Glass Etching with the Cricut

The weekend is almost upon us. That means the count down till Christmas is going full speed ahead. Everybody finished with their shopping? I started out doing really well but something went wrong somewhere and I still have so much to do. Seems its the same old story every year! I have completed 15 Ornaments this week but still have to take a trip out to look for coordinating ribbon for most of them, Today's major undertaking was personalizing some wine glasses for a Wine Basket I am making for some relatives as a gift. I did this last year and they turned out so pretty I had to do it again. They look so elegant and they really are quite easy to do.
To begin you will need the following supplies:
wine glasses, or any glass item you may wish to decorate or personalize.
Vinyl-or contact paper
Transfer tape-last year I didn't think I needed this however this year I used it and did it ever make my life easier! Never again will I use vinyl without it.
Armour Etch Glass Etching Cream
paintbrush & access to a sink
A favorite you wish to make a stencil from. I used Cricut Blackletter for my Monogram and the Trees came from Cricut Christmas Solutions Cartridge,
I found that cutting a sample from paper and "fitting" it to your object saves a lot of trial and error. Once you have it the size you like then you can cut from your vinyl.

Despite the many YouTube Videos I watched I found I had to play with my Cricut settings to get them so I wasn't cutting through the backing on the vinyl.  You only want the vinyl cut...not the backing. My machine & vinyl worked well on the following settings:speed-3 bars,pressure-2 bars & blade setting:2.

Once your image is cut,trim the vinyl that you do not need so as not to waste. Don't cut too close as you need an extra area to protect your glass from the etching cream in places you do not want it.  Once this is done using you Cricut "hook" or a needle,gently lift the areas away, leaving your negative space for your stencil. Remember NOT to remove the little areas that define your image (the areas where if you were using the actual image on a project, would be left behind) Take your transfer tape and peel away the backing to reveal the adhesive. Place this side over your stencil and smooth it down.

I found the little "mat cleaning scrapper" that came with your Cricut tools works beautifully doing this. Once you are certain everything is adhered carefully position your stencil onto your surface, again smoothing it down to remove any air bubbles or wrinkles that you may have. Carefully lift the transfer tape from your image, leaving only the vinyl stencil on your project. Carefully smooth down all edges or the etching cream will seep under leaving a distorted image and an angry crafter!

Now you apply the etching cream over the exposed areas of your design. Allow to sit for a minimal of 1 minute however
I tend to leave it for 2-3 minutes and then rinse gently rubbing the areas while under water to assure all of the cream is removed.
Remove the vinyl from the glass and there you have it- a beautiful personalized gift that can easily

become a heirloom. I can't tell you how many pictures I took attempting to give you a good look at how pretty they turned out but I didn't have good success. So now....I'll drink the wine and call it a night!

Christmas Ornaments with the Cricut~and more fun!

Okay, I'm on a roll now! I've been busy making ornaments that I saw created by Emma from  My Creative Time during her 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop. I made a few changes and additions and I can't wait to share them with you but first I have to share even more great Blog Hop winnings with you! Woowho..yes I won even more!! I checked my blog last night only to find a comment from Jen from Simply Chic Designs by Jen telling me I won Happiest Moments Stamps by  Robyn -the one and only My Pink Stamper. Thank you so much Jen and Robyn. Can't wait to get my hands on those yummy stamps!!
Last year I made all of the grand kids personalized Christmas ornaments inspired by "Christmas with the Cricut"-now "Everyday Cricut" They were adorable and loved by all so this year, when I saw Emma's creation I knew I would have to try it again this year. I'm not great with videos so I'm doing my tutorial in pictures. So here we go! I changed projects in the middle so I will be starting in one color and ending with another (I have a very short attention span!)
Supplies Needed:

Supplies

Fine glitter-mine is Martha Stewart
round, but flattened glass or plastic ornament (got mine at Micheals and the come in glass or plastic)
Pledge Future Floor Wax
Modge Podge (High Gloss or Sparkle)
Picture

Step 2

Step 1: put enough Pledge Future in the ornament to at least fill the bottom of the ornament. If you put too much in-no problem. You are going to cover the top with some plastic wrap & shake gently assuring you cover all surfaces of your ornament-then drain the excess.

 Step 2: Chose your glitter and using a small funnel put into the ornament. Again-if you put in too much, not to worry. Cover the top and shake gently assuring you cover all surfaces of your ornament. When you are certain you have pour the excess out for re-use!

Grandchild of the Furry Variety!

