We are starting a new challenge today over on Bitten by the Bug 2 called Anything Goes.  This is one of the easiest to do since you can do any kind of project on your Cricut to link up on their site for the next two weeks.  I chose to do a wedding card for my niece and future nephew.

I love cards that move and this is called a sliding triple tier card.  There are several tutorials on this kind of card if you search the internet or Pinterest.  Since I was going to use this to look like a cake, I wanted the tiers to be more rectangular than square and I ended up making my own pattern on Design Space.  To make it big enough to put on a 5 x 7 card base, the bottom tier ended up being 13.5″ x 3 “. I used some 11 x 17 card stock that I had on hand and used my 12 x 24 mat.  I don’t know about you, but I rarely use that size mat, then am always glad I have the option when I do. The three pieces are just rectangles with score lines and slits cut in them, which means anyone can do it with the basic shapes.  If anyone would like the link to my pattern, I will make it shareable and send you the link.  To dress it up, I used swoops from Wedding Cake Pop-up (this is a Close to My Heart cartridge).  I saw a sketch of her cake and this design will be somewhat like it.  I also used a monogram “H” that a friend of the bride designed and sent to me as a svg file.  The decorations were cut with gold vinyl and that is my go-to for such thin designs. The font for the “forever” is one that was on my system and isn’t a Cricut font.  The cake plate was cut in a gold foil paper and is from Create a Critter 2.  I cut a slit in it so that the cake would fit down into it and look like an actual cake plate.  I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder called Art Deco to emboss the front of the card base.  The dusty blue color and Art Deco style are a part of her wedding. The trio of flowers at the top serve as a topper for the cake and a pull tab to pull out the layers.  I feel like it still needs something, but I am not sure what yet, However I do have just under two weeks to fix it.

Make sure to dive into a Cricut project and add your link to the challenge here. – Denise

Today starts a new challenge on Bitten by the Bug 2 that focuses on food.  I used it as a chance to use a new technique called an Iris Shutter Card.

This card starts with a closed center.

  Then a lever on the side opens the center.

Just like a camera shutter to reveal a surprise inside.

I had been wanting to try this technique ever since seeing it on some card sites, but all of them used a physical die for the various parts used.  Not only are the dies expensive, but I don’t like getting a physical die when I have my Cricut to use.  Then I discovered the Lori Whitlock site and they had a lot of these cards as svg files.  This one is the 5 x 7 Iris Shutter Card Oven and can be found here. It was pretty easy to put together following her video.  I changed the front up a little and now that I have the basic elements, I can make more with different fronts.  The patterned cardstock was from a DCWV stack called Nana’s Kitchen.  I did flatten the center image so that it was a print and cut, but you could easily swap out for a sentiment too.  The front sentiment is from a Club Scrap set called 50’s Kitchen.

So find your own fun food themed project to make on your Cricut and link it up over at Bitten by the Bug 2 by February 28th.  Get some inspiration with the other designers there and have fun – Denise.

For the next two weeks Bitten by the Bug 2 is hosting a challenge using Valentines or hearts.  I decided to do a masculine valentine that my son could use for his wife if he wanted.  He is pretty proud of his truck, so I thought of him when I found this file in DesignBundles.net.

The designer is PaperCut and I really like their files.  This was super easy to put together.  I sized the image to be 5.75 inches across and then sized a square to fit behind it.  I moved that to the left side of the image and welded the two to make a card.  On this card, I backed the front with red paper and added some Wink of Stella to the hearts and the diamond cutouts.  My Wink of Stella is old and didn’t come out the nicest, so I guess it is time to get some new.  I found a sentiment that is an acrylic stamp and bent the stamp on the stamping block to fit in the banner.  It is nice to be able to manipulate acrylic stamps that way.

I did a second card in heavier cardstock so that the front didn’t need a backing and the inside of the card would be what gave it the second color.

I like the look of this card a lot and so didn’t give it any embellishments.

