My favorite Commercial Use Fonts…Some are Free!

Picking what font to use when cutting vinyl can be tough, but using fonts to create signs, shirts, and all sorts of crafting awesomeness is so fun. It can get sticky once you start selling if you use fonts that are for personal use only, but I’m here with a list of where I get my favorite fonts to help you get started! I try to consider the amount of time and energy it has taken me to learn how to use my Silhouette Cameo 3 and the upgraded software every time I price my items for sale in my Etsy shop, but I also think about the time and energy it takes a designer to create a font or design that I use in my projects and once I think about that, I feel obligated to compensate the original creator monetarily for helping my family pay for our trips to Disney! I wish I had the time and energy to create fonts, but until then I’m happy to find these awesome deals!

 

Fontbundles.net has free fonts and great deals on commercial use fonts. I always check them out around the holidays to see what new cute font packages they have! Click the  picture link below and it will take you to their free font section! I bought the Samantha Script font and love it!

 

Right now they are running the first pay what you want deal on a super pretty Script font bundle. I got all of these for $1, and they are commercial use, so I can sell what I make with them! 13 Fonts with commercial use

The deal ends in 10 days, so don’t wait!

 

Both of these were made using Samantha which is commercial use! You can purchase it here Samantha Script Font File

     

 

 

The Carolina script font is also super popular right now and only $10  for unlimited commercial use Carolina Font Link

I also am loving “justlove” it has the character mapping option with lots of variations for swooshes and embellishments! just love font

 

The Superhero font helped me sell tons of ornaments this year!

  

SuperHero Font

The Hungry Jpeg has awesome fonts and files, some free some paid, but they are commercial use and have great tech support and you can download what you get from them over and over and over again if you don’t have things backed up, or if you forget the name of the font you love, you can log into your account and see what it was! Here are some of my current favorites. Make sure you check back with them because they come out with freebies. The bundles are great for a business starting out because you get a lots of commercial use fonts for only $19! You can make one sign and pay for that!

Find hundreds of FREE Fonts at TheHungryJPEG.com

The Kooky Font Bundle has 51 fonts for $19, some of these are super cute and useful and all have commercial use! it’s 99% off right now, so grab it quick!
SALE!! 96% OFF Over 50 Fonts and Typefaces

Laura Worthington makes some of my favorite fonts, and this months bundle is only $19 for 19 amazing fonts! Check out Adorn and Fairwater…you could make some amazing stuff with the included glyphs!!! 

Grab theThe Christmas Crafter Font Bundle includes 19 Fonts at only $19!

Grab theThe Indie Font Bundle includes over 67 fonts from 20 gorgeous font families at over 93% OFF

For personal use fonts I always check out www.Dafont.com, some of my favorites are the Janda Series and the KG series. The designer only offers them for personal use on dafont, but you can purchase commercial use licensing from her other site. They cut beautifully and are super fun!

My Vinyl Designer also has some great fonts and Monogram frames that I have used, and make sure and check out my first project where I show you how to use your iphone and a free app to make a monogram that you can trace with your cutting machine software.

I’ll try to update this list as time goes on, but for now. This will get you started!

 

You may also like: Click photos to be redirected to downloads!

 

 

Happy crafting,

 

Disclaimer:some of the links in this post pay me a small commission if you purchase which I use to keep this blog up and running. I would never recommend something that I do not know and love!

Where to buy vinyl for decals and signs

Finding great deals on vinyl can be challenging. I have purchased mine from all over the internet and at local stores in Texas and Oklahoma. After 5 years in business I wanted to share with you guys some of the best places I have found to purchase vinyl supplies

Amazon If you have prime, Amazon is a great place to buy supplies. You can get free shipping, and you can see all of the positive reviews other crafters have left from purchasing the same supplies, and it ships really fast! If you don’t have prime, you can get a 30 day free trial here and try it out!
Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial
The more popular colors I order in rolls, so White Oracle 651 Vinyl  is only $7 shipped today with the link below if you have prime. Red Oracle Vinyl in a 12×6 foot roll is $7.49, it’s great to have on hand for Christmas, Valentines Day, and 4th of July crafts, not to mention all of the sports teams! People love red! Black is also only $7.49, and one of those colors you use year round. If you only need individual colors now and don’t want to pay shipping with a company you don’t know or trust. Order these!

 

Here’s some projects I have made with these products.

