cut files

Pink Ukulele

~ dddesignz ~ 2 Comments

Do you remember the excitement at Christmas and your dreams of that one gift you hoped and prayed would be under the tree? All my Granddaughter Madison hoped for was a PINK UKULELE. Imagine her delight when she unwrapped her pink ukulele on Christmas Morning! It was a sweet moment! She loves her ukulele and regularly practices on it.

I dug into my scrapbooking stash to make this layout. I chose the beautiful soft hues in Cocoa Vanilla Studio’s Midnight collection to document this precious moment. Midnight is an older paper collection, but you may still find some at your Local Scrapbook Store. The photo is backed with coordinating papers from this collection.

I found a ukulele in the Silhouette Design Store for this page. The cut file is Design ID #159757 by Doodlebug Designs, and the title is ukulele – fun in the sun. I did my best to match the finished paper ukulele to Maddie’s instrument. To create the 3D effect, I attached white brads to the head of the ukulele and tied black and white twine to each brad before securing them firmly in place. Using a wide blunt needle, I threaded each string through to the back at the base of the bridge. The strings were each secured with tape on the backside. Before adhering the cut file to the layout, I backed it with fun foam to provide dimension and enhance the 3D effect. I placed Couture Creations Diecut’N Bond adhesive to both sides of the fun foam, traced the shape and then cut the fun foam. This process provides a smooth, uniform surface to adhere the items to and guarantees that your page will not warp in your scrapbook over time.

The PINK UKULELE title for this layout was added using Mini Puffy Alpha Stickers from PinkFresh Studio‘s Just a Little Lovely collection (no longer available). The variegated colours in this collection were a perfect match for the Cocoa Vanilla Studio papers. I wrapped the letters around the curving body of the ukulele to pull the eye to this focal point in the design.

The final touches on this layout involved adding all the ephemera, stickers and enamel dots found on the page. While all the stickers belong to the Midnight paper collection kit, the coloured butterflies, grey heart, and enamel dots belong to Cocoa Vanilla Studio’s Unforgettable collection. I love how these collections can work and enhance each other.

And that’s a wrap on a layout that had me digging deep into my scrapbooking stash! Thanks for stopping by, and until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy Scrapping!

Winter Moments

~ dddesignz ~ Leave a comment

This layout makes me smile for so many reasons. Last winter, my grandson hated winter. Every time my daughter bundled him up and took him out, he’d stand there, stiff as a board and with the saddest face ever! I’m so pleased to say that this winter is a whole new ball game! Ben is in love with winter. He enjoys everything about getting outside to play in the snow. A new world of winter activities has opened up for this young man. This layout celebrates that feeling!

The Winter Market collection of patterned papers, stickers, ephemera and chipboard accents by Carta Bella was used to create this page. The design process for this layout started with the cut file, Winter Moments. It was an exclusive January Pearscription cut file from Peartree Cutfiles. The first step in preparing the cut file for this layout was backing the word Winter with a patterned paper from the Winter Market collection. Next, I carefully punched holes approximately every 1/4″ on the snowflake to prepare it for stitching. Because the arms of the snowflake were not very wide, I used a sharp needle and three strands of white DMC floss to complete the straight stitch. This step did take some time and patience! At this stage, I set the cut file aside to focus on the lower section of the layout.

I planned on ripping patterned paper to create hills to rest the photo. However, I settled on cutting the paper instead. I made a template of the hill shapes first and then traced the designs onto the patterned paper. Each hill was inked on the top edge to add dimension and then stitched with white DMC floss to represent snow. I used six strands of floss and a chain stitch to create a strong effect.

I was aiming for the illusion of looking over rolling hills in this layout. I placed fun foam between the top two layers to help achieve this effect. This also provided a convenient place to tuck the photo and some of the accents.

The next stage in completing this layout was to adhere the Winter Moments title to the layout. Given the layered hills at the bottom, I chose to pop up the title as well. I used double-sided adhesive foam to achieve this effect. I feel this provides better balance and weight to the overall layout. For the smaller letters in moments and the arms of the snowflake, I used Taylored Expressions Foam Sticky Strips.

