fonts" part of your library. You can now use the font with your projects! Note: Use caution when downloading fonts from the internet. You don't want to download a virus! I have never encountered a virus on dafont.com, but use your own discretion here.

Next I cut the saying out with some Glossy Permanent Black Silhouette Vinyl. You could use any color that you choose though! I lined up the words to make sure they would fit:

Next use some transfer paper and add the saying to your hammer. One final step I always do with vinyl is to heat the vinyl with an embossing gun. This will make your vinyl melt into your surface and help it stick better. You can skip this step, but I like the extra hold.

Other saying ideas:

You Nailed It, Dad!
Thank you for helping me build my life!
Best Dad Ever!
Dad: Est. (Child's birth date)
#1 Dad
Let's Make Stuff!
(Dad's Name)'s Hammer
Happy (1st) Father's Day!
It's Hammer Time
Thor Has Nothing On You, Dad!

This idea can be used in so many ways beyond Father's Day too! New home gifts, wedding presents, graduation and more! I have found that a new tool is always a welcomed surprise.

What are your crafting for dad?

Share what your hammer would say!

Learn all about Silhouette Designer Edition Plus, Silhouette Studio Mobile, Silhouette Link, Silhouette Cloud- oh my!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Thu, 04 Jun 2015 22:14:00 +0000

Do you know how much Silhouette America loves creating awesome software? Silhouette's software is the gem, they really pride themselves on making easy to use, powerful software (and they succeed with flying colors, don't you think?). Silhouette has made some changes to their software and they're introducing ways to take your software anywhere by making it mobile! I'm so excited to share with you the changes that are coming soon!

Silhouette Design Studio PLUS

Silhouette Studio Designer Edition is getting a update! The Designer Edition Plus has new features specifically for sewing and fabric users! Designer Edition Plus includes advanced rhinestone functions (such as various size and shapes, new rhinestone pattern fill types, and on screen rhinestone rendering). With DE+ you'll be able to import various sewing file types and have the software auto-isolate. It will display underlying cut lines so that it will be easier to cut out projects for sewing applications. Once Designer Edition Plus brings in your file, there is not need to convert the file, to resize, or to recalculate! In other words, the DE+ will add in your seam allowance automatically!

The Designer Edition Plus is available in two ways:

If you have the standard software and want to update all the way up to the Designer Edition Plus, you can buy the full Designer Edition Plus Software.

If you already have Silhouette's Designer Edition software, and just want to upgrade to Designer Edition Plus, you can purchase just the Designer Edition Plus upgrade!

I love that you can choose to go from standard software to Designer Edition Plus or from Designer Edition to Designer Edition Plus! Options are great!

The software isn't available just yet, it's coming soon- but you can pre-order yours now! The DE+ is a code you'll enter to update your software. Since they're not a CD or physical card, we'll be able to email you the code as soon as they come in and you can get started right away! No waiting for them to come in the mail!

Silhouette Studio Mobile

Silhouette Studio Mobile gives you some serious artistic freedom! Create whenever and wherever inspiration strikes. Design on the go! This is great for busy schedules. Design while getting coffee at your favorite coffee house, while commuting on the train, waiting at the doctors office, on your lunch break and more! If inspiration strikes, start your designs right from your smart phone!

The Silhouette Studio Mobile is coming August 2015 and will be available in the Apple App Store, Google Play, Amazon Kindle and Windows Store! That means Apple and Android are both covered!

Silhouette Link

Silhouette Link is a new and exciting feature to Silhouette Studio! Send a cut job from any device directly to your Silhouette machine, remotely!

One free software update allows you to communicate with any Silhouette cutting machine. When used with Silhouette Studio Mobile, Silhouette Link is compatible with all types of tables, phones and other devices.

What does this mean? It means designing a image on your tablet and sending it to your computer that your Silhouette is plugged into. No more having to work only on your desktop. Design wherever you feel comfortable, inspired or when you have the time! Then send your image to the computer connected to your machine! Cannot wait for this feature!

Silhouette Cloud

With the Silhouette Cloud, all your Design Store library images will be synced so that they are accessible on other devices. Why should you get excited about syncing all your images?? Because, when used with Silhouette Mobile, your library is totally portable! You can finally take your projects with you- and design on the go!

With the Silhouette Cloud, you can sync up to 5 devices. This includes computers, laptops, tablets and smart phones!

With the Silhouette Cloud, you have unlimited storage for Silhouette Design Store downloads. You'll have 1 GB for custom content and, if you're a silhouette Design Store Subscriber, you'll get up to 5 GB!

Syncing images is super easy, just drag your designs into the Silhouette Cloud icon in your library and your images will become available across all of your devices!

The Silhouette Cloud is coming in August of 2015. And it's free! I can't wait to download and start designing with a tablet instead of having to use my computer all the time! How about you?

Silhouette released over 80 new products last month and we have them all available for preorder! Check out all the new Silhouette America products 2015! Learn all about the Silhouette Curio and Silhouette Mint and make sure you check back soon to learn more about the new releases! All these new goodies are coming in July/August and Fall of 2015!

What are your thoughts about all this new software?

Will you use your Silhouette wirelessly too??

Introducing the NEW Silhouette Mint!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Fri, 22 May 2015 16:41:00 +0000

Silhouette America just announced over 80 new products being released soon! Wednesday we introduced you to the Silhouette Curio! Today, it's my pleasure to introduce you to the new Silhouette Mint!

The Silhouette Mint is a tiny package that packs a powerful punch! With this machine, you can create your very own, unique STAMPS! Use the stamps for cards, scrapbooks, party favors, invites, gifts, planners and more!

What's in the Box?

The Silhouette Mint comes with the Mint Studio Software, Basic Instruction Guide, 15x60mm Stamp Kit, 30x30mm Stamp Kit, 4 Full Sized Ink Bottles (Black, Red, Blue and Yellow), Power Cord, USB Cord, 1 month FREE basic subscription to the Silhouette Design Store, and 50 exclusive downloadable designs.

New Inks

With Mint, you're not using a typical ink pad. You're not using an ink pad at all! Just drop a few of these new Mint inks onto the super absorbent stamp sheets and you can stamp about 50 times before you need to reink! Inks are available in brown, ask pink, magenta, red, yellow, green, ash blue, blue, purple and black.

The Mint is a powerful thermal printer. Create 3D relief custom designs.

Craft-e-Corner attended the Silhouette convention when all the new products were released and saw first hand how this machine works. Check out this stamp example we made:

This stamp was inked up with less ink than you would use for you own projects (because it was just for a demonstration) but how neat is it to be able to have such fine details? You can make whatever you want into a stamp! The stamp pad comes off of the block so you can use one block for multiple stamps. Just put the lid on the pad and pop a new stamp into the block.

The stamp surface is pretty flat. The ridges on the stamp don't pop out as much as a traditional rubber stamp. The drops of ink are put right on the stamp pad and you can achieve multiple colored stamps by selectively inking the pad. If you want all one color, you can do that too. I've used this stamp a few times to test it out and I couldn't make it get the corner edge stamp like you get sometimes with a traditional stamp, which I was both surprised and happy about! The image is crisp and, when fully inked, you can do a lot of images without having to ink your stamp up again (time saver!).

I really liked how the stamp just slides out of the block. This will save on storage and make it easier to travel with multiple stamps. I see great things coming with this new tool!

Check out some of these projects Silhouette America shared!

You'll be able to purchase Mint Stamp Sheet sets and Mint Stamp Kits. The Mint Stamp kits include 2 labels, 1 stamp mount, 1 stamp sheet and 1 stamp base. The Mint Stamp Sheet sets come with 4 labels, 2 stamp mounts and 2 stamp sheets. Both sets are available in the following sizes:

-15x15 mm
-15x30 mm
-15x60 mm
-30x30 mm
-30x60 mm
-45x45 mm
-45x90 mm

The Silhouette Curio, Silhouette Mint and LOTS of other goodies are coming out soon! Be sure to keep on checking back as we show off all the new things Silhouette just released. We are super excited to share all the new products with you!

What are your thoughts about the new Silhouette Mint??

Introducing the NEW Silhouette Curio

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Wed, 20 May 2015 20:25:00 +0000

Exciting news from Silhouette America! Just last week, Silhouette America announced the release of 83 new products! That's the largest number of new products that they have EVER released at once!

New machines, new accessories and new media! There are so many cool things coming- we just HAD to make a formal announcement!

Let's talk about the brand new Silhouette Curio machine!

The Silhouette Curio is the ultimate hobby machine. The Curio has many innovative features including dual carriage, adjustable base and raised clearance bar! You can now cut and draw at the same time (or load up two inks for faster sketching), use thicker materials (like wood, leather, foam and metals) and draw, etch, emboss, stipple, cut and more! With a full 8.5" wide workspace, you can create larger projects with the Curio!

