WE GIRLS! HUH!?

A new little lassie was born into my sister's family recently--very much to the extreme delight of her big sister, I might add. My ten-year-old niece will no longer be the only girl amongst her sea of brothers. She has already assumed the role of "the little mommy" and adores her little "sissy". Even the big brothers are getting into the whole baby act. They are wonderful. Princess baby holds court on a daily basis and has everyone sufficiently wrapped around her adorable little finger.

I am reminded of a particular time when baby's big sister was a toddler. Toddlers have a unique gift for stating the obvious in such an endearing way. She was aware that she and her mother were the only feminine company in the household and one day while cuddling on the couch with her mom, looked up at her and with as much team spirit as she could muster exclaimed, "Mom? We girls! Huh!?" and then hugged her arm as tightly as she was able. This has become an endearing catch phrase in our family as well.

Girly things and frilly stuff...love it! Now there is all the more reason to scrapbook with pinks and pastels! I enjoy crafting with all of the girly, flowery, frilly, and pretty content that is available to me in so many of the wonderful Cricut Cartridges!

This week, be sure to read Crafty Kimber's cartridge exploration of the Cricut Lite Cartridges Feeling Groovy, Botanicals, Billionaire, and Savory. Enjoy a clever tip for re-purposing furniture in a crafty way and glean savvy wisdom from our customer support Floor Sweeps as they share their responses to the hot topics in customer support this week. As always, I wish you well in your crafting adventures.


Happy Crafting!

FEATURED PROJECTS

SPECIAL GUEST EXPLORATION

Hi Everyone! This is Robyn Cardon, also known as My Pink Stamper from www.mypinkstamper.com and the Cricut message boards. I am so super excited to be featured in this week's Chirp! What an honor. I was asked to spotlight the Cuttlebug machine and how I incorporate it in my Cricut projects. I absolutely love my Cuttlebug and try to use it regularly in My Pink Loft.

There are so many different uses for the Cuttlebug, but what I like to use the most are the embossing folders. They can add that much needed background texture or the dimension to your layered Cricut image.

I wanted to share three different cards that I have used both the Cuttlebug and Cricut to create.

In this first card I have used the Seeing Spots Cuttlebug embossing folder to add a nice background. Doesn't it just make this card POP? This cute giraffe is from the new Cricut Lite Sugar and Spice cartridge! Isn't it adorable?

Next, I wanted to show you how you can also use a patterned background paper and run it through the Cuttlebug. I have used the Swiss Dots folder for this project. The owl is from the new Cricut Lite Hoot 'n' Holler cartridge.

Now, on to my favorite way to use the Cuttlebug with my Cricut cartridges! I absolutely love to add texture to my image layers! I used the Polka Dots Cuttlebug embossing folder on the shell of this snail from the Cricut Paisley Cartridge to create a unique look. Super easy!

Thank you so much for letting me share my excitement with you about the Cuttlebug along with the Cricut. Some might call me Cricut Crazy but you can decide for yourself. :)

Have a wonderful day!
Robyn

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Stop by Robyn's blog: www.mypinkstamper.com! And be sure to check out Cuttlebug here on Cricut.com!

MESSAGE BOARD HIGHLIGHTS

This week's highlighted threads are:

• Girls Love Shoes !!
• Little Sister Baby Onesie. Front and Back
• daughters 15 b-day card
• X Post Pillow Case Project
• 3D Flower Tutorials-Hibiscus, Blossom, and Pagoda
• Mini Clutch (Pink Alligator Skin)

CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT

Name: Liz Vellali
About: I have been paper crafting for around five years. I am a mom of 4, the youngest of which has special needs. I have been helping a friend with the Susan Komen Walk for Breast Cancer for a few years now.

Liz's Project: Breast Cancer Awareness Tent Decoration

YOUR NOTABLE TIP

Today's tip comes from message board member katiedoodlesgran. Thanks for sharing your clever tip!

"This is what I did with a couple small drawers out of an old dresser. I put hangers on the back and have used them for a few years as shelves but lately I had been looking at them as wasted space and I needed a new way to store my ribbon. So, I painted them and drilled holes in the sides for dowel rods. My only regret is that I do not have one more."

CARTRIDGE EXPLORATION

This week I've spent a lot of time silk screening with my Yudu and playing with my Cricut. I know some think those two crafts don't gel, but in my eyes I think they mix really well. I love to use die cuts with my Yudu to create personal t-shirts or home décor projects. I decided that I needed a bedroom makeover so that's what I've been working on. This week I explore some more Wal-Mart exclusive Cricut Lite cartridges: Feeling Groovy, Botanicals, Billionaire, and Savory.