The final stage in completing this layout was adding the ephemera and accent pieces. Coordinating blue and green sequins were glued to the tips of each snowflake. Taylored Expressions Bits & Pieces Snowflakes were arranged and glued to the dark background paper and picture. I used several Chipboard Accents from the Winter Market collection and tucked them in the rolling hills for a fun, playful effect. The snowman figure was a sticker from the paper collection pack. He was adhered to fun foam to provide the same depth as the chipboard accents. The blue HAPPY SNOW DAY! square came from the coordinating Frames & Tags ephemera pack.

I’m really tickled with how this layout turned out. Every stage was a delight to create and I hope Ben thinks it’s fun as well! Thanks for stopping by and until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy

’twas the Night Before Christmas

~ dddesignz ~ Leave a comment

I couldn’t resist scrapbooking one more Christmas page. This picture is just far too cute to leave until next season! There’s nothing quite like the build-up to Santa’s big arrival for children. Christmas Eve was so special this year. The smiling faces of my grandchildren in this picture says it all – it was a wonderfully joyous evening! It was the first year our youngest grandchild Ben understood the concept of Santa Claus. He was very excited and, when asked what he asked Santa for this year, he’d always say “a Hammer!”.

I created this layout using three separate cut files from Peartree Cutfiles. The Snowflake Background cut file was cut from white cardstock to fill the entire page. I layered it directly on top of a piece of Twill cardstock from Bazzill.

Black cardstock was used to cut the outline of the title, ’twas The Night Before Christmas. I used coordinating patterned papers from Photoplay Paper‘s Christmas Cheer collection to fill the cutout letters. I chose to backfill the word “Christmas” and used Talyored Expressions‘ Foam Sticky Strips to adhere to the word “Night”. The result provided texture and dimension to the upper section of the layout.

The third cut file used is called Stockings. I downsized the file considerably to fit my project. Doing so made backing the presents a bit tricky, but not impossible. Before cutting this file, I completed a mock-up in Silhouette Studio to ensure I would be happy with the sizing. Glitter paper backfills each of the presents and holly in this garland.

The final touches on the layout included adding some strategically placed holographic snowflakes and a couple of stickers from the Christmas Cheer patterned paper collection. The stickers were dusted with baby powder to remove the sticky side and then glued to some fun foam for dimension. The holographic snowflakes were attached using small white brads.

I couldn’t be happier with the results of this layout. It is the first time I’ve utilized three cut files on one page. Thanks for stopping by today, and until next time, stay safe, stay well and Happy Scrapping!

Stella

~ dddesignz ~ 4 Comments

Meet Stella. She belongs to my future Daughter-in-Law, Tanis. Stella is one of the biggest cuddlers I’ve met to date. Stella lives to be in your lap, bed, or, as you can see, your book! On our last trip out west to visit, Stella spent a great deal of time in my lap. And I loved every second of it. But don’t get the wrong impression, Stella gives as much as she gets! Who wouldn’t want to spend their day giving and getting love?!

When I saw this picture of Stella begging for some more “me time”, I knew it needed to be scrapbooked. Lucky for me Paige Evans, who also gives so much to her crafting community, provided a free Sketch and Stitch cut file in her Facebook Group Paige Evans – Happy Scrappy Place. The specific cut file is named Time Spent With Cats, and the link should take you to Dropbox to download it. I knew I would stitch the cut file in black embroidery floss to match Stella. I needed a background paper that complimented the black stitching and was sturdy enough to withstand the extensive stitching process. Vicki Boutin‘s Ready-to-Use Mixed Media Paper met all the criteria. The beautiful pink background was a lovely complement to the black, and it also provided a fun mixed media look without having to do all the work. This particular background came from Vicki’s Color Study collection.

I chose to resize the cut file a bit smaller than the original design. The stitching took quite some time to complete, but I find the process very relaxing and the results very rewarding. It was fun to watch the shape of the cat come to life as the stitching progressed.

To keep in line with the black and pink design, I sought out embellishments in these colours to complete the layout. The ephemera banner directly below Stella’s picture comes from a black and white paper collection from Echo Park called Capture Life. The three adorable black kittens found on the page come from a die-cut set from Impression Obsession called Cat Set (KIE083-K). Stella’s name was incorporated using Thickers Puffy Letter Stickers called Starlight. I’ve had this set of Thickers for some time. The combination of pink, white, and black letters fit perfectly in this layout. The final touch was including the pink Baby Hearts by Doodlebug Designs.

This page brings a smile to my face every time I look at it. I hope it brings a smile to yours as well! Thanks for joining me today, and until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy Scrapping!

You’re How Old?

