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🦃 Mix It Up! Combining SVGs with Traditional Crafting for Beautiful Mixed Media Projects

SVGs meet traditional crafting — perfect for fall and early winter projects!

SVGs Aren’t Just for Vinyl — Let’s Mix It Up!

If you’ve been crafting with SVGs for a while, you probably think of them as designs for vinyl decals or laser cuts — but they’re so much more versatile! As the weather cools and we spend more time inside, it’s the perfect season to experiment with mixed media crafting — blending paper, fabric, paint, and wood with your favorite SVG files.

Today, I’m sharing a few ideas to help you bring your SVG designs to life in new, tactile ways that add warmth and dimension to your projects.


🎨 Project 1: Stone Coasters or Trivets with Laser-Cut or Cricut Stencil Overlay

SVGs make excellent stencils for coasters – stone, wood, etc.
Cut your design from removable vinyl or transparency film to create a crisp stencil overlay. Then paint through it onto your project, let it dry, and peel it back for that professional look.

Try this:

  • Use a simple quote SVG (“Give Thanks,” “Bless This Home,” or “Stay Cozy”).
  • Cut from stencil vinyl using your Cricut or laser cutter.
  • Paint the sign in warm autumn tones — deep orange, mustard, and cream.
  • Finish with a light matte sealer for durability.

Free File – the “Give Thanks” SVG file is one from my freebie archives. Check it out here!

Tip: If you’re using a laser-cut stencil, tape the edges down well before painting to avoid overspray.Connect


✂️ Project 2: Paper + Fabric Combination Cards

Combine SVG-cut cardstock shapes with fabric scraps or felt pieces for texture and charm.
You can even stitch or glue them onto handmade cards or gift tags for a rustic look.

Try this:

  • Cut leaves, pumpkins, or stars from paper and layer over a square of burlap or cotton.
  • Add a stitched border with thread or a faux-stitch pen.
  • Use heat-bond or craft glue to hold fabric in place.

This project is great for Thanksgiving place cards or early winter gift tags — fast, personal, and perfect for using up your scrap bin!


🖼️ Project 3: Vinyl Accents on Painted Canvases

A painted canvas gets an instant upgrade with vinyl embellishments.
Try mixing acrylic paint backgrounds with SVG-cut vinyl words, shapes, or outlines to add contrast and polish.

Try this:

  • Paint a simple winter background (snowy scene, ombre blue, or abstract swirls).
  • OR – Try acrylic paint pouring for something different and fun!
  • Add “Joy,” “Peace,” or “Thankful” in adhesive vinyl.
  • Finish with layered snowflakes, stars, or hearts cut from metallic vinyl.

You can even seal it with Mod Podge or clear acrylic spray for a long-lasting, mixed media effect.


🧩 Tips for Mixed Media Success

  • Layering: Always plan from base to top — paint → paper → vinyl → embellishments.
  • Adhesives:
    • Paper & fabric: Glue sticks or double-sided tape.
    • Wood & canvas: Mod Podge or spray adhesive.
    • Vinyl: Stick-on vinyl or transfer tape.
  • Sealing: For pieces combining materials, a matte acrylic sealer or decoupage glue helps protect and blend layers.

📸 Share Your Mixed Media Creations!

I’d love to see how you combine SVGs with other crafting materials!
Share your projects on social media with #KabramKrafts — it helps inspire others and might just get featured in a future roundup.

Mixing SVGs with traditional crafts opens up endless creative possibilities.
Whether you’re layering vinyl on canvas, painting through a stencil, or sewing fabric accents onto cards, the beauty of mixed media is that it’s personal and perfectly imperfect.

Grab your glue, brushes, and cutting machine — and let’s make something amazing!

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Paper Cut Pop-Up Heart SVG Template

Pretty Pop-Up Hearts

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Time for a new file. This one, as you may notice, is a paper-cutting pop-up file for all you card makers out there! 