What's in the Box?

The Silhouette Curio comes with the Silhouette Studio Software, Basic Instruction Guide, Regular Base (8.5x6"), Embossing Mat (8.5x6"), Cutting Mat (8.5x6"), Cutting Blade, Fine Embossing Tool, Wide Embossing Tool, Power Cord, USB Cord, 1 Month FREE basic subscription to the Silhouette Design Store and 50 exclusive downloadable designs!

New Tools

You can do so much with the Curio that there are some new tools being released as well! These tools help you unleash your creative possibilities!

Etching Tool
Customize charms, mixed media art, home decor and customized jewelry with the etching tool!

Stippling Tool
Use the stippling blade to create small dot patterns for a show stopping look! Use with foils and metals, or even on paper!

Fine Embossing/Wide Embossing
The fine embossing tool is designed to create a finer channel for a unique embossed look. It will add subtle, yet distinct marks on your projects.

The wide embossing tool will create a wider embossed channel for a broader embossed look.

Premium Blade/Deep Cut Blade
The Premium blade lasts up to three times longer than a regular Silhouette blade under normal cutting conditions. Get more bang for you buck with this blade!

The deep cut blade has a 2mm long blade that will cut through thicker materials.

New Felt Tip Pens

Silhouette America released three new sets of felt tip pens to use with the Curio too! The basic pack includes 8 pens (black, purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red and pink). The Natural Metallic Pack includes 4 pens (gold, copper, silver, white) and the Color Metallic Pack includes 4 pens (metallic black, metallic teal, metallic green and metallic pink). Swap your blade for one of these double ended pens and use to stipple or draw projects! These pens can be used with the Curio, Cameo and Portrait machines!

New Curio Media

There are a lot of new types of media coming out as well! Curio cutting mats and Curio embossing mats available in both 8.5x12" or 8.5x6" sizes.

Curio Score & Emboss Paper- Available in 5x7" and 8.5x11" (both sizes include 10 sheets/package). This paper is ideal to use with the Curio's Score & Emboss feature.

Curio Metal Etching Sheets - 5x6" sheets- the glossy metal surface contrasts beautifully with the silvery aluminum underneath! Use with the Silhouette Curio etching tool!

Curio Aluminum Stippling Sheets - 5x7" sheets/6 per package. Use these aluminum sheets to stipple any design with your Curio. Perfect for home decor, custom jewelry, home decor and more!

Check out some of the projects that Silhouette America created using the Curio!

We are super excited about the Curio! We will be getting everything in stock soon (exact date to be announced).

Make sure you stop by later on this week as we continue to show you all the new products coming out! You'll love what we have in store for you!

What are YOUR thoughts about the Silhouette Curio?

May the 4th Be With You - Product Spotlight: Glow in the Dark Heat Transfer Material

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 04 May 2015 16:29:00 +0000

Did you know that today is International Star Wars Day? May the 4th be with you (get it??).

With such a prestigious holiday <wink>, I just had to craft! What better thing to make than an awesome, glow-in-the-dark sleep shirt inspired by the Empire Strikes Back Logo?

Check out how I made this shirt and grab your free download at the end of the post!

We've made heat transfer shirts before (remember the coloring book shirts and the fun summer heat transfer projects)- but this was my first attempt at a "knock out" design (where one image is layered on top of another) and my first time "playing" with glow in the dark vinyl.

Unfortunately, I didn't document the steps on how to make this design, but I did want to highlight the vinyl I used (don't worry, there is a free Silhouette file download at the end of this post if you would like to create this shirt for yourself)!

I used Silhouette's Glow In The Dark Vinyl. This stuff REALLY glows in the dark after just a few moments of "charging" in the sun. In the daylight it looks like a pale yellow/green, but even in just a little bit of shade, it glows!

Glow in the dark vinyl works just like regular heat transfer material. There is a dull side and a shiny side. You want to make sure to REVERSE your design before cutting and then stick the shiny side of the vinyl on your mat. Reversing your design is vital because you are cutting your image upside down. If you don't remember this step, you will have backwards letters!

The shiny side is actually a backing sheet which you do not want to cut all the way through.

To make this knock out design, I first used my Silhouette Cameo to cut the entire design out in black vinyl and then weeded (removed) all the excess vinyl around the design and anything that I knew was going to be glow in the dark. I covered the design with a tea towel and ironed it on to my shirt.

Next I cut just the glow in the dark parts of the design out in glow in the dark vinyl. I wanted to reserve as much of the glow in the dark vinyl as I could. By not cutting all the way through the back of the clear transfer sheet, I was able to line up my glow in the dark vinyl with my already ironed on black vinyl. I covered the entire design with the tea towel and iron on the glow in the dark portion of the design.

Just a heads up: Glow in the dark vinyl is a little harder to weed than regular vinyl because the patterns on backside of the vinyl doesn't show the score lines like regular vinyl. I found that having good light will help show the lines- a task lamp really helped with this step.

I would also recommend bringing the design up on your computer and using it as a reference on where to weed. I used a Silhouette Hook Tool and a pair of tweezers to help weed these designs.

Check out this other shirt I made too- how cool??

As promised- you can get the updated version design here or get the Legacy Version here.
Please note that this design is an original design that I created and is copy written. While I'm happy to share and would love to see your finished shirts- but please do not sell this design or use it on shirts that are going to be sold.

If you have any questions about this design, please don't hesitate to ask!

A quick reminder too that our $50 shopping spree giveaway is ending in just under a week! That's $50 to Craft-e-Corner to spend as you please! We have over 100,000 products, you're bound to find something you'd like! Make sure you enter! Check out all the details and enter to win here.

What do you think of this design? Will you try your own knock out design?

May the 4th Be With You!

How to Color Etched Glass using Rub 'n Buff Patina

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Sat, 02 May 2015 12:24:00 +0000

Yesterday I showed you how to make your own DIY Fizzy Bath Bombs. Today I want to show you how to make a cute jar for them to go in!

The bath bombs I showed you how to make in yesterdays blog post are a perfect gift for Mother's Day! I wanted to make them look cute in the bathroom too, so I decided to make a jar for them to go in.

After a lot of indecision, I chose to keep it simple and etch "{relax}" on the jar. I designed the file in my Silhouette Studio Software. I measured my jar and drew a square to fit the front of the jar, then centered the saying in the middle. For anyone interested, the font I chose was Helvetica. I can't say I use Helvetica that often, but I do love a good font! I have my "go to" list of fonts:

but Helvetica seemed to fit well for this project. I know that was an off tangent about fonts, but I think a font can really make or break a project, don't you?

So back to how to make our jar...

1. I cut my design out of vinyl using my Silhouette Cameo and then applied the "negative" to the jar. You want to remove the parts you want etched, in this case, I wanted just the words etched.

Tip: Once I applied the vinyl, I heated it up the entire design with my embossing heat gun. I always do this step when using vinyl for painting or etching, it helps to adhere the vinyl and seal up the edges to prevent the paint or etching cream from leaking under the stencil.

2. Next I used some Silhouette Etching Cream to etch my words into my jar. I painted on an even layer of etching cream using an ~~old~~ trusty paint brush.

Tip: Shake your etching cream a lot to ensure it's mixed well before you use it!

3. After letting the etching cream sit for just one minute (it works fast!), I washed the etching cream off in the sink with a little running water. You can now peel off the vinyl.

4. Dry your jar well. You can see the etching without color, but it's a more subtle look. At this point I saw that my etching cream didn't etch evenly in all areas. I didn't clean my jar was before etching, which likely caused it to not etch evenly.

Tip: Use rubbing alcohol to clean you surface and remove any finger prints before etching!

5. Put a very small blob of Rub 'n Buff on your finger. Rub 'n Buff comes in a lot of different colors- I love this stuff! I used Patina Rub 'n Buff and can't wait to use other colors for different projects. A little bit goes a long way. You can use a soft cloth to apply it, but your finger works just as well too.

6. Rub the Rub 'n Buff into the etching in a circular motion. Work quickly, and in sections if you have a large project.

7. Use a soft cloth to wipe away the excess Rub 'n Buff. It will come off the glass surface, but stay in the etched areas! Don't let it sit for too long or it won't want to come off.

8. Fill the jar with bath bombs and give as a gift or display in your bathroom!

In the end, my jar came out a little more shabby chic than I had originally planned, but I love the way it turned out! I've made glass etched jars in the past- remember this jar I etched for Breast Cancer Awareness? I bet the Ruby Rub 'n Buff would look great on this jar too!

