LUCK OF THE IRISH

"Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig!" is a Gaelic expression for wishing someone all the blessings of St. Patrick's Day and the "luck of the Irish" to go with it. Some of my ancestors were from Ireland. I like hearing family stories, but it would be nice to research a bit more into that part of the family tree myself. Information from my findings would no doubt create some great subjects for creative scrapbook pages.

And speaking of St. Paddy's Day, green has always been such a pleasant color to me. I like to look at this festive day as one that begins the ushering in of a nice verdant spring. I enjoy crafting with many green hues in my projects. This year, my crafting area is sure to be a "pinch free zone."

This week, be sure to read the useful tip about using images from two separate Imagine cartridges. You'll also want to check out Crafty Kimber's cartridge exploration of the All Sports and Campin' Critters cartridges. As always, I wish you well in your crafting adventures.

**Header project made by Shirlene Jordan using the Spring Holiday Cards cartridge.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

TERESA COLLINS TEASER IMAGE:

National Craft Month continues next week at HSN! Tune in on Monday March 21st to see Kristy Day, Provo Craft designer, teach the nation to craft using the Cricut Expression machine! Air times are 7am & 4pm EST.

FEATURED PROJECTS

SPECIAL GUEST EXPLORATION

My name is Michelle Van Etten, aka Trendyscrapper Studios on Mixology Crafts, where I am one of the blog personalities. As a Provo Craft sponsored blog, we bring you exciting and unique mixed media projects with full detailed instructions. You never know what we will be mixing up in our craft labs! I am also Education Director for Avenues Without Limits, where we plan events and educational scrapbook retreats.

Speaking of events, I am co-hosting the neighborhood St. Patrick's Day Bunko Party. As an event planner, I rely on Provo Craft's amazing array of products. I always know that there is the perfect image on a cartridge to help convey the theme. For this party, I have chosen luck; each element will have something to do with luck! My colors will be green, gold, black and a splash of pink to appeal to my inner girly-girl. With my colors and theme chosen, I will sketch out the room, adding in the notes each element needed to make this an amazing party. Creating the perfect party has never been easier; I just grab my Gypsy device and let my imagination run wild. I chose four cartridges to create my party décor: Give a Hoot, Paper Lace, Birthday Bash, and Paisley.

I chose the shamrock from Give a Hoot as the focal point. I designed the invitation, lucky banner, table number, and even a martini glass to match the invitation; I cut the shamrock out of chipboard at four inches, and painted it with shimmery paints.

Invitation: I used two solid colors as the foundation for the invitation. I printed the Bunko information on transparency and placed it over the shamrock. This also created a fun surface to decorate. I cut the word lucky from vinyl, than painted it with gold leaf pen. I then cut out a bunch of small shamrocks for the embellishments.

Table Number Card: I used large numbers painted in shimmery pink, then added the fun little shamrock. To make the shamrocks shine, I added glitter and sequins with gold pearls. For the top of the card, I used the same lace and trim as on the banner (see below). I also used the inside of a Paper Lace doily to add to the top of the table card.

Banner: I cut the banner pieces out of chipboard using Birthday Bash and then cut some black cardstock to layer over the chipboard. Trying to think of a fun and new way to work with the doilies, I cut them apart and ruffled the edges to create the circle for the letters. I used the same lace and trim at the top and the shamrock embellishments on each piece.

Drinks Glasses: The beer mug is embellished with a fun shamrock, sequins, and gold pearls. For the martini glass, it was all about "girls just want to have fun." I added lace, trim, the signature shamrock, a cute green bow, shimmer paint, and sequins. I would not recommend washing this glass. It will be a gift for the bunko girls.

Thank you for allowing me to share my party decorations with you. I teach at My Creative Classroom and always have a fun line-up of classes. I have a Cricut Cake Machine 101 class starting in the middle of this month. Swing by and check it out!


Have a Super Creative Day,
Michelle

MESSAGE BOARD HIGHLIGHTS

This week's highlighted threads are:

• It's All About the Green LO
• Welcome Spring
• March Layout
• St. Patrick's Day Cards

CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT

Name: Cathy Arenzana
About: I've been paper crafting for just over ten years and owned a scrapbook/rubber stamp store for seven years. Since retiring at the end of 2010, I have found a new passion for all things creative and absolutely love my Cricut machine.

Cathy's Project: Lucky Shamrock

YOUR NOTABLE TIP

Today's helpful tip comes from Provo Craft's very own Cricut Imagine guru, Chris!

