Sunday, March 22, 2009

What an amazing machine!



Every so often I just stop and marvel about the capabilities of the Cricut - it truly is an amazing machine. As an example, look at the cut I made tonight - it is incredibly delicate. It would be impossible for me to cut something like this by hand but, by creating a design with Design Studio and clicking "cut," I was able to produce a lacy flower for a special card.



Just to give you an idea of the size, above you can see the cut sitting on a 5 x 7 card blank. I will finish the card and share the file tomorrow. In the meanwhile, any guesses about the cartridge or cartridges I used to create this design? (Just leave a comment if you want to guess).



I also test cut the "lots of circles in a hurry" file from yesterday and it cuts perfectly. Above you can see the offcut layered over another piece of 12 x 12 paper. While the design is completely symmetrical on the screen mat, loading the actual mat is an imprecise action and there can be a slight variance in the margins. Even though the centering is not perfect, I would still use this on a scrapbook page.



Here are the 181 three-quarter inch circles before I removed them from the mat. I now have an abundant supply for another project - watch this space and see if you spot them sometime soon...

My post yesterday explained exactly how to make this file - so you can give it a try on your own. If you are really in a hurry - you can download the file (remember to hide the contour as explained on the first page).

181 three quarter inch circles

18 comments:

  1. I think you might have use the George cart with the oval charm to make your lacy piece. That's my guess!
    Fern

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  2. I think you used Fabulous Finds cartridge for the lacy flower.
    Just like many, many others you do, I love this piece!!
    Lisa

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  3. Yep, I was going to say George too.

    Diane, I love getting emails of your creations!!..I never know what suprise you are going to have for us and you always come up with something cool!!..Sorry I don't comment much, but please know I love what you do!!

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  4. Since the George cartridge is so versatile, I think you used it.
    I would love the .cut file.
    Thanks for all that you do.
    Linda

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  5. Bravo girl! My first guess is George silhouette. Hmmm... can you do silhouette and charm at the same time? Knowing me you probably can but I'd do it the hardway and weld a circle to each oval.

    I'm also curious... WHAT PAPER you cut.
    By chance are you also going to create something mah-velous with the negative bits?

    Thanks for sharing!

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  6. I'll tell you what's amazing...YOU. Thanks for all the sharing and teaching you do for us.
    LA

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  7. So far, no one has guessed correctly....

    Jen - I cut this design from some inexpensive cardstock yesterday (the kind you get in a multipack at the large chain craft stores - it was out of the pack so I am not 100% sure of the brand).

    Today, I did cut it from some textured Bazzill - not the heaviest weight they make, but quite thick and it still cut fine with the pressure at 4 and the blade at 6.

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  8. I am terrible at guessing cartridges, but I do love this cut. It is lovely!

    I also have a question about how one gets the score "tick" marks if you will onto .cut files. They are on a lot of the card cartridges, but I can't figure out how to do them myself. I thought if anyone would know, you would. Any tips?

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  9. Hi Erin,

    To make a tick mark you take a small square or rectangle and use the "handle" on the right center to adjust the width to a very narrow line - be careful - this will sometimes lead to the "dreaded red X" so you should play with this in a new blank file.

    Once you have successfully created the file you can keep the tick mark in this file and then copy and paste it into any other file for the project you are working on.

    I don't often use these - in fact, since we gained the "hide contour" feature, I usually take them out of the Cricut cuts. I prefer to use my Scor-Pal to make the scores because i dislike the little rough spots that result from the tick marks.

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  10. I think you used the oval in Graphically Speaking then make the oval into a small circle to finish you lace design.
    Cyndi

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  11. I was going to guess Fabulous Finds, too, but since it's already been guessed and you said that no one had it right yet, now I'm confused! Though I guess you could take any cartridge with a circle or oval shape and accomplish the shape??? Or even using a "0" might do it, too??? Maybe All Mixed Up?

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  12. it's the very last button on wildcard. I'm surprised nobody guessed Plantin, with the atomic icon which was my first guess.

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  13. Hi Diane,

    I have to guess that you used Indie Art for that cut. What ever it is, it is beautiful. Great job!!

    Theresa

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  14. Diane,

    Thanks for the tick mark tip. I probably just should have asked if you had a suggestion for what I am trying to come up with. I am working on an invitation, and the person has requested a perforated "tear-off" reply card. I am certain this is something I can achieve with the cricut, but am not sure exactly how to go about it. I was thinking multiple tick marks might do it, but do you have another suggestion?

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  15. Hi again Erin,

    You could try multiple tick marks for a perforation but if you have a rotary style trimmer they actually make a blade to do perforations which might be easier and avoid the risk of the blade snagging when making the marks.

    One other thought would be to try an old fashioned pattern marking tailor's wheel, running it along a ruler. I think there may even be a perforating blade for a quilting rotary cutter if you have one of those.

    I hope that helps...

    Diane

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  16. Thank you for all the help understanding how this all works. You are a great teacher. Thanks for sharing.

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