The first of the year is always a busy time of regrouping, planning, goal setting, and even budgeting. But I’m happy to say that after the last two weeks, I’m back in the swing of things again and ready to get to work on my goals for 2014!! So let’s kick it off with a fun project for any occasion!

One of my newest and most favorite toys is my Silhouette Portrait machine. While I’m still learning all the amazing projects that you can create with the Silhouette machine, I did use the Portrait machine and some vinyl to create a gift for a very special Nana! You can use this idea for anyone that might enjoy a little “brag” board. I think it would make a fun magnetic board for even a teenage girl’s room! I’ll show you how I made it and even share a free cut file for you to make your own!

Yes, those are twinkly lights from the Christmas tree in the background. This was a Christmas present for my mother, so of course I had to wait until AFTER the holidays to post this to keep it a surprise! 😉 I can assure you that we don’t still have the Christmas tree up… well, not in the house anyway. There may or may not be a bare Christmas tree on the back deck… *ahem*… moving on.

Joann’s has these great magnet boards for only $10 (use a coupon and get it for less!) and some cute cute flower or monogram letter magnets. You can pick from a couple of different styles and a dozen bright colors. I chose the white desk standing magnet board and my daughter picked out a pretty pink and purple flower magnet specially for her Nana’s gift.

To make the design, I created a cut file in the Silhouette program by just typing in my text and changing the fonts to the style I wanted.

I used the pink vinyl roll from the Silhouette vinyl starter kit. The vinyl is so easy to  use. Just feed it directly into the Portrait machine and watch it cut!

Once your design is cut, it’s time to peel away the vinyl. I used the special “pick up” tool included in the kit to take out the tiny pieces in the letters. Now it’s time to cut a piece of transfer paper and stick it to your design. I love that it has grid lines to help you get everything lined up just right.Transfer your design to your magnet board. The kit comes with all the tools you need to get your design smooth so there’s no bubbles or wrinkles in your project.

Once you have it all lined up and smoothed out, just peel away the transfer paper.

I threaded some ribbon around the edges of the magnetic board, and added ribbon streamers to the flower magnet.

Now Nana has a fun board to display one of a kind artwork and her favorite pictures of her and Bree! A great gift for a baby shower or any occasion.

And now for a free cut file of this design for you to make your own! Just click on the image below to download the free cut file for Nana!

Click here to download this free cut file.

Do  you have a Silhouette or other brand cutting machine? What are some of your favorite projects? I hope you enjoy the free cut file and I’d love to hear some ideas from you on more Silhouette projects!