Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog

Scrappin' on Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy Vernon) — Sat, 18 May 2013 05:30:00 +0000

Hi everyone, Cindy here, I hope that everyone is ready for another Scrappin' on Saturday post! There is still time to join this week's challenge.

Challenge # 160 Congratulations Grad
Create a Graduation Project

I have a couple of graduates this year. My step-daughter is graduating from college and my baby is graduating from Pre-K and getting ready for kindergarten. These are important moments and what better way to remember that moment then to scrap it?

I found some lovely scrapbooking projects to share with you this week.

First, the DT submitted some fabulous layouts. The first is from Connie. She used Cricut Basic Shapes and Happy Graduation.

Another DT, Amy made this beautiful feminine layout using Happy Graduation, Wild Card, Disney Hannah Montana, A Child's Year.

Stacey made a really fun scrapbook layout for her son's high school graduation. She used Varsity Letter and Wild Card.

Sheri used Happy Graduation and Accent Essentials to make a layout for her son's graduation.

A mini album is also a nice way to remember the occasion and I have a video for you of a really cute one that I found on Youtube.

Thanks so much for visiting me today. I hope that you all get a chance to scrap this weekend!

Fantabulous Friday #160 - Congratulations Graduate

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 17 May 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Hello and happy Friday! This is Heather and it's time for Fantabulous Friday!! This week's challenge is Congratulations Graduate and we want to see the projects you create with your Cricut for the graduates in your life.

Here are a few projects I found for some inspirations for you. First up is Vanessa, who used the Wild Card cartridge to create this neat card where the graduation cap on the front flips up.

Cassandra used the Hopscotch Imagine, Create a Critter and Happy Graduation cartridges to create this fun graduation card.

Cricaholic used the Everyday Paper Dolls and Lyrical Letters cartridges to create this card with a cute graduate on the front. The inside has a fun surprise in it, so be sure to visit her blog to check it out!!

There are a lot of graduation themed Cricut images out there for you to use, as well as a few cartridges that are a little more graduation or school specific.

The Happy Graduation cartridge is specific to graduation and has an image that is sure to work for all your graduation project needs!

Classroom June & July is a Cricut Craftroom Exlusive cartridge with a few graduation-specific images and phrases.

And an oldie but a goodie is Locker Talk that is filled with school-themed images and also includes a few graduation specific images - good for graduates of all ages!

We're looking forward to seeing all your graduation projects, so be sure to link them up to the Linky on Monday's post by this Sunday evening! And don't forget to check out tomorrow's Scrappin' Saturday post!!

Thursday Tutorial - 3D Star

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel Loesch) — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Hello! Rachel here from Cricut with Heart, and today I'm sharing a tutorial that I made a while ago based on a 3-D Star that my friend Elvia Murray made. You can use this simple and easy trick to turn almost any of your Cricut cuts into something 3-D! Here is the star I made by using an ornament cut.

I started by cutting out the ornament from page 53 of the Cricut Artiste booklet. I used one sheet of double sided paper to cut them out. You'll also need to cut out a 2" circle for the base.

Here are all the pieces, and by turning over the 2 1/2" pieces, you can show the color on the other side.

I used my Martha Stewart Score Board to score a line down the middle of each piece.

This is how the pieces will be glued together once they are scored. Notice that the green ones have 3 pieces to them, and the others have only 2 pieces.

I inked the edges of all the pieces and glued them to each other to make 5 points for each of the 3 layers. then I began to assemble the ornament by adhering the 3" points to the base circle to form a star shape.

Then the 2 1/2" green points get glued to the base in between these.

Finally, the 1 3/4" small points get glued on top. I rotated my layers a little bit. I used liquid glue to make sure it held together nice and strong.

I added a pearl to the center and on the tips. You could even glue two of these back to back to make a totally 3-D shape! I hope this inspires you to turn some of the fun Cricut cuts into something 3-D. Leave me a comment with a link to your project, and I'd love to check it out!

Happy Crafting!

Wednesday Winners Challenge #159 Mothers Day

noreply@blogger.com (xxcalamityxx) — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Good Morning Everyone !!
Welcome to this weeks
WEDNESDAY WINNERS

Challenge #159 Mother's Day
We have had some absolutely beautiful cards and projects to celebrate our wonderful Mums all around the world this week. The love and care that goes into each and every one blow's me away every time !! x

THIS WEEKS WINNER

Chosen by random.org

with a prize from
our very own Catarina
of
Docerela Creations

with a prize of her beautiful stamp
Word-Heart Mother

...IS...

