AccuCut Craft Blog

Buckle Card

Posted by Jen Cramer

One of my favorite card dies -- and I actually own this die myself because I use it so much -- is our square Buckle Card. I love the simpleness of it, which allows it to be used so many ways.

You can make it very formal as in this wedding program...

Or you can make it fun. This birthday card has ribbons tied to the buckle.

Or you can turn it on its side and make it into a purse...

You can add flowers to it like on this simple birthday card...

You can even layer on it such as on this Cherish You card.

I know you'll like it as much as I do.

Tuesdays with Tammy: Make wedding-related cards in less time

Posted by Tammy Miller

Yesterday I spoke with a customer who said something I just had to share. She was unable to attend the National Stationery Show last month to see our new card dies and had purchased her first GrandeMARK machine at last year's show. She called us recently to see what new stationery dies we had and requested that we mail her the May 2008 supplement.

She is very excited to place her order for many dies with registration pins. She's a part-time teacher and has a side business that provides brides with unique party favor boxes and personalized wedding invitations. (It sounds like her business is really taking off!)

Being a teacher, she understood die cutting and how easy our machine is to use. When she received her GrandeMARK machine, she said it was like “rekindling an old friendship”. I just loved hearing that... it reminded me about how I feel the first morning of a trade show.

One of the dies we talked about was the new A2 Card Mats and how much time it could save her.

You can use the die to make all of your pre-printed mats that you can then layer on any of our previously released A2 card dies. This Fancy Save the Date Card uses A2 Card-Foldout #2.

And this Wedding Rehearsal Invitation uses the A2 Card-Foldout #1.

Both projects use the A2 Card Mats #1 die so you can easily pre-print your information using your computer and printer and then lay the 8 ½” x 11" sheet of paper directly on the die (even multiple layers) and quickly cut as many as you need. How cool is that?

To help you create your invitation, visit www.accucut.com/templates to download your template.  Also, when you order dies that have registration pins you will receive a free a transparency that will help you verify that your text and images are in the correct place. So, for all of the scrapbook stores that already have A2 card dies, simply add the mats to your collection and you’ll see an increase in paper sales.

Flip flops = summer

Posted by Jen Cramer

I don't know about you, but when I think of summer I think of "flip flops" -- the perfect, casual summertime shoe. You can't have too many flip flops, that's for sure.

Have you seen the Flip-Flops #2 die? It comes in three sizes, and the most popular for scrapbooking and cards are the extra long cut, where the shoes are 5" high, and the long cut that has 3" high shoes.

The fun part is that the top parts of the shoes are separate from the bottoms so you can have a lot of fun mixing and matching papers for fun combos.

This Paradise Memory Tin could hold vacation photos that are either loose or put together in an album. Love the bright colors.

And here are the long cut flip flops on a Pool Party Invitation. The little Prima flowers are great embellisments to add to the shoes.

All of those flip flop projects make me miss the weekend already!

National Stationery Show: Beach ensemble

Posted by Jen Cramer

Last week I started talking about the Beach Ensemble that we had on display at the National Stationery Show and I didn't get back to it. Let's take a closer look at some of the individual pieces...

Here is a "save the date" card that fits in an A7 envelope. What a cute deck chair!

The dies used to make the chair card are:

• Deck Chair (NC577CJ)
• Border-Interlocking #2 (BR455XLC)
• Place Cards #1 (P1016SJ) NEW!

The Place Cards die is one of our new dies with pins. It holds a letter sheet of paper and cuts nine 3" x 2 1/4" cards at one time. You can see here that it can be used for more than just place cards. (Note: The piece behind the place card on the invite was a hand-cut mat.)

The envelope behind the card is our Envelope-A7 #6, which has a nice scalloped edge on the flap.

And one more close-up...

The large card on the left shows off one of our new pocket cards. The dies used to make all of the pieces in the card are:

• A7 Pocket Card #1 (NC652CG)
• A7 Card Inserts (2-Die Set) (NC653SJ) - Two of the three layers are used on the left side of the card.
• A7 Card Mats #2 (NC633SJ) - This is the light teal layer on the right under the printed card.
• A7 Card Mats #3 (NC646SJ) -This is the top layer on the right with the printing.

The little place card in front of the card uses the same Place Cards #1 die that was used on the deck chair project we looked at earlier. That is one of the most versatile dies we came out with this month. You could even use it to make a large seal for the front of a card.