~ dddesignz ~ 2 Comments

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband! Because he’s older than I, I always like to tease him over his age. I’m always willing to let him go first in the age game, so generous of me!

This year, I’ve challenged myself to use more of my cut files to make cards. It is a great way to stretch the investment in your electronic cut files. I used the Balloons cut file from Confessions of a Paper Addict (COAPA) to make this card.

I resized the cut file in Silhouette software to fit the front of the card, and then cut it from black cardstock. I chose coordinating papers from the Harvest Festival collection by Honey Bee Stamps for the card base and the balloons. I love the vibrant colours in the balloons.

The next step was to emboss the greeting “You’re How Old?” on the card front. This stamp belongs to the Bitty Birthday Wishes stamp set by My Favorite Things (MFT). I then used adhesive foam to layer the balloons to the front of the card. I wanted the tails of the balloons to flow freely from the card, providing more texture and movement.

The final touch was adding some sequins in different hues of orange to coordinate with the balloons. I adhered them to the card front using Glossy Accents, as it provides an extremely firm hold. Overall, I found this card quite quick and easy to pull together.

Thanks for stopping in today, I hope I’ve encouraged you to look at using your cut files in new and different ways. Until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy Scrapping!

Get Lost in a Good Book

~ dddesignz ~ 1 Comment

For as long as I can remember, I have loved reading. For me, the best part of reading is the ability to let your imagination paint the picture from the written word. I’ve yet to meet a movie that did a book proper justice. Reading and scrapbooking have a lot in common. Both hobbies take me away from the stress found in everyday life. I read before going to sleep every night, even when the light annoys my husband! It’s part of my nighttime ritual that helps me relax, unwind and put the troubles of the world aside.

For several years now, I’ve made a list of each book I’ve read within a calendar year. January 1st, I take a picture of all the books I’ve read throughout the previous year. I’ve always had grand plans of scrapbooking the photo, and this year those plans became a reality. I dug into my stash of patterned paper for this layout and used the 12″ Noel Joy paper by BoBunny for the foundation of the page. I’ve always loved the antique books on this patterned paper.

I chose the Get Lost in a Good Book cut file from Peartree Cutfiles to document my reading list from 2020.

I began by cutting the file in black cardstock and then backed the words with a gorgeous patterned paper by Bazzill Basics Paper called Antique Script. I love how the title stacks on top of a book. Because some of the books I read in 2020 were quite old copies, it is hard to see their titles in the picture. I wanted to include the book titles in this layout and decided on creating a little book from the book base in the cut file.

I started by cutting a duplicate book cover to mimic the front and back covers. Next, I cut multiple “pages” from heavy vellum to fill the book. I used these vellum pages to record the names of each book found in the picture. Using vellum tape, I adhered these pages together on the left-hand side and secured the second book cover to the top to complete the book. The result is a 3D embellishment that mimics a book.

To help balance the weight of the newly created book on the right-hand side of the layout, I mounted the picture on fun foam before adhering it to the background paper. I found coordinating stickers from the Photoplay Holiday Cheer paper pack to create the subtitle 2020 Reading List. The final touch was adding the three chipboard stars found around the picture. These stars also came from a very old paper collection in my scrapbook stash – My Mind’s Eye, Vintage Christmas.

And that’s a wrap on my first layout for 2022! I appreciate you stopping by and hope I’ve enticed you to look at cut files in new and different ways.

Until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy Scrapping!

Anywhere With You

~ dddesignz ~ Leave a comment

I love the downtime between Christmas and New Years Day. For me, it’s a time to relax and work on some Christmas layouts. Today’s scrapbook layout focuses on my son Sean, and his fiance, Tanis. With Sean’s career choice, it seems they spend more time apart than together. So when opportunities to slip away to spend precious time together arise, they seize the day. Just before Christmas, they spend a wonderful weekend in Canmore, Alberta. These two love every second they spend in the mountains, regardless of the time of year. You can see it in their faces in this beautiful photo.

I picked the gorgeous Patterned Christmas Trees cut file from Peartree Cutfiles as the central focus for this layout. I chose this cut file because it represented the beautiful treed background in the photo and the holiday season. I also turned to Peartree Cutfiles for the title Anywhere With You. It seemed so fitting as Sean and Tanis are getting married next year.

