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Qualifying Products - Cricut Contest 5th Anniversary

CELEBRATE CRICUT & WIN!

Provo Craft is currently running a contest "CELEBRATE CIRCUT & WIN!" ... This is The Cricut 5th Anniversary Promotion.  There are several Grand Prizes, including Cruises (7), 100 Cartridge Pack (3), and a Craftroom Make Over (3) ... or you could win one of a multitude of prizes instantly.

http://www.cricut5th.com/



The Promotion period is from 9/1/11 through 12/31/11. 

How to Enter: Online Entry:

During the Promotion Period, go to http://www.cricut5th.com/, www.cricut5th.com/michaels, www.cricut5th.com/acmoore, www.cricut5th.com/hobbylobby, www.cricut5th.com/hsn, www.cricut5th.com/JoAnn or www.facebook.com/OfficialCricut (collectively, "Websites") and click on the link to locate the official entry form. For entry on Facebook, you will need to "like" Cricut and then accept the Cricut^® 5th Anniversary Promotion application. To enter, you can use a product code or serial number from the package of an eligible or participating Cricut^® product purchased within the Promotion Period. One unique code required per entry. Once you have completed the required information, follow the on-screen instructions to play the instant win game. After you have played the instant win game, you will automatically receive one entry into the Grand Prize Drawing. If you receive a winning message, you are a potential winner of the prize indicated, subject to verification by the Judging Agency. Follow the on-screen instructions to claim your prize. You are not a winner until your prize claim is validated and you receive official written notification from the Judging Agency.

LIMIT FIVE (5) ONLINE ENTRIES PER PERSON/E-MAIL ADDRESS PER WEEK AND MAXIMUM OF FORTY (40) ONLINE ENTRIES FOR THE DURATION OF THE PROMOTION. Entries must not be sent in through agents or third parties. Incomplete entries will be disqualified and will not be counted.

For additional information, please go to http://www.cricut5th.com/ and read the official rules.

SPECIAL NOTICE ...

I noticed that the qualifying products do vary, depending on the site you are entering them on. Here is what I am talking about .... If you go to the rewards site ( www.cricutrewards.com ), you will see the contest icon at the top of the home page, and if you click on that icon, you will be on the cricut contest page. If you click on the words "View Eligible Products", which is in the green box directly under the image of the E2 machine, a list of the eligible products, for that site, will appear. However if you then scroll down to the bottom on that page, you will see the icons for Michael's, Joann's, HSN, ACMoore, and Hobby Lobby. Clicking on any one of those icons will take you to each of their respective contest pages ... although the page appears to be the same, it is different. On each of these pages, if you click on the words "View Eligible Products", a DIFFERENT list of products will appear. You can tell which contest page you are on by looking in the upper right hand corner, the store's name will appear there.

I prepared a spreadsheet which shows which qualifying products apply to which stores (BTW, I was unable to get the list of qualifying products from the JoAnn's contest page to show, so they are not included on this spreadsheet.  If anyone can get that list and forward me a copy, I would be happy to include it on this spreadsheet ...

PLEASE CLICK ON IMAGE TO VIEW FULL SIZE

(feel free to copy and paste if you would like this list)

I hope you found this information helpful.  GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Happy Crafting!

Hugz,

♥Carol♥



Hot News Flash!

Hot News Flash ....

Cricut has a new official Blog!  Here is the announcement ...

News & Events

May 18, 2011

Provo Craft is launching The Official Cricut Blog sponsored by the Cricut Circle. The mission of the Blog is to introduce artists and crafters to the benefits of the Cricut Circle, inspire Provo Craft customers with projects made from the Cricut Circle Design Team and to gain knowledge of events, promotions, product, etc. directly from Provo Craft.

The Official Cricut Blog will have three posts per week—Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The exception will be on Hello Thursday(the third Thursday of the month) when Jinger Adams, Provo Craft’s Spokesperson, will announce the Hello Thursday cartridges and have a giveaway for the Cricut Blog’s followers.

