Weekend Update

Tomorrow is October 1st - it feels like September just flew by.  We have another wedding celebration this weekend - for our nephew and his new wife - at the family apple farm.  I expect to be able to check in and post as usual but things will be pretty busy!

I have just a few things to share today- one of them is my passion for digital and some information that may be helpful to you if you have been thinking about taking the plunge into the digital world.

 I got some exciting news today - the upgrade for the Creative Memories StoryBook Creator program will be available on Monday, October 3rd.  If you have the 3.0 program, you will be able to upgrade to 4.0 for $24.95 and the upgrade will include more than $60 worth of digital artwork.  You will not be able to upgrade from the 2.0 version - you will have to buy the new program for $64.95 or get the upgrade to 3.0 in the next day or two and then upgrade again to 4.0.

If you have the older StoryBook 2.0 version, you can purchase the upgrade to 3.0 for only $9.95 (half price) HERE until the new 4.0 program becomes available on Monday.  This upgrade also includes a digital kit and a set of 12 x 12 predesigned pages.  Then you could purchase the upgrade to 4.0 and be totally up to date (and get the new content included in the upgrade).

If you don't own the program  yet, you could purchase the 3.0 version on sale for half price ($32.98) HERE until the new program becomes available on Monday.  Then you could purchase the upgrade next week for $24.95 for a total of $57.93.  The new 4.0 program will cost $64.95 and it will not include the content that you will receive with the upgrade.  You will get different "starter" content"

The 3.0 program comes with over $80 worth of content:

Discover and Delight Digital Power Palettes

Discover Predesigned Pages: 7x5, 8x8, 11x8.5, 12x12

Delight Predesigned Pages: 7x5, 8x8, 11x8.5, 12x12

Black Predesigned Pages: 7x5, 8x8, 11x8.5, 12x12

White Predesigned Pages: 7x5, 8x8 11x8.5, 12x12

Silver Office Supplies Digital Embellishments

The new 4.0 program will come with:

• Cheerful Digital Power^® Palette
• Cheerful 12x12 Predesigned Pages
• Cheerful 11x8.5 Predesigned Pages
• Black & White Digital Power^® Palette
• Black & White 12x12 Predesigned Pages
• Black & White 11x8.5 Predesigned Pages
• 2012 Calendar 12x18 Digital Predesigned Pages
• 2012 Calendar 8x12 Digital Predesigned Pages

 The upgrade from 3.0 to 4.0 will come with:

• Serene Digital Kit
• Serene Digital Overlays
• Serene Digital Alpha Set
• Just Fun Digital Kit
• Just Fun Digital Overlays
• Just Fun Digital Alpha Set
• 2012 Calendar 12x18 Digital Predesigned Pages
• 2012 Calendar 8x12 Digital Predesigned Pages

You can see PDFs of all of the digital artwork content in the help zone on the website HERE  

I really enjoy digital scrapbooking but I often use the program for other projects.  I know that many of you are dedicated "paper scrappers" but the possibilities when you add digital to your paper scrapping are incredible.  Hybrid pages with some digital manipulation of photos and some paper layering and die cuts is a great option.  The page I did (above) for the Cruise contest last year was partially digital and partially Cricut cuts and paper layers.

Another thing that I find fascinating about digital is the changes that you can make with your digital papers - the paper at the top is one that I recently purchased (Autumn Digital Additions) and I changed it to completely different colors with just one simple adjustment in the program.  (These images are only screen size resolution).  You never run out of paper and you can change your papers to suit your needs.

The StoryBook program also allows you to create your own digital content and to use content that you already have or that you purchase from other sources.  The possibilities are truly endless!

Creative Memories Rewards Club

A couple of weeks ago I told you about the new Rewards Club.  Today is the last day to sign up and get the instant $20 credit.  Beginning in October the instant credit will be $10.  I have copied and pasted the information from that post here.

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know that I am a Creative Memories Consultant.  I started as a consultant in 2005 to keep myself in supplies and to help friends and relatives with their scrapbooking projects.  I purchased a Cricut in 2007 and soon became totally caught up in the world of digital die cutting.  I started this blog to share my Cricut Design Studio files and tutorials and, more recently, I have been trying to keep my readers up to date on the Creative Memories products that I particularly enjoy using (such as the StoryBook Creative Plus 3.0 software for digital scrapping).

