thrifted word banners made with cricut!

Ya’ll, never have I had such a rollercoaster of a project. When I first pitched to Cricut that I wanted to make some cool signs for my home with thrifted pieces, I couldn’t WAIT to get started. So of course, I waited riiiight up until the last day to make them and GUESS WHAT?!? The project failed miserably.

So I tried it a little differently. FAIL. And then I tried like 3 more times before I just threw up my hands and yelled ABANDON SHIP! 😂Thankfully, I have one of the best thrift shops in town close by and so I hopped in the car and sought out some new inspiration. And like always, the thrift store delivered.

I ended up picking up some old linen napkins (you know, like your grandmother puts out at Christmas and Easter?) and making something I’m really quite proud of- these super cute NO SEW word banners.

I made these using my Cricut Air 2, Cricut iron-on, and Cricut Easy Press. If you’re a newbie to using Cricut iron-on, this would be a super fun project to start with.

The vintage linen napkins I snagged cost me a total of $3 at the thrift store. Mine were 19” square cloth napkins, but almost any scrap fabric would work for this- think tablecloths, placemats, etc. I think a pattern would make some really neat banners as well!

Supplies Needed:

• Cricut Machine- I used my Air 2, but depending on the size of your banner a Cricut Joy would work!

• Cricut Light Grip mat

• Cricut Easy Press

• Cricut Easy Press Pad

• Cricut Iron-on- I used white for “Hello Spring”, Beige for the shadow and Gold Shimmer for the main on “Life the Life”, and Black for the shadow and white for the main on “Always Be Humble & Kind”

• Cricut Weeding tool

• Old Linen Napkins or other fabric

• Hot Glue Gun

• Scissors

• 5/8” Dowel Rod (or whatever suits the size of your banner)

• Fabric De-fuzzer (obviously this is optional- but the napkins I bought needed it, and the iron-on wouldn’t have adhered well without a de-fuzz)

Check out this video for the full tutorial!

You can access my design files for FREE in the Cricut design space!

Always Be Humble & Kind Banner File

For this design, I used white Cricut Iron-On for the shadow and black for the main text. Click on the image to be taken to the file in design space!

Hello Spring Banner

For this design, I used white Cricut Iron-On for the text. Click on the image to be taken to the file in design space!

Live The Life You’ve Imagined Banner

For this design, I used beige Cricut Iron-On for the shadow, and shimmer gold for the main letters. Click on the image to be taken to the file in design space!

I would LOVE to see your banners if you give this project a try- please tag me @lissaanglin! It was a relatively quick one, and so much fun to add the beads and twine. You could really go crazy with the extra decor- I’m thinking tassels, felt balls, buttons, flowers…you name it!

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perking up my coffee bar with my cricut!

This post is sponsored by the awesome people at Cricut, who give me the freedom to create the projects I want to do, and the ability to do them well with all their amazing products.

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See what I did with that title?! You guys know I love a good pun.

I’ve finally finished decorating the new coffee bar area in our home- for now, anyway. :) And I couldn’t resist creating some customized coffee canisters and flavoring syrup bottles for it! To see some crazy before + afters, check out my previous post for the before + afters of this part of our #anglinabode reno.

I wanted it to be an area I loved to look at and spend time in, but also highly functional as well. We do a LOT of coffee here, but we also have an ice machine and like to make fun sodas. The syrup flavorings we use for these are delicious, but I didn’t love them cluttering the countertop.

So, I was so excited when I found these inexpensive olive oil bottles at WalMart. To up the ante, I also ordered these super cool weighted spouts in a gold color.

I also wanted to pull in some gold accents to match our knobs and fixtures, so I was pumped to find these gold and clear canisters (which come in a bunch of different colors too!). They look like glass and metal, but are plastic- which is honestly much better for this clumsy crew. I also added these really cool coffee scoops to put inside the canister that also function as a bag clip.

This is a pretty simple cut and stick project, so I’ll just fill you in on all the details!

