Making A Puzzle With A Cereal Box & A Cricut Air 2 & Free Puzzle SVGS


Today [January 2020] I made puzzles with my cricut air 2, sticker paper, and cereal boxes.    It's a fun project, and these will make great valentines!

 Quick Tips

I started with this puzzle, found here: 

There are a list of more free puzzle svgs at the bottom of this post, and there's also a puzzle generator you can use to make your own - it saves as an  svg!


When I uploaded this free puzzle svg, it came with a blue box.  My first instinct was to delete it, but it's the perfect size for slicing your photo. 
 Either ungroup and keep it separate

 (Attach, or at the very least keep your puzzle pieces grouped)

I moved the puzzle pieces over my photo and resized my photo so that I liked where the cuts fell.



Then I moved the box over the photo and sliced, making the photo the same size as all of the puzzle pieces.  

You could skip this step I think - just pull off the extra when it cuts and throw them out, but I liked seeing what I was working with.


Select all, then at the top of the screen choose align, then choose center

Make sure the photo is sent to the front, then click select all and attach.
You cannot see the puzzle pieces, but if they are attached, they will cut.



This is what the screen looks like when I click make it.  


When I go to print, I always make sure the "Use System Dialog" is ON.  

It appears to always be off by default in cricut.  If it is on, your printer dialog box will pop up, and you can make sure your preferences are set to best.  

(Since I use HP Instant ink, the cost is the same whether I am printing draft or best quality - I pay by the page, not by the amount of ink used.)


I used a Lucky Charms box - any cereal box will do.

You want to put the sticker on top of the colored part of the box.  This is for two reasons:

1. It will make the back of your puzzle plain cardboard

2. The machine will cut better if it works through the "glossier" layer at the top, and not at the bottom.


I stuck a piece of scrap sticker paper on the box to see how much the color shows through. I was surprised by how well the paper covered the design. 

 Since the photo is color, it hid the design even better than the plain white - you cannot tell, on the finished puzzle, that there is a design behind the photo.


Once I applied the sticker paper to the box, I cut roughly around the outside to make it fit on the mat.  Remember, do NOT cut off that black border!  Cricut needs that border, it's how the sensors know exactly where to cut the design.

I love the quality of my printer.  :-)


Cut Settings:
I used the Deep Cut Blade - even though the chipboard option does not give the option for that blade.  For my next one I will try the regular fine point blade to see if it makes a difference.  I know I can cut most faux leather better with the fine point blade than with the deep cut blade!

I turned my dial to custom, then on my computer screen found the chipboard option.  That option automatically cuts twice, but twice didn't seem to quite be enough, so when the cut was finished

WITHOUT REMOVING THE MAT FROM THE MACHINE

I pushed the c button again (even though the arrow was flashing)
and cricut repeated the exact same cut in the exact same spot - making it a total of 4 cuts.


 And it cut beautifully!!


To remove it from the mat, I flipped the mat upside down and peeled the mat away from the puzzle, just as I do for every paper project.


If you choose to mod podge the pieces, be sure to do that with the puzzle in pieces. 
 If you mod podge over the completed puzzle, you will effectively be gluing it back together.

I took it apart and put it back together several times - the pieces hold up well!


Free Puzzle SVGS:










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Find More Cricut Project Tutorials Here:

https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2019/04/cricut-step-by-step-project-tutorials.html


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Kids Crafts To Make With Cricut

https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2020/08/cricut-crafts-for-kids.html

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Making A Rolled Paper Flower Wreath

How to make a rolled paper flower wreath
Quick Tips:
  • 10 Inch Foam Wreath Form from The Dollar Tree
  • I used the free rolled flower svg found here.  
  • 17 Sheets of  8.5 x11 paper .
  • Roughly 85 flowers. (It will vary based on how tightly you roll the flowers  - and although it sounds like an insane amount, they come together really quickly!)
  • Quick Dry Tacky Glue (although hot glue would work too!)
  • It took me three days to complete - but I worked on it VERY sporadically while watching tv, or having the flowers cut while I folded laundry.  Really, it didn't take nearly as long as I expected.

I used the free rolled flower svg found here.   I used the one that is shown in blue here. It's named "Simple Flower"   There are SOOOOOO many free svgs for rolled paper flowers.

Find a list here:

These packs of paper are frequently around $3, or less,  on sale at Michaels.
Construction paper does not work well in cricut - it's too fibrous.  But most cardstock works just fine.  Recollections from Michaels and Paper Studio from Hobby Lobby are my go to favorites, because those stores are my closest craft store options.  :-)

3.749 W by 3.71 H
I left the flower template sized exactly as it uploaded - which is 3.749 wide.  I'm confident you could make them just a bit smaller to fit 6 on a page, but the paper from Michaels is so cheap, I didn't mind a little waste to make them the larger size.

