Cricut Image Library Subscription - What's included, what's not...

A couple of days ago, I told you about the list of cartridges that are included in the Cricut Image Library Subscription.  The link to the list can be found within the subscription description (couldn't resist that phrase!).

You can download the PDF with the full list of the items included in the subscription on the Cricut site.  Go to the subscription page HERE, choose a plan and then click on the link in the description for the download.
 
The PDF of the list of items included is three pages long and pretty dense with three columns across the page.  It might be hard to get a quick idea whether some image sets are included because it is hard to remember all of the ones you might like to use.

If you'd like to see the opposite list - the list of the items that are NOT included - I recommend Narelle's list on her blog, The Non-Crafty Crafter.  You'll find that HERE.  This obviously took her some time to assemble so please be sure to say "Thanks!" (you can tell her I sent you there to find the list).

Narelle also has a list of all of the cartridges ever released with links to the handbooks for your convenience.

On the list of non-included cartridges you will find the cartridges that are or were exclusive to certain companies (Creative Memories, Close To My Heart, Hobby Lobby, etc.), Licensed popular Characters (Disney, Hello Kitty, Nickelodeon, Sesame Street, Pixar, DC Comics, etc),  Martha Stewart, Cricut Circle, and some of the cartridges that were exclusive to certain machines.  The Imagine cartridges are also on the list along with a lot of the cartridges from the early years of the Cricut machine.

The monthly and annual subscription options are now available to purchase - you can find them HERE.  Remember, you do not need to have the Explore to use the subscription.  The subscription rights are added to your Cricut account and will also work with the Cricut Craftroom.

Easter cards from Simple Holiday Cards cartridge

I have found so many interesting things that were hidden on cartridges that I never bought or that are part of the digital exclusive sets.  While I have most of the old cartridges and lots of the licensed ones, I still love having the subscription to be able to use so many more items at a very reasonable cost.  You do not need any subscription to use the cartridges you own - you just need to link them to your Cricut account and then you can use them with Design Space or the Cricut Craftroom program.


The last day of March was rather dull and rainy - my fingers are crossed for some nice sunshine to start April off on a good foot!  I couldn't craft today - I am buried in paper work of the non-crafty type, trying to get the taxes finished!

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Sunday tips

Spellbinders is doing another big giveaway.  Starting Monday, March 31, you can visit the Spellbinders Community Blog each day to see which of the participating designers are featuring one of the new products that were introduced in January and are now shipping.  There will be an entry form at the end of each tutorial and you could win the item featured that day.

One lucky person will win ALL of the new products - to be eligible for the grand prize you must enter on each and every one of the featured blogs.  The full explanation and rules can be found HERE.  (I try to do this every time and haven't won anything yet...but there are great projects and tutorials so it is worth checking them out each day - maybe you will win!).

Re-released Creative Memories Cartridges...

Three of the twelve cartridges have sold out but there are still quite a few available.   If you read my post on Friday, you know that the re-released Creative Memories cartridges are available only in physical form, while supplies last, and won't be sold as digital cartridges or as a part of a Design Space subscription.  So this is your last chance to get these images (and the price with the sale is great!).  You can read all of the details in my Friday post HERE and find the re-released Creative Memories cartridges HERE.  Don't forget to check the clearance section while you are shopping - there are some great deals right now!

bundle of free files from Silhouette Online Store

Silhouette Online Store 50% off sale

This sale was extended due to problems with the website running slowly when the sale was scheduled to end on the 27th.  So - if you use a Silhouette machine and you didn't shop for some half price designs already, you have until the 31st (Monday) to finish stocking up.

You can also pick up all of the extra freebies that were offered in the second part of the sale - just click on featured bundles and you will find the entire set for easy downloading.  Monday is the last day so don't miss out.

Free Magazine...

I don't think I reminded you to download the latest issue of the Create magazine.  This magazine is published by Scrapbook Generation, a store in Missouri and it is free.  You can download any of the first three issues from THIS PAGE on the Scrapbook Generation website.

I hope you had a great weekend - it rained like crazy here most of the time - and it is still raining!  We had lots of activities to attend this weekend but I am planning to spend some quality time in my craftroom over the next few days - there are so many projects that I want to try!

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Cricut Image Library Subscriptions - Monthly, Annual or none, what is right for you?

When I bought my new Cricut  Explore last month from HSN, it came with a free three month image subscription.  This was an "extra" that I didn't think I would really need since over the years I have purchased a very large number of cartridges (I got my first machine over six years ago).  But it was part of the deal and as soon as I registered the machine, the subscription was activated.

