Social Distancing, Creating With Friends and My Cricut

In this time of "social distancing" when so many are learning to adapt, what have you been doing in life? 

Do you find yourself quite comfortable being home more? For those who view their home as a comfort and a haven perhaps you like me are swimming in new ideas, whether it be thinking about what I will do when I am able to get out more or in ideas for my next NEW endeavor. I confess, I am a creative junkie. Even when I'm not creating I am looking for new ideas... yes I am a Youtube and Pinterest junkie. I am fortunate to have sweet friends who are always on the lookout for  opportunities to help me in my addiction to create, ha-ha!.

A while back I updated my old Cricut  which I hardly used to a Cricut Explore Air 2 since these sweet friends bought an extra at a warehouse sale (in case I wanted it ;) 

Chip checks out our Italian Soda Bar

The first project I used it for was to help decorate my house when I hosted a WHITE ELEPHANT party after Christmas. Thank you Diane for all the help you gave in cutting the darling little Elephant banner (sorry I don't seem to have a pic) and the signage for my Italian Soda Bar. They turned out soooo cute! 

I have been determined to learn how to use  the functions in Cricut Design Space and the settings on the Cricut so I will get better use out of the machine. Lucky for me I have some awesome friends (thank you Diane and Jennifer (you don't know me but yes we're friends ;) I have shared so much time with you both. Because of you and many other youtube friends I already have a very long list of items I want to create and with that in mind I really need to know how to best use this machine!

Here is a part of my list:

1. HTV some shirts for my grandkiddos (Fiona loves Hamilton The Musical, Luke is so-ooo into gaming), the littles anything Peppa Pig and the older ones I'm still thinking. 
2. A vinyl decal for our wall, a gift for DH, sh-hhhh!
3. A fun No Solicitors sign for my DIL...any suggestions for a quote?
4. A pantry project, labels.
5. A vinyl quote for my craft space wall.
6. Family Name signs for extended family...a cool Christmas gift! 

The list is much longer but it becomes like making resolutions in the New Year so let's just stop there ;)

Since my larger goal right now is to learn how to use  the functions in Cricut Design Space and the settings on the Cricut I have been in Youtube classroom mode. I have found Jennifer Maker to be so helpful, if you read this a huge THANK YOU to you! 

Here is some of what I have learned and practiced so far...

• How to ATTACH things and why I might need to. (Score lines need to be attached to the project you are scoring or it simply won't score on the project ;)
•  I found that the GROUP/UNGROUP feature is great when editing text to keep it all together.
• I found out the importance of WELD after I cut out my Soda Bar letters.The script letters each cut separately,ok WELD before cutting.
• I've played with the SLICE feature and have a project saved in Cricut Design Space.  I learned that Slice only does two layers so if there are more, simplify by FLATTENING...AND once FLATTENED and saved you cannot reverse. 
• I learned the difference between an IMAGE and PATTERN and how to use PATTERNS. 
• SVG defined and how to make my own...this is definitely ongoing. 

I've got many more things to learn and I am finding that the best way for me to learn is watch something visual then then do what I watched. All in all, the "shelter at home" directive has certainly created opportunity for me to get familiar with my machine although my counter and kitchen table have been much more cluttered <sigh>...sacrafices have to be made ha-ha!

Have you a favorite Youtuber or Facebook Group for interacting and learning? If so please share in the comments! 

On Being RESILIENT

The Craft Room Clean-Up Challenge

The title says it all... getting my craft space tidied up HAS been a huge challenge!

 

I have started on this endeavor repeatedly with the aim of a CLEAR craft space and a fairly organized surrounding area. What has really taken place is I get the desk top 2/3 of the way clear and then...Then I am drawn away to another task, another project, another key focus...errrr! 
A sweet friend and crafter Melanie D came over with the express purpose of helping me get my table CLEAR...Yeah! I was actually able to get the vacuum in and get the floor clear of paper bits. It looks so much better thanks to my dear friends help.

OK, now I've spent a little more time evaluating and what my next steps would be are....I am on a mission to find a cart that will roll under one table. My handyman (DH extraordinaire) will be adding a couple shelves to my current shelf to better house stamp cases.  I have hope!!

 In the meantime I want to show you a fun project I was working on EVEN with my space being in such a disarray.

 

  I'll update everyone  soon, I hope to show you a far more organized creative space!

 

PI DAY another reason to blog!

Do you love Blogging? 

Since I was first introduced to the worldwide web one of my favorite things has been learning and sharing. It may have been about my creative interests or business life-most often I find that the things I want to share combining what I am learning... Spiritual path, business focus, art, ideas to begin anew, Life. Often right in the middle of developing an idea I am interrupted and dang! I lose my train of thought or it may take an entirely different direction.  Pinterest helps me to quickly capture ideas, recipes, sites to go back to and more. Recently I noticed that Pinterest has a widget creator!  I was just in the middle of creating a "Things I'm Researching" board when I noticed this so I decided to try it out an see if it could be a helpful tool. So far I don't get it... Moving on...

DID YOU KNOW TODAY IS NATIONAL PI DAY? 

CASE What? - What Do All Those Acronyms Mean??

CASE what? Doesn't it sound like a person could be up to some trouble, LOL? I had to do some digging through some of my favorite sites FAQ's to to find a few of these. Are you asking what's a FAQ? Oh! You might be new :) You will definitely NEED to keep reading. In our digital world and in the world of stamping I've come across some real doozies so I thought I would share some with all of my friends and perhaps you'll share a few of your favorites in the comments. (This is a family blog site so lets keep those um naughty ones off the air please ;)) 

Whether you come across them in a blog on a forum or on our favorite chat or IM, it seems we have begun to use lots of acronyms or other shortened forms of words to express our thoughts quickly. I decided it was time for me to embrace this change and become more learned.  In the craft world they abound but it never ceases to amaze me that even though I am not new to this digital craft world I STILL run into acronyms and abbreviated words that are new to me so I'm thinking perhaps you also wonder WTH = What The Heck they represent. 