NO 43
Created with Ornamental Iron
Jo.M.

Congratulations Jo. To claim your prize please contact Nikki at... ragbag 50 @ hotmail . com (remove all spaces)

You have two weeks to claim your prize.
Remember to grab your "FCCB Winner" blinky to display on your blog, you can find the blinky code in the right hand side bar.

DESIGN TEAM TOP 5

We had 47 amazing projects to choose from this week.

Thank you to every one who joined us

No 9
Created with George and Basic Shapes, Doodle Charms and Flower Shoppe
Holly

No 23
Created with Flower Shoppe
Vickie Bryan

No 38
Created with Paper Dolls Dress Up and Tie the Knot
Shelly

No 40
Created with Cricut Craft Room, Flora'ls Embellished, Cindy Loo and Mother's Day Bouquet
Glenda Boyd

No 43
Created with Ornamental Iron
JO.M

Congratulations ladies don't forget to grab your "FCCB Top 5" blinky to display on your blog!

You can find the blinky code on our right-hand sidebar.

We hope you are joining us for this week's challenge #160 Congratulations Graduate
As ever, please use a new project with at least one Cricut cut and tell us which cartridge(s) you have used.

Wishing everyone a Fantabulous Day !!

Quick Tip Tuesday

noreply@blogger.com (Angie's Paper Passion) — Tue, 14 May 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Good morning crafty friends! This is Angie from Angie’s Paper Passion with another Quick Tip. I’m still sharing tips about craft storage and organization this month. Today’s tip is about storing those thin metal dies that we all love! I really love using these types of dies when I need something really quick. But storing them was a problem since they are so thin and some sets have a few pieces. Well, I think that I have solved my problem (for now anyway! It seems that I’m always RE-organizing my stash!) I ordered these DVD holders online at a very good price. They were bought to help me contain my growing stamp collection but I never got around to doing that completely – that’s a whole different post! So when I needed to find a way to store my thin dies, I pulled these out and used them for dies instead.

(my advice is to order more than you think that you need because they really come in handy for storing so many more scrapbook supplies than you can think of at this moment and they are so inexpensive!)

I ordered them from here:

Tapes On Line

I just added some adhesive backed magnet material to the inside to the case and then placed my dies inside. I used a label maker to add the manufacturer and name of each set on each case. One day I plan to cut out each die to place in a file so I can see them all at a quick glance!

Here’s a sample of what it looks like:

I can even get two sets in one case by nesting them. Or even more if want to use both sides.

But I wanted to be able to see inside the cases (if I can’t see my supplies I never use them! Maybe that explains all the duplicates in my stash)

Now let’s see how you can dress up those dies – either regular dies or your Cricut dies!

These flowers were cut with my Flower Shoppe Cricut cart. I used a mat (like a mouse pad) and stylus tools (I have the ones from McGill that have different sizes of stylus) and after I inked up all of the edges I started molding each flower layer. It’s very easy and fascinating to watch the petals almost ‘come alive’ while doing this! Layer the flower on the mat and use a stylus by rolling it in a circular motion over the petals. This gives your flowers and leaves so much dimension! I then adhere my flower layers together with either Scotch Quick Dry adhesive or Glossy Accents.

I started with these simple cut outs...

and by using different sizes of stylus they start to look like real flowers!

All I have to do is adhere them together and they come out like this:

Keeping your dies organized will help you make some incredible images for your next card or layout.

If you'd like to see my finished project with these flowers, click HERE to go to my blog. For some more OUTSTANDING work, you must visit my Cricut Sister, Nadia! She can take most of the Cricut images and do some wonderful things with them. Browse her blog to be Amazed! Visit her blog HERE! You won't want to leave! Oh, and tell her that Angela (TiffysMom) sent you!

I'll be back next week & show you some ways to ~~control~~ ah I mean store and organize all of those Cricut cartridges!

Until next time, Happy Crafting.

Challenge #160 Congratulations Graduate

noreply@blogger.com (xxcalamityxx) — Mon, 13 May 2013 15:08:00 +0000

CHALLENGE #160

CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATE

The DT have been really busy, as always, and here are their fabulous creations...
please pop over to their blogs and leave them some love...x

Cindy

Teddy Bear Parade

Emily

Wrap It Up

Connie

Cricut Basic Shapes and Happy Graduation

Amy

Happy Graduation, Wild Card, Disney Hannah Montana, A Child's Year

Tammy

Create A Critter 2

Create a Critter, Doodletype

Catarina

Hello Kitty Cartridge

Arin

Everyday Pop-Up Cards

Susie

Artiste, Everyday Pop-Up Cards

Heather

Wrap it Up

Missy

Happy Graduation

~This Week's Sponsor~

The Trinket Track

$20 dollar gift certificate

To link your project for this week's "Congratulations Graduate" challenge, click on the blue "add your link" button below

This challenge ends at Midnight June 5th (mountain time)

Sunday Spotlight!

noreply@blogger.com (Arin) — Sun, 12 May 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Happy Mother's Day!