Here’s what I used for this project:

Cricut Joy

Cricut Transfer Tape

Cricut Permanent Vinyl

Scraper and Weeder Tools

Cricut Joy mat (optional)

Gold Canisters

Coffee Scoops

Olive Oil Bottles

Gold Weighted Spouts

I used the font Hanley that I purchased from Creative Market. This is one of my most-used fonts and has been a great purchase for me!

I was sure to keep my font size the same throughout all of the labels. This keeps the overall look consistent and professional. Be sure to double check your measurements and make sure the longest word will still fit in the space given the font size. I alllllmost didn’t get the word “peppermint” to fit!

Here’s a quick video of the process:

I really love the way they turned out! I’d love to see your coffee bar projects, too- be sure to tag me @lissaanglin on any social media!

This post contains affiliate links, on which I will receive a small commission should you purchase anything/sign up/subscribe etc. I would never share something I didn’t actually like or want to share with you, so I wanted to let you know. Sharing affiliate links affords me a few more lattes and it’s always my aim to add value to your life with the brands and products I share. Thanks for supporting me!

Anglin Abode Reveal: Pantry Organization with my sidekick Cricut Joy

This post has been sponsored by Cricut, who has enabled me to create the custom pantry of my dreams!

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I never would have guessed that one of the first “reveals” I’d share of our new home would be the pantry- but here we are! And it really makes sense- with a family of 5- I had no other choice than to attack the pantry and get it in order before chaos ensued. I ended up finding some really cool organizational items and creating some custom labels in a pinch with my Cricut Joy (tutorial below!).

Let’s take a quick second to remember the pantry (or lack thereof) that our house had when we first bought it:

See those white sliding doors to the left of the fridge? That was the “pantry”. It was nice and wide, but only about 6 inches deep. I’m not kidding- 6 INCHES deep. Basically pointless.

Thankfully, the room directly behind the pantry had a closet that wasn’t super necessary- so I chose to bust through the wall and create a larger pantry. I also wanted to add a bit of character with the new pantry door, so I found a great antique door at Jux Ta Posh (one of my favorite shops here in Lubbock!) and stripped it so you could see the original wood. It turned out to be quite a project and my Dad and Shawn even had to jump in- but I’m so pleased with the results!

Here’s how it turned out- quite different, right? I don’t typically keep the light on when the door’s closed. :)

Anyway, because of all the new space, it was high time to get ORGANIZED. I was really thankful to have had time to think about how I wanted to place everything- what needed to be accessible for my kids, things I grab for cooking frequently, pain points from our last home’s pantry.

I ended up finding quite a few great products for the job- they have been total game-changers in keeping the area looking tidy- especially now that it’s somewhat visible.

Here are a few things that were really helpful with organization:

Gold Wire Baskets - used here for baking supplies

Clear Plastic Canisters - for rice, beans, flour, sugar, etc.

Clear Tall-Sided Lazy Susans - I splurged for these tall-sided ones and am SO glad I did. Things don’t fall over/out of these and they are sturdy and spin well even with heavy glass bottles in them

Large Stacking Bins - for chips, cereal, anything large and bagged. I have LOVED these because they keep everything from falling over or on the floor. (These are out of stock at the time of this post 😫which breaks my heart because they are one of my favorite things! But, I’m linking some similar ones here.)

I also wanted to make the most of the space at the bottom of the pantry- and was happy to find a couple of shelving units that fit perfectly, along with a stool that easily folds and tucks away right inside the door.

White Shelves - these are actually shoe racks but work perfectly for the bottom of the pantry!

Foldable Step Stool - I will probably be buying more of these, haha- we all use this constantly.

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To create the labels for everything, I used my Cricut Joy and the mobile app. It was super simple and I filmed a short tutorial on how to do it below. One of my favorite things about the Joy is that it is so portable- so I literally set it up in my kitchen and cut everything straight from the app on my phone.