Sadly, my poor Silhouette Cameo has been sitting unused for a long time. After my laser arrived, I have neglected paper crafting despite the fact that I still enjoy it. Paper has an allure to it. So many possibilities. 

What better time to pull out your cutting machine and make a card than Valentine’s Day? This is a very simple file to cut. It cuts really fast, the tricky part is folding it correctly. I recommend scoring the center and folding it first. Then, you can accordion fold the sides and your card pop-up insert is all set to put in your card and add a nice sentiment. 

If you need a good sentiment to add to your card, check out 1 Corinthians 13. Best love passage there is, if you ask me. 

Love Never Fails

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never ends.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 ESV



FREE SVG DOWNLOAD

My project-1

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First Day of School – Distance Learning Covid-19 Style!

First day of school is coming. Back to school sales have started. Backpack sales are going to be down I am guessing!

Who is ready for school to start? Well, I would be if I wasn’t going to be the main teacher. At one point, we were seriously considering homeschooling. However, I decided some precious quiet time without supervising kids would go a long way toward preserving my sanity.

Yet, here we are. Covid-19 has placed many parents in the role of teacher, or at very least student supervisor whether they wanted to be or not. I am really hopeful that the distance learning my Kindergartner and Second Grader participate in this fall will be more streamlined than what we experienced in the Spring. There were WAAAY too many sites and logins to navigate for a first grader.

What have you decided will work best for your children? Honestly, I think homeschooling would be really great this year if you can swing it. We want to keep our spots at the charter school, so distance learning it is until it is safe to go back.

Now, on to the file I made for you. I thought we needed a special back to school sign for “first day of school” this year. I think this has good potential and can be customized for those starting the fall off distance learning.

Enjoy! Please share pictures with me if you use the file, it makes my designing more meaningful to know people are enjoying it. 🙂

Here is the download. For the custom one I just inserted text. I am probably going to use this on some cute little chalkboards I found at Michaels. Have fun crafting and good luck with schools!

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Father’s Day Card SVG Freebie

In this post, I assure you, there is a nice easy Father’s Day Card for you to make. It is a very cute simple design, that is really easy to throw together last minute. That is my favorite kind of card SVG. Don’t get me wrong, the complicated ones are really cute when people make them, but they take waaaaay more effort and time than I am typically willing to invest.

Where have I been? I haven’t had much time to devote to my website for the past month or so, but not because I am not creating. Is it just me, or is it really difficult to not be creating? I have a really hard time putting projects down to get the daily chores done.

LASER LASER LASER

I haven’t been here because I have been in my hot garage drooling over my latest crafting toy. What is so exciting that I am sweating away in my garage in the summer in Texas?

MY NEW LASER CUTTER!

Yep. That is right. I bought a laser cutter! It is absolutely awesome and to top it off it is yellow, my favorite color. It is a 60Watt Chinese Laser purchased on Ebay, in case you wanted to know. I was so worried that I wouldn’t be able to set it up when it came, but it wasn’t actually too bad.

Now, I am designing and cutting files on wood instead of paper! It is really really awesome. You may get tired of hearing this, but it is awesome. Yes, awesome.

Anyhoo, enough about my really awesome yellow laser, which needs a cute name.

Father’s Day

On to the point of this blog. Father’s Day is upon us again. I have a lot of cute cutting files already here for you to use or be inspired by. Take a look if you like.

Father’s Day SVG Freebie

However, I wanted something simpler and more generic this year. I am planning on sending one to my dad, and as you can see, my daughter’s already absconded with the other’s I made to give to their dad. My six-year-old added artwork and it turned out adorable too.


So, here is this year’s Father’s Day SVG Freebie. The download link is right below the image. The file has three parts. The main card, two optional shadow components, and an overlay. The overlay goes over “happy” and “day”, and creates a outline later for “fathers”. Let me know if you have any questions with it. If you use a standard 12×12 paper, you can make it approximately 4″x6″.

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Mother’s Day Free Card SVG and Sentiment

Happy Mother’s Day to all my fellow mother’s out there. (Don’t worry, if you aren’t a mother, we won’t ban you from crafting.)