What a great day to share this amazingly talented lady, Reesey from Created In NY! She has so much life to her blog and her actual life! She has quite the taste for adventure since her husband and her BOTH own motorcycles and rides every chance they can once the weather warms and the snow thaws. And when the snow is falling she hops on her snowmobile! This thrill seeker does have an elegant edge when it comes to crafting and that talent landed her a spot on FCCB's Top 5 with this amazingly detailed and very elegant project!

Check out her great tutorial on this project HERE

Reesey has only been blogging for a little over a year, but has been a cafter for over15 years and it shows in spades! Check out some of these great cards she has made!

Dress Form

Boot Card

Butterfly Card

Now let's meet this fun full of adventure crafter!

1. When did you start scrap booking/paper crafting and why?

I don't really remember when I started. It was so long ago, when I did my first scrapbook page of a trip to Florida with my then boyfriend who is now my husband. I would have to say in 1998 or so. I just recently got into making the cards and the shadow boxes. I get an idea and I have to run with it!

2. What is your favorite type of project to make (i.e., cards, layouts, mini-albums, etc....)?

I love to make anything 3-D. My first scrap booking page of the Florida trip had an alligator on a homemade spring so it would pop up when you opened the page. I like cards that fold and show a scene like the monkey slider and the Ghost on the Fence Halloween card. But my all time favorite is the shadow boxes.

3. What is your favorite product to use on your projects?

I have a million different products but I would have to say my go to item is my Sakura Stardust Glitter Pen. Everything needs a little sparkle and this pen allows me to write over the top of stamped or Digi words without the mess of glue bottles or stray flakes. A great example is the "Dream" shadow box. The words looked nice printed from a computer but when I added the Stardust Glitter...WOW!

4. What is your favorite Cricut cartridge?

My husband says there is no way I know what cartridges I have because I have so many but I always go straight to the Storybook Cartridge. It has delicate leaves and swirls and the letters cut perfectly pretty.

5. What do you do in your spare time, when you are not paper crafting?

My husband and I have motorcycles, so when the weather is at all nice, that's what we do. In the winter, it's snowmobiling. Truthfully, the only time I get to craft is when it is raining! My daughter calls me "Last Minute Lisa" for obvious reasons. When I have a birthday or holiday to make projects for, you will find me up at midnight the night before working that Cricut and glue furiously. But it seems to work for me. She says that's when I do my best work!

Once of her favorite projects to do is shadow boxes and boy does she deliver in originality and detail! Check out a few that I found that just had me in awe!

Shadow Boxes

Daisy Shadow Boxes

Reesey from Created in NY is such a fun crafter that is full of such fresh and new ideas. Not only is her work done with such flawless perfection that just draws you in, but her narrative to her readers is so friendly and warm. She is someone that you will want to add to your blogroll and see where she goes with her adventures in and out of her craft room! Make sure you head over and say "Hi" and wish her a Happy Mother's Day, since she too is a mother of two and a grandmother of three! Since it is Mother's Day I will leave you with this one last project Ressey made for her grandmother last Mother's Day!

Mother's Day Card

Until Next Week!
Arin

Scrappin' on Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy Vernon) — Sat, 11 May 2013 05:01:00 +0000

Hi everyone, Cindy here, I hope that everyone is ready for another Scrappin' on Saturday post! There is still time to join this week's challenge.

Challenge # 159 Mother's Day
Create a Mother's Day card

Mother's Day is special and what better way to remember our mother's or our children's mother's than by scrapping them?

I found some beautiful projects commemorating moms'!

First, is a beautiful layout from Cricut Crazy Scrapper. She used Celebrate with Flourish for all of her cuts.

Kimberly from Paper Munch Designs made this gorgeous layout using the Art Philosophy cartridge.

Rosie from Cr8ing Memories with Heart made this beautiful wall hanging.

Sandra Rosario made a video for her Mother's Day layout.

Thanks so much for visiting me today. I hope that you all get a chance to scrap this weekend!