Rub 'n Buff can be used on all sorts of surfaces, from wood to metal and more. It's a wax finish that you can use for antiquing, crafting, decorating... You just rub it on, then buff it with a soft cloth to make it shine! This stuff is awesome for updating door knobs, picture frames, lamps, tables, candle sticks- too many places to list! I just discovered this stuff and love it already! Check out all the Rub 'n Buff colors here.

Don't forget to enter to WIN a $50 shopping spree to Craft-e-Corner! It's good on ANYTHING in the store! We have over 100,000 products- you're sure to find just what you need for your next project!

Also make sure to take advantage of the 10% off Store Wide Sale! Sale and giveaway ends on Mother's Day - 5.10.15 - don't miss out!

What will you etch on your jar?

Humor me and share if you have a favorite font choice!

DIY Bath Bombs - Great Gift For Mother's Day! + $50 Shopping Spree Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Fri, 01 May 2015 16:32:00 +0000

Mother's Day is just a little over a week away! How about making Mom some DIY Fizzy Bath Bombs? They're easy to do and make a great gift!

Have you ever heard or used a fizzy bath bomb? Bath bombs can cost upwards of $8 a piece from specialty stores. You add bath bombs to a bathtub of warm water and they fizz and can be very relaxing. They're so easy to make, and you can choose your own scents by making them yourself. You may even have some of the ingredients on hand!

First you need to gather your ingredients:

DIY Fizzy Bath Bombs Recipe:

1 Cup Baking Soda
1/2 Cup Citric Acid (found by canning supplies, may be seasonal)
1/2 Cup Corn Starch (Optional)
1/4 Cup Epsom Salt (Usually found in the First Aid section)
2 teaspoons melted coconut oil (or other oil of choice)
2 teaspoons + water
10-20 drops of Essential Oils
Food Coloring (optional)

1. Whisk your dry ingredients together. The kids helped with this step!

2. Add in the essential oils and melted coconut oil. Use your hands to mix and incorporate. Add in a little bit of water at a time (you may need more than 2 teaspoons). You can also add in food coloring at this point (I added a few drops of red to make this pink color).

I made two different types of bath bombs. One was a relaxing bomb and the other was a "cheer up" bomb. In the relaxing bombs, I added 5 drops Balance, 5 drops Serenity, 5 drops Lavender and 2 drops Vetiver. For the "cheer up" bombs, I did 5 drops Bergamont, 5 drops Wild Orange, 5 Drops Grapefruit and 5 drops Lime. I used DoTerra Essential Oils, but feel free to use whatever essential oils you prefer. You may be able to make these without adding in Essential Oils, but I have not tried it to know how they are without. Add more or less Essential Oils depending on your preference.

3. Keep adding water in until you get a dough like consistency. Your dry ingredients will fizz as you add the water- avoid adding too much water.

4. Press your bath bomb dough into your molds. I used the bottom of left over Easter eggs, but you can use ice cube trays, silicone cupcake liners and more. The dough really holds even intricate details and you can make them into any shape!

5. Since I was using hard plastic Easter eggs, I was able to pack the dough in really well. When the mold was full, I pressed the bath bombs against parchment paper to make the bottoms flat.

6. Next I tapped the Easter eggs on edge and popped the bath bomb out. Since these contain Essential Oils- you do not want to let them sit in anything plastic (Essential Oils can react with plastic). Once I popped the bath bombs out of the molds, I let them air dry overnight on parchment paper.

I'm not sure why, but the relax bath bombs got little bumps all over them:

I thought it turned out extra cute being bumpy and it doesn't seem to have affected the bombs at all. The "cheer up" bombs were smooth.

This recipe made about 15 bath bombs!

Finish up your bath bombs and make this cute jar for them to go in! Check out this full tutorial on how to etch and color in the etched glass!

Don't forget that our $50 Craft-e-Corner shopping spree giveaway is still going on! Giveaway ends 5.10.15 so you still have time to get your entries in!

Also make sure you take advantage of the sale going on at Craft-e-Corner.com! Save 10% off Storewide! Mother's Day is 5.10.15- check out our Great Gifts for something Mom will love!

7 Green Crafting Projects to Inspire you for Earth Day

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Wed, 22 Apr 2015 17:59:00 +0000

Today is Earth Day! Crafting green can be so much fun. I enjoy the challenge of making something new out of something old or something others may consider garbage. Don't you?

We have a lot of great projects you can try while crafting green! Check out all the great projects with links to full tutorials, below!

1. Turn burnt out light bulbs into fun and festive Christmas ornaments. Check out the three fun Christmas ornaments made using burnt out bulbs!

2. Save your dreams and the planet with this DIY dream catcher! Abbey used a broken necklace to adorn this sweet dream catcher- get full directions on how to make a dream catcher.

3. These recycled tag necklaces are fun and super easy to make. Just a few materials and you have a personalized necklace in seconds! Can you guess what we used to make these two charms? Find full directions on how to make the easiest gift ever using recycled materials!

4. Don't toss those wine corks after your last sip of bubbly! Save those corks and turn them into magnets! See how quick you can green up your fridge with this Wine Cork Fridge Magnet Tutorial.

5. Your favorite $5 coffee comes wrapped in a sleeve that is perfect for recycling and using in crafts. See how to make this Love you a Latte card featuring a Starbucks Coffee sleeve!

6. Bust out your favorite catalog and look for color blocks to use in crafting! This card was created without a die cutting machine and sewn up with a sewing machine to add detail. See the full tutorial here.

7. Breathe new life into an old picture frame and create this back 2 school picture frame! See how this frame looked before the re-due and find out how to make your own photo frame for your kids back to school pictures!

What is YOUR favorite way to craft green?

Which project are you going to give a try?

Would you like to WIN a free $50 shopping spree to Craft-e-Corner? Don't forget to enter our Remember Mom giveaway! Giveaway ends 5/10/15- find the full giveaway details here!

Remember Mom Sale & WIN $50 Shopping Spree Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 20 Apr 2015 17:38:00 +0000

Mother's Day is 5/10/15 and just around the corner. Celebrate and remember your Mom this year and check our our Mother's Day sale! You can save up to 90%! Your Mom has done a lot for you, so get her something nice, we'll help you save with great, low, Craft-e-Corner prices!

Double up your gifts this year and enter to WIN a $50 Craft-e-Corner Shopping Spree! Read below for all the details on how YOU could win! (Giveaway and sale ends 5.10.15)

Would you like to win a $50 Shopping Spree to Craft-e-Corner??

No doubt, Mom will love any of our great gift ideas or sale items, but why not double your gift this year and win Mom a shopping spree too! Enter to WIN a FREE $50 to Craft-e-Corner! Entering is simple and there are lots of ways to gain EASY points.

Here's how you earn entries:

5 Entries

Send a photo of you crafting with Mom, for Mom or about Mom! We have wildly talented followers- share your projects and gain entries! Email your quality photo to service@craft-e-corner.com with subject line "Giveaway." Make sure to include your first and last name in your email so we know who to give entries to.

5 Entries

Sign up for the Craft-e-Corner newsletter. Receive weekly updates about sales, giveaways, coupon codes, great tips and tricks and project inspiration!

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Refer a friend to Craft-e-Corner. Have them sign up for our newsletter, follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Give us their name and you get 5 entries .

1 Entry

Like Craft-e-Corner on Facebook! We share fun stories and projects - and your opinion is always heard on Facebook. Grab this entry today- we'd love to have you "like" us.

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While you're on Facebook, share about this giveaway and give me a link showing your share! You can do this once a day, so rack up those points and let your friends and family know about our giveaway.

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Leave some blog love below and get a point! Tell us about your mom - what makes her special?

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Check out our other blog posts- we have a lot of fun projects, inspiration and information in our blog and archive - leave a comment on any other blog post (and provide the link) and get another point!

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Pin a favorite Craft-e-Corner product to your Pinterest board. We have so many great products to pick from- choose your favorites and pin away! You can do this once a day, so take some time to check out everything we have to offer!

Get your points and make sure to enter your points into the Rafflecopter below! The giveaway ends on May 10nd, 2015 so get your points while you can!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

How to Put Vinyl on A Curved Surface - Take 2

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Tue, 14 Apr 2015 19:23:00 +0000

I had this brightly colored flower pot that was just begging to have a fun quote put on it.

About this time last year I made another lovely little flower pot to show how to put vinyl on a curved surface. I found a great video on YouTube that showed how to put vinyl on a bike helmet really well. Unfortunately the video was removed from YouTube and it left many wondering just how to put things on a curved surface. I created this new pot to show the steps and share some more tips about working with vinyl!