Q. "How do we use a pattern from one Cricut Imagine cartridge with another Cricut Imagine cartridge "

A. "You must first insert the cartridge containing the pattern you wish to use. Then you must "cache" the pattern. Instructions for caching patterns can be found here. Then insert the cartridge containing the image you want to use. Edit the image by clicking on the pencil icon on the image. Scroll to the right of the patterns and colors and you will see your cached pattern. Click on it and it will fill your image with your cached pattern."

CARTRIDGE EXPLORATION

The weather has been so nice that the spring cleaning bug has hit. I have spent hours sorting through old boxes and getting rid of junk that I seem to keep hanging on to. Next week my goal is to do my craft room. I always hang on to those small scraps of paper and other knick-knacks; I think it's time to throw them away and clean out the shelves to make room for new craft supplies. This week I played with All Sports and Campin' Critters. Both of these cartridges have great designs that are perfect for children's photos.

All Sports is for the sports lover in you. This cartridge is different from the Sports Mania in that each of the images has a person playing the sport in question. You have a baseball player at the pitching mound, a boy jumping up to spike a volley ball, a golfer getting ready to hit the golf ball, and a girl pushing a hockey puck down the ice. Each of the images is an action shot of a girl or boy doing some sort of sport. The sports that you will find in this cartridge are: hockey, baseball, golf, volleyball, cheerleading, lacrosse, swimming, soccer, football, basketball, track, tennis, softball, and wrestling.

The creative features on this cartridge are: Layer 1, Layer 2, Icon, Icon Layer, Phrase, and Phrase Layer. Not only do you get all these fun action images, but you can also layer the uniforms to whatever color combinations you want, and you can cut out phrases to complement your scrapbook pages. I can also see using these images for invitations or reminder cards for the swim team or soccer team. Some examples of phrases included are: "Nice Form," "Backhand," "Dive," "Game, Set, Match," "Body Check," "Shootin' Hoops," "Dig," "Dribble," "Strike!," "Goal!" and "Stick Check."

Campin' Critters is a cartridge you will definitely want if you have a son or daughter in scouts. I personally love to camp and go with my friends every year. I take great photos but never know how to scrapbook them; now I can cut the adorable images from Campin' Critters! This cartridge includes a porcupine roasting a marshmallow, a raccoon with a flashlight, a rabbit playing the guitar, a bird singing, a moose cross-country skiing, a moose hiking, a beaver hauling wood, a deer fishing, a frog spraying on bug spray, and a raccoon next to the outhouse. You can also cut out a 3-D tent, back pack, and camp journal. The assembly instructions for these items can be found on pages 71-74 of the cartridge handbook.

The creative features on this cartridge are: Layer 1, Layer 2, Badge, Badge Layer, Sign, and Sign Layer. If you have a son in the scouting program, you can cut out the different badges to place beside their photos in your scrapbook. The Sign feature lets you cut out different card shapes; you can use these with the Sign Layer feature for any of your other card projects. These cuts would also make great journal tags. Phrases included on this cartridge are: "Danger: Avalanche Zone," "Under the Stars" (this would be a perfect sleepover party invite), "Happy Camper," "Rise and Shine," "Camping Trip," "Knot Tying," "First Aid," "Bird Watching," "Let's Get Lost," "Catch of the Day," and "Jump in a Lake." Shopgirl70 from the message board created some cute scrapbook layouts using this cartridge (see pic or click here).

Well that wraps up another week of exploring Cricut cartridges. Check back next time as I dig into the bag and pull out some new goodies to play with. I wish all of you a happy St Patrick's Day this week!

Crafty Kimber

HELP FROM THE EXPERTS

Here's the word from Customer Support this week:

- The Cricut Circle FAQ can be found here. Also, the Cricut Circle Support phone number is 888-922-4725 and the email is ccsupport@provocraft.com.

- Those of you that enjoy using the Provo Craft Knifty Knitter can find projects here.

- To all those attending the Texas Stampede, take lots of pictures and have a blast!


Need some help? Provo Craft Customer Support is here for you! Never hesitate to call in (1-888-922-4725 or 1-888-92ccircle for Cricut Circle questions); we have people ready to help you! We are currently open Monday through Friday 7am to 6pm Mountain Time. If these hours do not work with your schedule, please send an email to support@provocraft.com.


Have a great week!

From your Customer Support Sweeps:
Mark, Colby, Brittany, and Becky, "The Floor Sweeps"

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Why should you never iron a 4-leaf clover? You don't want to press your luck."
~ Daryl Stout