Cricut Explore

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. 

Want the ability to easily make a personalized wedding gift or perhaps some unique home décor? Then you might find Cricutelectronic cutting machines to be the best DIY crafting tool since the sewing machine. 

There are two machines that Cricut currently offers on their site:

• Cricut Explore One™
• Cricut Explore Air™

Cricut Explore One™ 

Cricut Explore One™ is a simple design-and-cut system. It’s versatile, easy to use, cuts very precisely, and is also incredibly affordable. With its irresistibly low price and limitless cutting potential, the Explore One is perfect for a new or beginning crafter. Here are a few notable features of the Explore One: 

Materials – All Cricut machines can cut an unbelievable variety of materials, for example:

• Paper 
• Vinyl
• Iron-on 
• Craft materials 
• Upcycled materials 
• Fabric 
• Plastic 
• Thick materials 

Precision - Features Cut Smart™ technology, which allows you to cut a wide range of shapes and sizes with exceptional precision, from ¼" tall up to 11½" wide x 23½" tall. 

Smart Set® Dial - Each machine features a Smart Set® dial, which sets your settings (e.g. speed, pressure, etc.) for you so you don’t have to keep track of them. You just select the material that you're using on the Smart Set® dial and the machine's Cut Smart® technology will deliver a clean, professional cut. 

Images and Fonts - You can upload your own images and fonts for free on all three Cricut cutting machines. 

Cartridges - Both machines work with any Cricut cartridge and have the capability to hold all of your cartridges “virtually” in the cloud within your Cricut Design Space online software. So once you’ve loaded a cartridge, you’ll have it everywhere you go. 

Cricut’s Design Space™ and iPad® app - All Cricut Explore machines work hand-in-hand with Cricut’s Design Space™ (for PC, Mac®, iPad®, and iPhone®) that you get access to for free. 

Cricut Explore Air™

The Explore Air is the whole kit ‘n caboodle. It offers all the impressive features mentioned for the Explore One, but two key things set it apart:

1. It has a dual carriage for cutting and writing or cutting and scoring in one step. If you do a lot of paper crafting, this is the machine for you!
2. It has built-in Bluetooth® capability. You just use Cricut’s free iPad app and design anything you want from your iPad, just like you would on your home computer, but with the convenience of being able to take your projects with you anywhere. Then, you can just wirelessly send your project from your iPad to your Explore Air to bring it to life.

Now that you know a lot more about how Cricut Explore® machines work, I’ll focus next week’s post on how you can design here, there and everywhere with Cricut Design Space. You’ll be blown away by how easy it is.

Until then … Happy crafting! 

Cricut design space

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. 

If you’re reading this post, chances are, you’re a creative type. You like to craft, explore your creativity, and share your creations with others. And it’s for people like you that Cricut created their line of personal electronic cutting machines. 

A little known fact about Cricut is that they’ve actually been in business for over 50 years, and their primary purpose has been to develop tools that inspire creativity in people. 

Today, millions of people use Cricut’s award-winning products to create beautiful, inventive, and personal projects. 

So, what is Cricut? Cricut is actually a family of electronic cutting machines that make it possible for you to easily create amazing do-it-yourself (DIY) projects. Well, not totally DIY because Cricut’s incredible machine’s do a LOT of the heavy lifting. 

The two machines that Cricut offers are: 

• the Cricut Explore One™ - allows you to cut 
• the Cricut Explore Air™ - allows you to cut and write wirelessly

To give you loads of creative freedom and versatility, Cricut developed the Cricut Design Space™, a cloud-based software that works seamlessly with the Cricut Explore® family of machines. 

Design Space gives you access to all of your images and projects from any compatible computer or iPad, so you can design just about anything, anytime, and anywhere. 

Once you’ve uploaded your design (or pre-designed image) to your Cricut Explore cutting machine, you can sit back and watch it magically bring your design to life. 

There are so many interesting things you can make and do with Cricut – which we’ll be sure to cover in a future post. But before we get too ahead of ourselves, it’s best to go over each of Cricut’s machines, what they do, and how they are different. And since I’ve given you quite a bit of info already, we’ll pick up on there in next week’s post!

Until then … happy crafting! 

Now is the time to Get your Circuit Explore Air®

Did you buy your Circuit Explore Air yet? If not, don’t delay, NOW is the time to do it! Right now, you can buy a Cricut Explore Air and get 50% off any Starter Set! That’s right – and there are three starter sets to choose from – Deluxe Starter Set, Basic Starter Set and the Complete Starter Set. All designed to help you do even more with your Cricut Explore Air® machine! Just use code STARTER at checkout to get your savings.


And the April Mystery box is now available! $100 worth of goodies for only $29.99. The contents are a mystery, but this box includes cartridges and craft supplies for spring creating! You can get all these wonderful crafting supplies AND get free shipping this month too – just use code APRILSHIP. But supplies are limited, so get yours now before they run out! 

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. 

Merry Christmas

I wanted to share some Christmas vinyl projects I made this year. 

I'll have more to share after the holidays after the other things I made are received by the recipients but until then I hope you'll enjoy these. :)

This first one is an ornament I whipped together after seeing a friend and member of my Steeped Tea team comment that she would really like to win an ornament similar to this from someone else's crafty page giveaway they were doing. She very recently lost her grandfather who she was very close with.

 

I also made one for my own tree in memory of so very many we love and miss making new memories with at this time of year in particular. 

I also made a few glass blocks this year. This one has been gifted already so it's safe to share the pics of it with you.

I had a hard time photographing this one. I used blue tubular mesh LED lights by Martha Stewart along with a few pieces of white mesh fabric gift wrap inside the glass block. I found the glass blocks at Home Depot with the hole in the bottom already cut out.

The image is a combo of two different images from the silhouette design store.

Merry Christmas everyone!

How to Take Your Art into the Next Dimension with Cricut

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It started out as a doodle, something small, casually tossed in the margin of your grocery list. But somehow this graphic element took over and before you knew it, it became the decorative element to everything in your world. Unfortunately all those minute details that you added make it virtually impossible to transform it into the third dimension. Not true. If you can print it, you can cut it with the Cricut Explore machine. 

Now with the newest feature of the Cricut Explore machine, you can choose your image (either your own or one of 50,000+ in the Cricut Design Lab), flatten the image and then click 'Go'. Once printed, the Cricut Explore machine works its magic to bring your 2-dimensional idea into the 3rd dimension.

Take a look at this super short instructional video (less than 4 minutes) and see just how easy it can be… 

Cricut Explore? Yes please!!

Save Big on Cricut Explore Bundles 
(sponsored post)

It's not too late to save big with September savings at Cricut! Save an additional $10 on Cricut Explore® Machine + Basic Starter Set and Cricut Explore® Machine + Premium Bluetooth Setwith code SEPTSPECIAL. Also, don't forget about Free shipping on all orders $35+ with code FREESHIP35! Simply enter the free shipping code at checkout. 

  

Why would you want a Cricut explore? 

One reason would be...

If you have seen all the great things I've made using non-Cricut cartridge images for those 'one of' projects that I simply did not want to purchase a cartridge to use for one thing I used files like SVG files. The Cricut Explore can cut these SVG files. 

The Cricut Explore is also capable of doing print then cut projects as well as being able to trace your stamped images in the free program that Cricut has provided so you don't have to fussy cut anymore! Yay!!!

September Mystery Box now available

(sponsored post)

This week, get your mystery on! The September Mystery Box is here, plus a mystery deal. Plus, save $50 to $100 on Cricut Explore™ machine bundles. Last but not least, get Free shipping on all orders! Simply enter code MYSTERSHIP at checkout.