The Christmas Goodies I Received!

So I know, I know, Christmas was last week..and today is the start of the new year - Yippee! I have a feeling this year will be very crafty {and wonderful} because I just happened to get some of the greatest Christmas presents ever!!!

First of all, I got this awesome new sewing machine! It's a Brother CS6000i computerized sewing machine and it is the bomb! It has an automatic needle threader, 8 button hole functions, 60 stitches (including decorative ones), and it is really, really easy to understand for a beginner like myself.

(Mmm. K. Side Note: Why did they just put a picture of some random lady on the side of the box? Yea, I don't know either.)

Why is it so great? Well for dummies like me who have never sewn before (except for those two weeks in Home Ec. in sixth grade), it makes sewing so easy. Not kidding! I have only had this machine for a week now and I've already made two pillow covers, several pacifier clips, and an entire large tote bag with pockets. I mean, me, SEWING? Wow, who would've thunk. This machine makes me think I could really start sewing some great stuff! ;) Here are some pics of the projects I've made thus far:

two gray pillow covers

pacifier clips (some for my son, some for baby gifts)

and this awesome tote bag (you can find the tutorial here)

I can honestly say I think I'm doing prettttty well for my first week sewing. :)

Then, I got the granddaddy of all Christmas gifts. Yes, ladies and gentleman, I got a Silhouette Cameo!

This machine is unbelievable. It cuts, draws, and perforates pretty much everything I could ever think of (except cutting felt...oh well). If you haven't had a chance to see one of these machines in action, though, you should really look up some videos on YouTube. Seeing what this little guy is capable of really is believing! 

Just a note to beginners with the Cameo: The first few times you use your cutting mat it will be VERY sticky, sticky enough that it may even rip your media after you try and pull it off the cutting mat. I would start with a heavier media like chipboard or fabric and move to the more delicate surfaces like paper until after the cutting mat is a little less sticky. It will get less sticky after the first 5 or so cuts. I had to learn this lesson the hard way!

I ended up having to figure out a way to easily remove stuck on paper from my Cameo from my first use (because my paper was too delicate for the EXTREMELY sticky, new mat). I have, however, found a shortcut to get the unwanted scraps off! Like these:

Can you see those icky little stuck on bits? I simply used a baby wipe, after I had to scrape up almost the entire surface of the mat with my FINGERNAIL {yea that was fun}, and the scraps came right off within 2 seconds! See?

I am so impressed with the amount of projects and possibilities Cameo can produce. Here's my first one. I created a onesie for my son, "Mr. Charming." 

(I know the elephant is random, but cutting on the Cameo can become addicting and I only had one onesie on hand! The more the merrier, right? LOL)

This project was suddenly became extremely easy after I acquired the Cameo. Before I would have had to cut all this stuff by hand. Yikes! I simply used some Heat N' Bond to bond the decorative fabrics that were cut from the Silhouette to my onesie, and ta-da! New, beautiful onesie!

These two Christmas gifts were by far my favorite this year! However, there's still more to come. I got gift cards, too! I was pretty lucky this Christmas, and I can't wait to use these machine can drum up in the future. More projects to come, you can be sure!

My onesie project was shared here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.