Fantabulous Friday #159 Mother's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 10 May 2013 10:30:00 +0000

Hello! It's time for another Fantabulous Friday post! Can you believe it's already the middle of May and Mother's Day is just two days away?? Are you ready with cards for the mothers or mother-figures in your lives? This week's challenge is all about Mother's Day and we want to see the cards you create!

I found a few neat cards for a bit of inspiration for you.

Maria used Kate's ABCs, Lovely Floral and Celebrate with Flourish to create this fabulous card.

Glenda used Bloom, Lacy Labels, Mother's Day, Paper Doll Dress Up and Walk in My Garden to create this great stairstep card.

June used the Bloom cartridge to make this fun flower pot card.

There are a number of Mother's Day specific cartridges to help you with your Mother's Day creations. There is the Mother's Day seasonal cartrdige that has phrases, images and shapes for making banners, cards and more.

There is the Mother's Day Bouquet cartridge is perfect for creating paper floral bouquets or layered flowers on cards or scrapbook pages.

There are also a couple of Cricut Craft Room exclusives. One of these is Mother's Day Phrases with beautiful images that would be great on scrapbook pages or cards.

Another Cricut Craft Room exclusive is Mother's Day Moments with a handful of fun images for your Mother's Day projects.

I hope this has helped give you some ideas for your Mother's Day cards and projects! Be sure to link up your Mother's Day cards to this week's challenge by Sunday evening and don't forget to come by tomorrow for Scrappin' Saturday!!

Thursday Tutorial - Swing Cards!

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel Loesch) — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Hello! Rachel here from Cricut with Heart, and today I'm sharing a fun tutorial/chart made by my friend and blog partner, Mary Thompson.

Did you know that the Cricut Artiste Cartridge has 9 different Swing Cards on it? Here are all nine of the Artiste Swing card shapes, and the cards that Mary made using them.

The possibilities are truly endless! The best part is, they are quick and easy to make with the Cricut. If you have both the Artiste and Art Philosophy cartridges, you can cut out the matching shapes to decorate these swing cards.

Below is a chart that Mary made, and it shows the companion shape for each card and which cartridge to find it on. You will also find the page and size needed for each shape.

Give these cards a try, they are fast and easy to make and turn out so cute!

Happy Crafting!

Wednesday Winners Challenge #158 Paper Roses

noreply@blogger.com (xxcalamityxx) — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Good Morning Everyone !!
Welcome to this weeks
WEDNESDAY WINNERS

Challenge #158
Paper Roses

THIS WEEKS WINNER

Chosen by random.org

with a prize from
Kimberley at

OF
1 stamp set

...IS...

NO 8
Created with Flower Shoppe
Karen

Congratulations Karen. To claim your prize please contact Janea at... recollection alley @ gmail . com (remove all spaces)

You have two weeks to claim your prize.
Remember to grab your "FCCB Winner" blinky to display on your blog, you can find the blinky code in the right hand side bar.

DESIGN TEAM TOP 5

We had 29 amazing projects to choose from this week.

Thank you to every one who joined us

No 11
Created with Pagoda
Erica

No 18
Created with Stretch your Imagination, Artiste and Celebrations
Reesey

No 20
Created with Mother's Day Bouquet and Home Decor
Glenda Boyd

No 22
Created with Happy Hauntings, Formal Occasion and Rock Princess
Evelyn

No 27
Created with Every day Pop Up Cards, Flower Shoppe and Sweethearts
Jenny

Congratulations ladies don't forget to grab your "FCCB Top 5" blinky to display on your blog!

You can find the blinky code on our right-hand sidebar.

We hope you are joining us for this week's challenge # 159 Mother's Day
As ever, please use a new project with at least one Cricut cut and tell us which cartridge(s) you have used.

Wishing everyone a Fantabulous Day !!

Link to challenge

noreply@blogger.com (recollectionalley) — Wed, 08 May 2013 01:55:00 +0000

Hi Cricuteers!

Just wanted to let you know that the link is now working.

Apparently our Linky was Wonky....LOL

Click here to link your Mother's Day cards today!

Quick Tip Tuesday

noreply@blogger.com (Angie's Paper Passion) — Tue, 07 May 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Good morning everyone! Angie here from Angie’s Paper Passion with another Quick Tip for you. As promised, I will share a few small organizing tips this month along with a crafting tip, too!

