Lettering Delights Clearance Sale ends today

The Lettering Delights Clearance Sale ends today.  This sale includes products that were previously discontinued that have been brought back - now offered at a great price.  Sets are 50 cents each on sale.  You can find these sets HERE.  They are graphics sets and alphabets, not cutting sets, however, you can use them for digital projects and also for print then cut.

If you spend $12 or more you can use the code "SeptemberSave" to save 40%.  This makes these 50 cent sets less than 28 cents each!

I have been buying from Lettering Delights for years.  I am also an affiliate for them.  The Lettering Delights sales offer a great value, particularly when you buy a bundle and apply the discount code.  There are so many items to look through that it can be a bit overwhelming so they put together some bundles including this All Occasion Super Clearance Bundle.  This includes 62 sets for various holidays.  At the original prices they would be $226 and the bundle is offered at $18.  With the discount code this bundle is $9.90 - now that's a deal!

There are also two more "Teacher's Pet" bundles of 50 sets (one with graphics and one with alphabets) that are $18 - with the coupon code they are $9.90 or just 19 cents a set!  You can find them HERE.

Of course, you can just pick and choose exactly which sets you want.  Be sure to shop today (Tuesday, September 30th) before the sale ends!

The apple basket image at the top of this post is from the "Peeking Scarecrows" set that I just bought this week.  This set is part of the Teacher's Pet Graphics Bundle HERE.

I uploaded the PNG image to Design Space and printed two baskets to cut.   I love how this is so quick and easy to do with just a few clicks with Design Space and the Explore.  The dynamic color bleed around the edges is great for eliminating the dreaded white edges on printed images that are cut.

Here are the apple baskets after cutting - even the tiny stems on the apples are perfect (these were cut at three inches tall).  I have more samples using Lettering Delights images and some tips to share in another post.

The  Lettering Delights special offer for September is the "Fall Dolls" bundle.  If you spend a total of $10 or more (after coupons have been applied) between September 1 and 30, 2014, these items will be automatically added to your library.  You can see more about the items included HERE.

Here are two of the Fall Dolls images that I printed and cut.  The one on the left is a PNG image and the one on the right is a flattened SVG file.  I'll explain the differences and why you might choose one file format over the other in another post.

Don't forget to use the code!  If you spend $12 or more you can use the code "SeptemberSave" to save 40% on your order.

I hope you are having a great week - I am looking forward to lots of crafty time this week after some busy family times lately.

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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.

Cricut Explore Updates are Live - Time to Calibrate and Create! (plus a special deal on Explore bundles)

After months, weeks and days of anticipation, the "big" update for the Design Space program went live overnight.  I think there will be lots of busy people trying everything out for the next few days!  Please leave a comment below if you have questions about how to use the new features.

If you want to find the items that are ready to print use the new filter for "Printables" under Type in the left pop out menu.  (These are primarily from the original Imagine cartridges but I did see some new content too).

The images that are ready to print also have a small printer icon so you can recognize them if you do a search for a particular item like "Santa."

Remember, you can also use images from the regular cartridges and "Flatten" them so they will print as a single image.  Directions on how to do this are in the blog post from last week HERE.

Before you print and cut your first image, you will need to calibrate your machine.  You should be prompted to do this before you make your first cut.  You can also calibrate at any time by clicking on "Calibrate" in the drop down menu under your log-in name (see above).

The calibration process is easy and quick.  Just follow the onscreen prompts.  I took screen shots to show you the steps.  This first screen describes the process.

The first thing you will do is to print the test page for the calibration.  You can print this on regular printer paper.  Just be sure to set your dial for paper, not cardstock when you do the test cuts.

When you click "Continue," your regular printer dialog box will come up - just print as you usually do for any other document.  It doesn't matter if you are using a wired or wireless connection to your printer - both are fine.

Next, you will take the printed test paper, put it on the mat at the top left corner and load the mat.

The machine will check for the registration marks and read them.  Then it will cut the small rectangle in the center of the page.

 

After the machine has cut the rectangle, you need to check to see if the cut line stayed within the black area.

If the line is totally within the black box you can check "yes" on the report page and continue.

If the cut lines go outside the black area, check "no" and print another test page.  I never had the lines cut outside the black area but they were very off center within the black box one time so I reprinted and tried again to get the best results.

Don't take the mat out of the machine.

Next the machine will make a cut at regular intervals along the side and top of the paper.  When it is done, you need to read these marks.

Look carefully and decide which letter and number correspond to the best, most centered cuts.  It won't necessarily be the same as shown in the example on the screen as you can see from my results.