Once cut, you roll starting with the outside edge.
Start twisting it on to itself starting at the outside edge. When you get to the inside end, wrap the last little bit underneath the bottom of the flower and put a big dot of glue on it.

Press the rest of the flower down on to it and pinch the flower together, holding both the top and the bottom, until it becomes "stable"  - meaning it holds together and all the layers do not pop up

 Because I was unsure how many flowers I would need, I made 25 at a time.  I ended up using about 85 flowers, which sounds like so impossibly many, but it really went fairly quickly!  I rolled them while watching tv.

I used a quick dry tacky glue - because I had it on hand, and I didn't want to plug the hot glue gun in in my living room.  It worked really well.  The glue dried clear.
https://amzn.to/3awykfI

Since I made this a couple of years ago, I have tried Art Glitter Glue, which, along with Bearly Art Glue, are recommended by most paper crafters.  I love how easy it is to apply with the fine tip, but I was soon frustrated by how often the tip clogged up.  For most of my paper crafting these days, I use a cordless hot glue gun, or Elmers Precision Craft Tip glue.  It comes in little tubes, is very inexpensive, can be purchased in almost every store, and almost  never clogs up for me.  I don't know if it would dry quick enough for this project though - hot glue would definitely be my preferred choice if I were to make this again.

I used a 10 inch foam "floral ring" wreath form.
If I had thought of it when at the store, I would have purchased red ribbon to wrap around it.  Since I did not think of it, I instead took some red fabric from my sewing stash and ripped it into strips, which I then wrapped around the wreath form.

I was not extremely consistent in how tightly I rolled my flowers.  Paper crafts are never my strong point, and yet although not perfect, I found this project to be pretty easy.  In other words, if I can do it, I'm pretty sure anyone can.  :-)

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Free svgs & Templates for Rolled & Other Small Paper Flowers
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New Book Releases, January 2020

New Book Releases, January 2020
Sorted By Genre
New Books are typically released on Tuesdays 


Historical Fiction
   

 Turn To Stone is Book 7 in The Ellie Stone series by James W. Ziskin.  Historical fiction, Turn To Stone is a locked room mystery, set in Italy in the 1960s.  I'm not sure how I have never heard of this series before, but I really look forward to reading it.  The books all review well on Goodreads, with a style compared to Agatha Christie.  https://amzn.to/36bvN7m

 The Words I Never Wrote  by Jane Thynne "A chance discovery inside a vintage typewriter case reveals the gripping story of two sisters on opposite sides of World War II in this captivating novel for readers of Lilac Girls and The Women in the Castle." https://amzn.to/2ReGJwx

 The Vineyards Of Champagne by Juliet Blackwell.  This is a dual time line book, switching between current day, and WWII.  During WWII, a group of women hid in the caves below a vineyard, to hide from the bombing and "shellfire" from above.  In present day, Rosalyn Acosta has recently lost her husband, and is sent to the vineyard by her employer, to select wines.  "Rosalyn finds it a challenge to enjoy anything at all. But as she reads through a precious cache of WWI letters and retraces the lives lived in the limestone tunnels, Rosalyn will unravel a mystery hidden for decades...and find a way to savor her own life again." https://amzn.to/2RA8UVW
Remembrance, By Rita Woods, is described an incredibly unique.    It appears to cover 4 time lines, telling a story of women from Haiti to the US, with the themes of slavery, and  a bit of paranormal/spiritual abilities.  Some reviews mention that it is "Historical Fiction Meets Fantasy".

"Remembrance…It’s a rumor, a whisper passed in the fields and veiled behind sheets of laundry. A hidden stop on the underground road to freedom, a safe haven protected by more than secrecy…if you can make it there.

Ohio, present day. An elderly woman who is more than she seems warns against rising racism as a young woman grapples with her life.

Haiti, 1791, on the brink of revolution. When the slave Abigail is forced from her children to take her mistress to safety, she discovers New Orleans has its own powers.

1857 New Orleans―a city of unrest: Following tragedy, house girl Margot is sold just before her 18th birthday and her promised freedom. Desperate, she escapes and chases a whisper.... Remembrance." https://amzn.to/38sQwVH 


 See also -
One Good Deed by David Baldacci. (In mysteries & Thrillers)

Earlier This Month:
All the ways We Said Goodbye - By Beatriz Williams,  Lauren Willig, & Karen White.  Taking place after WWII, into the 1960s, it is about the lives of three women with broken hearts who take refuge in the Paris Ritz Hotel.