If you’ve never used the Cricut Mobile App before, don’t be intimidated- it is super intuitive and basically just like Design Space on the computer. Feel free to check out my tutorial below- but here are the basic steps:

Tools needed for this project:

Cricut Joy

Cricut Joy Design Space mobile app (free)

Weeder and Scraper

Joy Smart Vinyl - Permanent in the 2 colors of your choice

Cricut Transfer Tape

Scissors

1. Measure the spaces where you’ll put your labels. My canisters had the smallest available label space at about 1x3 inches, so I decided to make all the labels that size.

2. Create the black boxes using the shape tool. I made mine 1x3 inches, duplicated them, and cut them out on the Joy.

3. Type out your words in Design Space and ensure they are all sized to fit within the boxes you’ve cut. I used Market Street Fonts- Eloise in all caps for this project. Cut them out on the Joy.

4. Weed your words and use Cricut Transfer tape to place the words on the boxes. Labels are done!

5. Stick your labels on your stuff. Done!

This post contains affiliate links, on which I will receive a small commission should you purchase anything/sign up/subscribe etc. I would never share something I didn’t actually like or want to share with you, so I wanted to let you know. Sharing affiliate links affords me a few more lattes and it’s always my aim to add value to your life with the brands and products I share. Thanks for supporting me!

diy holiday gifts- foil name confetti ornaments with cricut joy

Are you team hodge-podge ornaments or team store-bought matching ornaments? Our tree is made up almost entirely of random, homemade ornaments going back to my childhood and I love that I get to relive those memories each year as we hang them on the tree. I’ve made my kids ornaments almost every year in hopes that one day they will have the same memories.

I’m honored to partner with Cricut this year to make some custom ornaments for my kiddos! When I first saw Cricut’s Party Foil in all it’s shiny, glittery goodness, I knew I wanted to figure out a fun, new way to use it.

This is a quick, beginner-level project that will hopefully teach you a few tricks in Cricut Design Space.

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This post is made in partnership with Cricut, a company I love and rave about on the regular! It also contains affiliate links to the products I mention here. These links help me keep creating fun things in this space, so when you click on one, it’s like a virtual high five- thank you!

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Supplies needed:

(These are affiliate links- when you use them to purchase, I receive a small commission, which helps me create more content for you!)

Cricut Joy

Cricut Joy Standard Grip Mat

Cricut Weeding Tools

Cricut Party Foil

Cricut Joy Smart Vinyl Shimmer (I used gold and silver)

Cricut Transfer Paper

Clear Ornaments

Confetti Mix (I used a combination of confetti from my local craft store)

Ribbon

Check out this video for the step-by-step tutorial:

If you create this project, I’d love for you to tag me @lissaanglin when you share it so I can see your beautiful creations!

5 reasons a cricut makes a great gift

I KNOW that a Cricut machine is on more than a few of my friends’ gift lists this year- and if that’s you- this post is not for you. :)

BUT- if you are one of those friends’ spouses or family or really wonderful friends- or you’re on the fence about whether or not you want to buy a Cricut- this post is for YOU!

I couldn’t understand what all the rage over Cricut was about when I first heard about them- was it just to cut out shapes or what? And then I started going down the YouTube Cricut craft video hole (I actually have a few here if you want to check them out!), and I was sold.

And now, I own the Cricut Air 2, Cricut Joy, and quite a few other Cricut products….let’s just say my craft closet could just be called my Cricut closet. :)

So- because I love a good list- here are my top 5 reasons a Cricut machine makes a great gift.

1. You’ll use it for more than you think. At first I thought a Cricut machine was just for cutting out things and making little cards, etc.- which it is, BUT THEN I realized I can make all sorts of amazing things with vinyl- signs and gifts, tshirts and home decor- you name it- you can probably make it with a Cricut. It can also cut a huge variety of materials including chipboard, acetate and even leather! Hellooooo cute leather earrings!

