Spotlighted YouTube Video on the Craft Chameleon Channel

Lives and Replays

Schedule of Live Learning

All classes are available on Craft Chameleon Facebook Page. The weekly chat is Live in the CraftChameleon Blanks Facebook Group with replays available on the CC FB Page. .

Prepaid classes and clubs being  held thru the end of May have been refunded.

FUN Thursday Nights for the Month of April

Join Becky Dykes, Silhouette & Cricut Life Inspiration Box,  Jamie Omahen, Craft Chameleon, Lisa Potts, Lisa Potts Design  and Andrea Ross, My Very Crafty Life on Thursdays this April. 2 hours of back to back lives on crafting! Record your other shows t hen join us for fun conversations, great crafts, lots of inspiration  and camaraderie! Craft Along TV - https://www.facebook.com/CraftAlongTV/ Thursdays for the month of April 6pm - Becky Dykes 6:30pm - Jamie Omahen 7pm - Lisa Potts 7:30pm- Andrea Ross Central Time

BIMONTHLY FREEBIES!

PART 2

Grab our kikuyugrass font available for free for the next two weeks after that it will be available in the Designers Marketplace.

Kikuyugrass Font Free

My Very Crafty Life has created this fantastic freebie for you!  Available for free for the next two weeks in the Designers Marketplace. Plus check out MVCL's FB group by the same name!

Get it NOW!

Catch Some Rays All Year Round

5" ACRYLIC CIRCLES

ORACAL 8300 TRANSPARENT CALENDERED ADHESIVE VINYL

How to Size your Acrylic's SVGs in Cricut Design Space Tutorial - 2018

Hello! Jamie with Craft Chameleon here writing today's blog post. I also did a corresponding video that is on our YouTube channel. If you want something a bit slower paced or to be able to print out, you are in the right place here!

Open your Cricut Design Space.

Choose the file you want to open.

When you order a Craft Chameleon acrylic shape you will get 3 free files. You will need 2 of these. The png or jpg image which has dimensions you will need and the SVG which is your cut file. We are going to open the baseball or softball batter acrylic SVG first.

You can rename your image or add tags to the image for ease in searching later on. Save your SVG.

Now go back and upload the png (or jpg) image.

The png we only need to be able to read the dimensions, so choose "Simple" on the image type and continue.

With both images uploaded into Cricut Design Space it is time to upload to the canvas.

Now that both files are open and on your canvas, select the PNG file and enlarge so you can easily read the image dimensions.

Next select the cut file portion of the SVG. Align the various pieces or layers.

Enlarge the SVG to roughly the size shown in the png file. This is 2.973" but needs to be 2.820".

You can use the size bar at the top to input the exact dimension.

After the first dimension is correct, if the second dimension is still a bit off, unlock the size bar. Then you are free to input the exact measurement.

Now all the measurements are correct!

Now separate the layers to be cut. In this design, you will need to add a number or monogram and make sure it fits inside the laces. Then proceed on to cutting and applying the vinyl.

Thanks for stopping in today and I hope you found this Cricut Design Space tutorial helpful. If you would like specific Cricut or Silhouette tutorials comment below!

Back to School Teachers Tote & Tag using Cricut Tutorial 2018

Welcome to this weeks guest blogger Amanda Eaker!

Hello everyone, I chose to do a back to school tote because my stepmom is a Kindergarten teacher that LOVES Pete the Cat. Everything in her room is decorated with Pete the Cat. 

Supplies
Items listed with an * are clickable links to the products

* Black Canvas Tote

* Siser Glitter HTV (Heat Transfer Vinyl)
 
* Triangle Bails

* Oval side cut jump rings

* Swivel Lobster Clasp

* Blue Saphire Birthday Charm

* Red Apple Acrylic Charm

* 1" Clear Acrylic Circle

* 2 bent nose pliers (I used needle nose ones I already owned)

Electronic Cutting Equipment   

Transfer tape

Cutting Mat and weeding tools

Heat Press or Iron

SVG or other digital design

I used the tote bag template on Cricut Design to make sure my wording was sized correctly and visually appealing.

Here, the cut file has been arranged to gain the best utilization of the glitter htv.  Now we are ready to cut...almost! 