 

CSDS Vinyl! They are amazing! They ship all in stock items the same day if ordered before 2pm, and have some awesome sales every week, Like this week they are offering 30% off all of their printed XMAS Christmas vinyl! So many pretty colors and patterns to use to make cute shirts and pillows! Check it out here CSDS Printed HTV Sale If you are looking for individual 12×12 sheets in assorted colors I like to order from here on Thursdays when they have the buy one get one free sale. Here’s a link to all the colors they have. CSDS 651 Vinyl OptionsThey are so much cheaper than buying other brands in local craft stores and the quality is amazing! I am lucky enough to have one of their local stores 10 minutes away, and it is great to have access to all of the pretty printed vinyl they have in stock, and their selection of crafting blanks is nice too! One last thing, when you order from CSDS Vinyl they also have a loyalty rewards program that gives you points for ordering with them that you can cash in later. Saturdays is free shipping day on orders over $50. You will love ordering from here. Fast, professional, affordable, and carries amazing stuff.

Expressions Vinyl.com is where I placed my very first vinyl order. They have great service, but you have to spend a certain dollar amount to get free shipping. When I was first starting out funds were limited, so I never ordered enough to get the free shipping…it was a bummer to have to pay it, but my product always arrived in a timely manner, and it cut beautifully. Something a newbie like me was relieved about, after trying other brands from Hobby Lobby. DO NOT BUY PAPER STUDIO VINYL…..it will make your heart sad, and you will feel like a failure when it doesn’t cut right. It’s not you…it’s them!

 

Check out this link on my first vinyl project if you need inspiration or help on how to make a ring dish with a monogram DIY Ring DIsh

 

Happy Crafting!

 

Disclaimer- This post contains affiliate links that pay me a small commission which allows me to pay for the upkeep of this blog and continue to share cool DIY projects! I have personally tried and used all of these products with success, and you can too! Click the photos above to place your order and get crafting!

 

 

Learn to use the Silhouette Cameo 3 with me!

Do you want to create DIY projects, personalize Christmas ornaments, make your own shirts for Disney World, and have a Pinterest worthy party? Join me here https://www.facebook.com/groups/1146973478768004/, and together I will teach you what I have learned since I began my Silhouette Cameo journey almost 5 years ago! I remember how overwhelmed I was, and how it was hard to find help because the people who already knew didn’t want to teach me, fearing I would become their competition. I spent hours of my life learning how to install fonts, and work with glyphs, and researching the different types of vinyl and transfer tape, and on and on and on. Don’t become overwhelmed and quit, Join our Facebook group, and watch live videos of me creating right along with you. Every month we will complete projects together and you will learn tons. It’s going to be so much fun!

 

Best Christmas gifts for Crafters, Makers, and anyone creative

The best gifts for crafters and makers can be hard to find, and buying them a gift can be a little overwhelming, you know since they can make everything cute themselves, but with over 5 years of crafting experience, I am here to tell you what to buy a crafter for Christmas this year!

1. A Cutting Machine! Cutting machines allow crafters to cut with incredible accuracy 100s of different kinds of materials that they can use to create things like banners, decals for cars, wine glasses, wooden signs, labels for anything, custom shirts, stencils, fabric iron ons, teacher gifts, and on and on and on. The possibilities are literally endless, exciting, and within reach. If you want to give the gift that wows buy a cutting machine!

The most popular ones are the Silhouette Cameo 3, and the Cricut Maker this year. I personally own and love my SIlhouette Cameo 3. It can always be found on sale for $249.99-$269.99 and it comes in 3 colors white, black and the new pink color was just released in October. The Cricut Maker was released this year and runs $399.99 currently.  There are tons of resources available to learn how to use a cutting machine online, and accessories make great stocking stuffers! Here’s a link to both for your convenience. The Cricut Maker has to have internet access to work, and can only cut vinyl up to 2 feet long at one time where as the Silhouette Cameo 3 can be used  without internet, and can cut up to 10 feet long. Both machines allow you to create your own designs, or purchase designs from the programs on line library, however the Silhouette Cameo software has enhanced features that gives it an edge over Cricut, and more designs available for purchase in its library.. You can’t go wrong with either machine, however I am recommending the Silhouette Cameo 3 this holiday season based on my own personal experience! Here are links to both machines for your convenience. Just click the picture to check them out.

Silhouette Cameo 3 White Black and Pink all available with free shipping if you have Prime. Just click the image to order!

