Halloween Explore: Die Cut or Print and Cut?

Yes, I know, I'm a Cricut user and an SVG-aholic. So image what it is like to find a NEW (to me) SVG company. The card that I am showcasing here is from Fleurette Bloom, and I am excited to share with you how I made this fantastic Halloween scene with a little help from the new Print and Cut feature on the Cricut Explore. Here is the final version, but let's rewind and see how it started.

Obviously, this is a square card, so I simply started out with a black base and a black/gray/white simple pattern of paper.

The next thing I did was cut the moon and sky. I used a similar patterned paper on the moon in yellow, and then a solid blue for the sky. To give both cuts more dimension, I inked both, and then embossed the sky with a star pattern folder. Don't forget to use your dabbers on your inking. It gives you more control of your ink and how heavy you apply it.

I loved the moon and sky so much that I followed the same steps when adding the pumpkins to the bottom of the card. I used some orange patterned paper and then solid orange around the edges. I also inked the pumpkins and leaves.

Cutting the bats was the first challenge in this project. In the photo below, you can see the bat on the left side had some trouble cutting. The wings and ribs aren't clear or cut. The head is actually too big for the body even though they were all sized together. On the right side, the white of the wings and chest are super clear and the face is the right size. That is because the bat on the right was cut using the print and cut function on the Cricut Explore. (That bat is a little off white because I had already inked him.) 

Print and cut is so easy.
I created my bat just as if I was going to cut him in pieces. I told the Cricut to "flatten" and "print". The paper on the left side shows how the bat printed with cutting guidelines for the Cricut. The paper on the right side shows that the bat was cut exactly to shape.

And here it is again, the final product with the sentiment and the Skittles as decorations.

Challenges Entered
A Gem of a Challenge: create a scene
Open-Minded Crafting: pumpkins
Pumpkin Spice: harvest or Halloween
Crazy 4 Challenges: sketch
Simply Create Too: Halloween or orange
Fresh Brewed Blog: pumpkin patch
Little Red Wagon: spooky