Last year, Creative Memories and Provo Craft began working together.  So far there have been four exclusive Creative Memories Cricut cartridges (Cheerful Seasons, Reminisce Accents, Stork's Delivery and Traveler - just click each name to see more information about each cartridge).  Next month, the Cricut Expression 2 machine will be available through Creative Memories and there will be an exclusive "Best of Times" sampler cartridge included with the Creative Memories E2 machines.  The price will be $299.

The cartridges retail for $55 and they are full of great content and well worth the price.  However...I know that some people find this price to be more than they would like to pay for a cartridge, so I have a few suggestions to help make the cartridges (and other products) more affordable.

Creative Memories is offering a new Rewards Club.  The annual fee is $39 and you get an immediate $10 credit that you can use to purchase Creative Memories products.  If you enroll in September, your immediate club credit will be doubled to $20.

If you join the Rewards Club, you will have access to exclusive products and promotions and every purchase you make will earn you a credit of 15% to be used for future purchases.  You can accumulate these credits to save for a more expensive item (such as the E2).  You could also use the immediate $20 credit to purchase one of the CM Cricut cartridges for $35.

You can read more about the Rewards Club and sign up as a member on my CM personal website HERE. 

If you'd like to earn even more credit, in addition to the Rewards Club, you could host a "party."  If you are located near me in Massachusetts this could be an "in person" get-together.  If you are at a greater distance, you could host a virtual party and earn hostess credit when the people you invite shop on my website.  The details of the host benefits can be seen HERE.

If you want to get even more products and purchase your items at the consultant discount (starts at 27.5% and increases depending on sales volume) you should consider signing up as a consultant.  The cost to start up is only $50.  My good friend and fellow blogger Joy Tracey (of Obsessed with Scrapbooking and Everyday Cricut) just joined Creative Memories through me and we would love to have some more of our online friends join us to create a great team!

There are additional incentives for new consultants who meet certain goals in their first months and if you join in September or October and complete the "Success Plan" you will earn this wonderful "Let's Create Pack" worth over $140.  If you are not a "party person," remember that you can sell through your Creative Memories personal website.  The fee for the first three months for your website is waived - what could be better than a free website to help you sell in the first months.

If you are interested in more details you can find them HERE on my personal website or contact me online by clicking the box on that page or emailing me directly at capadiadesigns@gmail.com

Thank you all for your responses to my question yesterday about your experiences with the world of die cutting - how you got started, which machines you have and use, and what you are interested in doing in the future.  I'd like to hear more of you and to let you know that I am definitely trying lots of new things.

I am very excited about some of the designs I have been able to make using the Silhouette software.  I am so happy to have some of the features that we all have been requesting for years in the Cricut software products with no results.  The intricate cut in the sneak peek above is something that I was able to make very quickly with the Silhouette software.

Tomorrow is World Card Making Day.  If you click HERE you can find out more about this event.  There is a card contest with 20 huge prize packages - to find out more about this click HERE.  Entries must be postmarked by October 11, 2011. You definitely should check out the list of prizes that the creators of the top 20 cards will receive - the total value is over $1,000!

Have a Great Friday - we'll be on the road most of the day...

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Easy Party Invitation - Art Philosophy Bundle

Today I have a super simple holiday party invitation to share with you.  I wanted to try the chipboard pieces included in the CTMH Art Philosophy bundle that my friend Melanie sent to me to review.   One of the interesting things about this cartridge bundle is the coordination of the cartridge shapes with stamps and precut chipboard shapes.  The correct sizes to cut each shape are listed on the clear backing sheet for the stamps and on the packaging for the chipboard.

In this photo the top shape is one of the chipboard pieces that came with the bundle and the bottom red shape is the cut that I made with the cartridge. 

 Here you can see the shape after I adhered the card stock to the chipboard.  They are a perfect match.

I pulled together some pieces to make a quick party invitation.  The metallic card stock base is a pale green from DCWV and the Christmas striped patterned paper is by K and Company.  I added some gold grosgrain ribbon and a few embellishments from Creative Charms.

I simply wrapped the ribbon around the patterned paper before adhering the paper to the card.  This adds more color and texture to the plain card.

