Latest news with #crafting
CNET
15-07-2025
- Business
- CNET
Cricut Slashed Its Gear by Up to $700 During Their Christmas in July Sale
If you love making home décor, stickers, or cards, then maybe a cutting machine or hot press might be for you. These are a boon for teachers, business owners or people who enjoy making and designing cards for special occasions. Right now, Cricut is putting on a Christmas in July sale. They're offering discounts of up to $700 on equipment such as hot presses and cutting machines that give your crafts and designs a more professional look. Amazon is also offering deals on Cricut equipment and supplies, so you have twice as many ways to save. These deals are great time to shop if you've been looking for a way to up your crafting, and they could help you avoid higher prices if you have any tariff concerns. One standout machine is the Cricut Autopress, which is now down to $300 and is a massive $700 off right now. This press reaches temperatures of up to 400°F, includes dual voltage and can be closed easily thanks to its Zero effort design. For safety, it turns off automatically after 13 minutes of no activity. You can also save on the Cricut Explore 4, which is down to $229 right now and saves you $20. This is perfect for making stickers, vinyls, t-shirts and more. If you like to work with metal, banners and have larger projects in mind, you can also score the Cricut Maker 4, an upgrade over one of our favorites and shows the same amount of promise. It's now down to $379 and saves you $20. Other cool deals include the Cricut Mug Press, which lets you print designs directly onto your mugs for merch, gifts and more. Thanks to these deals, it's now just $100, down from its regular price of $200. It can print designs on mugs between 11 to 16 ounces easily thanks to its presets. Cricut's Christmas in July deals include a discount of up to 50% on materials, such as t-shirts, vinyl, iron-on supplies and more. If you want to get creative but aren't sure if these deals are for you, check out our list of the best 3D printing accessories and best iPad art apps for more options. Why this deal matters Cricut's Christmas in July sales offer massive savings on cutting machines, hot presses, supplies and bundles. Some of these discounts amount to up to $700 off, and buying now could help you save on potential increased costs due to tariffs.
Forbes
14-07-2025
- General
- Forbes
5 Tips For When It Is Time To Quit
HAMBURG, GERMANY - NOVEMBER 10: A Team of nine women and one man set a world record of the longest ... More distance running in high heels on a treadmill in thirty minutes at Holmes Place on November 10, 2014 in Hamburg, Germany. (Photo by) Last fall, I attended a workshop and spotted a young woman wearing the most beautiful shawl. I asked her where she got it and she said, 'I made it myself.' When I asked her if I could pay her to make me one, she replied, 'It took me about 250 hours. It would be very expensive plus the materials.' She inspired me to take a lesson at a local craft store. After attending an initial 90-minute lesson, the instructor sent the class on our way to finish our scarves. Since I knew I was making mistakes, I returned to the store twice to have them set me straight and get me on the right track. But I didn't want to make a scarf. I wanted to make sweaters and shawls! A few weeks later I was having coffee with a friend in her 60s who showed me a photo of the sweater she made for her granddaughter. It was lovely. She told me she has been knitting since she learned at age eight. I told her my knitting story and realized, 'I don't have time to learn how to knit.' Knowing When To Walk Away It gave me peace to realize I don't have time to learn how to knit sweaters. I was reminded of the book 'Quit: The Power of Knowing When To Walk Away,' by Annie Duke, a former professional poker player. She talks at length about how society rewards being persistent and staying with something rather than quitting. Quitters are considered losers. Duke explains that we can reframe quitting as an opportunity to better use our time, energy, and focus. When we do so, we have the permission to move onto something else. Duke said she wrote 'Quit' because 'I think that the stopping things part of the equation is very neglected.' In contrast, Angela Duckworth wrote a popular book called 'Grit: The Passion and Power of argues in her book, 'Success is less about talent and more about a combination of passion and perseverance.' She calls this combination grit. Duckworth encourages readers to cultivate long-term dedication to their goals, overcome setbacks, and maintain a growth mindset to achieve