Step 3: At this point I cut my picture using a 2" Spellbinder scalloped circle die by running it through my Cuttlebug. I also prepared my snowflake and numbers for the back of my ornament. Because I am doing so many I choose to mass produce. Now this is where I experimented. I cut my snowflake (Winter Lace) at 2.25 out of DCWV Christmas Glitter Pack but it is thick and I found it didn't lay well across the conture of the ornament. I am using Modge Podge Sparkle so I tried the snowflake on white card stock and like the result. The numbers for my year I did use with the DCWV Glitter paper.

Winter Lace-2.25

Plantin School House-Roly Poly-.75

Step 4: Cover the back of your picture with a coat of Modge Podge and carefully apply it to the ornament smoothing it down as it dries. (I cut very small slits around the picture to assist in keeping it flat). Give it at least 15 minutes to dry , then apply another coat over the picture. My very first try I used the Sparkle but I wasn't happy with the effect so I used the Sparkle over the snowflake and the Gloss over the photo. I'll show you the different effect later. Once dry apply the snowflake using the same method.

Step 5: Once the snowflake is dry I applied the numbers for the year placing them across the snowflake. Now I found they lay much better if I run them through my Xyron-create -a-sticker  vs using the Modge Podge as the adhesive. I think that may be because the glitter paper is so heavy and thick. Once applied I cover the snowflake and year with another coat of Modge Podge Sparkle. Allow to dry. Another coat can be applied if you chose.

Step 6: Tie a pretty bow around the neck of the ornament and thread additional ribbon through the top to form a loop to hang your beautiful creation on the tree!

With Modge Podge Sparkle

I used the Modge Podge  Sparkle on this ornament but I thought the sparkle was too distorting over the photo. If I have enough ornaments and TIME I will most likely re-do these.
I still have 9 more children to do and I am doing one a very special one for a family member for a very special event that is going to happen....but nobody knows (but me!) Any guesses out there? I'll share when it is done! Happy Crafting Peeps !

From Christmas to Flowers

 It's a gorgeous autumn morning and I'm really gearing up for the Christmas season but somehow how side tracked into trying my hand at homemade flowers for cards and layouts. I did "okay" for a first attempt however now that I've done them once I know what modifications I will make my next attempt. I found some fantastic tutorials at Swirlydoos.com and decided to try them. As I told you before I am frugal so I don't have many fancy supplies but enough to get by until I am once again employed! So tried their Paper Bag Flower tutorial. I didn't have the punches or templates so I set out on the internet to find them. Sure enough I found a free template for poinsettia petals on a Sunday school crafts website. I also found a paper bag and off to work I went. My next attempt I will use smaller petals which will give it a more compact appearance. I used Gold Glimmer Mist and it did give the petals a nice glow but I think I would try a second color next time around to give it a deeper, richer look. I used a smaller Cricut flower cut from Walk in My Garden for the center .

The jeweled center is actually a bead cap with a small pearl glued in the middle-it's all about improvising! I am anxious to try this one again and am confident with smaller petals I would be very happy wth it. Down side of it....I had to use scissors  to cut the petals. I'd much rather push my Cricuts' little button and be done with it!  I did just that with the flower below. This is a cut from Walk in my Garden. It was 6 cuts, 2 of each size-misted with Gold Glimmer Mist and the petals molded while damp. Again there are things I would do differently such as use a smaller brad.Hind sight is such a great creative tool! {{{Hugz}}}.........have a fantastic day!

It's begining to look a lot like Christmas!

The temperature here in the Catskills is unusually warm for the end of October. It is 70 degrees and sunny but somehow or another the Christmas spirit overcame me and I just couldn't resist the temptation of making a Christmas card. I just love blue for Christmas. A bit unconventional but it is so pretty with white and sparkles! So I threw this very simple card together just to appease my craving!

 

Recipe:

White card stock for the base

DCWV Metallic dark blue cardstock for the first mat & matting around the picture

Embossed white cardstock (cuttlebug 5X7 folder) for the second layer.-sprayed with Frost Glimmer mist.

Picture from Lunagirls Victorian Holidays CD-Volume 1  Fur areas on the picture were highlighted with white Sparkly Fluff by Craft Lounge

Blue gemstones accent the snowflake  ( Cricut Winter Woodland Cartridge) and right side of card.

Satin ribbon...my weakness is bow making. I have the WORST time with it!

And that's it..........fast & easy!

Don't forget the many Blog Hops going on right now. I always said "I never win anything" however I won 3 times in the last hop I participated in....so guess I will have to find something new to whine about! You can't win if you don't play so get out there, look around. There is some fantastic talent out there and some really great blogs to follow!

Also.........make sure you use that Micheal's 50% off Martha Stewart Coupon. It expires 10/30/10. 

 Oh.......look what the Postman just brought me! Presents....who doesn't love presents! A dear friend sent me these for my birthday. Check out that card. Is that adorable or what? Thank you Susie....love it (& you {{hugs}})

Have a great one!