 I used two silver tree sequins from the Creative Charms Winter Medley on either side of a Christmas Twinkle Sticker  to embellish the paper covered chipboard.

This side view shows the thickness of the chipboard (you can also see the tiny gold gems I added as "stars" at the tops of the trees!).

I used some of the stamps from the Art Philosophy bundle for the inside of the card - it's ready to fill in the information.  Two bits of advice:  The tiny stamps for the date-time-place and RSVP are tricky to line up so be patient if you have big fingers like mine.  Also, the inside of the card (the back of the metallic DCWV cardstock) is a little bit slick so you have to be sure to let the ink dry well before you close the card.

There are just a few days left to get in on the super deal that adds a free double stamp set to your order - free with orders over $75.  You can also buy the stamp of the month set for only $5 when you buy the Art Philosophy bundle.  

Melanie has posted photos of the entire cartridge handbook on her blog - click HERE to go directly to that post.  You will be amazed at all that this cartridge has to offer.

You can visit Melanie's Close to My Heart website by clicking HERE.  To go directly to the page for the Cricut Art Philosophy bundle click HERE.  You will find many more sample projects and tutorials on Melanie's blog, Courtney Lane Designs, and you can contact Melanie directly with any questions at melliemel77@gmail.com (just tell her I sent you!).

I have been designing up a storm and I can't wait to show you what I've been making.  We have another family celebration this weekend so I probably won't be able to cut out any of my designs until next week.  I also have a few cards to finish before we go.

I'd love to know how many of you have more then one type of electronic die cutting machine. If you'd like to leave a comment with the other types of machines and programs you are using and why, that would be interesting.  I'd also like to know whether your first machine was a Cricut or another brand and what led you to buy a different type of machine?  Thanks and have a great day!

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Disney/Pixar Blog Hop Winner

Happy Wednesday!  It was nice to be relieved of the jury duty call but I still had a crazy Tuesday.  I was trying to upload something to share with you all but I encountered many technical difficulties that I am still working on resolving!  I will probably just add in another post later in the day.

 I didn't want you to think I forgot about the giveaway I sponsored for the Disney/Pixar Blog Hop.  You can still follow the trail of the hop, however, I think that the prizes have all been awarded by now.

 I used Random.org to draw a comment from my blog post and the winner of the Disney Magic Punch for my blog is

Congratulations!  Please send me your mailing address and I will send the punch to you as soon as I hear from you. 

 The cut at the top of this post is yet another from the Art Philosophy cartridge - that cartridge has something for everyone!  If you want more information or want to order the bundle while the extra double stamp set is available (just a few more days) please contact Melanie through her blog, Courtney Lane Designs.

Have a great Wednesday - I will post again today if I can get my upload to work - otherwise I'll see you tomorrow morning!

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Gems make everything prettier!

I just love blue and white and snowflakes.  Now that the season is changing there will most likely be lots of snowflake cards and projects on my blog.  This card is one of several winter cards that I have posted for my second Creative Charms Design Team post this month.  You can see the post HERE on the Creative Charms blog.

The snowflake design is one of my original designs that I created using the Silhouette Studio software.  I have been experimenting with the software and enjoying the freedom it gives me to hand draw a design and create the layers and shadows for the design.  I know that, just as in nature, there will not be an identical snowflake if I hand draw my own designs.  The top layer here is Core'dinations gemstone card stock , the dark blue is Bazzill and the pearl dotted light blue is from American Crafts.

The card base is Stampin Up cardstock that came in a grab bag - I don't know the exact color name.  The patterned paper is from the Heirloom imagine cartridge.  I printed a few sheets of paper recently and this was one of my favorites (here is a LINK to that post if you are curious about printing paper with the Imagine).

I cut the paper into four inch strips and then cut off the ends once I had found the center of the design on the 5 1/4 inch long layer.

I added various sizes of gem stickers and a clear vintage jewel to make the snowflake twinkle.

The word "winter" is from the Winter Seasonal Sparkles.  The words on these sets are made up of individual gems and are held together with a shaped adhesive.  The clear backing lets you "audition" the placement of the word before you adhere it to your project.

If you lift the word with a tool you can gently place it on the paper - you do have to be careful not to stretch it too far.