Now it is time to use your Cricut and make your own project for Valentine’s Day or just include a heart and link it up at Bitten by the Bug 2.  You have until February 14th which is perfect timing. – Denise

While Christmas is over, Winter and snow are far from done.  Bitten by the Bug 2 has a new challenge for Magical Winter Snowflakes.  I opted to do a lever card using a layered snowflake.

Here is the front of the card.

Below are other views of the card open.

I have been really intrigued with layered mandela images that I find on DesignBundles.net.  I purchased this file during a special Black Friday sale they had.  The original design has six layers.  I decided that four of the layers would still be pretty and cut down on some of the work.  I did pull out my old 5″ Xyron machine to put adhesive on the really thin layers of the snowflake, but will try to find something better for future cuts. I do like the delicate cut option on my Explore to do those layers. I have been trying to figure out a way to do a lever card on the Cricut for a while now.  All of the directions are shown doing this method with a manual die machine because you have to do a half cut of the image for it to swing through the opening.  I finally found a You Tube video found here by Melody Lane that gave me a method to try.  It did work and while I wanted something that would just make a single cut, this cuts a very thin line and works well. Here is a picture of the inside with just the cut.

There is a fold at the top and bottom of the cut which I did manually.  I did put score lines for the other two folds in Design Space.  Now that I know how to put this together, I will be doing these lever or flip cards with other type of cuts.

Make your own snowflake project and link it up on Bitten by the Bug 2 by January 31.  You must use your Cricut machine, and there are lots of fun images out there.  The design team has some great inspiration for you, so check it out. – Denise

I am hosting the first challenge of this year for Bitten by the Bug 2.  I decided on the theme of Get Well Wishes because we always seem to be in need of these cards, especially now.  Ironically as I was trying to get my project done for this post, I became ill.  Even though the symptoms of low-grade fever, headache, muscle aches, and lack of energy were worrisome, it only lasted about 36 hours, so I think I dodged the COVID bullet and felt back to my old self.  Here is the box card I came up with.

I saw a box card on Pinterest and thought I could come up with something similar using a cat instead of the original bear of the inspiration card.  I love box cards and have made enough from places like SVG Cuts that I thought I could make my own pattern on Design Space.  Let’s just say that it is probably worth the money to buy those designs when you consider the time spent to make your own, lol.  Anyway I started with the crib image from Baby Steps to make the headboard and foot board. I only used one of the layers and made the width just under 5 inches thinking it would go in a 5 x 7 envelope.  Lesson one (learned after the card was assembled) was that you have to take into consideration the sides that fold for the final envelope measurements.  Next I duplicated that image and keeping the same width made the height just under 7 inches.  I copied the smaller one again and after getting rid of the cutouts in the middle using the hide contour feature used the slice feature with a basic box shape to cut off the top and make the inserts. I added rectangular shapes to the sides of the inserts as the tabs and welded them on.  I wanted to use the “feline” for feeling pun in my sentiment so I started looking for a cat image that would work.  The only one I found was Cat, Sleeping in Cricut Access which is a print, then cut image.  I sized it to fit in the bed and then made a copy of it, sliced off the bottom of the copy and welded it to one of the inserts.  I found that this really helps stabilize the inserts to have a backing to the image.  I also made a second copy of the cat to print.  Dr. Checkup is a great cartridge for Get Well cuts and I used it for the thermometer, tissues, and pill bottle.  I decided to flatten those images to print and cut since I was already doing that for the cat.  I also duplicated the cat so that I could add part of it to the first insert. I added larger tabs to the sides of the footboard and headboard using the weld feature and thought I was ready to cut. After all this work when I went to make it, it told me I needed to pay $4.99.  I had already paid for the cat image and owned every thing else, so I had no idea why it was doing that.  After trying several things, I ended up just starting a new project.  I get a little stubborn that way when I have something in mind, lol. It worked, but when I put it together, this is what it looked like.

