When I got my Explore Air 2 I was so excited, but when I googled for settings to cut various materials, it was never even close. Then when I finally got settings that would work for my machine, a few weeks later I'd have to recalibrate. Plus, whenever the light on the buttons would blink there would be this shrill, annoying sound that beeped along with the light. 

I finally contacted Cricut customer support, and the person I got was so very helpful. She asked me to send a video showing what my machine was doing and gave me specific points they wanted me to include in it. Very simple stuff, so I was able to get it out to them easily.

I shot my first video with my tablet, which didn't pick up the sound. My customer service person responded almost immediately, saying she couldn't hear the sound and asking me to send a different video if I could. I did, and she sent my video to the appropriate people and asked for my address to expedite things.

After a week I hadn't heard anything, so I contacted her again. Again, she replied almost immediately with a FedEx tracking number. I got my replacement today, and instead of sending just the machine they sent me an entirely new set- the machine and everything that comes with it. That's not a huge deal, but it's nice. It's also the color I originally bought, which isn't a huge deal but it still made me happy.

I've dealt with customer service for different items from different companies, and in comparison this experience was flat-out amazing. The person I was in contact with was not only on top of things but also very kind. I've never had such an easy time with this... it could have been a much more stressful experience, and it just wasn't.

I know people are quick to complain if things aren't good, but don't seem to talk about when things go well. I've dealt with Cricut's customer service twice now, and each time they were exceptional. I'm impressed...

Have you have any experiences with Cricut's customer service? Tell me about it... :D

Recreating an old sketch to use on my Cricut!

I've kept sketchbooks off and on for years... simple, inexpensive notebooks I'd pick up either on sale or at the dollar store. While looking through some of my older sketches, I found several I'd like to make into stickers. I started with this strange little critter that seems somewhat frog-like.

My original drawing was fairly messy, but still fun.

He needed a LOT of work! The original photo of my sketch wasn't all that great, and he very much needed to be cleaned up and sharpened up. Because of this I brought the image into Photoshop and basically redrew the entire image.

Once I was finished, I saved him as a basic PNG image, then brought him into Illustrator to save him as an SVG. Then I had an idea...

I love the rough quality of the lines, almost like the tool marks from a chisel!

I recently saw a post on Reddit that linked to a really fun website called CuteCutter that helps you create simple SVGs of your images so that you can print them and/or cut them out on your cutting machine. I've done several images and I love how they come out... I'll be sharing more of those in the coming days, believe me. :D

I have to say I loved the way my original drawing came out using CuteCutter! It has an interesting, organic feel to it... almost like a linoleum print! It will definitely make an interesting sticker!

Also, once I finished cleaning up my drawing I decided to share an animated gif to show the difference between the two images. It's always good to start with the highest quality image you can, so that you can wind up with better end products.

Hopefully I'll be showing you some lovely stickers soon, including this chunky boy. I also have several other things to share coming up, so keep an eye on this space!

Til next time!

Creating custom paths for your cutting machine!

This will be a discussion about creating your own paths for cutting or writing with your cutting machine. There is a bit of a learning curve (no pun intended), but it's definitely achievable. Just keep practicing, and you'll get there!

What is a path?
A path is a set of instructions telling your machine exactly where to go. Mozilla.org says this:

Paths create complex shapes by combining multiple straight lines or curved lines. ... A good understanding of paths is important when drawing SVGs.
      -from https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/SVG/Tutorial/Paths

The good news is that we don't need to know all that much (even though it helps), because the software really does handle most of what we need to do.

Do I have to use SVGs with my Cricut?
Not at all! We can also use PNGs and JPGs. Because of Cricut's limitations, there are times when an SVG is actually a problem! The most important thing is to make sure we have a high quality image, so that our Cricut machines getdirections that are as clear as possible.

What tools do I need to make a path?
There are lots of programs we can use to create custom paths. I'm going to talk about three- Inkscape (https://inkscape.org/), Adobe Illustrator (https://tinyurl.com/w48lcy8), and Skedio (https://skedio.app/).

What is a bezier curve, and how will it help me?
A Bezier curve is a tool that tells the computer how much to curve the path and in what direction.

 A Bezier (BEZ-zee-ay) curve is a mathematically defined curve used in two-dimensional graphic applications. The curve is defined by four points: the initial position and the terminating position (which are called "anchors") and two separate middle points (which are called "handles"). The shape of a Bezier curve can be altered by moving the handles. The mathematical method for drawing curves was created by Pierre Bézier in the late 1960's for the manufacturing of automobiles at Renault.
      - from https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/Bezier-curve

How do I use Bezier curves?
Here, have some tutorials. :D

Web page tutorials:
https://preview.tinyurl.com/uvvthln
https://preview.tinyurl.com/hwg9fem

Video tutorials:
https://preview.tinyurl.com/yx7tvt6f
https://preview.tinyurl.com/rk5pq2d


Do I have to use Bezier curves to make a path?
No. You can use the pen tool in programs to manually draw out your curves. I generally draw my paths manually first, then smooth them with the Bezier curves.