On the right side of the photo you can see a response card and envelope. The 4 Bar Cards die was very popular at the show for people wanting to make thank you cards, response cards and save the date cards. It's a nice size (4 7/8"w x 3 1/2"h folded).

Behind the card is the matching envelope which was made with Envelope-4 Bar and the new liner die. Our new liners that we came out with in May are nice because the fit the entire depth of the inside of the envelope.

I hope you liked taking a closer look at our Beach wedding projects. It's very rainy and gloomy here in Nebraska this morning and it makes me want some sun and sand!

More from the National Stationery Show

Posted by Jen Cramer

We're still in New York at the National Stationery Show. Two days down and two to go! It's so much fun meeting new people and showing them what our GrandeMARK system can do to help them save time. They are so amazed. But many of you already know what it can do so let's get on to the projects!

Here are a few more projects that are on display in our booth...

The response card and the thank you card in front were made with our new 4 Bar Cards die. It has two card shapes on one die and the die has registration pins to hold 8 1/2" x 11" paper. It saves a lot of time when you need to make 50, 100 or even more cards.

I also wanted to show some photos of the amazing wedding dress that Vicki Chrisman made for us last year. We loved it so much that we brought it to the show again.

If I remember correctly, the front of the dress was made with Borders #2, Flowers #18, and Flowers #26.

The back of the dress added dies Flowers #6, Border-Interlocking #1, and Leaves #1.

And the dress wouldn't be complete without a matching bouquet!

Well, I have to head over to the show. Tomorrow I'll show more pics of our "beach" ensemble.

If you want to see all of the new dies in our May release, click here.

47 new AccuCut dies!

Posted by Jen Cramer

In case you haven't seen it yet, late yesterday we posted our new Craft May Release on our website! There are 47 new stationery dies to pick from including a brand new line of dies that have registration pins that hold a letter-size sheet of cardstock. You've been asking for them and here they are! I have to say that I have had a lot of fun playing with them to create cards and favors.

Yesterday I showed you a sheet of seals that you would have had to cut out with a punch. Can you imagine having to hand punch 150 of those? Now you don't have to because there is an AccuCut die that you can use!

Here is the new Seals-Circle-1 1/2" die that cuts fifteen 1 1/2" circles at once -- in exactly the same place every time.

 

Now you can see that I placed that sheet of seals I had already made with my computer (see yesterday's post) face down on the die in the GrandeMARK machine. Then I started to roll them through to cut all of those circles.

 

And now I have 15 circles cut with one pass through the machine. All I would have to do is print off nine more sheets of seals and roll them through my machine and I would be done.

To see the entire release of new dies -- there are some cards, boxes and place cards in there too -- just go to our May Release page and start checking them out.

The supplement is ready too so you can download it or request one to be mailed to you.

We're headed to the National Stationery Show so if you're going to the show too stop by and see us in Booth #2462.

Tuesdays with Tammy: Give away a free die?

*** Entries are no longer being accepted. ***

Posted by Tammy Miller

Is it someone's birthday? At the Miller house, it is a week-long celebration when it's someone's birthday. Grandma loves celebrations so the party just keeps going. I sorta get the same feeling for National Scrapbooking Day -- a week-long celebration! So I've chosen a great die to give away with today's post: the AccuCut A2 Card-Gift Card die.

This cute little card has two slits to hold a standard gift card from just about anywhere. You can use it for any occasion: birthdays, graduations, Christmas or even for a baby gift.

I have a great story I want to share. At Christmas I was trying to get the girls to tell me what they wanted, and the standard answer was "gift cards". But I just wanted to give them something that they could open and play with just like they did when they were little. After the fourth or fifth time I asked, Marissa finally said in a teary voice, "But, Mom, I just love to shop." Well, gift cards it was.

You know that a gift card is always appreciated by the person getting it, but as the "gift card giver" sometimes you just want to dress it up a little to let the person know that it wasn't just a last-minute decision. For a Christmas gift, you can make something like this Oh Christmas Tree Gift Card Holder that was made with BasicGrey Figgy Pudding cardstock. The paper is so pretty you don't even need to add anything to the outside of the card.

And here is the inside. The trees were cut out of the same cardstock and glued to the card that fits on the inside top panel. Add a holiday rub-on or stamp and you're good to go.

So back to my story... When Marissa's birthday rolled around I thought I'd try again. Same answer. "Mom, all I want are gift cards. I want to buy my own swimsuit and I want to pick it out." Anyone else out there have a 12-year-old daughter? : )

Here is an example of a gift card for a special birthday. (See Enjoy Gift Card Holder.)