All cut files on this layout were backed with gorgeous patterned papers from the Joyful collection by Cocoa Vanilla Studio. Once the cut files were complete, I adhered them to the background paper. I chose a coordinating Ready-to-Use Mixed Media Paper from Vicki Boutin’s Color Study collection. I love how the green background mimics a forest background.

Once the picture and cut files were in place, the rest of the layout came together quickly. The cute woodland animals, gifts and branches (around the title) all came from the Joyful Die-Cut Ephemera pack. Gold-Glitter Puffy Stars, also from the Joyful collection, were used to embellish the top of each patterned tree. They are gorgeous fabric embellishments that add a lovely texture, dimension, and feel to the overall layout.

The final touch was placing the ALL I want for Christmas banner directly below the picture. This phrase is so representative of these two beauties. All they do want is time together!

Thanks for stopping by the blog today. I hope you’ve had some time to enjoy your hobby this holiday season. I wish all of you a very Happy New Year! May 2022 be the year we start to get ahead of this pandemic!

Until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy Scrapping!

Gingerbread Fun

~ dddesignz ~ 1 Comment

HO HO HO! It’s just two more nights until the big day! Where did December go? Today I’m sharing a layout that documents Maddie building her gingerbread house last December. She had a blast putting it together, but I think she enjoyed eating the candy best of all!

I chose the Gingerbread House Two cut file from Confessions of a Paper Addict (COAPA) as the main focal point for this layout. The whimsical lines in this cut file reminded me of the fun I had with Maddie as she decorated her gingerbread house. The cut file comes in SVG format, so I used the trace function in Silhouette Studio to trace it before ungrouping it to backfill the sections. I also find that using the Fill section to colour in each piece facilitates a quicker process when preparing to cut.

The main paper line for this layout is Hot Cocoa from American Crafts. It came in a paper pad of 48 papers. I used this paper collection in November 2019 to make a Christmas Album for a class at ScrapFest. It also has a whimsical feel and was an excellent fit for this cut file. I chose the kraft paper with the snowmen and falling snow for the base page of the layout. The red paper with snow falling, black paper with snowflakes and black paper with peppermint candies were all used to construct the gingerbread house cut file. I fussy cut the peppermint candies to fit the scalloped border of the roof and the pinwheel candy to the left of the front door. I chose an embossed white paper for each section laden with snow. I turned to glitter papers from My Favorite Things paper collections to back the windows and fill the wreath. For added dimension, I used pop dots to add the wreath to the front of the house. A red acrylic dot from doodlebug design worked perfectly for the doorknob.

The Christmas Tree to the right of the gingerbread house comes from Memory Box Inc. It is called the Flowering Christmas Tree. I slid it partially behind the gingerbread house and wrapped some of its limbs in front. I added rhinestones to the centre of each flower to complete the Christmas tree.

All of the snowflakes in this layout came from a collection by Sizzix called Snowfall Thinlits Dies. This set was made exclusively for Stampin’ Up! a couple of years ago. It is an extensive set of snowflake dies in multiple sizes. I’ve used this set multiple times and have never regretted the investment. I purchased them through a good friend and Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, Margie Stares. Check out Margie’s Stampin Up! blog for lots of inspiration. To enhance the magical feel of this layout, I added rhinestones to each snowflake. The final touch was adding the title using doodlebug designs teensy type letters in white. I chose the round letter stickers to mimic the falling snow and snowmen on the patterned paper. 

I appreciate you stopping by today and hope you’ve found some inspiration for your Christmas layouts. May your holiday season be full of magic, incredible moments and lots of love!

Until next time, stay safe, stay well, and Happy Scrapping!

Mr Grinch

~ dddesignz ~ Leave a comment

Here we are one week away from Christmas, and thanks to Omicron, we’re facing yet another Christmas of restrictions. The recent developments in this new variant is a worry for the world. Here in Ontario, we are disappointed that our plans to try and return to a “normal” Christmas are dashed once again. I decided to turn my negative feelings from this recent development into positive creative energy. For me, Omicron reminded me of Mr Grinch, Dr Seuss’ immortalized character that tried to keep Christmas from coming.