If you haven't checked out the previous tutorial on putting vinyl on a curved surface, I would recommend checking that out first. I prepped my vinyl the same way with this pot as I did previously.

For anyone curious, the font choices here are Noteworthy and KG Eyes Wide Open (both available for free download on dafont.com)

I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out all my words and then I weeded my design using my Silhouette hook tool. I used the score lines on the backing sheet left by the Cameo blade to line up my accent words. This style turned out really cute last time so I went with it again!

I tried to find a quote that would go really well with a sunny yellow pot, but I just wasn't finding one that I liked. Then I watched the movie Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs with my kids and heard Leslie Gore's song "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows."

It's been stuck in my head for about a week now...

I modified the refrain from the song a little bit (because space is limited on the pot), and I think it's a perfect fit!

Once you weed your design, you'll want to use transfer paper. Transfer paper is an sticky sheet that helps you move your vinyl from the vinyl backing sheet to your project surface. I prefer to use Silhouette premium transfer paper which is opaque, but there are some clear varieties of transfer paper (or transfer tape) out there too. To put transfer paper on a larger design, you'll want to work the backing sheet off as you apply the transfer paper to the vinyl. This was hard to take a good photo of- but this is how I did it:

Fold back the backing on the transfer paper on one end and apply the transfer paper over the vinyl. Start on one side and then slide the transfer paper backing off as your work across the surface covering the vinyl.

Once you have the transfer paper over your vinyl, you'll want to burnish the transfer paper onto the vinyl. Vinyl has a sticky backing and burnishing helps the vinyl stick to your transfer paper and release from the backing sheet. To burnish, you'll want to use a tool of some sort to rub over your entire design. In this case, I used a paint stir stick, but a bone folder, scraper or even a credit card can be used instead.

At this point you'll have a sandwich that includes: | backing sheet | vinyl | transfer paper |

Next flip your design over and then cut a little notch in the backing sheet. I went with about a half inch notch.

Snip both the bottom and the top of your backing sheet at about the same spot

Next peel off the strip of backing sheet:

Your backing sheet might not come up in a perfect strip- that's okay- we're not going for perfection here. You'll want to fold your backing sheet strip backwards on itself as you remove it from the vinyl and push down as you go so the vinyl sticks to the transfer sheet and you don't take any letters with you as you remove the strip.

Once you have your strip taken off, you'll be ready to transfer the vinyl to your pot.

One of the challenges with putting vinyl on a round or curved object, like this pot, is that the piece never wants to sit still while you work with it! You're likely to have it roll right off the table while trying to center your vinyl if you don't stabilize it first. To make putting the vinyl on easier, I grabbed this rice bag that I made some time ago and nestled my pot on it. Don't have a rice bag? You can use a bag of beans, or even balance your piece in your lap instead.

Once your pot is secure, take your quote and line up the top of the quote with the top of your pot. Press the exposed transfer paper strip to the middle of the pot.

The next part can get kind of tricky, but it's still very doable! Work with just one side of the quote at a time here.

Fold over your quote and start removing the backing sheet from one side at a time. Press the transfer paper to the surface of the pot as your remove the backing sheet.

Once you have one side down, repeat the process on the other side:

Now you should have a new sandwich | flower pot | vinyl | transfer paper |

Burnish your vinyl onto the pot by rubbing over it once again. The goal is to get the vinyl to come off the transfer paper and to stick to the pot.

Once you have burnished your vinyl, you can remove the transfer paper. To remove the transfer paper, start on one side and fold it over on itself. Peel it backwards and press down any letters that might not want to stick to the pot.

At this point I didn't realize that the r from "together" was missing! I'm still not sure where it went... If this happens to you- no worries! I simply cut another r out of vinyl and eyeballed it to line it up.

Presto! You have successfully transferred vinyl onto a curved surface! Let your vinyl "cure" on the surface for at least 72 hours before you do much with it. This will allow the vinyl to really stick. I planted a little hen and chick plant in this pot. I don't have the greenest of thumbs, but I have heard these are hearty plants, so I am hopeful that it thrives in its new home!

I hope this helped explain the process better! If you have any questions or are having problems getting this technique to work- please let me know! I'm here to help!

What quote would you put on a sunny yellow flower pot?

National Craft Month 2015 Silhouette Cameo Giveaway WINNER!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 19:37:00 +0000

We celebrated the entire month of March with our National Craft Month sale and giveaway! We had over 2,000 entries into the Silhouette Cameo giveaway and used RaffleCopter to pick a winner! I know you're all dying to know who the lucky winner was....

The winner's entry that was picked came from submitting a photo of a craft project! We got so many great inspirational photos, it was so much fun seeing all the creative things our customers make! Check out some of the photos, below.

Without further adieu...

Congrats Stephanie! We have already contacted Stephanie via email and boy was she ecstatic!

Didn't win this time? No worries! We've extended our 10% everything in the Silhouette Category sale! Use coupon code SILHOUETTE10 for 10% off ANYTHING in the Silhouette Category- including all Silhouette Cameo bundles, accessories and more! Not sure which Cameo bundle to choose? Check out this blog post with all the different bundle options- or go right to our Silhouette Cameo section on the website to browse! The coupon code expires 4/10/15- don't miss your chance to get these extra savings!

Here's some other photos from giveaway entries:
(Note: We had SO MANY wonderfully talented crafters send in photos that not all of them are shown here- this is a random selection of photos from the entries)

Submitted by Brittney M

Submitted by Jeniruth

Submitted by Dassi

Submitted by Rain

Submitted by Polly

Submitted by Lisa

Submitted by Wendy

Submitted by Darlene

Submitted by Holly

Thank you to EVERYONE who entered the giveaway! We love doing giveaways and love having you enter to WIN!

What would you like the chance to WIN? We're open to suggestions for future giveaway ideas- tell us your ideas, we just might run with it!

How to Space Things Evenly in Silhouette Studio (Perfectly, Every Time)

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Thu, 26 Mar 2015 21:31:00 +0000

Have you seen those beautiful word art projects on Pinterest that make your inner perfectionist extra happy? The words are all evenly spaced and exactly centered and you wonder (to yourself) how they achieved such perfection? If they're using a Silhouette Cameo with the Silhouette Studio Software, it's super easy! Let's take a look at how to perfectly align and space things using the align window!

I wanted to make a piece of word art and I knew that I wanted my words to fit in a specific amount of space and be equally spaced within that area. You could try to space things out yourself, or you could utilize the align window! The align window comes in super handy when you want things perfectly spaced (even more so if you're not working with words).

For my project, I typed out all my words using a text box. For each line, I created a new text box, which I often do with this type of project in case I want to make certain lines bigger than others.

Since I will be using the align window to get everything spaced equally, I didn't spend much time worrying about where the lines fall on the page.

Now lets get things shaped up! Click the align button in your tool bar. It looks like three rectangles with a line behind them.

To turn what I had on the left into what I want on the right, I selected all the words I wanted to align. To do this, I clicked and held my mouse button and then dragged a rectangle around all my words to select everything. You can also click on each item you want to align while holding the shift key.

To get everything lined up like I wanted, I first clicked "Align Center" and then "Space Vertically."

Align center will get everything to align in the middle. Space vertically puts equal space between lines (top and bottom). You can also align to the right or left and to the top, middle or bottom. The other forms of alignment are handy too, depending on what you are working with.

The align window works with shapes and other things, too! Take these hexagons for example, these would be almost impossible to line up by eye:

With these you can align them by top, middle, or bottom, but I selected top and this got them all lined up. Next I wanted them all equally spaced so I spaced them horizontally.

This function is pretty basic, but super useful when you're designing!

I hope you found this helpful and that it gives you some ideas on how to quickly get your ducks in a row (haha).

Have you stopped by and entered to WIN a Silhouette Cameo yet? The giveaway is coming to a close VERY SOON! Check out the Silhouette Cameo Giveaway for all the details! I can't wait to pick a winner!

Watercolor Thank You Tags

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 17:54:00 +0000

Has anyone noticed the recent trend with all things watercolor? From watercolor pillows and shirts, to tattoos and art work- watercolor seems to be popping up everywhere! I am in love with this trend! There is something about the soft, fluid texture of watercolor that I can't get enough of.

Did you know that you can achieve watercolor with special colored pencils and markers? Gone are the days of the messy watercolor palette that you used as a kid! Water color markers and pencils are the easy way to get the watercolor effect without the mess! Check out this beautiful thank you tag I made this weekend:

Let me show you how easily it is to use watercolor pencils!