2. The software is super intuitive. If you’re intimidated by the computer/technology part, don’t be. The software itself is very intuitive and there are many tutorials online where you can learn. Plus, the Cricut design space offers lots of free fonts and design elements that help you put together the perfect project.

3. It makes everything more special. I don’t know about you, but I LOVE a gift that has been customized. Seeing my name (since it’s not very common) on something just makes it that much more special, and you can personalize EVERYTHING with a Cricut.

4. Very user-friendly. Did you know Cricut has a phone app? This means you don’t even need a computer to use it! I keep my Cricut Joy on my desk because it’s small and compact, and it connects via bluetooth so literally all I have to do is open it and start cutting!

5. It’s just fun! Let’s be honest- if you are a maker of any sort, you do it because it’s just fun. I consistently go back to Cricut projects because it so easy to make a quick, good-looking product that I enjoy creating.

Cricut regularly has specials on their new bundles and is consistently releasing really cool new products for different applications.

If I were just getting started, here’s what I would get:

Cricut Explore Air 2 Bundle

This bundle is going to get you started on all the basics. It can cut up to a 12 inches wide and a 100 different materials!

If you’re looking for something a little more compact, the Cricut Joy has become one of my go-tos! I use it more often than my Air 2 because it is just so covenient!

Cricut Joy

This little guy is perfect for quick, smaller projects like labels, stickers and cards. I have found SO many uses for it! Plus, it’s small and can easily have it’s home on a desk without taking up too much space. At a lower price point than the Explore, it’s a great starter machine.

Don’t forget to grab some:

Vinyl

Accessory Tools (worth it, I promise)

Transfer Tape

Cutting Mat

or just grab this great bundle of accessories!

This post contains affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission when you use my links to shop! Those little commissions add up to more fun content created here for you- which I sooooo appreciate.

Quirky People Planters with Cricut Joy

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Cricut. All opinions are 100% mine.

This post is made in partnership with Cricut, a company I love and rave about on the regular! It also contains affiliate links to the products I mention here. These links help me keep creating fun things in this space, so when you click on one, it’s like a virtual high five- thank you!

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I am a sucker for a quirky planter, and when my friend Emily shared some adorable planters that donned illustrated faces she got at Target, I rushed to the store to grab some. Upon arriving in the garden section, however, I realized that I was too late. Basically everything was on clearance, and it was slim pickens. 

So, what do I do? I’m in Target forgoodnesssake, I wander about the aisles looking for things I didn’t know I needed. :) And I came across this awesome display of plastic dinnerware. They had lots of fun colors- army green, navy, mint, rosy pink, rust red, black, and most of the pieces were .97. And I had an idea. 

15 minutes later, Target employees observed me stacking bowls of all shapes and sizes on their shelves. I’d found some white bowls that were a bit more expensive ($2), and was now incorporating them into my black and green collection. I’m sure they were annoyed and also wondering if I knew how a bowl worked.

My situation in the aisle at Target. There were so many options!

So I bought several and took them home, with the intention of creating my own little people planters. Guys, this project was super fun and really made easy with my Cricut Joy. And I’m sharing my Cricut files for FREE if you’d like to make some yourself!

What you’ll need:

• Plastic bowls (these I got from Target, any should work as long as they aren’t super thick), 2 per planter

• Drill with Spade Bit

• E600 Glue (or equivalent)

• Cricut Joy (any Cricut machine can make this project- but this one is perfect for the Joy!)

• Cricut Joy Smart Vinyl (I LOVE the smart vinyl. It is already perfectly sized for the Joy and doesn’t require a mat, which saves me a couple steps!) In this project, I used:

  • Permanent Black Smart Vinyl

  • Permanent White Smart Vinyl

  • Permanent Shimmer Gold Smart Vinyl

  • Permanent Holographic Threads Gold Smart Vinyl

  • Cricut Joy Transfer Tape

• Cricut Weeding Tool and Spatula (I used to try to get by without these two items- NOT worth it! They make life so much easier and quicker- plus have you seen this new gold set?!)

