NOW THAT TAKES THE CAKE!

We here at Cricut® are simply jazzed and giddy with excitement. Many of you have heard about the announcement of the newest arrival to the Cricut family. It's classy. It's chic. It's red! We call it Cricut Cake^TM. With the new Cricut Cake you and your family will be decorating professional looking cakes in no time at all! Guess what else? The Cricut Cake uses all Cricut and Cricut Cake cartridges so now you'll have even more uses for your cartridges. You'll be able to decorate cupcakes, cookies, pies, and of course...cakes to your heart's delight. Now you can make your special occasions even more special. That is sweet!

Go here to sign up for updates on this exciting new product, and be sure to wat the demo to see the Cricut Cake in action!

Happy Crafting,

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Don't miss the opportunity to see the Cricut and new cartridges and consumables in action! Here are are the dates and locations for the next month:

Orem, UT ~ 1/29-2/7
Bedford Park, IL ~ 2/5-2/14
Livonia, MI ~ 2/5-2/14
Springdale, OH ~ 2/5-2/14
Lacey, WA ~ 2/12-2/21
Salt Lake City, UT ~ 2/12-2/21
Overland Park, KS ~ 2/12-2/21
Shelby Township, MI ~ 2/19-2/28
Cincinnati, OH ~ 2/19-2/28
Tumwater, WA ~ 2/26-3/7
Murray, UT ~ 2/26-3/7
Lenexa, KS ~ 2/26-3/7

FEATURED PROJECTS

MESSAGE BOARD HIGHLIGHTS

This week's highlighted threads are:

• Groundhog Day Borders
• So Cute Valentines Layout
• Valentine's Layouts
• Live, Laugh, Love
• Kids Valentine Boxes

CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT

Name: Andrea Silva
About: I'm a 27-year-old 4th grade teacher. I have been married to my loving husband for 4 years and we have a brand new baby boy. I've been interested in scrapbooking for a number of years, but just recently got a Cricut and I now try to scrapbook with every free moment!

Andrea's Project: Classroom Wreath

YOUR NOTABLE TIP

Today's tip comes from message board member sweettooth. Thanks for the clever tip!

In response to the question: Can you cut craft foam sheets without leaving a roller impression?

"I've done it. I would use the Deep Cut Blade and also use Multi Cut. The one thing I would suggest is to Flip your images or letters. The rollers will still make an impression on what you are cutting, but it will be the reverse side. When you turn it over, you will have what you want and no roller impression."

CARTRIDGE EXPLORATION

The other day I woke up with a craft project in mind and broke out my Cricut. I have a canvas bag that I needed to decorate with something cute and crafty. I decided that I would cut out a Cricut image from material, iron it to the bag, then silk screen a saying on the bag with my Yudu. For the final touch, I used the Knifty Knitter loom and made a flower to finish off the bag. This was so much fun! It?s been a long time since I have actually completed a craft project. I usually spend all my time exploring the new Cricut cartridges and never get a project finished! In this exploration I will discuss the Love Struck Seasonal cartridge and Sweethearts.

One of my favorite things about many of the new Seasonal cartridges is that they usually have some 3-D images. The Love Struck cartridge has a 3-D cutout of a heart, a mailbox, and a candy box. Other images on this cartridge include: heart doilies, lips, conversation hearts, and cupid. You get eleven different types and styles of hearts that will make quick Valentine's Cards. I chose to make one of the 3-D boxes, (see pic). I embossed the card with a Cuttlebug embossing folder, then glued it all together. This was super easy and will make the perfect Valentine's treat for my nieces and nephews. Maybe I will make a few extra for the dogs, but fill them with dog treats. Some other amazing examples of what you can do with this cartridge can be found at the Love Struck forum on the message board. Remember that Love Struck is a Seasonal cartridge and therefore is only available for a limited time. Don't wait to get yours!

Sweethearts was the other cartridge I discovered this week. Now, if ever there was a perfect Valentine's cartridge, this is it. There are so many cute images and phrases--you could really make some personal Valentine's Day cards. The creative features on this cartridge are: Layers, Tag, Card, Envelope, Shadow, and Blackout. Some of my favorite images included: cupid with bow and arrow, a bouquet of daisies, a puppy (with the saying "Puppy Love"), flowers & swirls, a diamond ring, etc. All of the images and phrases surround the theme of love. This cartridge would make perfect wedding, bridal or baby shower, congratulations, and thank you cards. You also have the foundation keys; these are the solid versions of the images that are used as creative features (see pg. 7, in handbook). This means that you can cut out solid cards and envelopes, then your favorite images, and layer them onto the card. I love the frog image! Vickipoultion from the message board created an adorable card using this frog (see pic or click here).

To all my Cricut fans, thanks for reading my explorations! I saw a lot of you at the CHA Provo Craft booth and it was wonderful to meet you. A big shout out to all my new friends: thanks for a wonderful week! Happy crafting!

Crafty Kimber

HELP FROM THE EXPERTS

Here are the top question/answers in Customer Support this week.

From Michelle:

Q. I recently bought a cartridge. How do I find out if it qualifies for the Rewards Program?

A. You can view a list of which cartridges should qualify for the rewards at www.cricutrewards.com. This site is where you will redeem your certificates for points and be able to purchase exclusive items with those points.

If you have received the Rewards Certificate with a cartridge, you would go to www.cricutrewards.com, create a user login for the site or login if you have already created one, then go to My Account. From there you will click on the "Redeem a promotional certificate" link to enter in your certificate number and get your points.

Some cartridges were shipped without the certificate included. If you have a cartridge without the certificate you will want to locate the serial number sticker on the top of the box. For this one you will want to go to www.cricut.com/rewards, and click on the second option of not having a certificate. Enter in this serial number and fill out the remaining information. You will need to print out the final page of the form, attach the serial number sticker, and send it in. Once we receive it and process it we will e-mail you the certificate number so that you can go to www.cricutrewards.com and enter your certificate to receive your points.

From Mark:

Q. Makin' the Grade is not working with my Cricut Create machine.

A. Try updating the firmware! Use the Cricut DesignStudio software or Gypsy to update your machine's firmware and enjoy this great cartridge.

Note: This only works with the Create machine, not Expression or original.

Have a great week!

From your Customer Support Sweeps:
Mark, Brightly, Michelle, and Becky, "The Floor Sweeps"

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it happened or not."
~ Mark Twain