First gather your supplies! I grabbed my watercolor pencils (I have the Derwent Watercolor pencils, but you can use any watercolor pencils), a cereal box to make a template and some plain craft tags. I created a honeycomb on my Cameo and used my machine to cut a stencil out of the cereal box. You can make your own stencil like I did, use a premade stencil, or forgo a stencil all together- it all depends on the end result you're looking for.

I centered my stencil over my tag and then traced the pattern with the watercolor pencils. They feel just like regular colored pencils! I decided to just do the outline of the hexagons to give a softer end result, but you can color the stencil in if you want a darker finished effect.

Once all the hexagons were traced, I grabbed a small, (well loved) paint brush. I dipped the paint brush in a little bit of water, dabbed it off on a paper towel and then "painted" over the watercolor pencil. You don't want to use too much water here, it will make your tag crumble if it gets too wet. Start on the outside and work your way in until the hexagon is filled in. I found I could do several hexagons before getting more water. Make sure to wash your brush out between colors.

I skipped a few hexagons to leave a spot to finish off the tag, I stamped "thanks" with a rubber cling stamp.

Super simple and easy- and it yields such pretty results!

I couldn't stop at just one, so I had fun with a few other variations:

I hope you enjoyed this quick and easy tutorial!

Don't forget to stop by our Silhouette Cameo Giveaway and enter to win your very own Cameo!

Also- March is National Craft month- check out our great sales!

What are your thoughts on the watercolor trend?

How to Cut FELT With a Silhouette Cameo

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 20:46:00 +0000

Today is Girl Scout Day! In 1912, Juliet Gordon Low started the first Girl Scout troop. Today, Girl Scouts has become a nationally recognized organization and millions of girls are involved! I have a Daisy Scout and our troop has our first cookie booth this weekend! I decided to make cute cookie costumes to draw more attention to our booth and used my Silhouette Cameo to cut the felt. I learned a few tricks along the way and found TWO ways to use my Cameo with felt. Let me share some know how with you!

I saw this pin which lead to a tutorial to make no-sew felt dahlia flowers on Lines Across. I loved the flowers and thought they would be perfect accessories for my cookie costumes. I traced the pattern Rachel had shared in her tutorial in my Silhouette Studio and created a cut file my Cameo could use (Need a brush up on how to trace? Check out our Silhouette 101: How To Trace Tutorial).

I have never used my Cameo to cut felt before, so I wasn't sure exactly how it was going to work. First I tried sticking the felt directly to the mat and tried to cut. That didn't work at all (I wasn't really expecting it to). The felt bunched and didn't cut at all.

I know it is a lot easier to cut fabric, including felt, with your Cameo if you stabilize the material first. I grabbed Silhouette's Heat Transfer Fabric Interfacing and decided to try again:

The heat transfer interfacing comes in sewable and clean cut. These flowers are no-sew, so I opted for the clean cut.

The heat transfer interfacing comes in a large sheet and the back has a shiny texture to it. This is the side you want to put against your fabric. The instructions say to cut the interfacing to 1" larger than your material, iron it on and then trim off the excess, but that seems wasteful, so I just cut my interfacing to the same size as my felt and ironed it on. Once you have it ironed on, you can peel off the backing sheet.

You'll see that the interfacing leaves a shiny layer on the back of your felt. This will help your Cameo cut through the material. I stuck my felt to my mat, interfacing side down.

Below is a screen shot of the cut settings I used. I selected the "Thick fabric like canvas" pre-setting, but had to adjust the blade depth and put it up to 10. To adjust your blade depth, just click the little arrow button next to the picture of the blade. While you're here, make sure to check the double cut box too!

I sent the file to my Cameo and hoped it would work!

It cut perfectly and left me all my little flower pieces behind on the mat!

The backing is shiny, which may not be the perfect solution to your project, if you want JUST felt, read on for a second method of using the Cameo + felt. If you don't mind the shiny back, you can skip ahead to see how to assemble the flowers.

For JUST felt when I finish cutting the flower petals, I swapped out my blade for a Silhouette Sketch Pen and had the Cameo draw out the pattern on freezer paper.

Freezer paper can be found in most grocery stores around where you would find aluminum foil and snack baggies:

I put a piece of freezer paper on my cutting mat, sketched out the petals with the sketch pen, peeled off the pattern and then ironed the freezer paper right onto my felt. Using some fabric scissors, I cut out all those petals by hand.

This was a little more tedious than having the Cameo cut out the petals for me, but the best part is that the freezer paper peels off without leaving any shiny backing or residue:

Once you have all your petals cut out, fold the bottom of the petals over on themselves to make a cone shape. Just a dab of hot glue will hold it in place. Evenly space your petals out around the circle back that you have cut and then glue them down with more hot glue. Starting with the largest petals along the outside and working your way into the middle.

I put a small pom pom in the middle of my flowers and hot glued a magnets to the back.

These are strong magnets! I hot glued one on the flower and used a second magnet on the inside of the cookie costumes. The magnets stick together through the felt. This lets me move the flower around on the costume and even take it off afterwards! It doubles as a fashion accessory or even a fridge magnet!

I used both the interfacing and freezer paper stencil methods mentioned above to complete my cookie costumes. For the eyes and eyebrows, I used the interfacing and was able to just iron the layers together- super simple!

A few tips on cutting felt with your Cameo:

1- Use a sharp blade! You'll want a fresh blade for this project!
2- Make sure to check inside your blade after you cut felt to make sure there aren't any fuzzies stuck inside the blade. (Learn how to open up your blade and clean it out with our Silhouette Cameo Blade Tutorial). If you're cutting a lot of pieces, you may want to pause cutting and check to make sure you get a clean cut.
3- Use a stabilizer. The fabric will move around and get bunched up if you don't stabilize it first.
4- Remember that some types of felt are acrylic and can melt with too much heat! Keep this in mind when ironing your interfacing on and your pieces together. The good news is if you DO melt the felt to your iron, turn your iron off, let it cool completely and then you can just pick off the melted felt goo (ask me how I know this...)

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and find inspiration! Seek out a local Girl Scout Troop to buy some cookies from this season!

Are you looking to make your own cookie costume? Here's an extra tip if so: I hot glued my felt cookies onto hula hoops to maintain their shape! I left the little rattly bits inside the hula hoops so the girls can wiggle and make noise (it may save a bored Daisy Scout!)

What's your favorite Girl Scout Cookie?

Mine is Thin Mints - YUM!

What will you make with your Cameo + felt?

The possibilities are truly endless!

Which Cameo Bundle Should YOU Choose?

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 21:02:00 +0000

The Silhouette Cameo is an awesome machine! You can do so much with it from paper crafting to working with vinyl and much much more!

We have a LOT of Cameo bundles available. One question we hear a lot is "Which Cameo bundle should I choose?" To help you pick, I've broken down what's included in each bundle, below!

(in no particular order)

Cameo + Heat Transfer

The Cameo + Heat Transfer Kit is perfect if you'd like to get started with heat transfer material. With heat transfer, you can make your own shirts, accessories and more. The heat transfer kit includes 3 sheets of smooth heat transfer material (black, teal & dark pink), 2 sheets of flocked (fuzzy) heat transfer (white & yellow), a hook tool, and download card. Find heat transfer inspiration here: DIY Coloring Book Shirts

Cameo + Rhinestone Starter Kit

The Cameo + Rhinestone Starter Kit is great if you want to learn how to use your machine with rhinestones. The Rhinestone Starter Kit comes with 2 sheets of rhinestone template material, 2 backing boards, 2 transfer tape sheets and 200 each of 10ss clear, black and pink rhinestones! Add rhinestones from shirts, hats & more.

Cameo + Adhesive Kit

The Cameo + Adhesive Kit is great if you want to add some glitter to your projects. Perfect for home decor or cardmaking! The adhesive kit includes 6 sheets of double sided adhesive sheets, 3 different colors of glitter, 3 colors of flocking powder, spatula, brush and designs. Get some double sided adhesive inspiration here: Some Bunny Loves You Card

Cameo + Vinyl Starter Kit

Are you interested in using your Cameo with vinyl? This is the perfect bundle for you! The Vinyl Starter Kit comes with 4 different colors of vinyl, transfer paper, a hook and a scraper. This is a great way to get some different colors of vinyl and learn how to work with it before investing in a whole roll. Click here for some vinyl inspiration: Garden Flower Pot, Faux stamped washer necklace and Peeps Easter Charger

Cameo + Fabric Ink Kit

If you're interested in getting started with Fabric Ink, the Cameo + Fabric Ink Kit is right for you. Make your own personalized t-shirts, bags, hats, baby onsies and more! The Fabric Ink Kit includes 2 oz of fabric ink, 3 feet stencil vinyl and transfer tape, a hook, mixing tray, sponge and more.