This card is another one that is tricky to photograph however, it is "oh so shiny" in real life!  Do you like the snowflake medallion shape?  I have been designing lots of these with the Silhouette Studio software.

 

This round scalloped card is another cut from the CTMH Art Philosophy cartridge.  (Click HERE to go to my friend Melanie's CTMH site for more information. You will find many more sample projects and tutorials on Melanie's blog, Courtney Lane Designs, and you can contact Melanie directly with any questions at melliemel77@gmail.com (just tell her I sent you!).

I cut the card and the filigree layer at five inches.  The dark green card is Bazzill cardstock and the layer is Core'dinations gemstone cardstock (one of my favorites for cutting intricate designs like this).

Here is the filigree topper that I used (the card base is on the same key with the "Card" feature selected).

The offcut left on the mat will work perfectly to make a second card with the same base or it can be used for another project (I wonder who will spot it when I use it...).

The design is pretty just like this...

When you add lots of red gradient gem stickers (in three sizes and two shades of red) it becomes very elegant.

The round card can be side opening or you can rotate the fold to the top.  I added a red satin ribbon bow - when it is at the top, the card looks like a tree ornament.

If you came over from the Creative Charms blog to get more information about the card with the three trees, you can find all of the details HERE.


Creative Charms Mini-Giveaway winner...

The winner from the comments on my last Creative Charms posts chosen by random.org was surfnfroggie

Could you please contact me with your mailing information as soon as possible?  I'll be sending you...

...this package of Clear Vintage Jewels.

Please stop over to the Creative Charms blog HERE to see all of the Design Team projects.  Be sure to leave a comment on my post with these projects. Once again, I'll  have little giveaway for someone who comments here or on the Creative Charms blog (leave a comment in both places to double your chances).

You do not have to be a blog follower to win, however, if you like my blog and want to show your support for my work, please do follow or subscribe.  I also have a Capadia Designs Facebook page HERE and if you "like" that page you will see my daily posts in your news feed.

Don't forget about the Creative Charms Design Team call - you can find all of the details HERE.

a few more things...

click this image to find out more about the program

I just got information about a new program that Lettering Delights is offering exclusively for teachers.  This is a terrific offer that they are making to help teachers who often spend a lot of their own money to provide extras for their students.  This is a PILOT program and is only available for educators (teachers, home schoolers, student teachers) and an educator will need to send in proof in order to qualify.

Here is the information about the program from Lettering Delights:

Get hooked on UNLIMITED teachers-only access to thousands of fonts, colorful alphabets, graphics and clipart sets, printable tags and candybar wrappers, plus cut-it files for cutting machines at LetteringDelights.com all for just $130 for a whole year.

Hurry! This pilot beta program is available for a limited time and is reserved for a select number of professional teachers only**. Those eligible are teachers or student teachers of public, private, or charter institutions, or those who can provide proof of homeschooling their children. Please note, subscription will not be activated until proof has been received and approved.

Pay your annual membership fee to access the images you love in our easy-to-use online library. You can also download files directly to your computer to tackle all kinds of creative projects!

Build beautiful bulletin boards. Create darling student journals and scrapbooks. Personalize newsletters and notes. Design clever gifts and art. Customize practice pages and worksheets. Add colorful clipart and images to reports and assignments. And more!

Our teachers-only subscription allows you access to thousands of products in our current online gallery and dozens more added each month. This pilot program, available exclusively for teachers, will give you unlimited access for one full year to the following products:

• Over 600 fonts valued at close to $2000
• Over 700 colorful alphabet images valued at $2800
• Close to 300 dingbat fonts valued at almost $900
• Over 500 color graphic image sets (15 coordinating images per set) valued at $2100
• 1200 pieces of clipart (in both black-and-white and color) valued at $300
• Over 4000 cuttable files compatible with most electronic cutting machines valued at over $6000

***Click here for the teacher subscription licensing information.

*Occasionally we will have licensed artists whose product will not be available via subscription.
**All sign-ups must provide proof of status as a professional teacher before online access will be granted. Burden of proof is on the teacher, we will accept proof of employment by written letter (submitted on letterhead), a copy of a teacher badge, paystub, teacher contract, etc.

