A Quick Hello...

Happy Thursday!  I hope you all are doing well today.  I just wanted to stop in to say hello...  It seems I haven't posted in a while.  I have made several cards this week - and kept my promise to not use flowers on them.  Can you believe it?  I've made 3, so I only have 2 to go before I can flower away again!  Anywho, I sadly, don't have a project to share with you today.  I have 3-4 cards to post and I filmed 2 videos this weekend.  Our desktop computer got a virus and has crashed and the battery/cord on my laptop has been acting up, so I haven't been able to edit the pictures or videos yet.  I think my hubby figured out the laptop problem this morning, so I hope to be able to get those ready to go in a few days.  Until then, I thought I'd share a few tips with you.

Tip #1 - The Magic Eraser!

I have mentioned before that I re-use my mats over and over and over and over.  I am way too cheap frugal  to be buying new mats every few months.  I have been using the same 3 mats for over a year.  I re-stick mine using the Scotch Repositionable Glue Stick.  I think it's fabulous.

   

The only downside to re-sticking your mats is that they get pretty dirty and gunky looking.  I have tried scraping the mat off using a credit card, a spatula, a ruler, you name it.  It works ok, but is pretty time consuming and honestly is a pain in the you know what!  I actually just found this tip this morning, so I haven't tried it yet, but Fantabulous Cricut says to clean your mat prior to re-sticking using...

The Magic Eraser!  Who knew that would work?  I didn't.  I never even thought of it.  I am going to try it this weekend.  I'm ready for my mats to look pretty and clean again.


Tip #2 - Add a shim!
This is a brilliant idea and I wish I'd come across it sooner.  This come from Joy at Obsessed with Scrapbooking.  She says when you're cutting thick cardstock (like Bazzill or Stampin Up), you should add a shim (a piece of paper) under your mat when you load it into the Cricut.  This will lift your mat just slightly and the blade will cut a little deeper and insure that it cuts all the way through.  Genius, huh?

That's enough for today.  I wouldn't want to overload you with too much great information at once!  I will see you all back here tomorrow for Font Friday, then hopefully this weekend I'll get some of my projects posted.

Have a blessed day,
Cheryl