Vicki's Dueling Dragons

For this project, I wanted to highlight some of the neat things that can be done with the Cricut Expression and Design Studio. This is a two page layout that I created based on a Page Maps layout. I love to use Page Maps to develop my pages - it gives me a great starting off point and I can adjust as I need to based on the number of pictures I have! This layout is based on the January 2008 Page Maps: http://www.pagemaps.com/jan08maps.htm.

This layout calls for a coordinated set of papers and embellishments...but I didn't have anything in my crafty arsenal that really felt like it fit...and I knew I wanted to use my stash rather than go out and buy more stuff. Because my layout is of my son on a roller coaster, I knew I wanted something 'swirly' so I turned to my Storybook cartridge to find the perfect accents. Once I found the main embellishment (Accent Frame Swirl), I decided to play around with Design Studio, and I created a butterfly using the corner swirl from that same key, plus an oval from George! The title "Deuling Dragons" is also cut from the Storybook cartridge.


These pictures are pretty busy...so I didn't want to use a highly patterned paper, but I wanted it to match like the layout showed. I remembered that I have the markers that go in the Cricut blade housing, and got a great idea to make MY OWN patterned paper. I used the same Accent Frame Swirl that I had already cut, and added it several times to my page, arranging them throughout a 12x12 page, flipping and turning along the way. Instead of the blade, I put a marker in the housing, and DREW the pattern rather than cut it. (NOTE: this design takes a LONG TIME to draw...so be patient!) The end result was a custom patterned paper and coordinating accents to make my layout shine! I included the .cut files so you can see how I did it. A sample full sheet photo in white is shown here, so you can get an idea of what the full page looks like.



All these items can be purchased from Cutters Creek:
Cricut Expression
Cricut Design Studio
Cricut Color Inks - Primary (ON SALE NOW 50% OFF!)
Storybook Cartridge
Glue Glider Pro

Butterfly File

Swirl Background File