Have you been crafting away during this time of quarantine? I have certainly been trying to, but three little girls have me running around doing things like feeding them, washing their clothes, cleaning up messes. I mean, the nerve. Just kidding of course, they are wonderful little people to have around but sometimes you just want to be quarantined alone!

On that same note, I certainly can’t be the only one who plays deaf when my children are running around the house shouting “MOMMMMM”. I figure they can get a little exercise before I reveal my top secret location. Mwhahah!

All of this, of course is super on topic as my freebie today is a a Mother’s Day card. Yay! Although, it is not a card that screams Mother’s Day, so you could definitely use it for other occasions. If you do, I would suggest not bothering to use the “Happy Mother’s Day” sentiment. Or do. I am not your mom.

Whew! Apparently I am feeling rather sarcastic today. Hopefully you are staying healthy and sane. Enjoy making this beautiful Mother’s Day Card.

While you are here, be sure to check out the Mother’s Day Card I posted way back when I first started this site. My images have come a long way since then, but the file is still super awesome as well.

And don’t forget the layered Mom file for another quick variation of a mother’s day file!

Goodness, I forgot to mention one super exciting thing. I cut this card out on my new super duper awesome laser! Yep. I got a laser. A giant yellow CO2 Laser. I have been eyeing them for a long time and it actually happened. And as a bonus, I figured out how to set it up and get it to actually work. I suppose it is my Mother’s Day gift for the next decade.


And now for the actual freebie. I have included a “Happy Mother’s Day” sentiment that I made to go with mine. I don’t like fussing with the little letters, so I welded it all together. That way, just one piece to cut and glue. Laziness for the win. Happy Mother’s Day!

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Coronavirus 2020 SVG File for COVID-19

Please enjoy this COVID-19 Coronavirus 2020 SVG file. I designed the virus icon from a diagram of the actual virus cell. (I’m not sure if cell is the technically correct word here, but it has been a while since I was in Biology class!)

Health is so important to the daily enjoyment of our lives. This Coronavirus outbreak has hit our world so very very hard. I sincerely hope that you and yours are doing well and are well provided for.

With mostly everyone at home, I thought it might be enjoyable to send out cards to those you love to let them know you are thinking of them. That was the inspiration for this card. It is intended as a little bit of humor in the midst of a scary time. 

Wishing you well. Here is the Coronavirus 2020 COVID-19 SVG FREEBIE!

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Free Mom & Dad SVG Layered Files

So, the world has gone mad. I mean, doesn’t it feel almost surreal?

A world wide pandemic is something I thought I would only see in movies and board games. It really never occurred to me that it would actually be something to touch and even deeply affect my day to day life.

First, Here is to hoping that this finds you and yours safe and well supplied for all your needs. Our family is stocked for a couple weeks and ready to hunker down. My girls and I are not especially vulnerable to the virus, thankfully, but my husband does not have a strong immune system.

All anyone can do is be prepared and pray!

So, how are things in your neck of the woods? Lots of hand-washing here and we have enough toilet paper and soap too! 😉

Hopefully, these couple SVG files will be a welcome diversion for you.

Layered Bee File Posted on Etsy

If you happened to catch my last post, you saw that I created an adorable layered bumble bee file. I used it as a baby shower gift, but I have had at least two people purchase it for a beekeeper they know.

Anyhow, I did polish up the file and get it posted on Etsy. You have to add your own text, but the rest is ready to cut!

Mom and Dad Layered Paper Art

Since we all have our family and their well-being on our minds, I thought a quick couple files for Mom and Dad would be perfect. Mother’s Day and Father’s day aren’t too far away. Get your cards done early.

While I envision these as layered card fronts, but you could definitely do more with them.

Here are some of my past posts on Father’s Day Cards and Files.

And some on Mother’s Day Cards and Files!

Click below to download the bee zip file. Happy quarantine crafting!