2. Cutting Machine Accessories also make great gifts for crafters. From cardstock, to vinyl, pens, tape, cutting mats, and blades, a crafters stocking and heart would overflow this year if you filled it with any of these items!

Great for Silhouette Cameo machine owners- An extra mat is always great to have on hand when one wears out, or you can keep one for glitter messy stuff, and one for everything else! The dust cover linked in the middle photo comes in several colors and keeps the machine clean and out of the way of little hands and furry animals if needed! The far right photo is the thing I have used the most! It upgraded my software to allow me to import .SVG files which I use all the time, and it allows me to import applique files into silhouette so I can cut out my fabric pieces, and it also enhanced tracing capabilities and several other things….just buy it, you won’t regret it!

 

Great for Fabric Loving Crafters: Anyone who lives with a fabric crafter knows they have special scissors, so it would make sense that there would be a fabric only blade for cutting machines. The blue one is for the Silhouette Cameo products. Heat and Bond is also a safe bet for Fabric lovers as they use it to attach fabric to stuff, and it makes it much easier to cut fabric with a cutting machine if you have this attached to the back. A small travel iron could save a crafters marriage, and is a great addition to a fabric lovers craft room. Has you ever went to iron clothes for work, and searched high and low for your iron? Spouses of crafters know what I’m talking about. No one wants to go upstairs at 6am, to hunt down the iron that may or may not have glitter stuck to the plate…do everyone a favor and buy this tiny little travel iron that can be stored in the craftroom, and the tabletop ironing board goes hand in hand with the  iron. This one is awesome because it folds up and has a hook like a hanger, so you can store it in the craft room closet when not in use!

Great for Scrapbookers or Paper loving Crafters

This paper pack has great colors and would be awesome for a scrapbook or banner!

I use this Fiskars cutter weekly to trim cardstock, even cut vinyl rolls, make quick shapes, and to measure packages when I ship sometimes!



These are the replacement blades for the trimmer above. It’s always nice to have a back up so you never have to use a dull blade. Dull blades don’t go well with paper crafting!

Vinyl Lovers

A vinyl weeding tool allows you to remove the pieces of cut vinyl you don’t need when making decals, stencils or designs with a vinyl cutting machine like the SIlhouette Cameo 3 or Cricut Maker. This tool is life changing!

The scraper is used to rub the transfer tape over the vinyl to help you move the vinyl off of it’s paper backing when you’re ready.

This Ottlite Lightbox is awesome! Someone please send this to my husband! you put your vinyl on it and it lights up the lines so you can see the spots you need to clear out better!

This assorted vinyl pack would be perfect for someone just starting out! It has

  • 10 7×12 sheets of Oracle 651 which can be used for car decals or cups, or labels,
  • 3 sheets of 12×12 oracle 631 which would be used for wall decals, or signs. Oracle 651 is more permanent than 631, but both are removeable with enough elbow grease.
  • 3 sheets of patterned Oracle vinyl which look cool as monograms on cups, or laptop decals, or notebooks
  • 4 Sheets – 12 Inch x 15 Inch Siser Easyweed Heat Transfer
  • 3 Sheets – 12 Inch x 20 Inch Siser Easyweed Glitter Heat Transfer
  • 100% Genuine Oracal Vinyl and Siser Heat Transfer which is exactly what I used to make this stuff
  • Compatible with any Vinyl Cutter Including Cameo, Cricut, Brother!


Oracle 631 wall decal

 

 

Oracle 631 wooden sign

Decor

Oracle 631 used to stencil

Reclaimed Window

Oracle 631 Window Decal

Oracle 651 Matte Ornament

Oracle 651 Monogram Ring Dish

Oracle 651 Personalized Soccer Easter bucket

 

 

Siser Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl and Printed HTV with Siser Glitter

Siser Easyweed

 

Sign Makers

This stencil vinyl on the far left is my favorite medium for making stencils for wooden signs. It’s not as sticky as regular Oracle 631 or 651, and it’s slightly transparent which makes lining it up on boards so much easier. In the middle mod podge has been used to seal off a stencil area before painting to help prevent bleeding, and it can also be used to seal a sign if needed. The far right features a sandpaper variety pack that will allow your sign maker to sand smooth, distress, and repair boo boos on wooden signs.

Shirt Makers

This variety starter pack of Heat transfer vinyl( will allow a shirt maker to create several shirts and try out lots of colors and textures for a great price! It includes 10 sheets!

