bodner033

LOOK what this machine can do!  It's so much more artistic than I am!  :-) For quite awhile now, I've been testing out fonts that write as handwriting fonts in cricut .  FREE fonts, that do not outline when used in the writing feature.  I've found 22 of them, and I've been happy playing with those. But today I learned something new.  The cricut will also write FUN fonts.  Drawing fonts.  I don't need any signs right this minute, but when I DO need a sign, this is going to be fun. When I posted this on a cricut facebook group, immediately I got comments that the cricut would not draw these like shown above.    But my cricut DID draw what is shown above - that's a photo of the results!  My cricut air 2 drew those, I took a picture of the paper it drew on.  I know - I didn't believe it would work either - but it does!! FREE Fonts Used: (click on links to download) Urban Cuisine Sketch 3D Cast Iron Good Morning Zengo Orange Juice   (this one takes extra long to

Cliff Notes Version - I LOVE the Leisure Arts Markers!  18 double ended (so both thin and thick) markers for around $5 at Wal-Mart - and they fit in the machine perfectly and write beautifully.  I also LOVE the Precise V5 pen, which I add in an update below.  Crayola does not fit as perfectly - but they do work great, and were the best on fabric. Today I set out to compare marker options for my Cricut Air 2.  I wanted SIMPLE options.  I do not want to take my machine apart, use pencil grips, wrap masking tape around pens, or buy adapters.  These are all options I may eventually explore - but for the amount of writing I do, I'd really prefer to keep this super simple. I stopped at Wal-Mart and bought thin Crayola Markers, thin sharpies, and a pack of Leisure Arts double ended markers.  The Leisure Arts Markers were not in the pen aisle, nor in the crayola aisle, but rather in the back of the store in a craft area.  I believe others have found them with the adult coloring books, near

In part one of this post, I covered how to find, download, unzip, install and back up your fonts.  You care read all of that here:    http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/12/all-about-fonts-text-in-cricut-design.html    If you skip the first post, at least make sure you know about  https://wordmark.it/   Word mark it is a website that shows you your text in every font installed on your device.  This makes it SO much faster to choose a font for your project. Using Fonts In Design Space Often fonts are not named what we think they are, so when you try to find them in design space, you won't see it.  Examples - the I Love Glitter font is actually MF I love glitter - so it starts with an M, not an I.  The Skinny font (the font used for Rae Dunn knock offs) is THE Skinny, not skinny, so it starts with a T, not an s.  Spacing Although you can use system fonts in Design Space, DS will not read most of the prettier fonts properly. ( DS does not properly read font kerning) You can adjust

Cliff Notes Version: Download your fonts from a site like Dafont.com.  They will almost always download as a .zip file Unzip them.  Use a program like WInzip or 7-Zip. Copy the OTF or TTF file to the fonts folder on your computer (for ipad users, there's an app called AnyFont for adding new fonts. ) Open Design Space, add a text box and find your font under "system fonts".  Sometimes, rarely, you will have to restart your computer for the fonts to show up. Or possibly just close the browser and open a new one. The Long, Wordy, Step By Step, Instructions: Fonts are installed on your device, not opened in Design Space. This is the most common newbie question "I downloaded fonts from Dafont, but I can't open them in Design space, what am I doing wrong?" You don't open fonts in design space.  You use fonts in design space, but only fonts that are already installed on your device.  (Or fonts that are already included in design space) If you download a font o

Etched Cookie Plates for Our Neighbors The Cliff Note Version: 1. I use Armor Etch Etching Cream, for about 15 minutes. 2. Cricut vinyl - 631 vinyl - worked best for my stencils 3. Plates were $2 each at Big Lots 4. Split Monograms were free from Cayuda Designs 5. Don't forget to mirror!!     This is one of those projects that I started at 7am, thought I'd be done by 10am, and actually completed around 7pm.  But once I got the process down, it really went fast.   First I tried to use contact paper from the Dollar Tree as my stencil.  But it was too thin, and too clear to weed.  Then I tried 651, but I got part of it stuck onto a plate before I was ready and it was super hard to remove (even though it takes days to fully cure and be permanent).  Then I tried cardstock - but that's a pain, because the centers of my letters do not adhere, they move around.... and I tried the acetate that I bought for the acetate christmas ornaments (I had bought a pack that was NOT for the ink