Cricut Expression for the Creative Crafters Dream Come True

While the Cricut Expression is an awesome machine, the true beauty of it comes from the cartridges. You can get a cartridge for just about anything. In general most Cricut Expression Machines come with the Plantin SchoolBook Font cartridge. If you got your Cricut Expression with a different font cartridge, you will definately want to go ahead and purchase one. The projects on the basic DVD that comes with the Cricut Expression use this font cartridge, and trying out the suggested projects is a great way to get to know your Cricut Expression DVD.

Other font cartridges that are great to have include Opposites Attract, Stone Script, Ashlyn's Alphabet (especially if there is a little girl in your life), Calligraphy, and Cuttin Up. Stone Script and Calligraphy are perfect for the vinyl lettering that is so popular now in home decor.

Now that you've mastered your fonts, it's time to move on to shape cartridges! You won't believe all the neat things you can create! One of the most practical shape cartridges for anyone to have is the Tags, Bags, Boxes & More cartridge. Luggage tags, gift tags, gift bags, cake boxes, all kinds of shapes that I would never have thought to attempt with piece of paper are now made easy with this nifty little cartridge.

If you have kids or are a teacher you will definitely want to have Animal Kingdom and Paper Dolls. Animal Kingdom has all kinds of animals and accents - cows, horses, lions, turtles and more. Also includes the spots for the cow, overlays for the horses - all kinds of neat add-ons to make your simple animal look like it took forever to create (when it only took minutes!) Paper Dolls - Everyday includes doll shapes and everyday clothes for the dolls - perfect for making little "dolls" of your students! (Paper Doll Dressup includes costumes for the dolls such as Halloween costumes, Pilgrim costumes, Santa outfits and more!)

For those who are expecting, know someone who is expecting, or will ever know someone who is expecting (did that cover you?) then the ever popular New Arrival shape cartridge is something you will want to have in your library. Everything to do with baby from ducks and bottles to diaper pins and pacifiers. Use the cartridge to decorate the baby's room, make a baby gift, decorate for a baby shower and more!

Another great shape cartridge to have just for fun is the popular Doodlecharms shape cartridge. Doodlecharms gives you a shape or two for just about everything from snowflakes to hearts to bunnies to reindeer. Doodlecharms gives you a shape for just about every season and every holiday. It's a great cartridge to have year round.

If you have a favorite character, you can use your Cricut to create your own wonderland! Cricut offers a Disney Alphabet & Character Image Cartridge as well as many others.

The Disney Alphabet and Charater Image Cartridge Mickey and Friends, Disney Dreams, Pooh and Friends and Happily Ever After for the princess in your life. Use the licensed character cartridges to make decorations for a theme party, create greeting cards, or simply to turn your little princess' room into her own private castle!

Now, I have to admit, as cool as the Cricut Expression is, there are a few tasks I don't particularly enjoy. Once of them being peeling the paper off of the Cricut Cutting Mat. I'm always afraid I'll tear my paper or even worse, get a papercut! But the folks at Provo Craft, who make the Cricut Expression have thought of everything. They have a cool little tool (spatula) that makes getting the paper off the cutting mat a breeze.

And there are a lot of other add ons you can get to enhance your Cricut Expression experience. Plug in the ink cartridges, and instead of cutting out shapes, your Cricut Expression will now draw them for you too! The paper cutter helps to cut your scraps down to the size you need to use them, and there is even a deep cutting blade for cutting thicker materials and chipboard!

One of my favorite add-ons is the Cricut Jukebox Cartridge System. The Jukebox allows a fast and hassle-free way to transition from one Cricut cartridge to another. The Jukebox system holds up to six graphic, font, or other Cricut cartridges at a time to eliminate the need for swapping them in and out, while its easy-to-use design allows for selecting the desired cartridge with the simple push of a button. It comes in especially handy while working on scrapbooks, greeting cards, posters, signage, home decor, and other creative pursuits. Best of all, up to three units can be simultaneously connected to one another to allow for using up to 18 cartridges at one time. Equipped with a carrying handle and a padded case for effortless transport to parties, workshops, and more. Once you get started using your Cricut Expression, you will want to add a Jukebox (or two or three) to your collection to really see what you can do!