Teflon sheets protect your project fom damaging your project, heat press, or iron when you are using heat to apply a heat transfer vinyl decal to a shirt! There are also great tutorials on using them to make your own pressing pillows!

A rhinestone kit from Silhouette studio is a fun edition to any shirt makers craft room! If your crafter loves bling and has a silhouette cameo, they will love this!



3. Heat Press and teflon sheet. This is for the crafter who loves all of the cute shirts with funny phrases, or wants to personalize shirts, dish towels, and bags for friends and family. Maybe they already have a cutting machine, and they’re ready to go to the next step. If you see your crafter trying to iron on decals on their hands and knees with a cookie sheet on the floor, please buy them a heat press! You will change their life! I started with a 15″ clam shell from Heat press nation. If you think she would ever want to make mugs or hats get a press that can grow with her future needs, or just get a clamshell! I have a 15′ clamshell like this one.

 

This one is an awesome bundle with great reviews, and would be great for a small business just starting out!

Teflon sheets are a must with a heat press. They protect the material you are pressing, and with 3 this size you can use one to make a pressing pillow! Don’t buy a heat press without a teflon sheet. That’s like giving a remote control car with no batteries!

 

4. Vinyl Starter Pack. I love purchasing my vinyl from Amazon, because they have great deals and free shipping with prime and they sell my favorite vinyl, Oracle and Siser. The starter packs are great for newbies to have lots of colors to play with. Order Oracle 651 for car decals, wine glass decals, and wooden signs, and Siser HTV(Heat Transfer Vinyl) for making shirts and other fabric craft things. I        recommend Siser Stretch HTV for Baby Onesies and Ladies tops to account for the stretch in the chest of a fitted shirt.

Oracle 651 comes in tons of colors, but 63 sheets of colors would be sure to keep someone busy for a little while! This is great for decals on cars, glass, plastic, and wood.
This amazing bundle has so many colors you can craft something for every holiday!

                                                                                                                                                                                                             Click on the image to order with free shipping on Amazon Prime

Siser Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl Perfect for shirts and other fabric!

 

Siser Stretch Bundle My favorite for Baby Onesies and stretchy clothing. This bundle has 20 colors. I’ve only used about 7!

 

Stencil Vinyl for making wooden signs and stencils. I was so happy when I switched to this for sign making! Cuts smooth on the silhouette, installs easily on wooden signs and is a little bit see through to help with placement. It’s not as sticky as Oracle 651, so it’s easier to lift and move if you need to.

5. Scrapbooking Pens with a scrapbook and a giftcard to have prints made, oh and glue dots…she wants them!

This super cute scrapbook will be perfect for her to capture all of the special memories you shared recently. Wrap it in a photo box with some glue dots and pens and some of your favorite photos and she will melt!

Glue dots are like magic! They hold pictures and notes and journaling cards on the pages! They would make a great stocking stuffer!
These have great reviews and write so well on the black paper inside the scrapbook above!

Shutterfly prints https://www.shutterfly.com/prints

6. Scissors I love the Fiskars brand, they have a Lifetime warranty and I got mine easily replaced when I needed to swap them out under warranty with a simple phone call!

7. Glue If you learn how to say this correctly she will be super impressed. It’s a glue/sealer with a matte finish. Perfect for tons of DIY projects! Trust me, she’ll know what to do with it! I use it on wooden signs, block sets, stenciling, and to glitter things!

8. Wine glasses and armor etch to glass etch.

I like to purchase my wine glasses at Bed Bath and Beyond and use a 20% off coupon, which you can get a coupon here https://offers.bedbathandbeyond.com/SignupWidget/dynamic/BBBUS-email-printable-offers?acq_source=1212, or if you just need a couple you can purchase some at Target, or Dollar Tree. The armor etch is sold lots of places, but here’s a link to amazon for your convenience

9. Acrylic paints and brushes

Americana is my favorite brand of paints. Great coverage and dries fast!

This starter pack has their most popular colors and free shipping with Prime! I love amazon!!!

Foam brushes are a necessity!

10. The Xyron Creative Station. Makes stickers, laminates, turns things into magnets, and is gernally just amazing for scrapbookers, crafters, teachers, and me!. It comes preloaded with a cartridge, but if she wants to laminate or make magnets you’ll need to add the other cartridges, or you can pick them up for her birthday!