And the inside reveals the rest of the message...

If I were a store owner I would have a "Gift Card Holder" class and show them how to make 4-5 cards. Maybe a couple birthday cards, a graduation one and one for Christmas. Show them how easy it is so they will want to make more. (It really is addictive once you start!) During the holidays, make sure you have some kits or some even already made for people to "grab and go". You could do that with birthday card holders too.

I bet you want to win this die now! Post a comment by 10 a.m. CST tomorrow (Wednesday) and tell me how you would use this die. I will randomly pick the winner and send the die to you!  *** Entries are no longer being accepted. ***

PS: Don't forget about our "Mom" challenge. Entries are due Monday, May 12.

Projects for Mom... and a Challenge for a free gift!

Posted by Jen Cramer

Mother's Day is quickly approaching so I thought we'd take a look at a few "mom" projects today. And I thought we'd throw in our first challenge, but you'll have to wait until the end of the post to read about it. Coincidentally, both projects that we'll see -- a card and an album -- use AccuCut's Stencil Alphabet. 

I actually made this card a year or so ago for my own mom. I think that was when I started to fall in love with My Mind's Eye paper, but that's another story. : ) Now back to the card...

Sometimes when I need to design a card and I can't think of where to start, the easiest thing to do is to grab a letter die and make a cool monogram. Here I used the 2" Uppercase Stencil Alphabet to cut the M out of chipboard (after I adhered my paper). Then I just put another piece of coordinating paper behind the stencil so it would show through. (See Plaid Mom Card)

This also happens to be one of my all-time-favorite cards, the Buckle Card, that's 5 3/16" square folded. A $55 card die with crease... you can't beat that. I also like it because I can dress it up for weddings or I can make it fun and playful for a kid's birthday card.

The second "mom" project that uses the Stencil Alphabet (but this time it's the 2 1/2" size) is this Mom Album. The stencil letters let you see right through to the paper on the album cover.

Traci used the 5" x 10" album to cut the pages and even the clear plastic sheet that rested on top of the chipboard cover. The rub-ons were added to the front of the clear cover before she assembled everything.

So, do you want to know what the challenge is and what you can win?

E-mail a photo of a Mother's Day project you made to blog@accucut.com by Monday, May 12. Here are the details:

• You must use at least one AccuCut die (steel-rule).
• The project should preferably have the word "mom" or "mother" on it but that doesn't have to be made with a die. Use a rub-on, stamp, sticker, anything!
• In your e-mail, use subject line "Mom" and include a photo of the project (less than 150k please!) and the item numbers of the die(s) used.
• Be creative! We'll choose our favorite project and post the winner on Wednesday, May 14.
• The winner will receive a $50 AccuCut gift certificate!

Store owners: Print off this post and put it by your AccuCut machine. Your customers will love the chance to enter themselves too.

A dino-mite dinosaur die

Posted by Jen Cramer

If you're looking for a new "little boy" shape to add to your die collection, check out the AccuCut Dinosaur #10 die. It comes in two sizes: the large is 4" high and the jumbo is 6 1/2" high.

The large size may be the most versatile size as it can be added to various sizes of cards and boxes. This Dino Thank You shows it added to an A2 card.

And here you can see the same large size die cut added to a favor box.

The jumbo size die makes a great dinosaur invitation to fit in an A7 envelope. It can also add a lot of personality to a scrapbook page.

Make sure you create samples to show customers how they can create an entire dinosaur-theme party. You can also sell kits so people can just buy them and go.

Headed to Nashville for Scrap Etc. event

Posted by Jen Cramer

Tammy and I getting ready to go to Nashville tomorrow for the Scrap Etc. event. AccuCut is one of the sponsors and Monique has used lots of AccuCut dies in some of the sessions so we're excited to see how our products have been used. If you were lucky enough to score a spot in the event then we'll see you there! If not, we'll post some pictures next week when we get back.

But before we jump on a plane, here is an adorable little girl's birthday invitation that I wanted to share. Sometimes you have to do something extra special with an invitation -- and people will notice the effort and the creativity! This card is made using our 3-D Horse die, but it really comes to life with beautiful scrapbook papers. Imagine getting this invitation in the mail and having fun putting it all together.

We have a number of other 3-D animal shapes including a Dinosaur for little boy parties, an Elephant (don't forget to come my party), and a Lion (Lion King theme parties). 

Besides the invitation you can also use them for table decorations and even an activity for the kids depending on their ages.