Finally, the machine will cut out the large rectangle.  You need to check yes or no to indicate whether the cuts stayed totally within the black lines of the rectangle.  If it did, you are all set.

The last thing you do is to "Save" and close the calibration page.  You are now ready to print and cut!

There are four very helpful videos from Cricut on the Official Cricut You Tube Channel HERE.

Calibrating the machine
Print Then Cut Basics
Print Then Cut - Advanced
Cricut Design Space - Slice

I'd recommend that you start by watching these videos.  Then just give it a try - your first Print Then Cut project is minutes away!

 If you don't have an Explore machine yet - here is a very special offer for these two bundles...
(sponsored post)

 

Save an additional $10 on Cricut Explore® Machine + Basic Starter Set (click HERE) and Cricut Explore® Machine + Premium Bluetooth Set  (click HERE) with the code SEPTSPECIAL. 
Don't forget about Free shipping on all orders $35+ with code FREESHIP35! Simply enter the free shipping code at checkout for free standard shipping in the continental United States.

  
This $10 savings code is good until the end of September.

I will be posting some more Explore projects over the next couple of days.  I haven't forgotten about the Scotland photos I promised and there are a few other things I want to post once all of the excitement over the Design Space update calms down!

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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.

Using Your Digital Kits to Print Then Cut with the Cricut Explore and Design Space

Do you have lots of digital scrapbooking kits that you have collected over the years?  The new Print Then Cut feature for the Cricut Explore will open up a whole new way to use these kits for your projects.

These images are all from a kit that I purchased about a year ago.  They are from Echo Park's Apothecary Halloween collection and you can find the set I used for this tutorial HERE. (not an affiliate link - I buy lots of kits from SnapClickSupply!).

Most embellishments in digital scrapbooking kits are in PNG format.  This is one of the formats accepted for uploading images to Design Space.  Click on the "Upload Images" icon (second from the top at the left of the screen) and choose "Basic Upload."

Click on the button that says "Browse" and then locate the image in the folder on your computer where you saved it.  The image will appear just below the "Browse" box.  Then choose "Simple Image" because a PNG file will already be "cleaned up" with the background removed.  Then click "Continue to Step 2" at the lower right.

The image will appear in the next screen (the "Clean" step).  You will see the details of the image in the work area.  The Design Space program will add the cutting lines around the edges of the shape.

Click on the eyeball at the top right to hide the detailed image and show the cutting lines in red.  You do not need to "clean" the image since the PNG file already has the background removed.  CLcik "Continue to Step 3" at the lower right.

There is a box that must be checked to upload the detailed printed image instead of just the shape of the image.  If this box is not checked, only the shape will be uploaded.

When you check the box, you will see all of the details of the image to print.  This is the version you want to upload for Print Then Cut.  You should fill in the image name and tags so that you can locate the image again.  I would recommend adding the name of the designer and the digital kit along with any other descriptive words to help you find the file later.

Here are some of the items I printed and cut out with the Explore .  The cuts are very precise with lots of detail from the original PNG files in the digital scrapping kit.  These can be printed on cardstock, vinyl, vellum - whatever material you want to use for your project that will print nicely in your home printer.

Here is the clock showing the intricate details around the top.

I flipped it over so you can see the cuts more clearly.  You could also just cut this shape from solid cardstock (use the upload option that does not preserve the interior design within the shape).

The only place where I ran into a tiny problem was with one of the tendrils on the pumpkin.  When curves are this small it can be challenging to get them to cut.

I just snipped off the lower tendril with some scissors.  I think it is amazing that the top tendril (which is about the same thickness as the one I snipped off) cut neatly and cleanly as you can see here.

I experimented with turning off the "bleed" in the printing of this label image.  There was no bleed on the top image and I left the default bleed on for the bottom image.  They are nearly identical.  I would recommend leaving the bleed in the default "on" position unless there is a special reason to turn it off.

I was worried that there was something wrong when the Explore was cutting this tag because the machine was not just cutting a straight line around the simple tag shape.  It turned out that the tag was designed with a rough deckle edge and the Explore cut it exactly as it was designed.  You can see all of the tiny zigs and zags clearly when the tag is flipped over on a contrasting color.

There are so many possibilities when you expand your ideas about what you can print and cut - I'll show you how to combine more digital files with Cricut shapes in another post.  Can you tell I am having a lot of fun with this?!