Today is the last day to get the special 30% off pricing on the new custom album covers from Creative Memories.  If you are not sure about the photo or layout you want to use for the album cover, you can still order a product credit at this great price.  You will have 180 days to use the credit and Creative Memories sends email reminders.  You can go back to the blog post from last week HERE to see more about the albums (scroll down a bit) and these links will take you to the pages twhere you can order a product credit.

12 x 12 album with side loading pages

12 x 12 custom album with pages and protectors

You do need to set up an account at the Digital Center to order the credit (very easy to do).  You will need a consultant ID to set up a new account - my number is 82352282.

I'll be ordering a couple of product credits since I haven't yet decided on a wedding photo to use for the cover(!) Please let me know if you have any questions about these albums.


Have a happy Tuesday - it is a particularly happy day for me because when I called the juror hotline Monday afternoon I found out that all jurors were cancelled - so I don't need to go to the courthouse for jury duty today after all! 


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Rehearsal Dinner and Wedding Projects

Today I have a few more of the wedding items to show you.  This adorable bridal bird couple was made by a very talented bridesmaid as the "cake topper" (the wedding cake was actually special cookies from a favorite bakery).  Unique items like this are so great for personalizing a wedding. 

For the paper projects I used my Silhouette SD machine.  I needed to use a particular font to coordinate with the other wedding items and I was able to make lots of special items with the easy print and cut option in the Silhouette software.

The restaurant had frosted votive candles so I just cut initials in vinyl and the staff took care of adding them around each candle.  They also sprinkled the "diamonds" on the tables.  By using the items already at the restaurant and just adding an extra touch I was able to avoid shipping finished centerpieces across the country.

I created menu cards so our guests would be able to choose their main course and read the details about the other courses.  On the other side I listed the wines and the special intermezzo courses we had the restaurant prepare.  We wanted to honor the agricultural connections on both sides of the family so we had a watermelon "shooter" and apple sorbet between courses. I wanted to do these cards so we could save them in a scrapbook to help remember all of the details of a wonderful celebration.

I used a flourish from the standard free images that come with the Silhouette Studio software and created borders and a rounded top for the placecards.  By using the same motif with slight variations, I kept all of the items coordinated.

The place cards were set out near the entry with a few more decorated votives.  You can see the motif rotated and mirrored on the half circle top of the place cards.

This photo taken with flash shows the cards more clearly.  I wrote the table numbers on by hand the afternoon before the dinner (in case there were any last minute changes).

When using the Silhouette to do print and cut, you design the project on your computer and then print it on your regular printer.  There is an option to show the registration marks and you need to check this to have the three corners print when you print your project.  You need to avoid placing your design in the shaded areas near the registration marks to be sure that the machine will be able to locate and read the marks.

The software allows you to select the elements that will print and the lines that will cut.  You can add a fill of color or pattern to the shapes.  I filled the letters with a shade of blue and when I added the name and the table I used black.  You can also set certain lines to cut completely and other lines to perforate.  This allowed me to create the half circle that came up above the fold on the cards.

If you look carefully, you can see the registration mark at the top left of this photo.  The machine detects the three marks and then it will cut around the printed areas exactly as you designed.

I use the same motifs again for the table numbers.  These were printed and I used my DreamKuts machine to cut the 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock in half vertically for simple tents.

One word of advice - I usually am the person taking all of the photos but for an event like this you should designate another willing family member or friend to make sure that you get photos of everything you want photographed.  A list that you make ahead of time would be very helpful.  We realized at the end of the evening that there was not a photo with us and the bride and the groom together!  I am hoping that someone else might have a photo of at least the two of us - I think I have lapsed as a scrapbooker by missing a few of these photos - but it was a magical evening and the memories will last forever.  There are photos from the wedding so all is not lost!

 

In addition to the delicious dessert, the staff brought these special cookies with a message to our son and daughter-in-law (I know, can you believe that I have a photo of this and not of us together - make a list!).

This photo shows all of my printing and cutting projects ready to go to the wedding. I'll show you what we did with the little vases in another post.

Thanks for all of the nice comments on my projects for the Disney/Pixar blog hop - you can still participate today by following either day of the hop or joining the linky party today.  You can get all of the details at THIS POST.


I was called for jury duty tomorrow - I wonder if I will actually have to report.  Do you think they would allow me to use the Gypsy while I am waiting around...?

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