What was the point of all this, anyway?
Well, to make your cutting machine write without bubbling on the letters, you need a path so that the machine just draws/writes the way people do, instead of just outlining everything.

And if I want to fill in my letters with a pattern? 
Then you would draw out your path inside of the letter form you choose. Like this!

First you draw your custom path. I'm using Skedio here so I can draw on my tablet. You can also use lllustrator, or Inskape, or several other programs.

Then upload that path to your Design Space and place it onto your canvas. Make any size and placement changes you want, and be sure to attach everything. That will keep everything where you put it.

Then make your project! As you see, the Cricut draws the path exactly as I drew it. No bubbling here!

Hopefully this can give you a starting point, so that you can create even more things with your Cricut! :D

Nightmares Can Be Strange Things...

My original image that kind of looks
the way I think nightmares feel...

Everyone has nightmares. Whether it's the one where all your teeth are falling out, or you're at school for the big exam you didn't study for and you just happen to be naked, we all are familiar with waking up in a state of dread only to be relieved that no, this isn't something you actually have to worry about at that moment.

For years, I had school nightmares. I would remember that I had signed up for a class that I then promptly forgot about until the final exam, only to realize that I had absolutely no idea where the class was being held. I also had a recurring dream that I would suddenly appear at school either completely naked or in my underwear, with only a pillow to conceal myself.

Lately, though, I seem to be having a new type of nightmare. Instead of being based around school disasters, these focus on something much more distressing for me - moving. I will find myself in a fairly luxurious apartment that I absolutely love. It often is the same apartment, one Ive never been to in real life, but I recognize the floor plan once I wake up.

In this apartment are the things my family and I have acquired over the 1-2 years we lived there, and we find ourselves faced with the prospect of boxing it all up to move. But wait, you say, I thought this was supposed to be a nightmare?

Oh, my friend, trust me... it is SUCH a nightmare. See, we aren't just boxing up our things. We have to move because some sort of drama has occurred- someone has lost a job, or become disabled (things we have gone through in reality), and for whatever reason, we have left everything until the absolute last minute possible to leave. We have a matter of hours to get everything we own out of the apartment and clean it up to get the deposit back, and it just is not going to be possible.

It gets worse from there, as then family comes to help, but instead yell at us for being unprepared, and the landlord comes with police to evict us... my child (who is an adult in reality, but always a small child in these dreams) cries as everything familiar is being boxed up and taken away, and I stand helpless, watching everything Ive worked for basically falling apart.

Then I wake up, and let me tell you this- my life is nowhere near perfect, but the relief I feel when I realize I don't actually have to move right now? That is a wonderful, wonderful feeling.

Brains are weird. What sort of nightmares do you find yourself dealing with? Have you found anything that seems to trigger them? Leave me a comment, I would really like to know I'm not the only one having weird dreams like these!

My brain is a strange place to be trapped sometimes.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Halloween costume fun!

(I apologize- if you follow me on Facebook, you may have seen these photos already. If you have, then read along- maybe the story will make up for having seen the photos?)

I love Halloween. You may know this by now, but if you don't, it's my favorite holiday. So even though I haven't dressed up for the holiday in at least a decade, I still wander through Halloween stores and departments many times throughout the season. This brings me to today's post.

As we wandered the Halloween department of a local big box store, my husband and I were enjoying pointing out silly costumes, coming up with ideas for the various bits you can find. I'm halfway planning to make some hair padding from some of the costume wigs once they go on sale after Halloween, but that's a different post entirely! Suddenly, my husband stopped, picked up a costume, and held it out to me with a curious look on his face.

"Honey, do you see anything... odd... about this costume?"

I looked closely, and was overwhelmed by the cuteness of the baby in the photo. I couldn't see past how adorable the whole thing was. "Umm, cute baby?"

He shook his head. "Nope... look more closely."

I looked and looked... and nothing stood out to me. There were sweet googly eyes under a puff of sweet pink curly hair. Soft felt teeth framed the baby's face. A pink bow tie matched the giant yellow feet of the monster and the yellow horns on the monster's head. The effect was almost unbearably cute, and I couldn't get past that.

Finally, he gave up and pointed out what had made him stop and stare in confusion. When I saw it, I had to take a close-up picture, because I knew this was going on the blog.

 That's right: this costume is apparently part of the Noah's Ark collection. Did you miss the part of the story where pink fuzzy monsters were hanging out on the ark with the rest of the animals? I know I did, but hey, I was never the most diligent of students. Maybe I missed out on some of it... and judging by the other costumes we've found in the days following? I missed a LOT.

I don't even know what else to say, other than I've taken to carrying my tablet with me because I keep finding more and more amusing costumes in this line!

That's right- the ark held dragons, too!