SO... Here are a bunch of common ones and a few not so common. 

IM = Instant Message
FAQ = Frequently Asked Question
ROTF = Rolling On The Floor
LOL = Laughing Out Loud
IMHO = In My Honest Opinion
NIP = New In Package
TFL = Thanks For Looking
DH = Dear Husband 
TFTT = Thanks for the tip
OOAK = One of a kind
WTA = Winner takes All 
PC = Postcard
ATC = Artists Trading Card
APC = Altered Playing Card
TFS = Thanks For Sharing TAN = Tangent, off topic
LO = Lay out
CASE = Copy and Share with Everyone, Copy and Share Experiments, Copy Another Scrapper/Stamper’s Efforts
DSP = Designer Paper
A2 = The most common handmade card size. It measures 4 1/4 x 5 1/2. 
ATG = Automatic Tape Gun 
CS = Card Stock
UM = Unmounted Stamps
CAS = Clean and simple card design
RAK = Random Act of Kindness
DAK = Deliberate Act of Kindness
Envy = Envelope
Addy = Address

I hope you found this list helpful. Now for those who need a bit more, I wanted to share some of my favorite and most helpful sites for clues to some of the more tricky acronyms you might come across as a papercrafter. Whether you just love hanging out online and need some help with those weird terms or maybe stampers forums at Splitcoast or are just trying to wade through a specific set of rules on Swap-bot you will find lots of help. 

So now you know a bit more than before but then there will always be those who want to split hairs about what comprises an acronym and for those individuals be sure to check out this post.

  

Swapping Creating Sharing Yeah!!

 Back in November of 2011 I found this cool spot on the internet, Swap-bot. I shared it on my Pinterest board too! Swap-Bot  brings people together...there are alot of likeminded people out there in our big old world…people who share an interest in the same stuff I like! Another thing we similarly share in common is we like to see what others are doing…so much so that we look for opportunities to swap…hence SWAP-BOT. Currently I am swapping in these swaps.

SUSA: Through the Alphabet Envelope - B

~Handmade For You~

^_^ Happy Mother's Day

Weight loss week 23

May gift tag: May Flowers

Border Punches

An ART ENVELOPE and gift

 I've swapped lots of others... one I swapped in was Crafting Emails and the idea is to share an email FULL of craftiness :) I had a great time preparing my email, I LOVE sharing what I do, my best tips, etc. One of my partners wrote back asking for some pics of one of my crafts, Rake Knitting so I thought I’d post a picture of my first Rake Knitting project while sharing a bit about SWAP-BOT since I’m having so much fun with it.  

My first "Rake Knitting" project

FINALLY... Playtime in my Scraproom

My very first project of 2012 was a fun project shared by my dear friend Paige, the ALTERED CLIPBOARD. She has created one for her sweet little foster daughter as an aid to keeping her still during church service.

I made several as special Christmas gifts for my grandkids in 2011.

They were a big hit and I learned from my son that my daughter-in-law Maria was enamoured with them too. That was great news since her birthday follows just a bit after Christmas and finding just the right gift after Christmas is not always easy.

I had no problem settling on colors... I have this wonderful group of papers that are color grouped with several prints that look lovely together plus I was pretty sure she would enjoy the lavenders and playful prints. If you'd like to see Maria's clipboard check out the post entitled Personally For You. 
This project has been alot of fun and since creating the original clipboards for my Grandkids and Daughter-In-Law, my friend Melanie D and I have hosted a Monday Make It night and taught this lesson at our church, The Adventure American Fork. 

Celebrations Potlucks and Crafting

About 4 years ago God and I began a conversation... I definately could not see His point nor His direction at the time. I have learned though that He is capable and patient and willing to continue the work He begins. Our conversation centered around the biblical character Esther and quite honestly I did not have a picture where this conversation would lead me but I was quite sure it was aimed at helping me to grow into a new role in life. It seemed God was useing ths character Esther to help me to find my way and as it is often the case it did not happen overnight, instead it was a lesson here and an opportunity there until finally I found myself taking an active role "leading" in many areas of my life. This may not seem like an odd thing or a difficulty from your perspective but for me it has been a monumental adjustment in life. So what has this to do with Celebrations Potlucks and Crafting? Where I attend church I have felt Gods calling to head up various activities but "leadership" is NOT a comfortable hat, in fact I am much more comfortable in the background helping as support. For years I have struggled with the fear of taking on leadership...but when God begins a work He is faithful isn't He :)
Tomorrow our church women are having a potluck-with merriment, food and sharing to celebrate and remember the story of Esther and the words of her surrogate father..."And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” So who knows the change God has wrought in these few years since He planted a seed in the heart of me? For change to occur in us the pain or discomfort must shift and it did...it has become more painful to see a need and do nothing than to act. Is leadership now suddenly my fortay? The answer lies within...I realize I have become passionate about the need for leadership in every area of life from our church to our business. Our world is desperate for leaders and there it is...I'm finding I CAN take baby steps and I'm finding I can do it. Gee God, you are so-oooo clever! In fact God you are amazing...I'm having fun (most of the time) and it is not nearly as painful as I imagined.
Tomorrow our women will enjoy time together in fellowship, share what they learned from our study of Esther, enjoy creating together and we'll also bring some food gifts for the poor. Its amazing to me that my part in this began four years ago with a conversation with God and me saying I can't!