While cute, you couldn’t see the tissues or pill bottle very well, so I took a deep breath and cut off the bottom rails with my scissors.

Here is the side view to give a better idea of the depth the layers give and also see how I followed the contour of the blanket when cutting the front layer.

I hope you will create a Get Well project with your Cricut and link it up at Bitten by the Bug 2  plus see all the great inspiration from the projects that the design team has created. – See you again in a couple of weeks. – Densie

We have a Holiday theme that runs all month long over at Bitten by the Bug 2  and is partnered with Double Trouble.  The challenge is to use your favorite die cutting machine (of course mine is the Cricut) and make something for Christmas.  There is an extra twist if you want to add a bow to your project or use patterned paper.  Here is my project.

Every year I make special ornaments for my immediate family that celebrates something that happened or a new accomplishment from that year.  This year both of my grown children started raising chickens, so there are two chicken (from 50 States) ornaments for my daughter and daughter-in-law.  My son bagged an elk (from Teresa Collins Holiday Silhouettes) with his bow and arrow.  My granddaughter’s school year is different with masks (from Spread Kindness, not Germs – free on Design Space).  My future son-in-law purchased a house this year with a beautiful view of the mountains (from Handy Man and an altered image from Design Bundles).  And finally my husband won a pilot award from the FAA.  This image was one I ended up downloading from an image and cleaned up quite a bit.  The font is Cricut Sans.  All of these were cut out of Heat Transfer Vinyl on my Cricut and then pressed onto fabric using my Easy Press.  They were put into 3″ embroidery hoops and the fabric was trimmed on the back.  I hot glued various greenery, tiny pine cones, and berries at the tope of each and around a few of the hoops.  The bow part of the challenge can be found on my ties for hanging the ornaments.

Here are some cute boxes I made for to put the ornaments in using some of the mounds of patterned paper I have and some cute Unity stamps on the bands around the boxes.

Have fun and you have all month to link your project over at Bitten by the Bug 2 . You will also find an link to Double Trouble there which you can also enter your project on.  Remember that for this time only, you don’t have to use your Cricut, but can use any Die Cut (no fussy cutting).  There is lots of inspiration on both sites, so take a look.

Wishing you all a very Happy Holiday Season. – Denise

Our challenge over at Bitten by the Bug 2 for the next two weeks is Coffee Creations.  I have a confession to make.  I hate coffee and everything flavored with coffee (except Kahlua which tastes like chocolate to me, lol).  But even though I don’t like the drink, I love making coffee cards for those that do like it.  I jumped on the slim line card bandwagon to make the following card.

I used papers from an older Club Scrap kit that I think was called coffee.  The cup is Latte from the cartridge Love You a Latte.  I hid the sentiment from that image and instead cut the image Love You a Latte from the cartridge Just Because Cards.  I sized everything to fit within the slimline size and then added the wonderful textured strips at the top and bottom.  Those were originally cup wrappers that were in the Club Scrap kit cut down to strips.

Link up your own project using your Cricut over at Bitten by the Bug 2 . You have until December 6.   There is some awesome inspiration over there for you too.

May everyone have a good Thanksgiving and keep enjoying that coffee while I sip my tea. – Denise

Welcome to the Growing In Unity Blog Hop.  Back in September, I was lucky enough to be a GIU gal for a week.  Unity Stamp Company is the reason I have such a huge amount of stamps.  They have so many great and different kinds of stamps in red rubber.  The images always stamp so well from the start.  The participants from September and October are doing a blog hop this week and if you leave comments on all the participants blogs, you could win a great Unity grab bag as a prize.  

They are having a really great sale now through November 17th and you can get a couple of free stamps if your order is above $65 and free shipping if above $75.  I placed my order the first day of the sale and received it in record time, so I am using the free stamps along with a couple of others in my project.