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Free Bee SVG Download – Ha ‘Bee’ Birthday

I have a free Bee SVG for you tonight. Looking at this smiling bee is definitely cheering me up a bit. While I am glad to be back here posting a new file for everyone, it has been a rough week here my neighborhood.

Sadly, a little girl on her bike was hit and killed on her way to my daughter’s school this week. It is so tragic to lose such a young life. Please keep her family in your prayers. Her name was Irie.

It has been so heavy on my heart, especially having to share the news with my young daughters. They are so sweet though, and they were reassuring me that she was not dead, but alive with God in heaven. Such sweet little hearts children often have.

BEE Layered Paper Art

Anyhow, if you need a little cheering up after such a heavy topic, I have just the file for you tonight. I made this cute little bee for a gift a few weeks ago. It was my first attempt at a layered paper art picture.

Actually, this is how the layered file looked in Adobe Illustrator before I cut it out.

Not that I like to brag, but I do really love how it turned out. Hopefully the recipient did too!

If there is enough interest, I may put the layered file up for sale on my Etsy Shop, but for now I wanted to share the cute little bee. Before I can put it up for sale, I will need to write up instructions and figure out how to make the name layer more customizable.

UPDATE

I managed to get the layered file cleaned up and posted on Etsy!
Find it HERE.

The one thing I would change were I to make it again is to put a little more support behind the middle of the name layer as it was a wee bit wobbly.

Free BEE SVG and hand-lettered sentiment

Also, because I felt the little bee was lacking something, I hand-lettered a cute birthday message to go with it. Hopefully you enjoy it and are able to make something adorable with it.

I also have some other cute animal files if you want to take a look.

Happy Creating!

If you are curious, I separated the layers in my picture using cork scraps. I use cork for the backs of the coasters I have on my Etsy Shop, and always have lots of scraps left over. They turned out to be just perfect for the job. Here are some behind the scenes photos of this project.

Well, I sincerely hope you have a wonderful week. BEE happy, and enjoy life.

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Foil Quill Candy Heart SVG Freebie – Part II.

Don’t Fear the Foil Quill

Valentine’s Day SVG Download! Message Hearts Part I.

As promised, I am back with a new version of the Valentine’s Day Candy Heart SVG freebies I shared last week. If you missed that one, be sure to check it out and grab the free layered SVG file I shared.

Valentine’s Day SVG Download! Message Hearts Part I.

My health is on the mend thanks to some powerful antibiotics. However, I am still mostly deaf in one ear thanks to an ear infection. My sympathies to those who have frequent ear infections or actual hearing loss!

The Dreaded Foil Quill

Well, dreaded might be a bit exaggerated, but I got this fun tool AT LEAST 6 months ago. It has been sitting unopened in my closet. Why? Because I was intimidated by it. While I may have used the excuse of not having time, I truly was worried that I would mess it up and waste all that pretty foil sitting there waiting for me.

If you are in the same boat, pull it out and just try it. Well, if you have the right cords. First, I summoned my courage and attempted to plug it in, but the cord on this thing is only two feet long and needs to be plugged into a USB power port. (The one on the Cameo does not do the job). So, I paid a visit to Amazon and purchased one of these little USB Extension Cords.

All set up and ready to foil.

Once I got my extension cord, I was finally ready. After modifying the file, which I will link to at the end, I was ready to try it out. Not knowing how the Foil Quill would work in the Cameo 4, I put it in the second slot of my Cameo 3 and my cutting blade in the first slot.

While I am no expert in the foil quill as of yet, here is a screenshot of the settings I used, as they seem to have worked quite well! Make sure you select the correct tool for each part and add a Pause between the tools so you can remove the foil.

ATTENTION: Add a pause between the foil and the cardstock cutting!

An important thing to note is that I put a PAUSE between the Foill Quill and the cutting job so that I could remove the foil before it tried to cut the hearts. This actually worked out really well. I was able to remove the foil with a bit of maneuvering without unloading the mat. Then, I simply pressed continue on my computer and it cut the foiled hearts out.