excellence. The most important lesson from 'Grit' for me was the emphasis on having a growth mindset. Duckworth distinguishes between a growth mindset, which is focused on improving versus a fixed mindset focused on proving yourself and not making mistakes. Having a growth mindset is about improving yourself yet accepting those aspects that no longer serve you. But I decided my life runway is too short to learn how to knit sweaters. I was not enjoying the process – mainly because it was going to take me too long to learn the skills needed to accomplish my goal. Since I have other hobbies where I can apply a growth mindset such as photography, I could spend more time learning and improving. In fact, I signed up for a photography tour in Guatemala next fall. This allows me to use my equipment, practice my Spanish, and travel to a place that has been on my wish list for a long time. As Duke would say, stopping learning how to knit gives me an opportunity to better use my time and energy. Tips For Quitting The Right Things/How To Quit Like A Pro So I am not going to be a knitter. And I don't feel like a quitter. The key lessons from Duke's book reminds me: Carol Orsborn, a writer and expert on aging, tends to focus on wisdom, balance, and meaning rather than traditional notions of productivity. Her work often challenges the idea that productivity is about efficiency and output. Instead, she emphasizes the importance of intuition, personal fulfillment, and integrating work with a deeper sense of purpose—especially as people age. Orsborn encourages people to shift from a purely goal-oriented mindset to one that values reflection, life experience, and authenticity. She suggests that true productivity isn't just about doing more but about doing what truly matters. What are you doing now that does not bring you joy? What do you enjoy that you would like to spend more time doing? Now might be time to be a quitter!
Geek Girl Authority
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Girl Authority
F2P Friday: TOKO AND KRAFT: ARTIFICERS
Welcome to this week's installment of F2P Friday, where we highlight our favorite Free-2-Play games. New video games hit the market daily from indie developers, and sometimes, hidden gems fall through the cracks. This is where we dig for you and feature a new F2P game we know you will enjoy every week. Today, we step up to the crafting table of TOKO & KRAFT: ARTIFICERS to create solutions. RELATED: Check out our F2P Friday archives TOKO & KRAFT: ARTIFICERS Congratulations, newly graduated artificer, and welcome to the village. You'll serve a small group of characters connected to some very big mysteries. As an artificer, you'll combine elements alongside your (usually) trusty assistant, Kraft, to create new items and meet your zany customers' needs. The Basics Let's get down to the basics of TOKO & KRAFT: ARTIFICERS by Pure Jam Games, an item combination puzzle crafter game with drag-and-drop mechanics. The screen of the game is in a vertical setting, so you can play it on a mobile device or on a PC. If you are playing on the PC, I recommend adjusting the magnification on your screen, as the text below some of the ideas can be very small. RELATED: July's Most Anticipated Video Games Each customer will come in requesting a specific item that needs to be crafted using the base elements provided. There is a great tutorial introducing the puzzle elements, but the difficulty ramps up quickly and requires some out-of-the-box thinking. Combining different elements can sometimes result in the same item being created, so checking the encyclopedia for discovered recipes can save strikes. The faster and more accurate your solutions are, the more stars you are awarded. The puzzle solutions are intermediate level and may require several attempts. Why Should I Play? Why should you play TOKO & KRAFT: ARTIFICERS ? This hilarious, unique puzzle crafter is well worth the time. Depending on how quickly you solve the puzzles, each chapter takes 15-20 minutes to play through. I found keeping a note of the combinations was easier than navigating the book between levels. If you need to take a break, there is a save function to keep your progress. RELATED: 15 Co-Op Games Announced in June 2025 This is a well-rounded game full of interesting characters with amazing comedic timing. I love the over-the-top anime-style villains and the rotating character portraits. The characters from this installment are in another game, Kraft & Slash , and I hope there will be a continuation of the story with a possible shop mechanic and upgrade system. If you are ready to create solutions for the town, you can play TOKO & KRAFT: ARTIFICERS for free on PC or mobile in a web browser by visiting here. F2P Friday: STRANGE ANTIQUITIES