These are little boxes that I made to put some ornaments that I made to put in Christmas stockings this year.  I did it last year and tied the boxes, but this year decided that a band around the box could slide off easily and then be replaced when storing the ornaments for next year, keeping the box together.  It’s Christmas-Oh Deer, and the Gnome -one Like You were the free stamps.  The other two were from Full of Merry and the October 2020 KOM . It was a simple and quick way to make the boxes cute and festive.  

Make sure to visit all of the participants on the blog hop and leave a comment.  The full list is below.

Misti    https://misti-acardaday.blogspot.com/

Denise  –  That is me!

Laura  https://unikmo.blogspot.com/

Karen https://beadlady6468.wordpress.com/

Jenni  https://wishiwasscrappin.blogspot.com/

Good luck and if you missed my original week, just click on September 2020 on the right hand side for Growing in Unity posts.  – Denise

Today we start the Thanksgiving Challenge on Bitten by the Bug 2 . Here is my project:

I purchased this mandala turkey image which is from Designbundles.net called Thanksgiving Mandala SVG bundle.  It has six images and I decided to do this one.  Once a month they have $1 deals where for an hour you can purchase various products for $1 each.  I have picked up some great products for only a $1 and I have liked the idea of these layered mandala images.  This one has four layers.  I decided that since there were so many cuts, I would make it as big as possible and sized it at 11.4″ for the biggest dimension.  I also set my Cricut to cut for intricate cuts and it took over 45 minutes for each of the middle two layers since each cut is done twice on that setting.  I wouldn’t have wanted it any smaller as some of the circles were pretty small.  Once I had it cut out and together, I couldn’t decide what I was actually going to do with it.  There have been a lot of Pinterest projects using pizza pans from the Dollar Tree, so I picked one up at my local store and the turkey just fit in it.  I tried using some of my markers and a burnishing wax to color the pizza pan but nothing worked very well.  I pulled out some burlap, cut it in a larger square and attached it just inside the lip with a glue gun.  I cut another layer and turned it 45 degrees so that the mesh filled in cover more of the silver pan, once again with a glue gun.  I then took my new favorite scissors which are applique scissors to trim the burlap even with the lip of the pan.  I finally found a paint pen to somewhat color the lip, but it still felt bare.  The trim was white and after experimenting with several things, I found an old Inkadoo watercolor marker that I colored the trim with to match the blue in the turkey and attached with 3 in 1 glue.  I propped up the pan on a wooden cross from Dollar Tree’s craft section and will figure out a better way to attach it and finish the back of the pan, but it worked for the picture.

Make sure to link up your own project over at Bitten by the Bug 2 by November 23.  You can also see some of the great projects by the designers there.  May everyone have a very blessed Thanksgiving. – Densie

The challenge over at Bitten by the Bug 2 for the next two weeks is sports.

After my daughter graduated from high school, I decided to learn how to officiate Volleyball because I loved going to her games.  This marks my 10th season of doing it and I decided to make a layout.

Our local paper took a lot of pictures of a game I officiated between two county teams and posted them on their website.  I chose some of the pictures that included me and printed them out.  My son gave me a book of layout sketches last Christmas and one had a circle in the middle that seemed perfect for a volleyball.  The volleyball, whistle and volleyball logo all came from the cartridge Sports Mania.  The whistle had the word “coach” attached to it, so I sliced most of the word off both layers and after it was cut out, trimmed off the rest with my scissors.  The curved title at the top and the 2020 were the font Dom-casual.  I don’t use the curve function very often and I really should as it makes it easier to space things along a circle.  The OHSAA (which is the Ohio High School Athletic Association) logo was downloaded from the web and then I used the print & cut feature.  The patterned paper was Teresa Collins’ Sports Edition II.  I also used some washi tape to accent.

Here is the whistle cut after I sliced off most of the word, but before I hand trimmed it.

Link your own sports project using your Circut machine over at Bitten by the Bug 2 by November 8.  All of the designers have some great inspiration for you. – Denise