I have to say that having the subscription has been amazing.  There are a large number of digital only cartridges that I hadn't really paid attention to because I wasn't able to access the Cricut Craftroom for many months (it works fine for me now and I don't really know exactly what the problem was...). The digital only cartridges or image sets include many smaller sets of very specific types of images - like Greek letters or chess pieces.  I don't know if I will have a need for these particular sets but if I discover that I need them, they are available to me as part of the subscription.

These image sets can also be purchased and the cost varies depending on the size of the set.  Many of them seem to be between $4.99 and $9.99.    By choosing to pay the subscription fee (either on a monthly or annual basis) you can use ALL of these sets as well as all of the single images, cartridges and fonts that are included in the subscription package.

In looking through the items included in the subscription, I realized that there are quite a few more recent cartridges that I never bought that have some images that I really like and will enjoy using through the subscription, even if I never buy the physical cartridge or the digital rights to it.

As new images, sets and cartridges are added to the library, these will also be available to use with the subscription (exclusions include exclusive or licensed cartridges which must be purchased separately and linked to your account).  For instance, there is a new cartridge called Home for the Holidays, Spring and Summer that is already available to use in the subscription.

I noticed tonight that the subscription options have been added to the Cricut site and are available to purchase - you can find them HERE.

While I have heard some people object to the subscription plan because you are only renting access to the images and won't own any of them outright to use when the subscription ends I think it is actually a much more cost-efficient way to use your machine.  Instead of buying a lot of cartridges, you can just budget for the monthly $9.99 fee or pay the annual fee of $99.99 (about $8.34/month) and have access to a huge number of images.

Here is just the top of the first page of the three page list of images, sets and cartridges included in the subscription.  Of course, any cartridges that you own and have linked will also be available to you to use, with or without a subscription.

You can download the PDF with the full list of the items included in the subscription on the Cricut site.  Go to the subscription page HERE, choose a plan and then click on the link in the description for the download.

What are your options?  Here are some important things to know...

1.  You do not have to purchase any subscription - if you own the Explore, you can use all of the cartridges that you own and have linked to your Cricut account.  You can not use the cartridges directly in the machine.  The port on the machine is only used to link cartridges.  You will also be able to import and cut other images, including SVG files, and to cut the fonts on your computer.

2.  You can subscribe on a monthly plan for $9.99/month.  There is no contract but you will need to take action to cancel the monthly payments.   If you do not cancel the subscription before it renews each month you will be charged for the next month (however, you can cancel at any time and have access for the remainder of the period that you have paid for).

3.  You can subscribe for the annual fee of $99 which is about $8.34/month.  This plan will not auto-renew and you will have to take action to purchase the annual plan for the next year.

You must have a high speed internet connection and a payment method on file with ProvoCraft to use the subscription service.  There are no refunds for partial periods on either the monthly or the annual plan.

Be sure to read the Terms and Conditions to understand exactly how the subscription service works.

How does the Cricut Image Library Subscription compare to the Silhouette Subscription plan?

There are a variety of levels for the Silhouette subscription plan.  To compare by price, for the same fee of $9.99 a month you can download $25 worth of images.  These images will be yours to keep when the subscription ends so if you remember to download to your limit, you will have approximately 250 additional images in your library at the end of the year (this could vary if you get some of the images on sale or get some images that cost more than 99 cents).  The Silhouette plan is an annual plan and you are committed for the entire year when you sign up.  For a 6-month subscription you need to add 10% to the price and for a 3-month subscriptions you add 15% to the price.

Even though you don't own the images in the Cricut subscription plan, I think there is a greater value because you have unlimited access to over 25,000 images and 200 fonts.  If you added images at the rate of 250 a year to your Silhouette library it would take you 100 years to get 25,000 images - not to mention the fonts!

My advice is to purchase a subscription plan - either monthly or annual - to get the best possible use from your machine.  In the long run, I think it is more economical and you will have the thrill of discovering images you never realized were available.  The image search in the Design Space program will pull up images on cartridges you have had for years but you may never have realized that the image was included.  The ability to see the fully layered image in color really calls your attention to some long lost (or unknown) treasures!

One more note - I saved the best news for the people who don't have an Explore for last.  The Image Library Subscription will also be available to use in the Cricut CraftRoom so you don't have to miss out on the great chance to have access to so many images for a very modest fee.

When I log into the Craftroom I can see all of the images and cartridges that are included in the Design Space as part of my three month free subscription in bold letters.  If I understand correctly, as soon as you complete the purchase of a plan (click HERE to go to the subscription page) your account will be updated to give you access to all of the content included.