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Think you know how to use a Swiss Army knife? Think again
It's the ultimate boys' toy for all generations. Whether you grew up with Just William stories, The Dangerous Book for Boys or YouTube crafting videos, the single item that every man either has, wishes to have or regrets not having is a Swiss Army knife. And women are quite fond of them, too. Over the decades, there have been more than 150 different kinds of fold-out tools found on Swiss Army knives. There are currently 178 different pocket knives available from Victorinox, from the Swiss Champ XXL with 73 different tools to the key-ring-size Escort with just six. As I constructed my own knife, the Ranger, a mid-tier model which is probably the most traditional knife in Victorinox's arsenal, I was given a history lesson on the individual tools and the best ways to use them. Designed to do everything from wood-whittling to opening letters, the uses of the standard blade are fairly self-explanatory. 'I use my knife blade every day for opening parcels, opening food packets, everything,' says Elsener. 'I carve an apple for breakfast first thing in the morning. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.' For outdoor work, the large blade is a woodman's best friend. To whittle wood, open the blade and close a fist around the handle so just the tip is pointing out. 'This will allow you to gain power,' explains Felix Immler, Victorinox's Swiss Army knife expert instructor. 'From there, use the bottom of the blade at a 45 degree angle to carve your wood. Each stroke should be an explosion of force.' Originally included on the Swiss Army Knife as a tool for gentlemen who hoped to make themselves useful to ladies who needed their corsets tightening, the hook's modern era usage is somewhat more mysterious. 'You could use it for… anything you might need a hook for,' a Victorinox spokesperson explained, helpfully. I did find one particularly practical usage of my own, though; open the hook half-way and you use it as a portable stand to rest a phone against. You might also use it to pull a bike chain off your gears, so you can work without getting greasy fingers, or even to tease apart difficult knots. The original innovation featured on the 'Officer's And Sports knife', the corkscrew's use is fairly self-explanatory. It's also a handy holster for the knife's smallest screwdriver. One of the most mysterious tools on the Swiss army knife is the reamer, punch, and sewing awl. This thin, sharp wedge is at the bottom of the knife. Punch the reamer into something and then rotate the whole knife to carve out a hole. 'You can use it to put a new hole in your belt or make a conical hole in a piece of wood,' says Immler. 'My other favourite trick is to pierce the tip of the reamer into a stable surface to hold the knife steady. Then rub a piece of wood back forth along the sharp edge of the reamer to create little shavings. Then you can quickly draw a fire striker along the reamer to create a fire.' Most people will only ever use the keyring eyelet to attach their Swiss Army knife to something, but given how solid the eyelet is, Immler uses his for additional tasks. 'If you feed a paperclip or needle through the eyelet, you can precisely bend it to create a fishing hook,' he explains. 'But it's also very hard – if you ever need to crack a coconut, the eyelet is tough enough to do that too.' 'Probably the most underrated tool on your pocket knife,' asserts Immler. 'If you carve wood, it should be your main blade. The small blade has a lot of advantages over the big blade. The small blade is usually sharper because it gets used less, and you can create tighter turns with it, so it's better for detailed work.' Hold the knife as you would to use the large blade, then place a thumb on the back of the blade. Push the knife with that thumb to make precise, shallow cuts in the wood. Another fairly simple tool, but the steel wood saw is very effective. 'I would recommend if you're sawing something to clamp the wood between your foot and the ground, and then saw as close to your foot as possible,' says Immler. 