The background paper for this fun layout came from an older collection of patterned papers called Mistletoe by Bo Bunny. I used Sophie Gallo’s Christmas Grinchy Ornament cut file found on Etsy to create this layout. The Grinch’s arm and hand were created by tracing the outline of the cut file onto coordinating coloured felt and cutting by hand. I adhered it to the paper cut file using Ranger’s Glossy Accents. To complete the preparations on the cut file, I used glossy gold cardstock to back the top of the Christmas ornament. I used Silhouette Studio software to accurately size my photo to fit the hanging ornament before printing. Once these steps were completed, the cut file was adhered to the background paper using large Glue Dots. To further the whimsical feel of the layout, I placed my journaling around the Grinch’s fingers. To emphasize COVID and MR GRINCH, I turned to colour coordinating letter stickers from Simple Stories. The text reads: Dear COVID, you are a mean one, like MR GRINCH. But you won’t keep our Christmas from coming!

The Christmas Tree, found in the bottom right-hand corner, was embellished with small red felt pompoms and a clear acrylic star.

The final element for the layout was adding a direct quote from Dr Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas:

Christmas Day will always be

Just as long as we have we

Try as you might COVID, you WILL NOT stop our Christmas from coming! It’s going to look different for sure, but these happy faces will have a wonderful day, just the same!

Thanks for checking in today. From the bottom of my heart, I wish you and yours the merriest of holiday seasons!

Stay safe, stay well and Happy Scrapping!

From Cut Files to T-Shirts!

~ dddesignz ~ 2 Comments

I spend most of my crafting time working on scrapbook pages, cards or designing classes. But one of my sidelines from working with cut files has been creating t-shirts for my grandchildren. With Christmas less than two weeks away, I spent some time yesterday making each of the grandchildren a t-shirt. Making t-shirts is a great way to personalize a gift for the recipient. I chose three cut file patterns that truly represented each of their personalities.

I purchase blank t-shirts from a local company called Bright Swan. A great Canadian company with excellent service and selection! Siser Heat Transfer Vinyl (HTV) is my go-to when making t-shirts. I use a Cricuit Easy Press (9″ x 9″) to transfer the vinyl to the t-shirts and find that this machine meets all my needs. It is very cost-efficient and can be stored easily, compared to a larger heat press.

The first t-shirt is for my oldest grandchild, Madison. She is very kind and caring and very aware of the impact that acts of kindness have on others around her. It was, therefore, fitting that I chose a cut file from Marcy Milly SVG to make her t-shirt. The World Kindness Day is a FREE cut file released on November 13, 2021, in honour of World Kindness Day.

I started this project by opening the SVG cut file in Silhouette Design Studio software (I use Designer Edition). Next, I ungrouped the file. Step three involved using the Fill panel to change the colours to those I would be using. These steps made the process much easier, as I now had a visual guide of the end product, and I was able to select the words by colour when it came time for cutting. The individual words, or group of words, were cut separately to minimize the waste of vinyl. Drawing a box or rectangle around each word, using the drawing tools in Silhouette, makes the weeding process very easy. Once all the individual files were cut, weeded and ready to go, I returned to the Silhouette software program to determine the centre point of the design. I gently fold the design where it intersects with the midline of the t-shirt. For this specific cut file the words Respect, Charity, Kindness, Goodness, Community and Affection all intersected with the centre line. Before adhering the design to the t-shirt, I fold the t-shirt in half and make a gentle press line to use as a guide. I’m very happy with the results and think Maddie is going to love this t-shirt!

The second t-shirt is for my oldest grandson, Owen. He loves playing video games and finds it amusing that I can’t keep up with him! This design came from Silhouette Studio. It was created by Hand Drawn Cuts and is Design ID #365234. I followed the same process as above and specifically used the turquoise HTV to match his controller. I grouped the coloured dots in the cut file to ensure they were spaced exactly as intended when pressing them to the t-shirt. I know Owen will love this t-shirt, and also find it amusing to wear to school!

Our youngest grandson Benjamin has a love for hedgehogs! This is also a Silhouette Studio design. It was created by Planeta Silhouette and is Design ID #212569. This design included layering the cut files that are all associated with the hedgehog. It was very easy to align and it pressed beautifully. Ben is going to love this t-shirt and who can resist giving him a hug when he’s wearing it?!

All I have left to do now is wrap these cute shirts and place them under the Christmas tree. I’m pretty sure I’m just as excited as they are for the big day!

I hope I’ve encouraged you to look at extending the use of your electronic cut files. Don’t be intimidated, making these shirts was not difficult, and I know you’ll find joy in making personalized shirts for your loved ones! Until next time, stay safe, stay well and Happy Scrapping!