1st Banner for Cricut Expression 2 Design Challenge

 

On Monday, September 26 at 12:01 a.m. EST, Provo Craft is going to launch their newest machine — the Cricut Expression 2 on HSN.  They posted a challenge to design and make a banner and they are going to give away five new Expression 2’s to some very lucky winners.  You were able to make two banners to enter, so this is the first banner I made.

I knew the competition was going to be tough because there are so many talented Cricut users, so I tried to think a little “outside the box.”  For some reason, hanging a mini banner on a glass block was my first idea.   I originally planned on using etching cream to frost the glass, but because I was using a small string of LED lights I ended up putting glass marbles inside to help hold the lights in place.

The banner is made using Bazzill and Core’dinations cardstock.  I used the Birthday Bash cartridge for my banner base.  The green frame was cut from Lacy Labels, the scalloped circles from Mini Monograms, the regular circles from George and Basic Shapes, and the black valances were cut from Straight from the Nest.  The Cricut lettering is from Cricut Everyday and I cut it out of a glitter cardstock from DCWV.  I used two Swarovski crystals on the antennae.  I added some small flowers punched from a Martha Stewart Punch Around the Page combo called Flower Shower and used lime green Stickles for the centers.

The pieces on the glass were cut from vinyl — the white fancy scroll frame is from Ornamental Iron 2 and the Bug head is from Cricut Everyday.  I was impressed with how well the Cricut cut the vinyl.  Here is a picture of the block all lit up.

FrontLit4

I decided to decorate the back of the block too and I used the same frame that I put on the front, cut from Ornamental Iron 2.  I recently bought this cartridge and I am lovin’ it!  It has some beautiful designs on it and I think they look great cut out of vinyl.

The phrase and Bug head on the back are both cut from Cricut Everyday.  And here is a picture of the back of the block with the lights on.

To hang the banner on the glass block, I glued some black & white dotted ribbon around the edges using Terrifically Tacky Tape.  I strung the banner together using DMC’s Memory Thread.  I sewed and glued the ends of the Memory Thread on the banner.  To cover up my stitches, I punched some more flowers and glued them on top.  I also scattered a few flowers on the front and back of the block.  I tied some wide Cricut green organza ribbon around the entire block and made a big bow using my Bowdabra.

The last picture is of the side of the block.

  • Cricut cartridges used:  Birthday Bash, Cricut Everyday, George and Basic Shapes, Lacy Labels, Mini Monograms, Ornamental Iron 2 and Straight from the Nest
  • Cardstock:  Bazzill, Core’dinations, DCWV
  • Cricut vinyl
  • DMC Memory Thread
  • Terrifically Tacky Tape
  • Martha Stewart Flower Shower punch
  • Lime green Stickles
  • Swarovski crystals

Challenge Friday: Eerie – Weekly Challenge #1 at the Cricut Circle Blog

I am a member of the Cricut Circle, a select community of Provo Craft Cricut enthusiasts.  The new Circle blog was launched on October 1 and will be open to the public for the first ten days.  After that it will be available to Circle members only.

The blog is featuring weekly challenges and the first one began the day the blog launched.  This challenge is open to Circle members and requires you to use two cuts from the French Manor cartridge, an exclusive members-only cartridge.   You also had to use pearls or jewels on your project.

I created a Halloween card using DCWV’s Black Currant cardstock stack.  The solid color cardstock is from Bazzill.  I used French Manor for the mirror and the keys.  The bat, skull, spider and “eerie” sentiment are from the Happy Hauntings cartridge.  The spider webs are from Wild Card.  I used Stickles on the bodies of the spiders and added some teardrop-shaped jewels above the sconces on the mirror.  I bought the jewels at Joann’s (in the $1 bin) the night I did the card, not knowing at the time that they would work so well with the design. 

A few days ago, a Circle member (Capadia) posted a helpful tip for cutting small letters.  She suggested cutting them from vinyl.  You can find her post on her blog here.  I cut the “eerie” letters using vinyl and it worked perfectly, right down to the tiny dot for the “i”. 

On the inside of the card, I layered some cardstock and added another spider and web.

  • DCWV Black Currant stack
  • Bazzill Bling cardstock
  • Black vinyl (scrap) for sentiment
  • Cricut cartridges:  French Manor, Happy Hauntings, and Wild Card
  • Jewels from Joann’s ($1 bin)
  • Ranger Stickles – pink