These cartridges have a new plastic case and trifold design. Each of these cartridges also come with reward points that you can collect and redeem on the rewards website. The handbook is a trifold with each of the images and the complete layer feature shown, so you know exactly how to assemble the artwork. For examples, click here.

Feeling Groovy is a cartridge that includes both upper and lower case letters--yes, this is a font cartridge. You also receive numbers, some symbols and phrases. The one creative feature that comes with this cartridge is the Shadow feature to help your titles pop. Some examples of the phrases that are included are: "Funky", "Cool", "Dude", "Right On", and "Disco". Oh, I almost forgot! This cartridge also comes with a few shapes and images--yea!. They are: diamond, star, rainbows, mushroom, heart, and smile. These phrases and images can be found on the bottom row of the overlay. CreativeCritter-Tammy used this font to decorate some piggy banks (see pic or click here).

Savory is another Cricut Lite cartridge. Now, if you thought this cartridge must be about food, then, yes, you would be right. This cartridge is full of yummy images! For example: pear, lemon, herbs, grapes, peas, pepper, etc. Other images that are included are: lemonade pitcher, sugar bowl, tea pot, grinder, pan, rolling pin, oven mitt, cookie jar, and glass. This cartridge also includes some word phrases: "Basil", "Salt", "Mint", "Savory", and "Earth". The creative feature that comes with this cartridge is the Layer feature. This feature lets you add some dimension to each of your images. This cartridge is perfect for summer or spring time pictures, or you could use it for a summer block party invite. Just looking at the lemonade picture makes me want to go make some homemade lemonade! Now, do I have any lemons in the fridge...? Ameri-brit-gal from the message board created a baby card using this cartridge (see pic or click here).

Billionaire is another font cartridge, but this style has a little more curve to the letters and numbers. It's the perfect touch of casual sophistication. And I love the images that are included with this cartridge! To list a few: old fashioned car, phonograph, two styles of mustaches, two types of eye glasses, two styles of top hats, a pipe, tie, vest, and a cane. These images are perfect for drama party invites, father's day cards, or grandfather cards. The creative feature that comes with this cartridge is the Shadow feature, which is great to help the shapes stand out on your scrapbook pages. Hey, you could even use the Shadow feature for the base of your invitation. Now I wish I was planning a party so I could use one of these images! Angiegypsy from the Cricut.com message board created this adorable Father's Day card (see pic or click here).

Botanicals is a cartridge that is full of a variety flowers, vines, berries, birds, leaves, and butterflies. At first, when I started looking at the overlay and cutting images out, I thought that each of the die cuts were different filigree designs. When I looked closer then I could see the vine or bird shapes, I fell in love with this cartridge. These images will make great borders for my scrapbook pages; since the images don't come in an actual border then I will just glue them side by side to create that border look. The creative feature that comes with this cartridge is a Font shadow. Yes, this cartridge also comes with an upper case alphabet and numbers. You also get five different styles of cards with a coordinating flower that will cut with the Shift key pressed. These cards are designed to be quick and easy to help everyone show their own creativity. PaperChef from the message board created a gorgeous sympathy card using this cartridge (see pic or click here).

Well that wraps up this exploration. Check back next week and see what else I explore of the new exclusive Wal-Mart cartridges. Have a fabulous crafting week!

Crafty Kimber

WEEKLY SURVEY

Don't forget to take this week's survey!

Click here.

HELP FROM THE EXPERTS

Here are the top topics in Customer Support this week:


Provo Craft infomercial Contact Information

Provo Craft has several product infomercials running at this time. The Customer Support team in the Provo Craft office are able to give the following information:

Cricut Infomercial en Español
1-866-504-8594
cricutelectroniccutter@custservdirect.com

Cricut Expression Infomercial
1-800-314-5109
provocraft@custservdirect.com

YourStory Infomercial
1-800-997-6785
yourstory@custservdirect.com

Yudu Infomercial
1-800-997-6896
yudu@custservdirect.com

Knifty Knitter Infomercial
1-800-997-6912
kniftyknitter@custservdirect.com

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Q. Which cartridges are retiring?

A. Here's a list:

- Blackletter
- Christmas
- Sans Serif
- Street Sign
- Stamped
- Tags, Bags, Boxes and More
- Printing Press
- Paper Pups
- All Mixed Up
- Christmas Cheer
- Makin' the Grade
- Mini Monograms


Have a great week!

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

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"My sister taught me everything I really need to know, and she was only in sixth grade at the time."
~ Linda Sunshine