If she wants to laminate things for scrapbooking or kids crafts get her this cartridge too

Magnet Cartridge here turns pictures and artwork into Magnets

11. Gift Cards to her favorite place! These make great stocking stuffers, and will allow her to buy what she really wants! Hobby Lobby, Michaels, and JoAnne Fabrics are some of my favorite places.

12. Books about Crafting

Washi Tape Crafts…yes!!!!

Caligraphy always fascinated me, but my handwriting stinks! Might try this to see what I’m doing wrong!

Don’t forget the giftwrap! Buffalo plaid is so in this year!!!

and tape

and a bow

 

 

Happy Crafting,

 

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links of products I use and love! Happy Crafting!

Craft Fair Jitters

It’s been a few years since my first official craft fair, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Three weeks of my life were consumed with the layout of this 10 foot space I would inhabit for one day. Should I bring a tree, or a dresser, how many shelves do I need, what about tablecloth colors and bags, and lets not forget the most important question….what do I wear? I sat on the floor armed with a dry erase board and made a list of 50 different items I could create to take with me, and I slowly weeded things out and changed my game plan to focus on 2 products that had been hot sellers for me this season. Some People Are Worth Melting For ornaments and Santa-tizers. A week of sleeping 4 hours a night paid off and I was all boxed up and prepared for the trip to Dallas.  I was determined to not mess up, and hopeful that I would sell all 100 items I had prepared for the big day. Joined with my 2 best friends, we set up like giddy school girls, and eyed our competition. Side note-vendor craft shows can quickly turn into an episode of Mean Girls, as all of the sleep deprived creative hopefuls see your merchandise as giant barricades of awesomeness that may very well prevent the future purchases on a creative entrepreneurs wishlist. Things like glitter, and washi tape, and trips to Disney World add up quick! The Scentsy lady down the hall was stressing because she had no power, and a beautiful display of shabby chic farmhouse decor had all of us jaw dropping, secretly wanting to be her! The moments before the doors opened and the first rush of customers came in was the absolute worst! I began to rethink my display, and my strategy, and even my outfit! The only thing keeping me grounded was the “cha ching” noise of my Etsy shop lighting up my phone. The huge rush of customers we had anticipated never showed, and I actually sold more on my Etsy Shop that day https://www.etsy.com/shop/WhimsyWillowCreation?ref=shop_sugg than I did at the craft fair. The other vendors, who I had prematurely labeled “the enemy”, became customers and friends. We all laughed together at the effort we had put in for such a low turn out, as we chowed down on the appetizers that were supposed to be for customers. It was a great learning experience, and I’m excited to be back in the groove and signed up for my first craft show in Katy, TX! It’s going to be a blast, and I hope to see you there!

 

 

How to install vinyl decals to wine glasses

Here’s a quick video on how to install vinyl decals to wine glasses for a 50 & Fabulous party surprise, but the tutorial applies to all decal application.

 

First stop, you need wine glasses. If you don’t have time to go buy some, these have great reviews on amazon, and ship free with prime!

Next up you need rubbing alcohol and cotton balls or a paper towel to clean the glasses before you apply the decal! I also recommend you clean the glasses before you apply the decals so they are clean when you are ready to party….Nobody wants to drink from a dirty glass!

After they are clean and dry grab your decal and transfer tape. I used oracle 651 to create my decal, and you can purchase the exact one in the video here, https://www.etsy.com/WhimsyWillowCreation/listing/514537915/50-and-fabulous-decals-for-wine-glasses?utm_source=Copy&utm_medium=ListingManager&utm_campaign=Share&utm_term=so.lmsm&share_time=1509918532107

or make your own with the font downloaded from here. Samantha Script Font

I use that font on Christmas ornaments, wedding stuff, and shirts. It is very pretty and comes with lots of variations to each letter so you can make lots of stuff! To get the decal on the glass I use contact paper. . I love contact paper for this application because it is transparent, and just sticky enough to pick up the decal, but it doesn’t leave a residue when you peel it away. Make sure you buy the stuff with the blue grid line backing like this one. The new one they came out with doesn’t work as well! I’m also including an affiliate link for the vinyl I use in case you want to make your own!

 

 

That’s it. That’s everything you need to make the magic happen! Open a bottle of wine or two, invite your best friends over, and knock out a set for the Birthday girl in no time!

 

Craft Happy,

 

 

Disclaimer I The links in this post pay me a small commission which I will be using to pay for my next Disney trip! #Disney2018