If you are anything like me, you are always looking for new ways to organize your stash of scrapping supplies. I remember when I started this journey many years ago, my entire stash fit into a small 8” x 10” container, LOL, but today not only do I have an entire craft room but supplies from that room have somehow started overflowing into others rooms! (No, really, I have NO IDEA how that happened!!!)

So my first quick tip has to do with brads and eyelets. Yes, I think we all still have them in our stash whether you want to admit it or not! I personally like to keep my brads and eyelets in containers that I can grab and go. So I separate mine by color (or color family) and put them in those little Tic Tac containers then those go into a slightly bigger clear box. I have one clear box for big brads and one that contains mini brads. I use this same system for my eyelets.

If I’m going to a crop, I can just grab the box that I want or just take a few of the smaller boxes containing the colors and/or sizes that I need.

And speaking of brads, did you know that you can take plain silver or gold brads and change them to any color that you want? Well, as long as you have some different colored embossing powders and VersaMark!

First, take your plain brad and dip it into your VersaMark pad.

Next dip it into your color of choice of embossing powder.

Now heat your brad with a heat gun. Make sure you use a pair of crafting tweezers to do this last step! After it’s heated, you can dip it again into the embossing powder while it’s still hot and heat it again to create a thicker coating.

Now you have a brad with a custom color! Try experimenting with different colors of embossing powders.

Here are a few different colors that I tried. I used Platinum, Green, and Interference Blue.

How do you store your brads and eyelets? Comment below and share your storage solutions. Next week I’ll be back with another organizing and crafting tip.

Until next time, Happy Crafting,

Challenge Me Monday - #159 Mother's Day

noreply@blogger.com (recollectionalley) — Mon, 06 May 2013 13:20:00 +0000

Happy Monday! It's almost Mother's Day, so let's celebrate Mothers. This weeks challenge is to create a Mother's Day card. Don't forget to use your cricut and let us know which

cartridge you used.

Challenge #159 - Mother's Day

Create a Mother's Day card

Design Team Inspiration

Cindy

Elegant Edges, Kate's ABC's

Emily

Create-A-Critter 2

Nikki
Artiste

Missy
Kate's ABC's

Brianna

Country Life & Elegant Edges

Lynn B.

Cricut Craft Room - Mother's Day Card

(free this week)

Kim

Country Life

Heather

Lyrical Letters, Tie the Knot

Angie
Bloom, Serenade, Artiste

Diana
Elegant Edges, Hello Kitty Font, Walk in my Garden

Rebecca

Wild Card

~ This Week's Sponsor ~

This week, Fantabulous Cricut is delighted to be sponsored by our very
own Design Team Member Catarina! She has very generously donated one
of her very own stamp sets, Word Heart - Mother
to be given to one lucky participant to be drawn at random from all eligible entries.

If you would like to be a sponsor for Fantabulous Cricut

please contact Janea via the Contact Me tab.

To link your project for this week's "FCCB's Mother's Day" challenge,

click on the blue "add your link" button below!
This challenge ends at 7:00 pm May 12th (CST).

As a courtesy to our design team, please consider turning off the word verification on your blog. With the new system, it has become quite difficult to leave comments for our FANTABULOUS followers.

When linking your project, please remember to list on your blog what Cricut cartridge you used.

Sunday Spotlight!

noreply@blogger.com (Arin) — Sun, 05 May 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Hi everyone! It is Sunday and it is Arin here I would like to change it up a bit this week and just revisit some of of the amazing Top 5 projects that landed talented crafters a spot on FCCB's Spotlight Sunday the past few months! Just sit back and be re-inspired by some creative ladies!

1 Creative Mom and 6 Silly Kids

Kim's Kreations

Toodle Noodle Creative

Amanda's Crafts and More

Mollie's Moffit

Purple Paradise Creations

Marcia's Memories

Creating Lasting Memories

Craft Bug Mum

Craft with Bee

Designs by Tisha

Raggdey Annie Crafting

Just ANutter Paper Crafter!

Creations of an Army Wife

Until Next Week!

Arin

Scrappin' on Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy Vernon) — Sat, 04 May 2013 05:30:00 +0000

Hi everyone, Cindy here, I hope that everyone is ready for another Scrappin' on Saturday post! There is still time to join this week's challenge.

Challenge # 158 Paper Roses

There are so many cartridges with flowers on them and I found some fantabulous bloggers who used them on their scrapping projects.

Melinda from My Paper Crafting made a beautiful layout using the Sugar and Spice cartridge. I didn't know that this cartridge had these flowers on it!

Sukie from Scrappin' Dhilly used the Flower Shoppe cartridge for her layout.

