Handmade Paper Wreath With The Cricut Die Cutting Machine

(This Cricut die cutting machine was gifted to me, all views are my own!)

Hello everyone!  I hope you are having a lovely weekend, the sun has made an appearance here today!

A few weeks ago, the folks at Cricut asked if they could send me their new die cutting machine to review.  I’ve never used a die cutting machine before, so I decided to give it a whirl!  I though it would be something that both me and the children would get lots of use out of, not only for fun crafting but also for school projects, cards and gifts.

The machine itself is very pretty (I chose mine in mint green!), slimline, and easy to transport.  It was also very was easy enough to set up an account – you need to sync the machine with your computer in order to carry out projects.  They also have lots of video tutorials on their Design Space which are worth looking at.  It didn’t take me long at all to get the machine up and running but do double check that your blade is fully locked in before using – mine wasn’t, and it took a few attempts with me not understanding why it wasn’t cutting properly before I checked it!  Once I’d sorted that we were good to go.

There are literally hundreds of projects on their design site, some of them are free and some of them you pay for.  However a more advanced feature is that you can upload your own designs and images for cutting, which is pretty amazing.  For our first project (my daughter helped me with this!) we decided to keep it very simple.  I found a free template for leaves in three sizes, so I decided to make a pretty paper wreath using this gorgeous pastel cardstock I’ve had squirrelled away.  It was so easy, we set up a little production line and in no time at all we had lots of pretty, crisp cut leaves to play with.  (Another great feature is that you can resize whatever shape or design you decide to cut, so next time I might make this again but with larger leaves, maybe in ivory for Christmas.)  I then glue gunned the leaves onto an embroidery hoop, and 15 minutes later we had this pretty wreath!

 I have also cut a beautiful, intricate floral initial for Lola’s bedroom, and I just need to get to Hobbycraft to pick up a box frame for it which I’ll share with you once it’s finished.  I’d also like to try my hand at some card making too.

My dahlia shoots have just started to peep through the soil which is so very exciting!  It won’t be long before I can plant them out, both here and at the allotment ; the way time is whizzing by, it won’t be long before I (hopefully) have some gorgeous blooms to share with you all!

Tamsyn x