vinyl | TidyMom

Cricut Vinylology {Giveaway-ended}

3 Sep posted by TidyMom

*Update: This giveaway has ended. Congrats to #34 Elaine Lund….she’s the winner of the 2-Disc DVD Cricut Vinylology and squeegee!! I can’t wait to see what you make Elaine!

I just love seeing how creative some women are!

My friend Joy is a PRO with her Cricut machine and she has a blog full of fun creative craft ideas at Joy’sLife.com

Well Joy wants YOU to learn techniques to help YOU release YOUR vinyl creativity……. so she has created a 2-DVD set for sale called Cricut Vinylology

“In this 2 Disc DVD, you’ll enjoy over 3 hours of projects and instruction about using vinyl with your Cricut. I’ll teach you techniques for glass etching on flat and curved surfaces, reusing vinyl, layering vinyl, adding vinyl to your walls, windows, cars, t-shirts and more! We’ll use vinyl to create unique magnets, tiles, frosted glass block, monogrammed glasses, reusable designs, chalkboards and even more. You’ll also learn about different kinds of vinyl, transfer tape and how to use both wet and dry vinyl application. 15 different Cricut cartridges are used to create a variety of projects that are designed to teach you techniques that you can use to create these projects and more!”

Watch the Cricut Vinylology DVD Commercial!

And what’s better than an UBER creative friend?……..a GENEROUS UBER creative friend!!

TidyMom Giveaway

Joy would like to give one lucky TidyMom reader.….

a Cricut Vinylology DVD set along with a little squeegee for vinyl application

To enter this giveaway:

REQUIRED: Leave a comment on this post letting me know what you would like to learn most with the Cricut Vinylology DVD set.

EXTRA ENTRIES (leave a comment for EACH)

Subscribe to TidyMom (make sure you’re subscribed to the new feed)
Like TidyMom on Facebook (or tell me if you already do)
Add my cute new button to your blog and let me know. (get the button code here)
Tweet: Win a #Cricut Vinylology DVD & release your vinyl creativity with @TidyMom & @wwwjoyslife enter here —> http://bit.ly/bprYTe

“Like” Joy’s Life on Facebook and leave her a message

Giveaway will end on Sept 09, 2010 at 5 pm CST. One winner with a valid entry will be selected at random using random.org. I will email the winner and they will have 48 hours to claim their prize.

GOOD LUCK!

Filed Under: Give Aways, Tidy Mom
Tagged With: Cricut, vinyl

Etching Glass with the Silhouette

3 Aug posted by TidyMom

63 Comments

I have to share one of the many projects that I’ve been making with my new Silhouette!

Have you ever etched glass? I can’t believe how easy it is to do!!

Take a look at what I did to my trifle bowl!……Would this not make a cute wedding or birthday gift? Think of all the possibilities!

By adding {enjoy} to it makes this the perfect bowl for any dessert, like Angle Food Patriotic Delight or Chocolate Oreo Peanut Butter Dessert.

I have to say though……..a glass bowl is SO hard to photograph!……I must have taken 25+ pictures before I realized it showed up the best in front of the window. Still not the BEST shot….does any one know how to shoot something like this?

Want to see how I made it?!

Use your spiffy Silhouette Craft Cutter to cut what you want etched on the glass on adhesive vinyl.
remove the letters from the vinyl and place a piece of adhesive paper to the front of your vinyl stencil and rub firmly (I used my Pampered Chef scraper)
turn your vinyl over and remove the backing from the vinyl (leaving vinyl attached to the adhesive paper)
place the vinyl on your bowl
rub the adhesive paper firmly, allowing the vinyl to attach to the bowl. Be sure to rub out any bubbles or creases.
removed adhesive backing
apply a thick layer of etching cream with a sponge according to package instructions (I purchased etching cream at Hobby Lobby, my Michaels quit carrying it)
Leave the etching cream sit for about 15 mins.
Rinse off cream really well and remove vinyl! This makes the etching permanent, so you can not rub or wash it off. Wash bowl with soap and water, dry and it’s ready to use!

So easy right?!

You could do this for a wedding or shower gift using a trifle bowl or even a Pyrex dish, just etch the couple’s new last name! Add some hot pads and your favorite recipe and you have the perfect unique gift!

I will share a few more easy Silhouette project tutorials in the next few days!

Just think……..if YOU win the free Silhouette, or purchase one using the special code from the post here………….you can join me in all the fun! …….And thanks again to the great people at Silhouette!

I’m linking to the following parties! Show & Tell, Get Your Craft On, We Did It Wed, Mingle Monday

Etching cream and the Silhouette work for me!!

Filed Under: DIY/Projects, Etching Glass, Home and Garden, Tidy Mom
Tagged With: handmade, Silhouette, Trash to Treasure, vinyl, Works For Me

A FREE Silhouette Craft Cutter {Giveaway!}

2 Aug posted by TidyMom

4,713 Comments

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED
Good Promo good until Aug 14 (see below)
winner will be announced on Mon Aug 9

Ok, I can’t stand it any more!