For those wishing to become a follower ... here's the link ... Official Cricut Blog

Happy Crafting Everyone!
Hugz,
♥Carol♥

Cartridge Review - Thanksgiving Seasonal Cartridge - Winter 2010

  

CRICUT THANKSGIVING CARTRIDGE REVIEW

Hiya EVERYONE, this is ♥Carol♥ ... WELCOME to my Little Creation Corner!  Today, I’d like to share my review of  the many creative opportunities found on the Thanksgiving Cricut Seasonal Cartridge.  (BTW, this cartridge review can also be seen at the Wildly Whimsical & Creative Crafting Newsletter ... be sure to stop by there to see the wonderful creations posted there monthly.)

(Please click on images to view full size)

This cartridge is part of Provo Crafts limited edition Cricut Cartridge collection for the winter of 2010 and it is filled with 31 Thanksgiving/Fall sentiments and images. In addition, there are also some layering pieces that I’ve found work well even on there own (such as the leaves, acorns, pumpkins, etc.). Since this cart is a Seasonal Mini cartridge, it comes with the cartridge, keypad overlay and a small card that depicts the available images/sentiments … and does NOT come with a handbook.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the images available …

Now that we know what is on this special limited edition cartridge … what can you do with it? There are so many wonderfully creative opportunities? How about invitations for your Thanksgiving dinner or party? Maybe decorate the meals menu … or adding special extras to your Thanksgiving table, like decorating the napkin rings or candles, cutting appliqués out of fabric to make your own place mats, napkins and coasters for your glass ware, or how about adding personalized place cards for each dinner guest? Perhaps you’d like to make a wreath from cut leaves to hang on your door to welcome visitors, or a banner to dress up your home for the holiday? What a great idea to decorate a candy jar or personalize a bottle of wine, or even a gift bag with a small token inside for the hostess if you are visiting others on this special day … and of course, this is a fabulous cartridge for making Thank You notes when the day is over and making beautiful scrapbook pages from all the pictures of this fun occasion. Whatever your choice, you’ll be delighted with the adorable designs available on this cartridge.

Here is a Thanksgiving floral arrangement I made using cuts from this cart, and this was super easy to make (especially since I already had the candle and candle holder). I took a small sheet of gold metallic tissue and covered a 4”x1” Styrofoam circle, and wrapped an orange satin ribbon around the edge … placed the covered Styrofoam on the candle holder with the candle on top, then added some sprigs of autumn leaves. This gave it a nice autumn look … but to make it something special for Thanksgiving I added the Pilgrim silhouette to the face of the candle and an ornate leaf to the base to help balance the colors. Now that it’s done, I can’t help but wonder how it might look if I had used the turkey as the focal image on the candle, or maybe the cornucopia with a picture of our family in the center, or maybe adding the phrase “harvest blessings” around the base.

I will say this, it’s amazing how adding a simple Cricut cut to a floral arrangement can really dress it up and change the whole look … and with this cartridge there are some wonderful options to choose from!

As always ... thank you so much for stopping by for a visit at my Little Creation Corner.  If you have an extra moment, please leave a comment ... I love reading what you have to say.  Your opinions really make a difference and inspire me to keep creating.

Wishing you and yours a ...

Delightful and Happy THANKSGIVING!!!

Happy Crafting Everyone!
Hugz,
♥Carol♥
Little Creation Corner

The NEW YourStory Photo

  
YOURSTORY PHOTO PERSONAL BINDING KIT


Hi Everyone ... This is ♥Carol♥ ... Welcome to my Little Creation Corner!

Today I'd like to share a new produce with you.  Provo Craft has just introduced the new YourStory Personal Binding System, available exclusively at HSN (Home Shopping Network) until early 2011. This binding system will allow you to preserve your memories by creating your own books, photo albums, and journals the easy way! You will have everything you need to create photo albums, recipe books, flipbooks, and much more. The YourStory Photo machine can bind albums up to 6 ¼” wide. Whether you want to create unique gifts, memory books, or a host of other paper crafting projects, the YourStory Photo machine is perfect for first time crafters and veterans alike.

• Binds albums up to 6 ¼” wide
• Comes with two 4″ x 6″ covers (Berry and White)
• Comes with two 5″ x 7″ covers (Lime and Charcoal)
• Use to create photo albums, recipe books, and much more

With the Your Story Photo, you can bind approximately 40 pages of regular printer paper, 20 pages of card stock and 24 photos.