• Potting Soil & Plants

Let’s get started!

First, you’ll need to decide the configuration of your planters- I did a combination of sizes and colors, but in the end, my personal faves were the symmetrical, same-colored ones. Let your imagination run wild!

Next, glue your bowls together. There is no magic here- just literally put glue on the bottom of one of the bowls and press them together. The E6000 is great at gluing literally anything together, and is watertight, so it won’t be bothered by watering later. Just make sure you get enough on there to create a good seal without it spilling over. I left the bowls like this for about 24 hours just to ensure that the glue had dried completely before drilling.

Next, drill some drainage holes in the bowls. You will want to use a spade bit, which has a sharper point in the middle that widens to create a larger hole. I used a 3/8 size here. If you’ve never used one of these before, don’t be intimidated! Make sure you have a sturdy surface and you are able to center yourself and the drill over the bowls. The more pliable the plastic, the easier it will be to drill through- but even if you have a harder plastic bowl, it should still work.

I ended up doing only 2 holes on the rest of the bowls because I felt like it was plenty of drainage.

Next, it’s time to cut your people illustrations! I created mine using the Procreate app on my iPad pro- but you could also create your own in the Cricut Design Space. If you’d like to recreate some of my quirky people, I’m linking them here for you- free!

My kids named all the characters so you can thank them for that. :) Click on any image below and it will take you to the appropriate file in Cricut Design Space.

Fred Cricut File

Quirky People Planter Cricut File

Jeff Cricut File

Quirky People Planter Cricut File

Curly Shirley

Cricut File

Quirky People Planter Cricut File

Captain Erica Cricut File

Quirky People Planter Cricut File

Bart Cricut File

Quirky People Planter Cricut File

Once you click on the file link you would like to create, you will need to size it to fit your pot. The face and shirt files are combined into the same file, but I applied them to the planter separately- even separating sleeves from buttons and collars, so that I could place them where I wanted.

Measure the height of the top bowl so that you can appropriately size your face to fit. I didn’t worry so much about the width of the face, since it can curve around the bowl. I used a sewing tape measure for this. Most of the face files ended up being around 3 inches in height. If it became too wide for the Joy (wider than 5 inches), I simply rotated it so that it fit within the size constraints of the Joy.

Do the same for the bottom of your planter with the shirt and sleeves portions. If they became too tall for the bowl, I just folded it over the edge or cut the vinyl to fit when I placed it.

As I mentioned before, the Cricut Joy makes this process really easy- especially if you are using Smart Vinyl. It’s already the perfect width for the Joy and doesn’t require a mat, so that’s one less step in the creation process!

The Fred file cut and weeded. I separated the different parts- including each sleeve so that I could place them right where I wanted to.

You can see how I placed them separately here- I always started at the bottom where the hands are and went up- if the vinyl was too long, I just cut it.

A little tip on placing things on rounded edges: I found it helpful to cut some slits in the transfer tape so that the vinyl would not fold or bubble when placing it. I also used the Cricut spatula to get the vinyl pressed down in the seam of the bowls.

To keep it simple, I did one color of vinyl on each person, but you could easily mix it up! I used black on Fred, white on Curly Shirley and Bart, shimmer gold on Jeff, and the new holographic gold on Captain Erica (don’t you love the names my kids gave them?!)

Quirky people all done and ready for some plants!

Once you’re done, it’s time for some plants. I used mostly succulents and moss rose for the ladies. It was so much fun creating their “hair” plants. You will want to add a saucer underneath these to catch the water should you use them inside.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this tutorial- and would love to see your creations- tag me @lissaanglin on any social!

custom marble sticker DIY

Anyone else a sucker for good packaging? I know I have purchased things solely because of the pretty package- and when it comes to the products I make and sell, I like to package them special, too.

I’m teaming up with a few other crafting + lifestyle bloggers to share a quick and easy little DIY I use for my business today- custom marble stickers! I use these stickers to package my creations and add a little extra love. They’re also perfect for packaging any type of gifts and I’ve made similar ones for baby and wedding showers, teacher gifts, etc.