Cameo + Designer Edition Software

The Cameo + Designer Edition software is the bundle I always recommend if you are looking to make your own designs. The Designer Edition software is an upgrade to the basic software that comes stock with the machine. The Designer Edition allows you to use SVG files and use layers. You also have advanced erase & knife features, have sketch & rhinestone conversion tools and can use the nesting feature. This is a MUST HAVE if you are a designer!

Cameo + Metallic Sketch Pens + Quick Pick Up Stick

Are you interested in sketching with your Cameo? Replace your blade with the Metallic Sketch Pens and draw instead of cut. Also included in this bundle is the Quickstick Pick Me Up Tool. This handy tool has a sticky end that helps picking up small embellishments like rhinestones. Find some sketch pen inspiration here: Back to Basics: Sketching

Cameo + Stamper Bundle

If you're into stamping then you'll love the Cameo + Stamper Bundle! This bundle has a gray dust cover, 123 Stamp DVD to cover stamping basics, a full set of Megan Elizabeth Ink Edgerz, a full roll of stamp material and a the stamp cutting mat! Make your own stamps in no time!

Cameo + 2 rolls of vinyl, 4 tools

Have you seen vinyl projects just about everywhere you look and want to give your hand a try? This is the bundle for you! 2 full rolls of vinyl plus all the tools you need to work with detailed cuts!

Cameo + Blade & Mat

The Cameo + Blade & Mat combo is a great bundle whether you're just planning on crafting for fun or if you have a business plan set up or anywhere in between. You'll eventually need another blade and mat, and this bundle has you covered! You will have two blades and two mats, so you'll always have a backup!

Cameo + 4 tools & $25 download card

The Cameo + 4 tools and $25 download card is one of our most popular bundles! If you're don't want to design your own images and would really like to work with premade designs, the $25 download card will get you started with images from the Silhouette Design Store. With all the tools you need to work with all types of materials, this is a great starter bundle!

Cameo + Card Maker Bundle

The Cameo + Card Marker Bundle is great for beginner card markers to advanced! This bundle includes the 123 Cards DVD that is full of tips and ideas for cards, a set of Megan Elizabeth Chipboard stickers, a 12" PixScan Mat and a pack of corrugated cardboard.

Cameo + Drawing bundle

The Cameo + Drawing bundle is great if you'd like to use your machine to draw. Replace your blade with the sketch pens and sketch away! This bundle also includes white sticker paper to make your own stickers, a dust cover, spatula and the Silhouette pen holder. With the Silhouette Pen Holder, you can use any writing utensil from a #2 pencil to Sharpies and more! Find some sketching inspiration here: "It Just Won't Be the Same Without U" Card, Graduation Zipper Pull Card

Cameo + Heat and fabric transfer bundle

Want to use your Cameo to cut fabric? Pick up the Cameo + Heat and Fabric transfer bundle. This bundle includes a fabric blade, Clean Cut and Sewable heat transfer fabric interfacing, a 12x24" cutting mat and two rolls of heat transfer material! With this bundle you can design your own shirts, cut fabric with your Cameo and a 12x24" mat. Don't think you'll cut anything 24" long? Think of it as two 12" mats stuck together! Get heat transfer inspiration here: Summer Heat Transfer Project

Cameo + Tweed Tote

Are you the type to back up your crafting and go to a cropped? Do you travel? Would you like a place to store your machine, laptop and crafting materials? The Cameo + Tweed Tote is for you! This bundle is great if you like to take your crafts with you. Securely hold your Cameo and your laptop, plus lots of crafting supplies and paper!

Disclaimer: Bundles may change or be discontinued at any time without notice. This information may not be the most up to date. Please see website for current prices and bundle information.

I hope you found this information helpful! Of course we're always here to help if you have questions or need more help picking the right bundle for you!

Also, don't forget, our National Craft Month Sale is in full swing! Save up to 90% on hundreds of popular craft supplies!

Have you entered our Silhouette Cameo Giveaway yet? It's going on right NOW and you could WIN a Cameo! No purchase necessary!

Which Cameo Bundle would YOU pick? We are constantly adding NEW Cameo bundles, check them all out here: Silhouette Cameo Machine Bundles

Silhouette Cameo Giveaway! Celebrate National Craft Month With Us!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 02 Mar 2015 15:30:00 +0000

Craft-e-Corner is giving away a Silhouette Cameo!!!! That's a lot of exclamation points, but I am so excited about this giveaway! Let me explain a little more...

March is National Craft Month and Craft-e-Corner is celebrating all month long! Our goal is to celebrate the love of crafting and inspire people to create time to be creative and craft.

We thought, what better way to celebrate crafting than by giving away a SILHOUETTE CAMEO!

The Silhouette Cameo is one of the hottest die-cutting machines on the market! These machines are flying off of the shelves! You can cut paper, vinyl, fabric & so much more! The creative possibilities of this sleek and stylish machine are endless!

WIN THE CAMEO!

There are is a total of 21 possible entries! Yes, that's right, twenty one!

Use the Raffle Copter entry form at the bottom of this post to enter.

Here are some ways you could win!

Sign up to receive the Craft-e-Corner Newsletter. Our e-mails are jam-packed with project inspiration, sales, tips, tricks, videos and so much more! (5 entries!!!!)
Refer a friend: Have a crafty friend? Get them to sign up for our newsletter. (5 entries!!!)
Submit a photo of a craft project: We want to see what you craft! Send a quality photo to service@craft-e-corner.com of any project you've made. Only one entry will count per person, but show off those crafting skills! (Make sure to include your first and last name with your email!) (5 entries)
"Like" Craft-e-Corner on Facebook. (1 entry)
Share the Giveaway on Facebook: Share about the giveaway on Facebook daily for extra entries (1 entry per daily share)
Subscribe to follow the Craft-e-Corner Blog by email. (At the top-right side of our blog homepage, enter your e-mail address into the box under 'Follow Us By Email' and click SUBSCRIBE!) (1 entries)
Leave a blog comment: Leave a comment on this post about what you would craft with a Silhouette Cameo! (1 entry)
Leave a comment on any of our other blog posts: Scan back through the Craft-e-Corner blog posts and comment on any other post. (1 entry)
Pin the square Cameo Giveaway icon (below) on to your Pinterest page, can be done daily. Please add hastags #Craft-e-Corner #Cameo #giveaway #NationalCraftMonth (1 entry per daily pin)

...but wait! There's MORE!

If that's not enough excitement for you, today also starts the National Craft Month Super Sale! Save up to 90% on hundreds of popular craft supplies!

Craft-e-Corner has over 80,000 products, so we're sure to have something you'll love!

Go ahead, TREAT yourself, you deserve it!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Simple and Sweet - DIY Valentines Day Sour Cream Treat Container

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Fri, 13 Feb 2015 16:35:00 +0000

Simple & Sweet

Check out this SUPER-DUPER-EASY treat container! Make these fun and sassy treat containers with fun and funky paper and embellish them to your style!

A perfect a quick valentine project- so easy even the kids can make them!

I am sorry but I did not get to take step-by-step pictures for directions...

but I DID find this perfect 2 minute video that shows you exactly what I did!

Check it out!

These treat containers are the GO-TO for parties, holidays, wedding and more! You can use ANY style paper and embellish them on SO MANY WAYS!

The creative possibilities are endless...

I made made for Valentine's Day and filled it with ONLY the necessities, chocolate! (what else?)

I did seal one and wanted to keep it as a project example but I ended up running out of chocolate and shamelessly opening it for a chocolate fix one night. Drag!

Good thing they are so EASY to make!

Hope you love the idea! Happy treat container making and treat eating to you all!

What candy or treat would YOU put in your treat container?

Happy Crafting,

-Abbey-

Introducing the New Silhouette Cameo 2014!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Wed, 15 Oct 2014 21:31:00 +0000

Have you heard the news?! Silhouette America has released a new Silhouette Cameo! This new machine is still called the Cameo but there are some handy changes that have happened.

Silhouette has made some great changes to the new Silhouette Cameo!

The first thing you'll notice is that the Cameo looks a little bit different. They gave the machine a sleek new makeover and changed it to all white! Check out everything that comes in the box with the new machine:

The new LCD touch screen allows for easy navigation. Need some help? Just click on the ? icon and you'll have help at your fingertips. Plus you can now set a sleep mode timer so your machine doesn't stay on when you've walked away.

The roller bar sports new steel spring rollers. These new rollers are stronger than the old plastic rollers. They also hold your project material in place with a gentler touch. This is idea for delicate materials like foam or vinyl.