You can even add and delete pages to your book once it is bound. Simply place your book back into the YourStory Photo to heat up the glue in the spine. Once you hear the beep, slide the pages out and add the additional page (s) to your book. At this point you’ll need to add a new glue strip (cut to the appropriate length) and rebind your book following the original instructions.

Although covers are available for the YourStory Photo Personal Binding Machine, you can also make your own covers out of paper, chipboard, cloth etc. However, do not use plastic, as the heat that binds will also melt the plastic.

By the way, as a safety precaution, YourStory Photo will automatically turn itself off after approximately 10 minutes if the machine is not in use.

Unlike its big brother, the original YourStory, the YourStory Photo will NOT laminate.

If you are interested in a binding system that will bind books larger than 6 ¼ inches wide and will also laminate, then you may want to consider purchasing the larger YourStory. The Original YourStory bundle is currently available for 64.99 at Cricut.com. You can find it here … http://www.cricut.com/shop/#6/58/729/3/SpecialOffers/YourStory%20Bundle

As always, thanx for stopping by for a visit here at my Little Creation Corner.  If you get a chance, please leave a comment ... I love hearing your thoughts!

Happy crafting EVERYONE!

Hugz,
♥Carol♥

Super News for New and Current Gypsy Owners

Hiya Everyone, this is ♥Carol♥ with some WONDERFUL news.  Provo Craft has just announced an incredible new Gypsy promotion that will effect ALL my Gypsy Brothers and Sisters ... and this super amazing offer will have you "doing the happy dance".  Here are the details ...

Gypsy Promo including ALL current Gypsy Owners- New Gypsy Owners: If purchased and registered by OCT 31ST

Buy and register a Gypsy by Cricut by October 31 and receive 6 free cartridges downloaded to your Gypsy – including the exclusive, all-new "Smiley Cards" cartridge (and don't forget about Gypsy Wanderings and Gypsy font cartridges that come pre-loaded on the machine). It's a $419 value!

Free cartridges include: 

1. Smiley Cards (new and exclusive to this promotion)
2. Tags, Bags, Boxes and More (not available in retail)
3. Christmas (not available in retail)
4. Blackletter (not available in retail)
5. Printing Press (not available in retail)
6. Indie Art (not available in retail)

All current Gypsy owners included!   Simply register your Gypsy by October 31, 2010 and get access to all downloads. Register at www.cricut.com/gypsy/

CURRENT GYPSY OWNERS: Downloads will be available through a special update to your Gypsy starting November 1st.

New Gypsy cartridge downloads are easy! Just connect your Gypsy to your computer and you'll automatically be prompted how to start. In just a few steps, you'll be able to download all six cartridges containing thousands of images! And with Gypsy, you'll have all the cartridge artwork and keypad overlays on your Gypsy screen, so there's no actual cartridge, handbook, or packaging.

This is such an amazing offer ... one that I am personally excited about for myself, but also for all my Gypsy Sisters and Brothers too.  If you already own a Gypsy, WONDERFUL!  If you are considering the purchase of a Gypsy, this would be the time to do it.  Just think of the value, and the hours of creativity that you will get with the 6 FREE carts downloaded (linked) to your Gypsy. 

But don't delay, TIME IS RUNNING OUT ... whether you are a new Gypsy owner, or an existing one, your Gypsy must be registered at www.cricut.com/gypsy/ no later than October 31st. 

Happy Crafting Everyone!

Hugz,
♥Carol♥

Thoughts About Blogs

Hiya Everyone, this is ♥Carol♥!  Welcome to my Little Creation Corner, and thanx for stopping by.  First, my apologies for not having posted here in so long.  I have been ill, with many complications that made my recovery a long hard road ... one that also left my creative mojo totally deflated.  But I have now recovered (yippeeee!) ... and creative thoughts are slowly returning, so pop back in again soon, as I will be adding new posts in the near future.

