Searching for Patterns and Backgrounds with the Imagine

I am hoping that all of you who own an Imagine will be VERY happy with the Thursday Tutorial from MyCutSearch Tip today! Shawn Mosch, owner of MyCutSearch has recently done some catching up on information for the website, and now has ALL of the Imagine cartridges that are available up on the site and databased!

Although Shawn does not own an Imagine, she was able to do some thinking when it came to all of those backgrounds and patterns that are included on the cartridges and has found a wonderful way to categorize them.

So let's pretend you are getting ready to scrapbook a layout of a summer picnic. Wouldn't a gingham check pattern be nice to use, since it would look like a traditional picnic tablecloth? To find such a pattern, go to MyCutSearch.com and type in

gingham check

You should get this for your search results:

That's right . . . that is a preview of all of the Imagine handbook pages that have a gingham check pattern.

Here is a larger view of one of them:

Some of the other patterns you can search for are floral, stripe and polka dot. I hope that all of the Imagine owners like this feature and find it helpful!

Wednesday Winners #65

Hi Fantabulous Cricut followers, I hope you are enjoying your summer with some fun in the sun. All of the "Summer Sun" projects from last weeks challenge I'm completely warmed up, each project really had it's own creative flair, and if you'd like to view the Summer Sun challenge projects click -HERE.

~This Weeks Winner~

June Kit from Artful Delight

#75 Susan -Cricut and Grasshopper

Congratulations Susan!!!

To claim your prize please contact Robin at...
fantabulous cricut @ yahoo .com (remove 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 sidebar.

~Design Team Top 5~

#1 Ro Donner -Toodle Noodle Creative
#4 Lisa -A Mermaid's Crafts
#6 Amy -Amy's Crafting Space
#60 Jenny -Jenny's Scrapbooking Haven
#66 Sandi -Sandi's Added Touch

Congratulations Ladies!!!

Remember to grab your "FCCB Top 5" blinky to display on your blog! You can find the blinky code on our right-hand sidebar.

Thank you to all those who participated in our challenge!

Come join us for this weeks "Happy 4th" challenge -HERE

Use Red White and Blue on your project.

Quick Tip Tuesday: Button, Button

Hello, all my Tuesday pals.  It's Larelyn here with another Quick Tip.

I found this idea on a YouTube video by Jule Fei-Fan Balzer (milkcannyc).
Julie suggest making buttons for your cards or layouts using your scraps.  When I tried it, I punched circles using  1/2, 3/4, and 1 inch punches.  You can use any size or shape (I plan on using my square and star punches as well).  Since my samples for today are from a paper scrap rather than cardstock, I also punched the same-sized circles out of cardstock scraps and adhered the two together using my Xyron.
Once you have your button shapes, cover them with Glossy Accents and let them dry completely.  Then, use a paper punch (I used my Crop-A-Dile) to punch the button holes.  Add whatever twine, thread, or fibers you choose and there you have your custom made buttons ready to add to your project.

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you'll be back next Tuesday for another quick idea.

Hugs and Happy Crafting,

Larelyn

Challenge Me Monday #66

This week's challenge is "Happy 4th" and we are challenging you to use red, white and blue on your project.

#66 - Happy 4th

Use red, white and blue on your project

~Design Team Inspiration~

Shelly
~Guest Designer~
View Shelly's FCCB spotlight page Stand and Salute, Wild Card cartridges

Barb

Create a Critter cartridge

Dana

Stand and Salute cartridge

Helen

Stand and Salute, Elegant Edges cartridges

Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder

Jenae

Stand and Salute, George and Basic Shapes, A Child's Year cartridges

Kate

Campin' Critters, Create a Critter, George and Basic Shapes, New Arrival, Pooh Font cartridges

Distressed Stripes Cuttlebug folder

Lisa C.

Home Decor cartridge

Maquel
Independence Day, Birthday Bash cartridges

Rae

Cricut Decals cartridge

Sarah
Designer's Calendar cartridge

Saundra

Stand and Salute, A Child's Year cartridges, SVG from Little Scraps of Heaven Designs

~This Week's Sponsor~

Prize:

4th/DC Collection

To link your project for this week's "Happy 4th" challenge, click on the blue "add your link" button below!