A brand new feature on the Cameo is the Cross Cutter. The cross cutter is along the back of the machine and allows you to easily cut a straight line without unloading your material. This is ideal if you load vinyl into your machine with the roll feeder. There is an "advance to cross cutter" function that will move your vinyl forward to the back of the machine so you can trim without unloading your material. No more unloading your vinyl, trimming your design off and then loading it again.

The new Cameo features a built in USB port. Now you can create a file in your studio software, save it to a USB drive. Now you can travel with your Cameo and without your computer! Simply plug in the USB drive and cut any studio file you've saved!

There is now a built in storage tray! Pop your extra blades in here, or anything else that's small enough to fit, and know just where your accessories are! I love that this storage tray makes use of extra space.

There were material alignment marks were on the old machine, but they were harder to see. The new Cameo features more noticeable alignment marks which will help you make sure you're feeding in your mat or vinyl straight.

*The machine is still called the Cameo.
*The machine still cuts a full 12" wide.
*You can still cut over 100 different materials from paper, fabric, chipboard, leather, felt, foam and more.
*The overall weight of the machine is the same- still very light (under 12 pounds)!
*The software updates are free and all versions of the software are compatible with the new machine. (Need to update your software? Click here.)
*You can still do print and cut and use PixScan mats.
*All the same blades, mats and accessories work with the new machine.

See all our new Cameo and Cameo bundles available here!

Do you have questions about the new Silhouette Cameo? Let me know in a comment below!

DIY Personalized Lunch Bags With the Silhouette Cameo & Sketch Pens

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 22 Sep 2014 20:05:00 +0000

My daughter Natalie started Kindergarten this year and has been in school for about a month. One thing I always strive to do for her is to keep lunch interesting! I know how boring a cold lunch from home can be, so I try to keep it fun. I recently had an "ah ha!" moment and with a normal brown lunch bag, some Silhouette Sketch Pens, crayons and my Silhouette Cameo, I found a way to personalize her lunch bags and keep her excited for a home packed lunch each day.

You won't believe how easy these lunch bags were to make! Let me show you how!

First I took a regular brown lunch bag and measured it. Mine were about 5 inches by 11 inches. I adjusted my mat size in my Cameo software to make sure the design would fit on the bag.

Next I browsed the Silhouette Online Store for sketch designs that I could use for my lunch bags. There are a lot of fun designs to choose from! To select all sketch designs, simply adjust the filters on the website:

Click update filters and it should bring up all the sketch designs in the online store that are available for purchase.

TIP: Look for SIMPLE designs. The more sketch lines you see, the more the sketch pen will go over your bag and the more likely it is that it will tear. Remember, lunch bags are thin! For this project, I used the snow princess sketch from the Silhouette Online Store. It looks like a certain princess from a very popular Disney movie that my daughter happens to love! I know it might seem like a complicated sketch, but there aren't a lot of lines that overlap here:

By comparison, these apples, while I LOVE the design, are much too complex to go on a bag. I tried this design and the sketch pens sketched so much, it cut right through the bag. See how the lines are really close to each other? That doesn't preform well on a paper lunch bag:

I took my brown lunch bag and put it face up on the mat so the bottom flap was stuck to the mat. I taped the bottom of the bag to the mat, just to try to make it less bulky.

Next I put in a black Silhouette Sketch Pen in where the blade would go normally. The Silhouette Sketch Pens pop right in and don't need a pen holder. If you have the Silhouette Pen Holder- you can use any writing utensil that fits (think of the possibilities there!).

Next I sent my design to my Cameo. TIP: Set the thickness of your material to as high as it will go. This will prevent your pen from pushing down too hard and tearing your bag. Setting the thickness of the material higher will tell the machine to not push down as hard on the pen.

After I adjusted the settings, I let the whole design sketch out.

TIP: Leave some space at the top of the bag when designing your image so you have room to fold the bag over.

The design sketched out on its own was fun, but I wanted to add some color. I have always loved to color, so this part was really more for me! You can skip this step if you think it's too much :)

I quickly colored the design in with a few crayons I scavenged from the kids coloring bucket. Colored pencils or markers would work great too!

I filled her lunch bag up, folded over the top and it was finished!

I made a couple more bags, to add variety:

Natalie really enjoys seeing what her lunch bag looks like everyday. And yes, she'll use it and then probably throw it away, but sometimes the best art is the kind that is only temporary!

Will YOU be giving this project a try? Think of all the possibilities of what you can sketch on a simple bag. Take this idea and make goodie bags for birthday parties, cookie exchanges, gift bags and more!

Cropped is BACK! And it's better than ever! Join us for Cropped 2.0!!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Tue, 08 Jul 2014 15:57:00 +0000

It's back and it's BETTER than ever!

Introducing Cropped 2.0!

What is Cropped 2.0? Cropped 2.0 is a LIVE, virtual tutorial event that is SO MUCH FUN! Click below to get all the details and find out how you can get in on all the fun and goodies!

What is Cropped 2.0?

Join Megan Elizabeth with Above Rubies Studio, and Craft-e-Corner, for Cropped 2.0!

Cropped 2.0 is:

* LIVE * ONLINE * INTERACTIVE * 2 DAYS FULL OF CRAFTING FUN *

Cropped 2.0 will be held at www.AboveRubiesStudio.com August 22nd-August 23 2014 only!

There are three different levels of mystery boxes to pick from! Choose which level box best fits you (details of box contents and where to pick yours up, below).

Each mystery box includes a printed schedule of events and the link to get you to the event! Join us to participate in our LIVE CROP! We will have mystery challenges you can win prizes for participating in, step by step tutorial classes and lots of fun chatting and asking questions, getting tips and tricks, and special exclusive deals to weekend participants!

Take a look at the YouTube introduction here:

We will have FIVE start to finish projects including interactive cards, scrapbook layouts and SO MUCH MORE!

Get the full schedule of events for Friday night and all day Saturday here!

What will I need?

Here are just a few things you will want to have on hand to make your Cropped 2.0 weekend a BLAST!

*High-Speed, Reliable Internet Connection (contact your internet provider or head to a good friends house and crop together!)
*Time set aside just to chat, craft and enjoy the fun! Come early to work out any technical issues to get the most from Cropped 2.0!
*Scissors and a reliable paper trimmer (I really like this Fiskars Rotary Trimmer)
*White cardstock
Some adhesive is included in every box, but I recommend having an adhesive glider on hand like the Glue Glider Pro
Stamp Blocks or a Stamp Press
Glimmer Mist or Spray Ink (I like using pearl white colors, silvers, pinks and teals, personally!)
Easy Clean up Mat to protect your work surface
I will be using my Cricut Expression along with the following cartridges:

*Denotes items you will absolutely need for an enjoyable weekend event. All other items are not required to participate, but they will help you create exactly what projects I am creating!

What will I receive in my box and where do I get my box?

All boxes include your ticket to the Cropped 2.0 two day even! Select the level you are looking for with lots of mystery but guaranteed goodies as well!

Level 1 Box

(Only 50 Level 1 Boxes Available)

Includes at least 15 sheets of high quality paper, ribbons, misc. embellishments, chipboard pieces, ink and so much more mystery for challenges

Level 2 Box

(Only 100 Level 2 Boxes Available)

Level 2 includes everything in Level 1 box PLUS a Viva Decor Pen and many additional embellishment goodies

Level 3 Box

(Only 50 Level 3 Boxes Available)

Level 3 Boxes will include everything from Level 1 and Level 2 boxes PLUS a Simple Stories Binder with pockets and pages INCLUDED! Plus there are bonus goodies and even more extras!

The first time we held this event, there were over 700 participants!

**These boxes will sell out FAST! Once they are gone, they are gone for good!**

BOXES WILL BEGIN SHIPPING TUESDAY, JULY 15th, 2014!

Do you have any questions about the event? Are you planning on participating?

Sweet Summer Pinwheel Tutorial- Happy 4th of July!!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 16:44:00 +0000

Can you believe it? TOMORROW is the 4th of July!! I'm so excited, I can't wait to go see the fireworks and check out our local festivities! I love this holiday :D To get ready for our 4th of July picnic, I decided to create some fun mason jars to hold treats, decorations and SPARKLERS (gotta have sparklers!):

This grouping was easy and fun to make- let me show you how...

The first step was to paint our mason jars, we used regular Kerr canning jars. I went with red, white and blue paint (of course!). You could use spray paint, but we opted for regular acrylic paint:

My little lefty decided he would paint the blue jar, because blue is his favorite color. It took about 4 coats of acrylic to get a solid coverage on the blue (2 on white and 3 on red). We let the jars dry between coats and then sealed the jars with a clear acrylic sealer once they were finished to protect the paint.

