Wahoo for freebies! This printable was designed my my awesome friend Rebekah. Not only did she create the printable above, but she has some sweet new products out as well.

Rebekah is a master graphic designer.  Seriously.  She learned how to create beautiful images using Paint.  Yes, I’m talking about the old school computer program you probably played around with in your elementary school years.  She continues to wow me with her beautiful creations.  You may remember her temple artwork from a previous post.  She has recently teamed up with her sister to create an exquisite line of products in their newly launched Etsy shop, Schwen&Dieter.

My favorite item from their new line is this gorgeous “MOMents” journal
It’s purpose is to make it quick and easy to remember the sweet little things that happen on a daily basis.
It’s been a game changer for me because it makes the task of journaling so simple and quick.  I love having one and plan on using them for future mother’s day gifts and baby shower gifts as well. I love that they come already printed, so I don’t have to do all the work printables usually require.

Their other new item has been one of Rebekah’s dreams to create ever since she was a teenager.  It’s the complete Personal Progress booklet, just in beautiful journal format.

  It’s a great way to get your girls excited about completing their Personal Progress.  As my mother always said, “Presentation is everything.”  And this booklet is really quite inspiring just to look at.  And again, it’s already printed and ready to go for you! Take a look at how cute it is!

And finally, the freebie we all know you came for!  The super cute printable Personal Progress Tracker can be found here.

And, use code Kara10 to get 10% off these items!

 

Today is my first official pattern review.  I chose Simplicity D0767–Because sometimes, you just want to feel like a princess, and this skirt does just that.
Since I’m not a professionally trained seamstress, my pattern reviews are going to be pretty straightforward and share my general experience with the pattern I’m reviewing. I got my pattern while perusing the aisles at JOANN. It spoke to me.  It was like, “Hey girl, you want to feel awesome?  Then you need me in your life!”

For my fabric, I chose some rust colored charmeuse fabric. You can get some similar fabric here (affiliate link)

Overall difficulty on Simplicity D0767
The hardest thing about this pattern was simply cutting the pieces because they are so large. You will need a lot of space to lay out the pieces in order to cut them as accurately as possible. I recommend using a rotary cutter as well as some weights (I use metal washers from Home Depot) to keep your cuts nice and smooth. I ended up using my carpeted floor as my work space, and I just carefully shifted my cutting board under the pieces as I moved along. If you have a ginormous desk or hardwood floor to work on, that will be especially helpful. Other than the cutting, the skirt is pretty straightforward and relatively easy to sew.

Helpful Skills for Sewing Simplicity D0767
Obviously the fabric you use for this pattern will have a huge role in how it needs to be constructed. For the purpose of my review, I’m going to assume you are using a satiny fabric like I did.
French Seams: Because charmeuse is a woven textile prone to fraying, I enclosed the raw edges by sewing my seams as French seams.
Narrow hem: I enclosed the raw edge of the fabric in the hem by turning it up twice. I believe this is called a double-turn hem, a rolled hem, or a narrow hem, and can be easily achieved by a narrow hem foot (Lifesavers. Seriously, I have 3 at home!). They take a bit of practice to figure out, so I recommend trying it on some scratch pieces before you do it on the actual skirt.

Tips for success with Simplicity D0767
-If you are new to narrow hem feet, be sure to pick up some fray check to seal any portions of raw edges that might not make it through the foot properly.

-I was scared to use heat on my fabric and ended up not using enough to properly fuse my waistband interfacing to my lining.  As a result, my initial waistband was wrinkly and droopy.  I had to remove it, readhere the interfacing, and sew it all over again.  So make sure you get it nice and fused before you attach the waistband.  The skirt is heavy due to the amount of fabric, so you need good waist support.

-Instead of using a button or a hook, I attached some KamSnaps to my skirt.  I got this set from Amazon and they are so easy to use and so durable!  I love them.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of JOANN. The opinions and text are all mine.

I’ve seen a ton of cute bathroom wall art on Pinterest lately, and I decided it was time to make some of my own. Most of my Cricut projects in the past have been largely done with iron-ons or vinyl. Today I want to switch it up by doing one with paper. This makes the project a little more budget friendly. Plus, I got the frames from the dollar store, so all in all, this project cost me about $8 all in.
You can buy everything for this project at JOANN, including the frames if you want something that is more durable than the dollar store frames.
Materials:
-Frames
-Marble paper
–Gold foil paper
-Black paper

To make this easy for you, I have the pdf file of what I printed here. I printed the words on the marble sheets, then added the gold foil cuts.

Here’s what the marble paper looked like after I printed the text on it.

For the decals, I used the free online program, Canva.  You guys, Canva and Cricut make the perfect marriage when it comes to crafting.  I use them hand in hand all the time.  For examples, see here or here.

If you want to use the same decals I did, you can download the image here, then upload it in Cricut Design Space as a cut file.  If you don’t know how to do this, you can watch this video tutorial I did a while back.

To apply the decals to the paper, I used really thin layers of modpodge applied with a paintbrush.

For the unisex bathroom sign, I used this image.  I originally cut it in all black, but later decided to make the separation line gold instead.

And here are the final results!  I ended up trimming my marble paper a little bit more and adding some gold foil in the background to make it pop.

Summary:

If you are still using an older version of the Cricut Explore family, you may want to consider upgrading to the Cricut Explore Air 2.  Here are a few reasons why.

• Bluetooth for wireless cutting.  This is huge for me because I’m constantly switching between my phone, iPad, and laptop for design space.  It’s so nice to not have to plug in an assortment of cords everytime I switch what I’m using.
• Two tool holders.  If you are doing more than just cutting, like scoring or writing, it’s super nice to just load the machine once and go.
• Works with your current cartridges.  Your current cartridges will still work great with the Cricut Explore Air 2.
• Faster Cutting and Writing.  If you’ve ever made several copies of something, like birthday invitations with your Cricut, you know it can take forever.  With the Explore Air 2, you can cut those babies up to 2 times faster.
• New colors.  Okay,  I admit, this reason is a bit superficial, but I’m just a really big fan of the new Wisteria color.