Be sure to set up your material size and turn on Mirror Cut. Mirror Cut needs to be selected since Siser glitter HTV has to be cut in reverse (shiny side down).  Make sure to set your Cricut Machine to cut mirror also. 

Weed the HTV and place on your tote. To use an iron consider placing a large tile on the floor, cover your project with parchment paper and press applying as much pressure as possible. You will not move the iron back and forth. You will select an area and apply pressure per the manufacturer's instructions on time. Repeat over the entire area. Make sure to follow the time and temperature dictated by the HTV manufacturer.

If your bond is not complete, try leaning on the iron throwing some body weight aka pressure down your arm/hand. Repreat the pressing process again. Applying HTV requires heat AND pressure, not heat alone.

Now for the bag tag, I added the glitter Initial to the 1" clear acrylic disc (be careful too much heat will cause the acrylic to fog.) Then I assembled the clear disc, the red apple charm, and the birthday charm.

Here is a great tutorial on this blog showing assembly methods:  https://craftchameleon.blogspot.com/2018/05/how-to-make-acrylic-keychains-easy.html

Now is my stepmom going to be thrilled for Kindergarten to start this year!

Thanks, Amanda for this Cricut post! Makes me want to plug mine in and take it for a spin! If it has inspired you, please comment below!

Please consider sharing this post. The vertical image above is great for Pinterest and the horizontal image below is fantastic for FB, IG Twitter and others.

Personalized Color Your Own Bag DIY Tutorial 2018

It's so nice to welcome back Terisa Bostic, this weeks guest blogger! Terisa is showing how to make this personized 'Color Your Own Tote Bag!' So let's dig in with Terisa below!

SuppliesItems listed with an * are clickable links to the products

* Sturdy Canvas Tote Bag with Handles (Natural color)

* Black Heat Transfer Vinyl

Cutting Equipment  - Used here Silhouette Cameo

Cutting Mat and weeding tools

Heat Press or Iron - Cricut EasyPress Used

SVG or other digital design

Use the font selection tool, type in the name you will be putting on the bag.  It is best to select a font that is thick and without out any swirls or flourishes.  For this design, I selected Franklin Gothic Heavy.

Next you want to create an offset that will allow you to cut the outline of the letters. This gives the “coloring book” effect to your finished item.   After typing the name, select the font and right click.  A menu option will pop up.  Select Offset.

The offset menu comes up.  Select Internal Offset and in the distance field type in 0.035.  Then click Apply.  You can play around with this number and create a thicker or thinner line, depending on what look you desire.  Depending on the font selected, you may have to adjust due to the shape of the letters.  If the offset is too large, your letters won’t cut properly.

Select your design that you wish to use to complement the name.  I selected a design I already had in my library from Silhouette Studio.

Highlight the design and then right click to bring up the menu.  Select Offset. 

Then click Internal Offset and change the distance to 0.025.  Click Apply.

Right click and drag the cursor to include both the design and the text.  Then right click and select group.  This brings your two designs together as one group.

Since we are cutting on Heat Transfer Vinyl, we need to reverse the design.  Highlight the design and right click.  Then select flip horizontally. 

Your design will be reversed on the screen.

Place HTV vinyl on cutting mat with the clear/shiny side sticking to the mat. Place in cutting machine. Click Send in the upper right corner.  Under material, it should say heat transfer material. ( Mine shown in the picture is incorrect.) Click Send.

Remove vinyl from machine when cutting is complete.  Weed design by removing the larger center part of the design.  The part you will need is the thin outline on the outside of the design.

The canvas bag will likely be a bit wrinkled when you remove it from the package.  Give it a quick press to remove the wrinkles before placing the vinyl.

 Center your cut out vinyl on the bag, with the sticky side down.

Place sheet of pressing material on top of the design.  I use just regular kitchen parchment paper.

Set your heat press to 305°C for 30 seconds.  Apply force to the heat press and apply to each area of the design.

When design is cooled, slowly remove the clear plastic from the design.

The design is finished and ready to color!  For a permanent effect, you can use fabric markers or sharpies.  For a temporary washable look, Crayola washable markers are perfect.

Thank you Terisa! What a great idea for your child or grandchild this summer, personalized party favors, activities bag, Sunday School tote, Mandala for adult coloring and so many other ideas.

Please consider pinning or sharing this article on your favorite social media!