Mary from Cricut with Heart made this super fun circle book using Artiste and Art Philosophy.

Thanks so much for visiting me today. I hope that you feel inspired to use some paper flowers in your scrapbooking!

Fantabulous Friday #158 Paper Roses

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 03 May 2013 12:30:00 +0000

It's Friday, which means it's time for another Fantabulous Friday post!! Have you created a project yet for this week's challenge?? If not, do you have some ideas for a project?? Well, if not, maybe this post will help get those creative juices flowing!

This week's challenge is Paper Roses. We want to see your projects with paper flowers! Here are a few neat cards I found with paper flowers on them.

Amy

Flower Shoppe

Aphra

Mother's Day Bouquet

Corri
Freshly Picked

There are a number of cartridges that have flower images on them, but a few of them are even more flower specific.

Flower Shoppe

Giant Flowers

Florals Embellished

There are tons of flower images to choose from on lots of Cricut cartridges! Pick one of your favorites and join in the fun with us this week! Link your project up by Sunday evening, and be sure to tell us what Cricut cartridge you used! Come back to see us tomorrow for Scrappin' Saturday!!

Thursday Tutorial - Banners made Easy!

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel Loesch) — Thu, 02 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Want a cool tip on how to make the popular banners in just a couple of easy steps? Check out this easy tutorial made by my friend, Mary Thompson...

Here are some fun cards she made using this cool banner technique!

And here is a layout that I made using banners.

I hope you'll try this easy technique to make some banners on your next project!

Happy Crafting!

Wednesday Winners Challenge #157 3-D Project

noreply@blogger.com (xxcalamityxx) — Wed, 01 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Good Morning Everyone !!
Welcome to this weeks
WEDNESDAY WINNERS

Challenge #157
3-D Project

I has to step down from this weeks challenge due to work commitments :-(
but I really enjoyed a very quick wizz round the fab projects while writing up this post
It truly shows that Cricut crafter's really are the most imaginative creatures :-)

THIS WEEKS WINNER

Chosen by random.org

with a prize from
Bugaboo Digi Stamps

OF
7 free images

...IS...

NO 7
Created with Camping Critters
Michelle's Cricut Fun

Congratulations Michelle. To claim your prize please contact Janea at... recollection alley @ gmail . com (remove all spaces)

You have two weeks to claim your prize.
Remember to grab your "FCCB Winner" blinky to display on your blog, you can find the blinky code in the right hand side bar.

DESIGN TEAM TOP 5

We had 23 amazing projects to choose from this week.

Thank you to every one who joined us

No 7
Created with Camping Critters
Michelle's Cricut Fun

No 9
Created with Platinum School Book and Pooh Font
Megan C

No 11
Created with Kate's ABC, Billionaire and many many more!
Designs by Dragonfly

No 19
Created with Bags Tags Boxes and More
Miranda H

No 21
Created with Robotz
Sandy

Congratulations ladies don't forget to grab your "FCCB Top 5" blinky to display on your blog!

You can find the blinky code on our right-hand sidebar.

We hope you are joining us for this week's challenge #157 Paper Roses
As ever, please use a new project with at least one Cricut cut and tell us which cartridge(s) you have used.

Wishing everyone a Fantabulous Day !!

Quick Tip Tuesday

noreply@blogger.com (Angie's Paper Passion) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 05:30:00 +0000

Good mourning everyone! Angie from Angie's Paper Passion here again with another quick tip. This one just may save your Cricut machine! Do you remember when you got your Cricut? I bet that you were so excited that you tore into that box and starting taking all of your new goodies out, plugging cords in, and trying to figure out what to cut first and how. I bet you weren't worried about all that cardboard and packaging that came with your Cricut, did you? Nope, didn't think so!

Well, does this image jog your memory?

Now do you remember those two pieces of cardboard that were inside your

Cricut when you first opened it?

Did you throw them away? Most people did also so don't feel too bad about it. But what many people don't know is that we all should have saved them! They should always be put back into your Cricut whenever you are traveling with it - even to a crop! They protect the blade housing from being jostled back and forth (or side to side, I guess!) and possibly getting damaged. But do not worry if you have absolutely no idea where those cardboard pieces are. The next time that you get ready to pack up your Cricut to go somewhere, just grab 2 lengths of bubble wrap, roll them up, and place them on each side of the blade housing. Just remember when moving the housing, the Cricut should be unplugged and you should take care and move it slowly.