Materials Needed:

• Cricut Cutting Machine- I am using my Cricut Joy, which is perfect for a small batch of stickers like this

• Cricut Extra Fine Point Pen

• Sticker Paper- here is the kind I love and use. I use the waterproof matte inkjet in the 8.5x11 size.

• Watercolors & brush

• Isopropyl Alcohol

• Eyedropper (you can also use a paintbrush if you don’t have one)

Click HERE if you want to use my exact design file in the Cricut Design space!

That’s it! This project is a relaxing one- I love getting to do the actual marble paint on the stickers- it is a pretty foolproof method and using the alcohol to create the marble effect is a lot of fun. Then, I use the draw and cut features on my Cricut Joy to give them a professional look.

Check out my video below with the step-by-step guide.

So go out and make yourself some stickers! And please tag me @lissaanglin on any social sites so I can see your beautiful work!

Head over to these blogs to see what they have created and how they use Cricut for their blogs!

Kay @ Kay’s Daily Insight:

kaysdailyinsight.com

Instagram.com/kaysdailyinsight

Bria Snyder:

briasnyder.com

Instagram.com/Bria.snyder

Mama Llama Llama:

mamallamallama.com

Instagram.com/mamallama.llama

Emily @ Emily Plus Twins:

emilyplustwins.wordpress.com

www.instagram.com/emilyplustwins/

paper flower crown tutorial with cricut!

The blooms in our flower bed are finally starting to appear after what feels like a very long winter- which means spring is here! The beautiful weather we’ve been experiencing has been such a beam of hope for me, as we’ve been quarantined in our home now for almost a month due to COVID-19. While I’m thankful we are healthy and home, our hands have needed something to keep us from going stir crazy!

So when the new Cricut Joy arrived in the mail last week, I couldn’t wait to start making with it. I was able to check out this machine at Alt Summit last month, and you guys- it is the perfect little cutting tool!

Top Two reasons I love it:

1. The smaller size of it makes it perfect to keep permanently on your desk. It connects to your computer via Bluetooth, so it also doesn’t use up another USB port nor does it need to be in a super close range to your computer- just close enough for Bluetooth to connect. :) It’s just cute. I love the design of it- the blue is cheerful and modern.

2. It cuts and writes just like a larger Cricut, except it’s perfect for small jobs, like labels and cards. I know I’ve thought twice about pulling out my machine just to make a couple small labels. With the Joy, it’s already on my desktop and it’s quick and accessible. LOVE THAT convenience.

   You can check out the Cricut Joy here- they’ve put together some bundles that are perfect for label and card making!

Now let’s make some flower crowns!

These are perfect for your littles, or even yourself! Of course, the flowers used in this tutorial can be made into anything you can dream up.

Paper Flower Crowns

The materials needed for this project are pretty simple, and if you have a Cricut Cutting machine, you’ll likely have everything else you need in your craft closet as well.

The watercolor and watercolor paper is totally optional in this tutorial- you can easily use some of the pretty patterned paper the Cricut makes and avoid painting. I love watercolor, though- and the method I use here to paint is beginner-friendly, so don’t be intimidated!

Materials:

• Cricut Joy

• Cricut Joy mat and weeder, scraper

• Watercolor Paper (I used Artist’s Loft Level 2 Cold Press Heavy Weight 9x12 pad)

• Watercolors (my favorite watercolors here, but any you have will work)

• Watercolor Brush

• Decorative Ribbon (I used 3/8 polyester ribbon I had laying around)

• Hot Glue Gun

• Scissors

• Paper Towel

Links to my flower files in the Cricut Design Space:

3D Daisy and Leaves

3D Peony

Check out my tutorial below!

I’d love to see your flower crowns, or any other projects you create with my flower files! Be sure to tag me @lissaanglin on any social platform so I can ooh and aah over your creations.