Mysteries & Thrillers:

 

No Mercy by Joanna Schauffhausen, is the follow up to Vanishing Season.  In Vanishing season we met Ellery Hathaway, a survivor of a serial killer who is now a police officer, and the FBI agent who had saved her 17 years earlier.  In No Mercy, the two return, tackling two dangerous new mysteries.
https://amzn.to/2GcOUDw

The Nowhere Child by Christian White  was Christian White's first book, about an Australian teacher who learns she was in fact a child born in Kentucky and kidnapped as a child. https://amzn.to/2TJNWGx  It appears to have been picked up by a new publisher, and shows the same release date as his new novel, The Wife & The Widow.

The Wife & The Widow by Christian White - "Set against the backdrop of an eerie island town in the dead of winter, The Wife and The Widow is an unsettling thriller told from two perspectives: Kate, a widow whose grief is compounded by what she learns about her dead husband’s secret life; and Abby, an island local whose world is turned upside when she’s forced to confront the evidence of her husband’s guilt. But nothing on this island is quite as it seems, and only when these women come together can they discover the whole story about the men in their lives." https://amzn.to/38pCzrx



  

One Good Deed by David Baldacci.  "In this fast-paced historical thriller, #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci introduces Archer, a WWII veteran forced to investigate a small-town murder -- or risk returning to prison." https://amzn.to/37gdjUm (Baldacci & Patterson are two of the notable exceptions to the rule that books are released on Tuesdays.  One Good Deed is due to be released Thursday the 23rd)

The Blaze, by Chad Dundus.  "One man knows the connection between two extraordinary acts of arson, fifteen years apart, in his Montana hometown--if only he could remember it.
Having lost much of his memory from a traumatic brain injury sustained in Iraq, army veteran Matthew Rose is called back to Montana after his father's death to settle his affairs, and hopefully to settle the past as well. It's not only a blank to him, but a mystery. Why as a teen did he suddenly become sullen and vacant, abandoning the activities and people that had meant most to him? How did he, the son of hippy activists, wind up enlisting in the first place?" https://amzn.to/36ahLTv

Devil, Darling, Spy By Matt Killeen -" In this utterly gripping thriller, Sarah, the fearless heroine of indie bestseller Orphan Monster Spy, hunts a rogue German doctor in Central Africa who might be a serial murderer." https://amzn.to/2NKGLub



  
All Fall Down By James Brabazon is book two in a British Spy Thriller series.  https://amzn.to/2G8j8ar

House On Fire by Joseph Finder is book 4 in the Nick Heller private investigrator series. "Nick Heller is tough, smart, and stubborn. And in his line of work, it's essential. Trained in the Special Forces, Nick is a high-powered intelligence investigator--exposing secrets that powerful people would rather keep hidden" https://amzn.to/2RfPC92

Kidnapped on Safari by Peter Riva .  "The third book in the Mbuno & Pero series pulls terror from headlines to create a gripping international thriller for readers of John le Carré, Daniel Silva, and Iris Johansen. Expert safari guide Mbuno and wildlife television producer Pero Baltazar are filming on Lake Rudolf in Northern Kenya, East Africa, when they receive news that Mbuno’s son, himself an expert guide, has been kidnapped while on a safari five hundred miles away in Tanzania. After gathering the clues and resources needed to trek through the wilderness, they trace the kidnappers back to an illegal logging operation clear-cutting national park forests, manned by sinister Boko Haram mercenaries. There, they find not only Mbuno's son but also a shocking revelation that has terrifying and far-reaching consequences." https://amzn.to/3axRul8

When You See Me
Book 11 in the D.D. Warren series by Lisa Gardner
Released January 28 2020

Hindsight - Book 7 in the Kendra Michaels Series by Iris Johanson  & Roy Johanson https://amzn.to/38rvJld

The Better Liar by Tanen Jones -   "An electric, twisted portrait of sisterhood and the ties that bind, The Better Liar is a stunning debut with a heart-stopping, twist-after-twist finale that will beg the question: How far would you go to get what’s yours?"

The Tenant by Karen Endberg -" An electrifying work of literary suspense from international bestselling author Katrine Engberg, this stunning debut introduces two police detectives struggling to solve a shocking murder and stop a killer hell-bent on revenge."