This challenge ends at Midnight, July 3rd (mountain time).

Spotlight Sunday

Welcome to Spotlight Sunday!

Today we have a “fantabulously” talented lady and tomorrow’s Challenge Me Monday Guest Designer!

Let me introduce to you to Shelly from My Paper Love:

You may recognize this project from Challenge Me Monday challenge #63 ~ #1 Dad.

Shelly was one of our Top 5 picks for this challenge.

Before we show you some of Shelly’s other incredible creations we thought you would like to get to know her a little better. We asked her a few crafty questions.

1. When did you start scrapbooking/paper crafting? Why?

I have always loved paper crafting. It may have started with collecting stickers when I was a little girl. I had books and books of stickers that eventually turned into stacks and stacks of paper. It really became a passion of mine shortly after my second son was born. I mostly created cards and invitations for friends and family. Paper crafting is “MY” relaxation and I really enjoy the creative process and instant gratification of something lovely!

2. What is your favorite type of project to make?

Definitely cards and invitations

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

Hands down it’s my Cricut! I love my little guy!

4. What is your favorite Cricut cartridge?

I think my favorite cartridges go by the season. So at the moment my favorite is Life’s A Beach. Create A Critter is definitely high on my list and so is Paper Doll Dress Up – this cartridge has so many random images, I love it!

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

When I’m not paper crafting I’m usually at one of my boys games or I’m in the kitchen cooking. Both my boys play baseball and my oldest son plays year round. We are always at a field.

As far as cooking, I really enjoy it. With two boys and my hubby I must have food ready to go at all times. They are ALWAYS hungry. I’m working on baking, let’s say it’s not exactly my thing.

6. Any other info you would like us to know about you.

Like many of you talented ladies and gentlemen, my friends and family encouraged, maybe pushed me, to share my craft. I have to admit it feels a little strange to write things about yourself and send them off into internet space. After all I’m not that interesting. Nonetheless, I started my blog and NEVER dreamed there was a “bloggy” world like this. Boy am I glad there is! On a personal note, I thank GOD for answering my prayers when I was a little girl, because I always told HIM I wanted to marry Prince Charming and I did twelve years ago! We have two boys and our little girl (yorkie) Lola. We live by the beach and take FULL advantage of that fact. I walk at the beach a lot, and we spend most of the year on the sand!

Here are a few things that you will find on Shelly’s blog:

Make sure you visit Shelly’s blog to discover all the wonderful things she has to share with you.

Guest designers are chosen from our Winners and Top 5 picks. If you would like to be a guest designer all you have to do is play along in our Challenge Me Monday challenges! You never know when you could be asked.

We also use “Spotlight Sunday” to feature sponsors from time to time. If you are interested in being a Sponsor for Fantabulous Cricut Challenge Blog and being featured on “Spotlight Sunday,” please contact us via the Contact Me tab.

Now come back tomorrow to see what our Fantabulous Design Team along with Shelly, our guest designer, has designed for you for Challenge Me Monday. I can tell you now, you will not be disappointed!

Happy Crafting!

Saundra

FCCB Spotlight Sunday Hostess

Scrappin Saturday

It's a Fantabulous Saturday!!!!!!!!!!!

One of my favorite products is Helmars Adhesive, and if you want to check out their creativity please go to the Helmar's blog and check out the talented group of ladies over there.

Here is the video that saved me from buying a new mat every 6 months!! I love, love, love the V2 Spray! And the way I use it, whenever I have a vellum quote to use I take out my Cricut mat, lay the vellum quote upside down on it and take it outside. I then spray the quote; thus using the overspray on my mat...1 spray for 2 purposes! Doesn't get better than that~

AND...drumroll please.....

Helmar is giving away this set of Remover and V2 Spray!!

All you have to do to be qualified to win this is to go over Helmar's FB page and "like" them. ( Please only USA residents due to the cost of shipping ) and Please say that Fantabulous Cricut sent you over so she will know who you are and will pick an random winner!! Easy, and the winner of this is going to LOOOOOOOOOOVE it, so good luck to everyone!

PS...I also have not heard from the winners last week of the Reminisce prize package so make sure you pop over to my blog and see if you won!
:)

Sandee

Fantabulous Friday Summer Sun

Hi everyone! Fantabulous Friday is here--Yay!! This week, I decided to find some suns to go along with our theme this week.