 
DON'T FORGET:  The Cricut site and the Craft Room and Design Space will be undergoing updates and may be unavailable from 7:00 p.m. Monday, September 22nd through 7 a.m. Tuesday, September 23rd (Mountain Time).  Plan your crafting accordingly - get any cuts made before the servers go down and then you can assemble projects (or sleep!) while the updates are happening.  I promise you - it will be worth the wait once you see the new features!

Take a look at any digital kits you own - wouldn't you love to print and cut out some of the items in these kits?  If you don't have already have an Explore the new features coming with the update may convince you that you "need" to upgrade.  If you want to shop for a new machine you can find all of the bundles on the Cricut site HERE.   

The red links in this post are affiliate links and I appreciate your support when you shop using these links.  Your price does not change and I may receive a commission payment that helps me to keep this blog going. 

Don't forget to use the code FREESHIP35 for free standard shipping within the continental US for orders over $35.

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email. 

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.

Disney Characters Print Then Cut with Cricut Explore - Step by Step Directions

When the Print Then Cut feature for the Cricut Explore becomes available sometime during the week of September 22nd, one of the first things you might want to try is printing and cutting out one of the complex layered Disney images.  I shared some of the images I have printed and cut in a post yesterday (click HERE to see that post) and today I have some screenshots from the Design Space program that show you exactly how to do this.

I chose this image of Aladdin and Jasmine as an example because it has many layers and would be very difficult to cut and piece together at a small size. 

The image has ten different color and many tiny individual pieces.  I wanted to size the image at 5 inches wide for a card.  It would be extremely time consuming and probably very frustrating to try to cut all of these pieces from colored cardstock and assemble them.

Once you have chosen and sized the image, click on it to select it and then click on the new icon that says "Flatten" at the top of the layers menu.  Just one click turns this into an image that can be printed as a whole.  No worries about finding just the right shade of cardstock - the colors will be the "correct" colors from the original Disney image.

You can see that the image is flattened because the heavy black lines showing the individual layers have disappeared, leaving only the lines that show the details of the image. All of the layers that were in individual spaces on the layers panel have been consolidated into one printable image.

You could print and then cut this image as is but you might want to add the shadow layer to create an outline around the image.  The shadow layers are usually present but not showing - just click the eyeball by the shadow image to make it show.

Click on the shadow layer image in the layers panel and then change the color to white.

Select the image and the white shadow layer and click "Flatten" again to create an image that will cut with an even white border around the edges.

The image will now look like this and you are ready to print and then cut it out.

The mat preview will show the image with registration marks.  Click "Print and Continue" in the lower right corner to send the image to your printer.  You can do this through a wired or a wireless connection.

After the image has printed, you simply load it on the mat, set the dial for the type of material you used to print the image (cardstock, printable vinyl, etc) and then press GO, just as you do to cut colored cardstock layers for an image.  The Explore machine will first read the registration marks using the light and the optical eye and then will cut out the printed image.

You might want to use images like this for cupcake toppers or in a 3D box card.  Design Space makes it very easy to create a mirror image of the design.  First you need to duplicate the original image.

With the newly duplicated image selected, open the Edit panel and click on the icon to mirror the image horizontally.  One click and you now have a perfect fit for the back of the first image.

Click GO and the mat preview screen will show both images within one set of registration marks, ready to print and then cut.

The two images will line up perfectly (they are offset here so you can see that there are two) and you can adhere them with a popsicle stick or piece of acetate between them to put the image on a cake or in a card.

If you don't want a border around the image, simply leave the shadow layers hidden and do not flatten them with the character image.

If you don't add the white shadow border to the flattened image, the software will automatically add a "bleed" of color around the edges to insure a perfect cut with no white showing.

If you want to print and cut more than one copy of the image, simply increase the number of projects in the Mat Preview screen.  The images will be placed within the one set of registration marks per mat and you can print and then cut multiple images.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  The Cricut site and the Craft Room and Design Space will be undergoing updates and may be unavailable from 7:00 p.m. Monday, September 22nd through 7 a.m. Tuesday, September 23rd (Mountain Time).  Plan your crafting accordingly - get any cuts made before the servers go down and then you can assemble projects (or sleep!) while the updates are happening.  I promise you - it will be worth the wait once you see the new features!

If you don't have already have an Explore the new features coming with the update may convince you that you "need" to upgrade.  If you want to shop for a new machine you can find all of the bundles on the Cricut site HERE.   

The red links in this post are affiliate links and I appreciate your support when you shop using these links.  Your price does not change and I may receive a commission payment that helps me to keep this blog going. 

Don't forget to use the code FREESHIP35 for free standard shipping within the continental US for orders over $35.

Subscribe to Capadia Designs if you would like to have new posts delivered directly to your email.

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.