Cozy Mysteries:
 

Careless Whiskers by Miranda James - book 12 in the Cat In The Stacks series, about librarian Charlie Harris, and his maine coon cat.  https://amzn.to/2TJT7WZ

Naked Came The Florida Man by Tim Dorsey - Book 23 in the humorous Serge Storm series https://amzn.to/2RFVaJd

The Mitford Murders by Jessica Fellowes.  The Mitford Murders Book 3.  "In the third book in the Mitford Murders series, lady's maid Louisa Cannon accompanies Diana Mitford into a turbulent late 1920s Europe." https://amzn.to/38sEcoe

There's Murder A Foot By Vicki Delaney - Book 5 in the Sherlock Holmes BookShop Series https://amzn.to/2TI2d6D

Come Homicide Or High Water by Denise Swanson - Book 3 in the Scumble River Series
Buried To The Brim by Jenn McKinley - Book 6 in the Hat Shop Mysteries



Find a full list of this months cozy mystery releases here:
https://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/soon-to-be-released-mysteries


Horror
Richard Chizmar and Stephen King cowrote a novella titled "Gwendy's Button Box".  This book, Gwendy's Magic Feather, is the sequel, written by Chizmar.  Gwendy's Magic Feather - by Richard Chizmar.


Humor

Heart Of Junk By Luke Geddes "A hilarious debut novel about an eclectic group of merchants at a Kansas antique mall who become implicated in the kidnapping of a local beauty pageant star." "Equally comical and suspenseful, Heart of Junk is also a biting commentary on our current Marie Kondo era. It examines why certain objects resonate with us so deeply, rebukes Kondo’s philosophy of wholesale purging, and argues that “junk” can have great value—connecting us not only to our personal pasts but to our shared human history" https://amzn.to/2TIXTUJ

See also - Naked Came The Florida Man by Tim Dorsey , in Cozy Mysteries
I put this between humor and fiction, because from the reviews, it's pretty hard to describe.
Eoin Colfer wrote the wildly popular Artemis Fowl books, so when I heard his new book was about a dragon, I assumed this would be another YA book.  But apparently it is not.  It's described as hysterically funny fantasy.  And did I mention it's about a dragon? 


Fiction
   

Wife After Wife by Olivia Hayfield - A modern retelling of the trials and tribulations of the most infamous historical playboy of them all, Henry VIII.  https://amzn.to/37hfKpL

Recipe For A Perfect Wife by Karma Brown - "In this captivating dual narrative novel, a modern-day woman finds inspiration in hidden notes left by her home’s previous owner, a quintessential 1950s housewife. As she discovers remarkable parallels between this woman’s life and her own, it causes her to question the foundation of her own relationship with her husband--and what it means to be a wife fighting for her place in a patriarchal society." https://amzn.to/36die7n


  

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummings is the book being talked about everywhere right now.  One reviewer called it "The Where The Crawdads Sing" of 2020 - and yet there is no similarity between the stories, only the popularity.  "American Dirt is the harrowing story of a mother and child fleeing Mexico after 16 members of their family have been slaughtered. "  https://amzn.to/30RfKKZ    I've read the descrtption, and this is not something I would normally choose.  Then I saw it was an Oprah's Book Club pick - and I almost never like anything Oprah chooses - we have very different taste in books.  And yet the reviews on this, and the people talking about it, are so intriguing, that despite all of that, I just may make time for this one this year.

Follow Me To Ground by Sue Rainsford has been touted as one of the most anticipated releases of 2020 - and it has reviewed well by those who received advance copies.  But no one seems to know exactly how to describe the book.  Fantasy?  Romance?  Horror?  All everyone can seem to agree with is that it was gripping.  https://amzn.to/2vaniMZ

The Majesties - by Tiffany Tsao.  "Traveling from the luxurious world of the rich and powerful in Indonesia to the most spectacular shows at Paris Fashion Week, from the sunny coasts of California to the melting pot of Melbourne’s university scene, The Majesties is a haunting and deeply evocative novel about the dark secrets that can build a family empire—and also bring it crashing down." https://amzn.to/37jzV6w

Earlier This Month - 
This Is Not How It Ends by Rachel Weinstein.  A story of a woman torn between two love stories.

Dear Edward by Ann Napilatano.  (A New York Times Bestseller) A novel about a young boy who is the only survivor of an airplane crash, and how he finds his place in the world.

Young Adult
  
The Will And The Wilds by Charlie N. Holmberg - A spellbinding story of truce and trickery from the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Paper Magician series.
https://amzn.to/36dq2G7

The Conference Of Birds - by Ransom Riggs.  Book 5 in the Miss Peregine's Peculiar Children Series

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord.  A witty romantic comedy.  https://amzn.to/2GnmJBX

What I Carry by Jennifer Longo - About a girl about to age out of the foster care system.

Earlier this month - One Of Us Is Next, The Sequel to One Of Us is Lying, by Karen McManus
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Coming Next Month: (All Genres)



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