I found a great sun on Life is a Beach. Here's the sample sheet and a 6 x 6 card that I made. This is perfect to get for all your summer pages.

Next up, is Just Because Cards. I have not used this cartridge much, but it is a fun one! You can make cards for all occasions and there are some different card styles here too.

One of my favorite cartridges is Celebrate with a Flourish. This is a Lite cartridge but it really is very pretty. And you can get double rewards on the Cricut Rewards site if you enter them by June 30 :) I couldn't get a good shot of a sample sheet but that's probably since it's a Lite. But here's a cute card I made some time ago. The entire cut includes a cloud, but I like it just with the sun too.

There's a really cute sun on Hello Kitty Greetings. The cuts on this cartridge just make me smile!

I didn't find anything with the sun from this on it. I'll have to play with it this weekend--I'd love to try to make the sun shape card!

Now, I am sure there are lots more suns out there. So make sure to cut your favorite and make a project for our challenge this week--there's still plenty of time!!

Happy Summer!



Thursday's Tutorial: Adorable Sunshine Cards

Happy Thursday! One day closer to the weekend, which I must say, I am very much looking forward to. I can't wait to have some time with my husband this weekend. We've had the craziest week and I feel like we've barely seen each other. Please check out my blog if your interested in my crazy week. :0)

For today's tutorial, again, I wanted to stick with the theme of the week, which is basically summer, focusing on the sun. I don't know about you, but in Colorado it has been an extremely weird summer so far. Wow! We had temps from the highs in the 90s to a high of 61 just this week! Not to mention all the hail and crazy rainstorms, flood warnings, and afternoon Thunderstorms. We could use a little sunshine! Great theme for this week, don'tcha think?

These adorable cards were created by Lori from Scrappin' My Stress Away. She also entered them into our Challenge Me Monday's Challenge. :0) This is a photo tutorial, but I think you can get the idea on how to create them pretty well. Of course, if you have specific questions, please shoot Lori an email or comment on her blog.

This is the front view of the completed cards, which were made by using the Gypsy.

She found a sun that she liked on her Gypsy using the search feature. " This sun is from Simply Charmed. The sun is sized to 2.14h. The square window card is from Fun Finds sized to 6.58w x 3.24h."

She was able to fit four cards on her mat for the Expression. I love that on the Gypsy you know exactly where your paper is going to be cut so you can add lots of different paper and sometimes get everything you need cut in one fell swoop!

She arranged the layers into sections of her mat. Isn't the Gypsy just amazing for saving space and seeing how everything will layout? I also love how you can add a different layer if you want, for each element, and put one image on top of the other to make sure the sizes will line up properly and that you didn't make a mistake with your sizing.

I still can't believe I really didn't want one or think I would ever use it! For those of you who don't have this (I know I've mentioned it before), get it! If you spend as much time in a doctor's office or waiting, like I do, you will not regret it. It makes designing so much easier. Or, I would highly recommend getting a program like Sure Cuts A Lot as well. It is just so much easier to see things laid out on a screen, in my opinion. If you have any questions about either of those items, please ask!

Here the pieces are, all cut out!

Lori then ran her dies through her Xyron machine. Again, another Fantabulous tool to own. I have 4 of them! In fact, think I'll give one away in my 500 followers blog candy. ;) Next, put the sun together from the bottom layer to the sunglasses. Lori added some yellow Stickles and a little twine to dress hers up. I like to add Glossy Accents to my suns just to make them extra shiny, but in this case, I think Glossy Accents would look even better on the sunglasses. Another thing that would make this card just adorable is adding a phrase such as -- Your future's so bright, you gotta wear shades. :0) I think that would be cute!

And there you have it! Adorable and easy right? :0)

Hope you enjoyed today's tutorial and again, thank you Lori for the lovely inspiration! Hope you all our entering our challenge. It's a great challenge and you can use it to bring a little sunshine into someone's day. We can all use that!

Please be sure to leave us some comments and any questions. As always, we love to hear from our Fantabulous followers friends! Oh, and don't forget to hop over to Lori's blog to see some of her other fun creations! :0)

XO ~ Amy Jo (DT member and Thursday's Tutorial Hostess)