In the meantime ... I wanted to take a moment to talk about BLOGS.  I originally started this blog because I succumbed to peer pressure ... I didn't really have a great desire to have a blog of my own (I was having too much fun visiting everyone else's blogs), but was told it was something I should do.  I don't usually fall victim to peer pressure, but as I joined other blogs as a Design Team member, it really did seem necessary.  I have since come to enjoy having a blog and am thrilled beyond words when others visit and leave comments.  Please know that I appreciate each and every one of you for taking the time to stop by ... It truly makes the entire creating process so much more rewarding.  In fact, I have discovered that having a blog is actually quite fun!  (((grin)))

Now, back to my thoughts about Blogs ... Recently, My Friend, OKIE (and yes, I definitely consider OkieLadyBug, aka, Shirley, a "FRIEND"),  posted on her blog her own thoughts about blogs that closely mirror mine.  Since her thoughts are so very much like my own, I thought I'd share her post right here instead of trying to re-write the entire thing again and using different words ... especially since those different words would really be the same thing!  What can I say ... sometimes I am lazy too!  (((wink)))

So here is the excerpt from Okie's blog ... which, BTW, if you haven't been to her blog yet, please do stop by ... you won't be disappointed ... her creations are beautiful and inspiring, her DS cut files are fabulous, and her quick wit and humorous personality shines through in every post ... I know that if she is reading this, she is probably laughing at my words ... but still, they are true and heart felt!  You can find her blog here ... http://okieladybugsscrapnmore.blogspot.com/ .  BRAVO, Okie ... these are very wise words, and very well written ...

My feelings about blogs....
 Posted: 14 Jul 2010 08:01 AM PDT
 A few years ago when I started my blog I started it for one reason. So people could easily download .cut files without me having to email the files to them. I remember one evening spending over two hours replying to email requests and sending files. I knew there had to be a better way. So I entered the blogging world.

How do I get followers? That is a frequent question on the Cricut messageboard these days. I recently answered as follows "I don't know how ya get followers. I am hateful to my readers sometimes and talk to myself. Personally I wouldn't follow my own blog as mean as I can be sometimes." I was being totally serious too! *okie still is amazed that people wanna read her blog since she is hateful and sometimes threatens her readers* However I am not really talking to myself, the thoughts in my head just sometimes find their way into my posts *okie wishes people would stop reading her thoughts so much and wonders how many mind readers there are in this world*.

I have a love hate relationship with my blog.

I love being able to post what I create where my friends and family can see it without me having to email them pictures. When I tell one of my friends what I have been working on they will say "email it to me". But then I would have to email it to several people I tell them "I don't want to". So then they say "post it on your blog so I can see it". Well okay, that way I don't have to email it to several different people. Believe me there have been times when I didn't want to post something because I thought it looked like crap! But one friend of mine, I won't mention her name *okie thinks ScrapperDelighted gets on her last nerve with this though*, will tell me "I don't care if you think it looks like crap...I want to see it! SO POST IT!"

The hate part comes in because I am lazy! It takes time to take pictures to where they look good and then edit and then write up a post. That is one reason I don't do more video's. It literally takes hours to shoot the video, edit the video, publish the video and then upload the dang thang! *okie cracks up because she loves saying dang thang*

Now days it seems everyone wants to commercialize their blogs. They want a ton of followers and corporate sponsorship and will do giveaways to increase traffic on their blog. While I will do a giveaway every now and then I make it easy. You don't have to link my blog, post my blog, jump through hoops of fire or any of that crap; you just have to leave a comment on that post. Now don't get me wrong here, it does feel good to know people follow my blog and want to see what I make *okie is always amazed that people leave comments to let okie know they have stopped by* but for me I think my blog has now become an outlet for my own creative expression *and okie's thoughts*.

Overall I think blogs can be a good thing. I do like going to blogs of others and seeing how inferior of a crafter I am but it makes me strive to try and be a little better. Although, I don't spend a whole lot of time reading blogs because then it would cut into my time creating.

I guess what it boils down to is that I think blogs can be a good thing. I just dislike people always saying "go to my blog" so I can see a picture of what they made or what they think. Just post at least one picture and then let me decide if I want to see or read more!

And that's all I got to say about that!


And isn't that all that needs to be said really?  Thanx Okie, for allowing me to share your thoughts on my Blog too.

As I already said, be sure to stop by her blog and say hello (http://okieladybugsscrapnmore.blogspot.com/).  I know you will enjoy your visit there.  I first visited her blog about 2 and a half years ago, I loved it then ... I visit often and I love it every bit as much now as I did the first time!

Again, thanx for stopping by for a visit at my Little Creation Corner.  I always enjoy your company ... so feel free to stop by any time ... you are always welcome! 

HAPPY CRAFTING EVERYONE!
Hugz,
♥Carol♥!