'This will prevent the wood you're sawing from moving around too much and if you're bending over to saw with your shoulder, rather than your elbow, that'll give you more power and control.' Another lesser-known tool hidden in the scale of all Swiss Army knives is the toothpick. It's also handily sized for cleaning the knife itself. A bottle opener is always worth having in a pinch, especially when (like the can opener) the flat top of it also doubles as a screwdriver. A slightly lesser-known use of this tool is the small nub at the bottom which functions as a wire stripper. With the large blade folded out, place your wire between the handle of the knife and this notch, so that the wire prevents the bottle opener tool from folding back in. Then carefully fold the blade back against the wire to use as a wire stripper. 'My favourite tool is the scissors, and we often hear the same from customers,' says Elsener. 'They're very helpful when you nick your nail and you can just take your scissors and correct it.' But the scissors are also strong enough to cut through fabric and aluminium cans – useful for making basic camp crafts or first-aid. Because they're spring-loaded, the trick with the scissors is to hold the knife in your palm and 'pump' the scissors, rather than trying to open them up and close them as you would a standard pair of kitchen scissors. The smallest screwdriver function on the knife neatly slots into the end of the corkscrew, and is designed for tightening up your glasses. Hidden inside the 'scale' of the knife is a tiny pair of tweezers. Not exactly a revolutionary bit of kit, but given how small it is, many don't realise it's there. Victorinox also suggests the tweezers can be useful when picking up delicate items of jewellery or even tiny components when repairing electronics. While most people are generally more familiar with rotary can openers, having an emergency back-up is always helpful. Simply press the hooked 'nose' of the can opener into the outside lip of your tin, then use the upper 'punch' in an up-and-down motion around the top of the can to open it. As for the flat end of the can opener? It's also a helpful screwdriver. Victorinox, the original Swiss Army knife company, produces 45,000 pocket knives every weekday to be shipped out around the world (the United States, Germany, Mexico, Britain and France are the biggest markets after Switzerland itself). Yet the Swiss Army knife was originally nothing of the sort. When a young Karl Elsener opened his workshop in Ibach, a small town an hour's drive from Zurich, in 1884, he was repairing tools for local farmers and making a few knives per week. The contract for standard-issue Swiss Army knives which featured a blade, reamer, can opener and screwdriver belonged to a German company. In 1896, Elsener presented army generals with a new knife, which, unlike the German one, featured tools on both sides of the grip and an innovative spring system, as well as a corkscrew, which he hoped would make it attractive to officers. The 'Officer's and Sports Knife' was declined by army chiefs. Having already produced hundreds of knives, Elsener faced financial ruin until he began selling the knives to American soldiers stationed in the country. They loved them and took them home as gifts. By 1909, the Swiss army had taken notice and contracted Elsener's company to make knives for its soldiers. The rest is history. Today, the company is a family-run foundation, with Carl Elsener IV the current CEO. It has produced around 550 million multi-tool penknives to date. 'In Switzerland, most people carry a Swiss Army knife with them every day,' Elsener tells The Telegraph. He personally prefers the Traveller, a pocket knife with an electronic display featuring an alarm clock ('set for 5.15am every day in my case,' says Elsener), altimeter, barometer, timer and thermometer. 'I'm one of those guys who like to fix things,' Elsener continues. 'If I'm travelling and I see a screw is loose in my hotel wardrobe, I'll get out my pocket knife and fix it. The Swiss are like this in general, we like to fix things. But you can use them for anything. 'Nasa bought Swiss Army knives for their astronauts, and once, a Canadian astronaut, Chris Hadfield, used his to get into a Russian space station when the official tools broke. He said, 'Never leave the planet without one,' which is the best commendation we've ever received.' Hidden in Victorinox's off-limits archive lies a wealth of knives from over the decades. There are Swiss Army knives personalised with ebony and mother-of-pearl handles, bone-handled knives, and even a diamond-studded miniature guitar with a Swiss Army knife built into the neck, which was specially constructed for Elvis Presley. What's remarkable is just how hard-wearing these knives are. Knives from 1937 (when the famous red plastic coating was first added) barely show any signs of age. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Hospitality Net
01-07-2025
- Hospitality Net
K9 laser engraver
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