Step 1: Let the Foiling Begin

Checking to see how it came out was the best part. It worked (almost) perfectly. The only issue I had was on not aligning my design and the foil quite exactly. If you look in the image below, a couple of the hearts got a bit cut off in the foiling process. However, I was still happy with the results.

The exciting part!

Step 2: Cut the hearts.

After removing the foiling, I hit continue – it shows up as a button on your computer screen. My Cameo completed the job and cut out the cardstock.

Foil Quill Candy Hearts – Tada!
Foil Quill Card stock Hearts

For the font, I used “LW Tall Sketch” from the Silhouette Store. It is a nice skinny font that looks great in all caps and didn’t have space between the inner and outer edge of the letters.

If you wanted to enhance the 3-D effect of the candy heart, you could shade in the bottom half of each heart with the same color pencil or marker.

Last Tips

Moral of the story, don’t fear the foil quill. It is your friend. The foil quill won’t hurt you (probably); it is hot. Follow the directions and heat it up for 5 minutes or so before you start.

Now, what should I do with these? I feel as though some of you clever card makers could do something really neat with them. I am envisioning some sort of see through container on the front of the card with these inside. Or maybe just a line of them on the front of the card. Who knows? Once I have designed them, my creative juices run out. So, I always love to see what my readers come up with. Drop me a picture if you create something awesome!

Now, hopefully this download link will work. A final tip – cut by the line color or fill – there is a no fill and a fill.

Candy Heart SVG Freebie

And lastly, here is the free SVG download!

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Valentine’s Day SVG Download! Message Hearts Part I.

Welcome 2020 & New Year’s Resolutions

Happy New Year everyone! This year has already had a rocky start in my house. Everyone was down and out with the flu. I got the flu shot. I got the flu. Is anyone else in that boat? Well I am sick. Sick of being sick. I had so many great and energetic ideas. Plans to watch fewer shows, do more crafts, write more blog posts, make more svg files, spend more quality time with my family. Instead, I have been on my back watching shows. Talk about demoralizing!

But now, I am back. Well, almost. I still have a cough that could wake the neighborhood and resulted in my husband giving me dirty looks at the movie theater for my inability to stop my coughing fits. But, my energy is mostly revived. Hooray for 2020!

Has anyone missed me?

So, I have a gut feeling about this one. My blog is not a household staple. No one has been clinging to the edge of their seat wondering where on earth Kristin at Kabram Krafts has disappeared to. If you have, I am enchanted.

The truth is, I have felt sooooo guilty that I haven’t been creating more files and crafts to share with you here. I have been crafting. But, more often than not you will find me trying to catch up on laundry, dishes, and the general chaos of having three young daughters!

In fact, one of my top resolutions this year is to grow this site. To fill it to the brim with lots of crafty ideas and files for you to try.

New Christmas Toys

Did you receive any fun crafty toys for Christmas? Well, I made sure I did. Am I the only one who bought themselves a Christmas gift, wrapped it and put it under the tree? I present to you, my new Silhouette Cameo 4.

So far, I haven’t really put its capabilities to the test, but all the testing for today’s file was done on my new Cameo and it worked like a champ.

Free Valentine’s Day Message Hearts

I have more variations in my head for these. Including trying out the Foil Quill to write the messages on them. Hence, I have titled this post “Part I” – so hold me to it, more on the horizon.

Foil Quill Version: COMPLETE!

Check it out HERE!

Here is what I came up with. These are three parts per heart. A backing for the text color, the heart with message, and the small shadow to make these look like the small message heart candies. So cute, and yet so very unappetizing. A Valentine’s Day staple. I choose three saying, but it would not be very hard to alter the messages if you know how the fun little path tools work.

For the shadow pieces, I colored each one with the same color to make it slightly darker. I think it might look just as good or better if you hand shade the heart with the words instead of adding the “shadow” paper piece.

Without further ado, here is the free Valentine’s Day message heart svg file freebie for you.