I’ve been keeping a secret!……a HUGE…..$300 secret!!

Remember yesterday how I mention my new toy?
Well I was just so darn excited when my sweet friends at How Does She? set me up with this fantastic craft tool for myself AND one to give to one lucky TidyMom reader!!!

This incredible little machine is sleek and compact.
It makes me look like……well, a “crafty gal” with little effort on my part.
Her name is……..Silhouette
(just rolls off the tongue doesn’t it? ?)

Take a look at her!…..She’s so SLIM and beautiful!

I have heard a lot about all of the craft cutters out there, and honestly, I didn’t know if I’d really use it……..I thought it would be too complicated for me.
……..Remember, I like SIMPLE projects!!

Well, I couldn’t have been more wrong!!

You can cut vinyl

cut/make the cutest cards

cut outs for your scrapbooking

Huge assortment of paper cut outs

It did take me a little time to understand how to use my Silhouette, but their website is full of help, and their customer service number is awesome!……..they didn’t even get annoyed with me when I called 4 times in one afternoon! lol

The Silhouette hooks up to your computer and cuts out the shapes/letters that you tell it to. It’s THAT easy! So all you need is your Silhouette machine, your computer, the cords and your imagination! You can even use an SD card and take your Silhouette wherever you go!

It comes with a nice library of shape and cutout files to get you started! And, what I LOVE is, you can use all of the letter fonts (True Type) from your own computer, to design your own cut outs. Hello!!! I can choose ANY font I want? Do you know how many FREE fonts there are out there?!! You can even create your own shapes and cutouts for your projects!!–I LOVE that!

No cartridges to buy!

They do have an online image store, where you can browse and purchase from a huge assortment of different shapes, letters, phrases, cutouts, etc……and upload them instantly to your computer. The images are just $.99 each and they offer membership plans and options for bulk-buying where they can cost even less than this. Each week, they also feature a free download on their site that you can add to your library. Love those freebies!

In no time I was making……..

cupcake wrappers
(frosting recipe )

Sunshine help me cut out and iron on her school mascot on a pair of shorts
(I can’t believe she starts high school in a few weeks!)

I even made a mug just for ME!!

I gave my knife block a fresh new look!

I even made this cute canvas tote bag with the help of my Silhouette!
(will post a tutorial soon)

and I’m STILL working on another project!!!

Later in the week I will share some “how-to’s”
I can’t wait to show off more projects that you can create with this cutter.
But enough about me, let’s talk about this giveaway!

**This giveaway is only open to those in the states**

Here’s how to enter to win:

Leave a comment by Sat Aug 7th at 9PM CST and tell me what is your favorite feature that the Silhouette has to offer.
Go over to Silhouette’s site and check things out. Then, come back here and leave a comment telling me how you would use the Silhouette machine! (ie, scrapbooking, vinyl, card making….EVERYTHING)
Blog about it with a link back to this post, then come back and leave a comment with the link.
Mention it on Twitter or Facebook- I want to win a Silhouette Craft Cutter from @TidyMom http://bit.ly/c7hiJy #giveaway (be sure to leave a comment letting me know)
Subscribe to TidyMom.net …leave a comment letting me know you did or if you already do.

**PLEASE make sure you leave your email address if it’s not linked to your account (so I can contact you if you win) also, be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry

The contest ends on Saturday Aug 7, 2010 at 9PM CST. I will announce & contact the winner on Monday Aug 9, 2010

The Giveaway includes:

A Silhouette Machine

(a $299.99 value)

And it includes…

Silhouette machine
Software for Windows XP/Vista
Power cable, USB cable
2 Cutting mats (one for thick media, one for thin media)
One cutting blade
$10 gift card to the Silhouette Online Store

*********************************
If you are interested in purchasing a Silhouette, there is an exclusive TidyMom promo code. Use the promo code TidyMomRocks to take advantage of these two promotions! (After you put in the code all the discounts and freebies will show up in the basket)

#1 AWESOME PROMO (running from August 1st through August 9th at midnight)

Buy a machine and receive the following:

- $50 off the Silhouette Craft Cutter

- 2 rolls of vinyl (Valued at $15.98)

- 1 roll of transfer tape (Valued at $7.99)

- Scraper (Valued at $6.99)

- Home Décor CD (Valued at $50)

- $10 Gift Card to the Silhouette Download Store

- Cutting Blade

- 2 Cutting Mats

All for $249.99

A Savings of $130.96

Just think of how much you’ll save on gift giving this year!

#2 GOOD PROMO (running from August 9th through August 14th at midnight)

Buy a machine and receive the following:

$50 off (receive for $249.99)

2 rolls of Heat transfer ($29.89 value)

$10 Gift Card to the Silhouette Download Store

Cutting Blade

2 Cutting Mats

All for $249.99

A savings of $79.98

Good Luck Everyone!!

Have fun!

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Disclaimer: I was provided with my own Silhouette, I was in no other way compensated to publish this post. The thoughts and opinions expressed my own and have no reflection on receiving the product.