This is a great tip to pass along to any new Cricut machine owners that you may know or meet, too. Just tell them to not be so quick to throw everything away after they open their Cricut box. I knew a woman once who got so excited about her new machine that she just threw most of what was in the box away without checking. Well, she ended up throwing away the actual blade and blade holder!!! (That was an expensive mistake!)

So go find some bubble wrap, get it ready, and keep it handy for the next time you and Cricut go on a trip together to create!

Don't forget to come back and join us here at FCCB tomorrow for Wednesday's Winners!

Until next time, Happy Crafting!

Challenge Me Monday - #158 Paper Roses

noreply@blogger.com (recollectionalley) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Hello and Happy Monday!

Roses are Red,
Violets are Blue,
We made flowers from paper,
And you can do it too!

Now be very thankful that this blog does not have audio. You would be forced to endure my very own rendition of Paper Roses, which is no where near the same caliber as Marie Osmond. LOL

Our challenge this week is to use paper flowers on your card or project. There are so many different cartridges with flowers on them I can hardly wait to see all of them.

Challenge #158 - Paper Roses

Use paper flowers on your card or project

Design Team Inspiration

Missy

Sugar & Spice, Flower Shoppe

Cindy
Hoot N Holler, Artiste

Catarina

Art Philosophy cartridge

Amy

Flower Shoppe

Tammy

Mother's Day Bouquet

Connie

Fancy Frames, Old West, Flower Shoppe

Bloom, Cricut Essentials

Arin

Flower Shoppe

Kim

Elegant Edges and George and Basic Shapes

Heather

Flower Shoppe

Susie

Art Philosophy

~ This Week's Sponsor ~

This week, Fantabulous Cricut is delighted to be sponsored by My Craft Spot! Kimberly has very generously donated one of her very own stamp sets, you get to choose from over 40 stamp sets to be given to one lucky participant to be drawn
at random from all eligible entries.

U.S. mailing address only
Click here to go directly to her stamp page

I have loved paper crafting for as long as I can remember (since preschool, really!) My Craft Spot started out as a place to share my ideas through pictures and video tutorials. Then I discovered scrunched seam binding! I started hand dyeing the seam binding and now I have over 30 beautiful colors in my store! (I think I am addicted! LOL!) I also have 50 yummy colors of Bakers Twine from The Twinery, Trendy Twine (3 colors twisted together!), Divine Twine, Traditional twine and my own hand dyed Vintage Twine! Last year I started my own line of high quality photopolymer stamps! Come visit My Craft Spot for lots of ideas and inspiration, videos and weekly challenges with prizes!

Shipping is always FREE at My Craft Spot within the US and Canada and only $5.00 outside the US and Canada!

If you would like to be a sponsor for Fantabulous Cricut

please contact Janea via the Contact Me tab.

To link your project for this week's "FCCB's Paper Roses" challenge,

click on the blue "add your link" button below!
This challenge ends at 7:00 pm May 5th (CST).

When linking your project, please remember to list on your blog what Cricut cartridge you used.

Sunday Spotlight!

noreply@blogger.com (Arin) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Hello and a Good Sunday To You All!

It is Arin here and I am thrilled to be showcasing a super-duper-fantastic crafter, Julie from Cricut Chirp, that is a total jack of all trades! She is a wife and mother first, a bank compliance auditor by day and a fiddle playin', guitar strumin' piano pluckin' and tenor drum swingin' musician by night. Somewhere in between all that amazing juggling and muscial talent she shines up her crafter's hat and lands a spot on the FCCB Top 5 with this fun project!

Julie's favorite projects to do are cards and it is no wonder since they are just AMAZING! Here are just a few fun finds!

Lazy Days

Mustache

Man Card

Now let's get to know Julie more!

1. When did you start scrapbooking/paper crafting and why? I started papercrafting in highschool for an art class. Then I got even more involved when I had to make a scrapbook for one of my English classes. I became a Creative Memories consultant for several years after that. I loved teaching others how to preserve family memories for future generations.

2. What is your favorite type of project to make (i.e., cards, layouts, mini-albums, etc....)? Right now my favorite type of project is card making. I love the instant gratification of a finished project that didn't take weeks to complete.
3. What is your favorite product to use on your projects? I'd have to say that my favorite product is my ATG tape because it holds my little paper world together.
4. What is your favorite Cricut cartridge? My favorite Cricut cartridge is Create a Critter. It has amazing versatility for so many different projects.
5. What do you do in your spare time, when you are not paper crafting? I work full time as a compliance auditor for a bank. I am a married mom of one 3 year old daughter. I love to do crafts with my little girl! I play piano, fiddle, guitar and recently joined my husband's bagpipe competition band to learn the swinging tenor drum. Our family stays pretty active in the Irish and Scottish community.