Oh look- it's a BOY's monster costume, since boys can't wear PINK, and girls obviously can't wear blue!

Don't look now, it's the terrifying PUMPKIN monster. Because you know, pumpkins...

... so the ark had SHARKS on it? Why couldn't they just swim? Oh, whatever... my brain hurts now.

Yea. So that happened. I don't know who's coming up with the ideas for these costumes, but I think they need a new theme. But now you know the rest of the story, so that's good... right?

Halloween is my favorite holiday!

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Rubber Stamping Adventures!

Hidey ho, campers! How are you enjoying the summer so far? Thankfully, it's been a very mild summer this year, so I've been able to spend less time lying in a puddle in front of the air conditioner! The question, then, is what have I been doing with all that extra time?

As some of you know, I've got this driven need to learn things. Asked what my goal in life is, I'll often reply that my goal is to learn everything. EVERYTHING. Yes, I know I'll fail, but just think how much fun I'll have learning in the meantime!

The latest thing I've been learning recently is how to carve my own rubber stamps. See, it all started with business cards...

I've designed my own business cards in the past, and I've been very happy with them. The problem is that they go so quickly. I made a ton of cards a couple of years ago to tide me over until I could get some proper cards printed up, but I kept running into the same issues- business cards can be expensive, and I don't know that I always want the same, single image on my cards. Then there's the question of what can I do when I run out of cards and need some in a hurry?

Some of my first stamps. Robot! :D

So, my kind of strange creative mind hit on rubber stamping. I thought about having a stamp created with all my information on it, but then I found how much a single business-card-sized stamp could cost. (Think $25-40!) Because of this, I started thinking about carving my own stamps. It's something I've been interested in for years, but have never really had the time or opportunity to do.

A quick google search found a Speedball carving set for significantly less than $40. While waiting for that to reach me, I hit my local Dollar Tree and grabbed a bunch of erasers and a couple of things I thought I might be able to make a stamp pad with. Because I'm so fond of bright color, I knew I didn't want a single-color stamped image. So, I grabbed a children's watercolor paint set and some felt to see what I could come up with.

The result? Well, my first stamps were a smashing success, but they were pretty small. My husband brought home some larger erasers a few days later, and I carved the middle stamp in the above image. I've carved over 20 stamps now, and have only cut myself twice, so I figure that's a good thing, right?

Then came the stamp pad. Let's see if I can simplify what I did- I got a medicine organizer with 7 separate compartments, put the watercolors (green, blue, purple, red, and orange) into different compartments with some water to liquify them, then poured them onto the felt and let them dry. To use the stamp pad, I spray it with a light mist of water 5-10 minutes before I plan to use it, then again right before, and oddly enough it works!

I also decided I wanted something beautiful for the back of my cards, so I set out to make something... colorful and me-like. It's amazing what you can create with a set of Crayola watercolors...

Once it was dry, I doodled over it in white, adding paisleys and hearts, fun phrases and spirals. I wanted something that looked like pieces of a whole once it was cut up. I wanted something that felt special, as if I were giving a piece of art to everyone who gets one of my cards.

The result? Crazy fun business cards in gradient colors that make me SO happy... I've had to hand-write the blog address, mainly because I don't carve that well yet. Still, I'm happy with the result so far.

Stamped business cards version 1.

Stamped business cards version 2.

I've also carved some flowers, some leaves, as well as a few other things. Then I wondered what I could do with them, so I started experimenting. And yes, I'm frugal, so I've been painting on old envelopes. I'm weird that way. :D

Not bad for children's watercolors and some eraser stamps, eh? So what do you think of all these? And what do you think I should carve next?

Leave me a comment telling me what you think. I need the feedback, what can I say?

Til next time...

I'm still alive, isn't that fun?

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Pink Ivy- Stamping with Milani

I got the chance to do a really fun manicure recently, and I loved it so much I kept it for a full week! It was hard to photograph, but I think I got a pretty decent representation of it. You'll have to let me know what you think, and if you'd wear this!

Since summer is here, I was feeling the urge for some bright colors. I also wanted to dig into some of my older polishes, so without much hesitation I pulled out Wicked Style from the China Glaze Electropop collection. I know, I wish I had multiple backups of these polishes, they're definite staples in my collection!

Then, to add a bit of whimsy and to use one of my semi-new stamping plates, I stamped a pretty floral pattern from the Pueen plate #33 using White Milani polish. This worked beautifully, as you can tell! And of course, since I'm me, I had to add a bit of sparkle to things. A single coat of Essence Colour and Go in Space Queen finished things off beautifully!

All in all, this was a fun, bright manicure that made me smile lots. There's something about having my nails done that just makes my day seem a bit brighter!

What colors are you finding yourself drawn to this summer? Are you feeling hot in pastels, or are neons singing your name? Leave me a comment and let me know what you're loving this summer!

Some polishes were provided by the brands for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.