Next we made chocolate covered pretzels to put inside the red jar. Chocolate covered pretzels are such an easy (and tasty) treat:

We dipped the pretzels in white chocolate and added red sprinkles and blue sprinkles to keep them festive.

Finally I made some pinwheels to add to my white jar- I love pinwheels, they just say summer:

You wouldn't believe how easy these are to make! Check out this quick photo pictorial:

I started out with a 4x4 piece of double sided scrapbook paper. Use a pair of scissors and cut in from each corner towards the center. Leave about a quarter sized space in the middle where you do not cut. Next take a pencil or your bone folder and curl every other edge. Use hot glue, glue the same end of the corners to the center of your pinwheel. Just a dab of glue is all you need. Add a brad to the center (or a button or some other embellishment) to hide your glue! Glue your pinwheel to a dowel or wooden stick and you're all done! How cute did these turn out? These pinwheels don't spin, but they do make a cute centerpiece!

Finish off the mason jars with a bit of twine, add your sparklers and you're all done! How cute and easy was that?

What is your favorite part of the 4th of July?

Patriotic Bandana and Pool Noodle Wreath: 4th of July Decorations on a budget!

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Mon, 30 Jun 2014 17:31:00 +0000

I am so excited that the 4th of July is just days away! It is by far my favorite holiday (yes, even more than Christmas!), I am thinking all things red, white and blue! Fireworks and BBQ food take up a large portion of my holiday budget, but I still want to festively decorate for Independence Day. I am one to always have something on my front door and this year I decided a wreath was needed. Check out this fun, budget friendly, wreath I made for the 4th:

Would you guess a pool noodle is at the center of this wreath? Click below for a full tutorial!

There are great foam wreaths that you can buy, and had I planned ahead, I would have probably gone that route... but I don't always plan that far in advance! Instead I grabbed the nearest pool noodle and some duct tape and got to work crafting a budget friendly wreath.

Any color pool noodle will work because you'll be completely covering it. I started off with this lovely purple noodle left over from last years clearance sales! Cut the end off your noodle with a serrated knife. Go for about a 120 degree angle (give or take!). Cut one end off and then use your end scrap as a guide to cut the opposite end of the noodle in a mirror image of your first cut. Line up your cut ends and then tape your noodle up with duct tape. This can be easier said than done without a second pair of hands, enlist help if you can! Make sure to tape it well, you don't want your wreath bursting open due to lack of tape (I've seen it happen and it's not pretty!).

Next I grabbed 2 red, 2 white and 2 blue bandanas. Bandanas are great to work with- they come in so many different colors and patterns and always say "Americana" to me!

The bananas I used had a boarder around the edge which I didn't want on my wreath. Simply take a sharp pair of sewing scissors and cut a notch at the edge of your border. Next grab the piece and rip the fabric. Fabric is fun that way, ripping it should rip straight down the boarder getting you a nice straight line without measuring. Trim all the boarders off the bandana until you're left with a square with just the printed portion. Next cut notches every 2 inches along one end of your bandana. I was able to get 9 strips per bandana.

Next I started to tie my bandana strips around my noodle, but it was not covering the purple pool noodle. I was going for red, white and blue... not red, white, blue and spots of purple! Cue trouble shooting! I decided that I needed to wrap my noodle in ribbon. I had some ~~cheap~~ inexpensive ribbon in my stash in coordinating colors and got to work wrapping my wreath with the ribbon.

Using a hot glue gun, I glued down sections of ribbon. First I did the blue, then did chunks of red and white. You're not looking for perfection, just looking to cover the noodle! Careful, the hot glue WILL melt the pool noodle! Overlap your ribbon pieces until you get something that looks like the last photo above.

Now you can start tying on the bandana strips. I used 2-3 strips of banada per red and white section. I had leftovers so I went back and filled in the sections that looked like they needed a little more coverage.

You could see the ribbon though the bandanas but since the ribbon underneath was a coordinating color, you couldn't even tell! (Begone purple noodle!)

To hang the wreath, I wiggled my wreath hanger loop through one of the strips of bandana. This wreath isn't perfect, but came together pretty quickly and I like the fun, shabby chic, look of it. Of course I also love that I now have something festive to hang on my door for the 4th!

What are you crafting for this 4th of July??

Red, White & Blue Summer Star Mason Jar Vase Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Fri, 27 Jun 2014 14:40:00 +0000

The 4th of July just around the corner! Time to get festive and think of all things red, white & blue! Decorate your table this year with this festive mason jar vase:

First wash and dry your jar. We will be painting the jar so you'll want a nice clean surface. Wiping down your jar with some rubbing alcohol will help remove any grease or fingerprints, which might keep your paint from sticking.

Next, paint the jar white using a foam brush. You can use any acrylic paint, but my favorite (and go to) acrylic paint is Folk Art. You will want to paint on a few coats to cover the glass. Make sure to let each layer of paint dry before adding the next coat.

TIP: To help speed up the drying process, you can hit your vase with a heat gun or blow dryer.

After the paint is fully dry, lightly rub your vase with a fine grit sand paper. Your goal is to remove some of the paint on the jar to create a distressed look. Make sure not to rub too hard! I always sand over the raised words on the jar too.

Next we will add some subtle clear gloss (heat embossed) stars to our vase. For my stars, I decided to keep it simple and use clear Watermark Versamark Ink and Clear Embossing powder. You can mix it up a bit and add some color if you'd like! You can use various colored Inks or different colors of embossing powders. Play around with color combinations and have fun with it!

Using a simple and solid star stamp and my Versamark Watermark Ink Pad, I added a few clear stars onto my vase.

While the inked stars were still wet, I covered them with clear embossing powder. I then dumped and tapped off any excess powder. (My favorite quality embossing powders are by Imagine Crafts/ Tsukineko. Check them out here!)

Give the stars a good hit with the heat gun to melt the embossing powder.

Be careful not to over heat or get to close, you can burn the paint. The clear embossing powder and the paint heat up to create a very subtle raised star on the jar.

Here is a good picture of the stars after they have been embossed. I loved how subtle they were, but still added fun patriotic flair to the vase!

For the finishing touches I added a fun red bow using May Arts Chevron Ribbon and some blue flowers!

Well, there you have it! I hope you love the project and create a fun Mason Jar vase of your own! This is the perfect "change it up" vase good for all summer long. Change out the ribbon and flowers to make it different every week!

**What are your plans for the 4th of July?**

*comment below with your answer and thoughts on this project*

All products used are available at Craft-e-Corner:

Versamark Ink

Tsukineko Embossing Powders

10 Inspiring Summer Scrapbook Layouts

noreply@blogger.com (Kala) — Tue, 24 Jun 2014 18:51:00 +0000

It is officially summer! There are so many opportunities to take pictures during the summer: from family vacations, time at the beach, running through the sprinkler and more! Take the time to scrap those memories this summer while they are fresh.

Fizzing out on some summer layout inspiration? Look not further! I've pulled together 10 inspiring summer scrapbook layouts for you to help get those creative juices flowing...

We all have pictures of our kids eating up ice cream, print off a few of those messy ice cream face photos and make a page highlighting this summer treat! I love the giant ice cream cone on the side of this layout- it's a good way to take up some space if you don't have a lot of photos to scrap, and it is a fun accent!

This layout uses the Sunshine and Happiness Kit by Bella Blvd! This is one of my favorite Bella Blvd kits to use for all things summer! Check out this 2 page layout I made for National Scrapbooking Day using this kit! The colors and patterns in this paper kit are great for summer- so colorful and bright! I love how the bottom of this scrapbook layout used the sticker sheet from the kit! It's just adorable!

This layout looks so well pulled together! Look at your photos you want to scrapbook and pull out colors to help make your page flow. In this layout, the designer pulled colors from the photo all over the page- from the red on her shirt to the green in the grass. Pulling colors for your photos makes your page feel cohesive!

These two layouts also both used the Sunshine and Happiness Kit by Bella Blvd!. You can't help but think fun in the sun when you have so many bright colors and patterns to choose from.

Don't be afraid to put together several different patterns of paper! Sometimes patterns can be overwhelming, but if you pull colors from one busy piece and keep the accent pieces more muted, you'll be able to pull a layout like this one.

Nothing says summer quite like a trip to the beach! Highlight your favorite shots and add some nautical accents to capture those beach trip memories!

Don't think your scrapbook just has to be about kids this summer... scrap pictures of yourself too!

The surfboards on this page are too cute! The colors on this page have a retro, girly feel! Pick up page colors from a swimsuit to really highlight the photos!

I hope you found these layouts inspiring! We only have a few short months of summer here in Wisconsin so I will be out enjoying as much sun as I can before it turns into sweater weather again!