Update on Creative Memories Cartridges...

It looks like the Creative Memories Traveler cartridge is now sold out as well.  If you read my post yesterday, you know that the re-released Creative Memories cartridges are sold only in physical form, while supplies last, and won't be available as digital cartridges or as a part of a Design Space subscription.  So this is your last chance to get these images (and the price with the sale is great!).
You can read all of the details in my Friday post HERE and find the re-released Creative Memories cartridges HERE.
 
We were out and about most of the day on Saturday so I wasn't able to do any projects.  I did manage to find the scoring stylus for the Explore while we were out so on Sunday I'll be staying in from the rainy weather and trying that out on a few rosettes, boxes and bags.  I hope your weekend is going well...happy crafting!

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Going, going, gone...

About a week ago, I posted about the re-released Creative Memories cartridges.  These cartridges were originally sold exclusively by Creative Memories consultants and the regular price was $55 for most of them.  They are now available on the Cricut website at a sale price of $29.99.  You can find the re-released Creative Memories cartridges HERE.

With the current sale offering of 30% off all images when you use the code SPRING30, the cartridges are only $20.99.  This is a fantastic price for these cartridges. Be sure to shop for as many cartridges as you want in one order since this code can only be used once.  NOTE - If you have a problem applying the code, make sure your shopping cart has only cartridges or image sets in it and then do a separate order for any other items (see the tips about clearance items at the end of this post!).

These cartridges are sold only in physical form, while supplies last, and won't be available as digital cartridges or as a part of a Design Space subscription.  So this is your last chance to get these images (and the price with the sale is great!).

Several people asked me which of these cartridges I like the most.  The cartridges tend to be very topical so it would depend on how many other baby, wedding, sports, holiday, etc. cartridges you have and whether the images on the Creative Memories cartridges are different from the things you have already.

 My personal favorites are:

The Reminisce Accents cartridge which is elegant and classic.  It is something like Damask Decor in style. It is lovely for heritage scrapbooking projects but also great for cards.  I used it for this page showing three generations in my family.

I think 'Tis the Season is a wonderful Christmas cartridge.  It has about half traditional images and half more whimsical holiday designs.  There are quite a few phrases with images like the one on this card.

Stork's Delivery is a nice baby cartridge if you don't have many baby images.  I like Tiny Treasures a little bit better because it also has lots of 3D items, like these cute elephant favor boxes (but the font on Stork's Delivery is really nice).

Divine Wedding has very detailed and lovely layered images that are not too hard to put together.

Traveler and Total Sports are two that I haven't used as much, probably because these topics are ones that I need less frequently.  Be Young and This and That are popular with a lot of people but don't really fit my family as well.

All of the cartridges have fonts - some have multiple fonts and there are some really nice fonts that are a bit unusual.  If you want to see exactly what is on the cartridges, you can check out the handbooks HERE.  They are all listed under "C" - the names start with "Creative Memories" on each cartridge.

You should know that the Best of Times cartridge is much smaller than the others.  It was a limited edition cartridge that only came with the Cricut machines sold through Creative Memories.  There is no overlay for this cartridge since it was meant to be used with the Expression 2.  It is a "rare" cartridge, but there is not a lot on it.

Two of the cartridges (Cheerful Seasons and Holiday Frames and Tags) have already sold out.  I do not know how many of the other cartridges are left to sell but if you want any of them you should order right away!

Once again, these cartridges are sold only in physical form, while supplies last, and won't be available as digital cartridges or part of a Design Space subscription.  So this is your last chance to get these images (and the price with the sale is great!).

I am an affiliate for Cricut.com and I appreciate it when you use my links (by clicking HERE)  to go to the Cricut site to shop.  There is no additional cost to you when you use these links and it helps to support my blog (and keep me supplied with chocolate!).

Clearance Prices on Cricut/Cuttlebug/Your Story/Yudu/Gypsy/Cake/Supplies

One more thing...

If you haven't checked out the DEALS section of the Cricut site lately you need to take a few minutes to see what is available.  There are some crazy deals - Cuttlebug folders as low as 75 cents!  French Manor cartridge for $19.99.  Original tool kit for $5.  Vinyl for $2.25.  Terrifically Tacky Tape for $1.00.  Yudu glitter $1.25 a jar (very fine glitter that could also be used for the glass ornaments).

 

Even these little Cricut figures for very small prices!

