Conversation Hearts Garland

Silhouette Studio's Print and Cut feature lets you create cute heart garlands

When I first got my Silhouette Cameo, I thought it only cut, uh, silhouettes. Turns out it does a technique called Print and Cut which lets it do so much more.

The concept of Print and Cut is easy – you set up your artwork that you want to print, add lines to show what you want to cut, and then turn on these magic registration marks so that the Silhouette cutter can take the instructions from the Silhouette Studio software.

The only hard part of the project is taking a decent photo of the garland hanging in my back window. The window faces north, so it’s a pick your photographic poison of too much back light or a weird view of the neighbor’s yard. I promise it looks better in person!

Conversation Hearts Garland hanging in the window

 

How SuzerSpace created this

Super easy hummus

A few basic ingredients and a little time in the food processor creates an easy hummus dip

Hummus is a bit of a head scratcher.

It’s been around forever, but suddenly a few years ago became the new “IT” food.

At the grocery store, a small container starts at $3.99 and goes up considerably if it has other high fashion ingredients (use the words artisan and roasted and you can add at least another dollar).

Food bloggers and their commenters have gone crazy as well, posting recipes with multiple steps and heated arguments about whether a Vitamix is better than a food processor. Don’t even get me started on the remove-the-skins vs. leave-the-skins debates. (Honestly, I fell for it, and used to skin them, but at least for me, the difference isn’t worth the work).

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Teeny Tiny Tip: Taxes

For several years now I’ve used Super Bowl Sunday as my time for getting my taxes together.

It certainly is impossible to miss, with all the shouting on TV, and endless posts on social media. Even the crafting blogs get into it (guilty!)

The game doesn’t start until evening, but the TV coverage starts early. You have plenty of time to do this task and get it off your list way before it is time to start eating chip and dip.

Instead of waiting until the last second, using Super Bowl Sunday is an easy trick. Most, if not all, federal tax forms (W-2, 1099, etc.) are due to you by January 31st. And the IRS begins processing returns right around the first week of February as well.

If your taxes are easy and/or you are really a DIY-er, then this Sunday is a great day to get everything together and file online. If your taxes are more complicated, Sunday is a great time to find all the papers and get them into that envelope to send off to your tax preparer.

An extra bonus of filing earlier? If you going to receive a refund, it usually comes earlier, too!

 

Sunday Scrolling: January 29, 2017

  • Craft room envy big time, but there are pieces here that could be incorporated into any spot big or small.
  • I’ve been reading Smitten Kitchen for years. So I’m happy for her about her big announcement. And fearful she’ll jump the shark and become another plasticized Food Network celeb that makes things no one would cook.
  • Little notepads are my thing. And this one features a free printable for weekly planning.
  • We don’t really eat sweets,  but this quick idea was so cute I could resist sharing it.