Saturday, January 22, 2011

Yudu Tips And Tricks Part 2

      Welcome back! Some day I'll learn how to do this right, lol. Okay so this was my first screen. What a mess!!!! This is what happens when you use wayyy too much water. The emulsion stuck alright but, when I squeegeed it to remove the water it was so wet it had the emulsion dripping off!! At first I was going to chuck the whole thing but since I had my design set and knew I only needed a small area to burn I decided to salvage it. I'm so glad I did. All the white areas you see on the left of my swirl is where I lost the emulsion from too wet of a screen. You can see why I showed you my second screen with the candy on it first. I am still learning the ins and outs of this great machine. If I was just doing a single color, and, this was my only screen I would not have been able to use it. I am just saying to use caution as to the amount of water you use!

Yudu Tricks And Tips

       First off watch the video. Watch it again and again, lol. The more you watch it the better you understand it. Then when you are ready have you booklet handy. The directions in the booklet can be intimidating by them self but it becomes clearer if you can picture the parts of the video. I hope that makes sense.
      I am no expert but I have taken the plunge and thought I'd share a few of my mistakes and insights. Before you even start there are a few things you need to know. If you plan on using more than one color you need to have more than one screen ( one for each color). You are able to use M's coupons on the planten, inks and screens. So with 40% off coupons it's a great way to start. You should be able to use these on emulsion and registration film as well. You just can't use it on the machine. 
      
       Since I am a long time sewer I need to have things match up perfectly, lol. So what I did was to mark my screens (on the shiny part not on the screen itself!) at the half points on top, bottom and sides with a permanent marker. I also did this on the registration film as well. It is important that this is done out of your design area because when you "burn" your screen these marks on the registration film would also burn into the screen!  In the above area you can see the small marks I made. I created my own design out of Bazzill card stock using my Cricut and glued them to the film.
      Next lay your second film over the first while on your Yudu with the light on. Match up your marks and then glue your second design in place. If you match your film to the marks you made on the screen then when you burn your images everything should line up perfectly!
      I have just a few thoughts on the emulsion film . I have used a spray bottle to wet the screen however it seems too wet. You need the screen just wet enough to have the emulsion stick. Think of it like a stamp, too wet and it won't stick or the emulsion runs off! ( not good! It will stain surfaces so make sure you cover your work area. I won't even tell you what happened. Let's just say lesson learned!!!) I found it much easier to just use a damp sponge and run it over screen front and back. The emulsion sticks just fine and takes less time to dry.
     Let's talk about burning the image. This was the second screen I burned I'll show you wahat happened to the 1st screen in a minute. Once your image is burned the emulsion film turns blue except for the design area which remains green. It is the design area that you what to make sure you clean Not the blue area! You can see at the top of screen (particularly the "v" in love) this is where my screen was too wet and I actually washed off some of the emulsion prior to burning. This is ok since you will tape these areas prior to inking.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Card Winner And Update

   This is just a quick update on my recent entry in the Provo Craft Card Makers Contest. The card I sent in "Congrats Your Engaged" is a winner! HSN was debuting the newest cool machine from Provo Craft called the Yudu Card Maker. This is so cool! It's a silk screen machine for making cards. You can also use it for wood, glass, fabric (think baby onesies!!!). I also receive the new release from Anna Griffin. She has the most elegant papers and coordinating embellishments. Looks like I will be making even more cards! There were 150 enties and my card was one of 12 that have won this incredible machine. Too bad I have to wait 4-6weeks to play, lol.
   I thought I'd share a few projects I made with my Cricut Imagine for my neices baby shower a few weeks ago. Rachel and Kenny know they are expecting a little boy and his name will be Cohen. Since they love the woodland theme I used the images from my Cricut Imagine and it had a cute little raccoon (their favorite!) a deer and of course, a skunk (his caption is Little Stinker, soo cute!). I just selected the image then print and cut. So easy! Below you will find the adorable banner I did for Cohen. I think it will make a nice wall decoration!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

I Love Candy

    Well I guess I really am going to challenge myself this year! Two of my daughters gave me a Yudu for Christmas and it has taken me a while but, by Jov, I think I've got it! There have been several mistakes and I'm convinced it has to do with some of the consistency of the ink. Of course it could never be me!.
   This project also is for the Circle blog challenge (yes I am a Circlet). They feature projects daily on our blog so this months challenge was to scraplift one of their projects and give it our own twist. Charity Hassel had done some Stenciled baby boy onesies and Jana Eubank did the Shooting star t-shirts so I guess I scraplifted from both of them!
   In addition you had to use products from 2 of their sponsors. I used Bazzill black cardstock for cutting my design that was adhered to my registration transparency and I also used imaginisce i rock gem setter and their crystals and metal gems.
   For the images I used "opposites attract" for "I LOVE" cut at 1.75", "Candy" cut @ 1.71 "From My Kitchen" and the candy from "Doodlecharms" @ 3.23 x 4.18. (I did not use the lollipop from this cut but I did use all the other candies. I liked the lollipop from Mickey and Friends. The reason I preferred this pop was because it had the swirl layer for the pop. I cut this pop @ 3.0 as well as the swirl.
   I just realized it took 4 carts to make this design. This has to be a record for me!
    I cut my designs out and then adhered them to the transparency, burned on the emulsion film and set about getting inky. To make a 2 color design you do need 2 screens and I found the colors dry really quickly if you use a hair dryer. It is pretty cool as it dries because its almost like using embossing powders, you can see the colors getting lighter.
   This pic to the left is the boys version in "chocolate" before I added the gunmetal swirl and metal embellishments. The one at the top is the girl version in pink where I sewed on some tulle and buttons.
   This bottom picture shows 3 of the boys shirts. I also did 2 in a maroon ink on the gray shirts but didn't want to totally bore you, lol . Anyways these are the kids Valentines' Day gifts. I do have to make two more and I am sure they will love them. Thanks for stopping by!                                                                                     

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Sometimes People Suck

Hi there! Yesterday I went to get my usual cup of coffee at our local center store. It's a small gas,convenience,deli shop run by a really nice couple. They have made fantastic changes to the shop in this small sleepy town and also work long hours. In other words a truly nice caring couple.
   We recently received about 18" of snow in the last snowstorm. Even though people were advised to stay off the roads, this couple opened as usual at 5am. Our Governor told non essential workers they should stay home. These shop owners ARE essential , to the snow plow drivers, lol.
   Anyways, here we are 4 days out from the storm. The snow is somewhat melting, getting a little slushy. You guessed it. Some woman (not a regular) slips in the parking lot. She goes back in the store and tells them she thinks she has to go to the Emergency Room because she thinks she sprained her ankle! Think lawsuit.
Can anything just be an accident today?
   I have sent these people several cards and they both really enjoy them. When I walked in the store she came over and said "just give me a hug" and then proceeded to tell me what happened. As I was leaving she asked me if I could make her a card that they really cheer her up.
   Voila, this is what I came up with. I used my Spellbinders nestabilities and my Just Rite stamps. I REALLY love these stamps. I can stamp anything I want to say. The background paper is DCWV the All About Girls Stack. I added a few butterfly embellishments to make it a pretty card and to add an element of surprise (you would never expect the inside sentiment, lol).
   Hope you all have a great day!!