Click HERE to go directly to the DEALS page.  Be sure to check all of the pages (choose "all" in the "results per page" drop down menu at the top right of the page).

I promise to stop with the "enabling"  for a little while - I just hate for my friends to miss out on good deals and last chances


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Last Chances...

This has been the longest winter!  We had a terribly cold day yesterday and the winds were so high that they scared our cat out of the sunroom where she  usually spends a good part of the day napping.  Out area did not have snow but on Cape Cod and the Islands they got another big accumulation.  I can't remember a year when everyone was so ready for Spring to arrive!

Just a few quick reminders this morning - later today I will try to add the next tutorial on using digital content with your die cutting machines.

Today is the last day of the Silhouette Online Store 50% off Sale on Designs so be sure to shop early in the day - when you wait to the last minute the site can get slow (with all of the other procrastinators online with you!).

For the past 11 days, there has been a free file available everyday in addition to the regular weekly free files that are posted on Tuesdays.  If you missed any of these files there is some good news - all of the files will stay free until the end of the day.

Just go to the Online Store and choose "Browse All Designs" at the top.  Then use the drop down menu to choose the sort option "price - low to high" and the free files will be the first ones listed.

This vase of flowers was added after I took the screen shot of the set of files - it will show up when you click the sorting option.  I missed a couple of the files while I was out of town but now I have them all.  I try to always download the free files - if I don't have an immediate use for the image, there may be some part of the design that will work for a future project.

The one day sale reverting to the earlybird pricing on True Stamp 2014  started at noon yesterday.  I don't know if any slots remain available at the special price - more than half had been claimed as of Wednesday evening.

If you are interested in attending, don't miss this deal!  The code is ROLLBACK - just enter this code and apply it at checkout to see the price drop to $49!  Click HERE to go to the registration page.  You will find information about the classes and instructors on that page.

There are only 50 seats available at this price and the sale will run until all fifty seats are sold or until noon (Pacific) on Thursday, March 27th - whichever comes first!

Here is a little sneak peek at the project I did for my sister and brother-in-law.  It was one of those deceptively simple looking projects that ended up getting a little bit complicated...I'll explain why when I have more photos to share.

I hope your day is off to a good start - if you are one of the areas hit by this most recent storm please take care. 

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Special One Day Sale Code for True Stamp

So many people asked so nicely that Lain decided to hold a one day sale reverting to the earlybird pricing on True Stamp 2014.

As I mentioned earlier - the code for this sale could not be revealed until noon - well that's the time now!  The code is ROLLBACK - just enter this and apply it at checkout to see the price drop to $49!

Click HERE to go to the registration page.  You will find information about the classes and instructors on that page.

There will be only 50 seats available at this price and the sale will run until all fifty seats are sold or until noon (Pacific) on Thursday, March 27th - whichever comes first!

I will be attending on April 5 (I got my ticket early!) and I hope to "see" some of you in the virtual online classroom.  It was a lot of fun last year and I learned many new things about stamping.  The classes and instructors this year look great and at this special price it is about $8 per class - now that's a bargain!

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How to Use Lettering Delights Cutting Files with the Cricut Explore

 

I'll be posting several tutorials on using digital content from various sources with your digital die-cutting machines over the next week or so.  Before I get into the tutorial for today, I have a few updates about sales to pass along.

All Cricut cartridges and images are now 30% off on the Cricut website HERE.  To get the sale price, you must enter and apply the code SPRING30 at checkout.

I added one of the re-released Creative Memories cartridges (see my post about these cartridges HERE) to my cart and applied the code and this dropped the price of the cartridge to just $20.99 - that's an amazing deal!

This sale will last until April 6th.  A few of the re-released cartridges have already sold out so be sure to shop soon if you are looking for one of these cartridges.

I am an affiliate for Cricut.com and I appreciate it when you use my links (by clicking HERE)  to go to the Cricut site to shop.  There is no additional cost to you when you use these links and it helps to support my blog (and keep me supplied with chocolate!).

I just heard that Lain is going to roll back the price on True Stamp 2014 to the early bird pricing of only $49 in a one day sale.  There is a special code that you will need to get this price.  I can't post the code until noon (Eastern) on Wednesday, so if you are interested in attending True Stamp 2014 be sure to check back here to get the code at noon.  

There will be only 50 seats available at this price and the sale will run until all fifty seats are sold or until noon (Pacific) on Thursday - whichever comes first!

The Lettering Delights  Dollar Day sale is scheduled to end today - Wednesday, March 26th.  All products are $1 (or $2 for cut-it sets).  Click HERE to shop the sale.

