I've been thinking for a while that I'd like to do several images from the world's religions. I got a little kick start from the SCAL forum when somebody requested a file of a Buddha (which you can download for free by right clicking on the image here). I have now added a Buddhist Symbols collection in the SVG shop.

Religion is important to me because it teaches many virtues and beautiful things. It teaches to love one another and not to cause harm. It teaches that life has meaning. Religion gives hope, optimism, and satisfaction. It gives purpose to life's experiences. It stretches people and makes them better. No matter who you are, or what religion you currently practice-- even if you practice none, there is much we can learn from the various religions of the world.

Buddhism teaches that life is a circle. When living things die, they make other living things. As such, Buddhism teaches to never harm another living thing.  The Buddha taught the Eight Fold Path which would lead to the end of suffering. Buddhists learn to see things as they are, to take the middle road by not giving in to overindulgence or self deprecation, to continually improve oneself mentally and ethically. Buddhists should not engage in an occupation that would harm others-- humans or animals, thus a Buddhist would not sell weapons, raise animals for food, or deal in drugs or other poisons.

Do you know a mechanic or somebody who likes to work on cars? Then this is the file for you! Look in the SVG shop to purchase our new collection of automotive tools. In the meantime, enjoy this free SVG of a sedan with its hood up. To download the file, right click on the picture and select "save link as".

It's Spring Break around here, so my children are home from school this week. We've been very busy visiting friends, picnicking and doing other fun and active things. It doesn't leave me much time for designing and crafting, but I'm still working on my Easter collection. You'll see it soon. I promise.

This morning, my sister called and asked for some help making a pocket knife. She showed me a pattern she had, but it was awkward and I didn't like it much, so I made up my own pattern for her to use. Then I decided to actually make the knife. I used a cereal box for the body and cardstock blades. The blades pivot on little brads and fold into the body. It's a rather fun design.To download the file, right click on the picture and select "save link as".

Each child in our daughter's fifth grade class-- in fact all the fifth graders in her school were assigned a state to study and report on. After this nearly one month project, they held a "State Fair" where each child acted as a tour guide of  their state. They dressed as a famous person from the state and even handed out samples of local cuisine. Our daughter chose to study Illinois. It was difficult for her to decide between dressing as Abraham Lincoln or Jackie Joyner-Kersee, an Olympic athlete. As you can probably guess from this post, she decided on the athlete. I made her two gold medals to wear. If you want to cut them yourself, right click on the image to the left and click "save link as" to save the file to your computer.

This was a design for a request on the Sure Cuts A Lot Forum. To download the file, right click on the picture and select "save link as".

I created these files for fabric cutting-- making a reef scene. Of course you can use them with paper or another media. The Diver Collection includes 8 different diver files.

Next are the fish and corals. There are 25 SVG files in this collection. You could make a great scene with just the fish and corals, or add the divers for an awesome scrapbook page.

The Moorish Idol is the only fish I designed in full color. It looked fun, so I decided to take on the challenge. I am pleased with the results. It is also a free file for those of you who would like it. To download the file, right click on the picture and select "save link as".

This was a design for a request on the Sure Cuts A Lot Forum. To download the file, right click on the picture and select "save link as".