Julie may say her favorite thing to do is cards, but that is not the only craft projects she shines in! Check out these fun and very creative projects she has done.

Doctor Kit

Fun with Duct Tape!

Scrabble Wall Art

Before I sign off for the day, I wanted to say how honored I am to be doing these spotlights each week and meeting some amazing crafters that just keep me in awe just as Julie from Cricut Chirp, has managed to do this week! Be sure to pop over and check out Julie's BLOG, there are so many more "fantabulous" morsels of amazing creativity to be enjoyed. I will leave you with some fun and very pretty project she has made. You can find these beautiful pins over at her Ebay store, which I just think are fabulous!

Tea Cup Pin Cushion

Until Next Week,

Arin

Scrappin' on Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy Vernon) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 05:30:00 +0000

Hi everyone, Cindy here, I hope that everyone is ready for another Scrappin' on Saturday post! There is still time to join this week's challenge.

#157 3D Projects

There are so many 3D projects to choose from. I tried to focus on projects that would include pictures to keep this week's post all about scrappin'.

DT member Rachel and her blog partner Mary from Cricut with Heart has tons of fabulous Cricut projects on her blog. This fabulous designer tray using the Art Philosophy cartridge caught my eye.

Dawn from Stamp Til Dawn used the My Creations bracket frame from CTMH to make a lovely home decor piece.

Melanie from Courtney Lane Designs made this super gorgeous frame!!! Absolutely love it. She used the CTMH Art Philosophy cartridge.

Thanks for visiting and I hope that you can fine some time to do some scrappin!

Fantabulous Friday #157 3-D Projects

noreply@blogger.com (Heather) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:30:00 +0000

Good morning! It's Fantabulous Friday!! We have a fun challenge for you this week! We want to see your 3-D creations. The 3-D object does not have to be cut from a Cricut cartridge, but you do need to include a Cricut image somewhere. So let your imaginations run and have some fun with this week's challenge!!

I found some great projects that will hopefully help spark some creativity. First, we have Tina's fun candy boxes that were cut from Tags, Bags, Boxes and More 2. These could easily be modified for any holiday or celebration.

Next, is Faith-Abigail's Eiffel Tower. She cut the Eiffel Tower from Summer in Paris, the flowers from Mother's Day Bouquet, and the butterflies from Home Accents.

Emily recently picked up a Top 5 mention with her cute cake box cut from Sweet Tooth Boxes.

There are some cartridges that are full of 3-D creations for you to choose from. One is Tags, Bags, Boxes and More 2. Check out all the fun cuts on that cartridge!

Another cartridge full of 3-D creations is Sweet Tooth Boxes. So many fun treat packages to choose from!

And don't forget about all the 3-D images that are included on other Cricut cartridges too. One example is the Campin' Critters cartridge with the cute tent and backpack images.

Like I mentioned before, your 3-D object does not have to be a Cricut cut, just be sure to include a Cricut image somewhere on your project! We're looking forward to seeing all your fun creations!! Be sure to stop by tomorrow for Scrappin Saturday!!

Thursday Tutorial - Paper Saver Tip!

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel Loesch) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Hello! Rachel here from Cricut with Heart and today I'd like to share a paper saving tip for cutting photo mats. I was on a Close to My Heart consultant retreat this past weekend, and my friend a fellow team member, Shauna Nuttall, showed me how to get four full 5" x 7" photo mats from one sheet of 12"x 12" paper!

You begin by setting your paper in your cutter and line it up at the 7" mark.

Then pull down the cutter to the 7" mark on the cutting ruler.

Lift the cutting ruler and rotate the paper counter-clockwise, lining it up again at the 7" mark. Pull the blade down again to the 7" mark on the cutting ruler, and you now have your first 5"x 7" photo mat.

Simply repeat the process! Lift the cutting ruler, rotate the paper, line up at 7" and pull the blade down to 7". Now you have your second mat.

The final cut will get your final two mats! Just lift, rotate, and cut down to 7".

Now you have four photo mats at 5"x 7", and the scrap piece from the middle is 2"x 2"! Easy, huh?

This method will also work for cutting 4 1/2"x 6 1/2" mats by starting out with an 11"x 11" paper and cutting at 6 1/2". I hope you'll find this tutorial as useful as I did!

Happy Crafting!