If you have a new Cricut Explore you can cut SVG files with this machine through the Design Space.  Lettering Delights sells many files that are already in SVG format, along with papers, graphics, alphabets, fonts and more.  While many people think of Lettering Delights for "cute" designs, there are quite a few elegant and sophisticated files available as well.

Once you purchase a Cut-It set from Lettering Delights, it is very easy to bring it in to the Design Space and cut it with your Cricut Explore.  If you use a Silhouette machine and have the upgraded (paid) Designer Edition of their software you can also cut these files.

To get started, log in to your account on the Lettering Delights site so you can access the purchased items in your library.  Everything you purchase from Lettering Delights is stored in this library so you do not have to download all of the files to your computer.

When you are logged in, click on "My Library" at the bottom of the column on the left side of the page.  Then choose "My Cut Its" to see all of the cutting files you have purchased.

 

Browse through your Cut Its library to find an image or a set that you would like to cut.  This set is called "This Mum's For You."  Next, click on the "Try Me Now" button at the top right of the image description.

This will bring up a new window where you can view the items in the set you have chosen.  You can scroll from side to side and one image at a time will appear in the large window as you scroll.

If you just want to cut one image from a set, click on the "Save" button to download an individual file to your computer.  You can see that the file format is listed as SVG directly below the "save" button.

 

If you want to use all of the items in a set, click on the "Download Entire Set" button.

There are two download links, only one of them will work for Mac computers so be sure to choose the right one.

Click on the appropriate link and then save the file to your computer.  Be sure you know where files you download will go to by default so you can find the downloaded file.  If you will be downloading many sets, you should set up a file or files on your computer to keep the Cut-It files in a folder hierachy that allows you to find them easily.

If you download the entire set of files they are generally in a zipped file and you will need to extract them from this file.

When you have the single SVG file downloaded, or have downloaded the entire group, unzipped the file and located the individual image within the file that you want to use, you are ready to go to the Design Space to bring the file in to the program for cutting with the Explore.

Open a new file and then click on "Upload Image" at the left side of the page.

On the next screen choose "Vector Upload" to upload an .svg or a .dxf file.  Most cutting files are made available in SVG format in digital shops.

After you click the "Vector Upload" button, you will see this screen.  Click on the "Browse" button and locate the file on your computer to upload.

The image will upload and appear on the left side of the screen.  You should see the file name assigned to the image by the seller in the title box as soon as you upload the image.

There is a box where you can enter some tags or labels for the file.  The more you enter, the more likely you will be able to find the file later if you are searching for it.  I added "LD" to indicate the source of the file.

Once you have added the tags, go ahead and click the "Save Image" button at the lower right of the screen.

The image will appear in the line of uploaded images at the bottom of the screen.  Images are in chronological order here so if you upload a lot of images, it could be difficult to find the right one quickly.  That is why you want to add tags that have descriptive words that will help you locate the file you need quickly.

Some SVG files may come in at the size that they are intended to be used but others will be added in the default small size.  I believe this depends on how the creator of the file set it up when designing.  Use the Edit panel to adjust the image to an exact size.  Then click "Go" at the top of the page to move to the Mat Preview Screen.

The image will appear on the virtual mat, ready to cut.  You just push "GO" and follow the directions.

If you want to cut multiples of the same item, this screen is where you can tell the machine to cut as many as you want.   The items will be automatically placed on the mat.

Some of the things you are cutting could probably be made to fit in a smaller amount of cardstock.  You can click on an image and move it around on this mat.  You can also swivel the image to any angle and move it to a place where it will cut but also save a large piece of paper for another project.

Once you have the items moved into a smaller area, you are ready to cut (you could skip this step and just use more paper but I like to conserve as much as possible).

Click "Go" at the lower right of the screen and then load your mat, check your cut setting, and push the "go" button on the actual machine to start the cutting.

I chose a simple one layer shape for this tutorial but the steps are just the same for a more complicated layered file.  This chick uploaded with full color and all of the layers separated.

The chick is from the "This is the Life" set and I am planning to use it for an Easter or Spring card.

I hope that helped - please leave a comment if you have any questions.

Don't forget to shop the Lettering Delights sale before it ends today - check out the great savings on Cricut cartridges and images HERE and check back at noon to get the special code for the one day sale on True Stamp 2014 - you will save $48 off the regular price.

One quick personal note - Happy Birthday to my sister Margie on Wednesday!  Have a wonderful day!
 

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This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product using the link I may receive a commission. I only participate in affiliate programs for products that I use or can recommend without reservation