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Make your own custom washi tape with the Cameo Silhouette

by Min on 20 May 2013
in Hybrid,Silhouette,Silhouette Tutorial Pin this scrappy stuff!

Do you love to add washi tape to your layouts and hybrid projects? If you’re like me you’ve probably ached about your selection and wished you could make this tape just a shade lighter or recolor that pattern to match your project better? Plus buying a roll of it if you only need a little piece for your project … my budget doesn’t like that, lol.

Forget about those worries – the Cameo Silhouette is perfect to create exactly the tape you need. :D

I created a small washi tape freebie for you to follow along (if you want more you’re welcome to look at the full pack now on sale in my store ;D ),you can download the freebie here.

Open the included .dxf file with Silhouette Studio

 

If you have the perfect paper in your stash, simply move the tape shape to where you want it cut and let the Cameo cut it for you. Then apply glue to the backside – I love to use a glue that will dry “sticky” so I can use the paper tape almost like the “real thing”.

If you want to create your own custom tape you have to get the color or design on the tape first. One possibility is to print your pattern to paper or to sticker paper and cut then. An awesome effect can be achieved by printing on printable clear sticker paper – while it’s not strictly looking “washi”, it is very pretty!

Or you could have fun with the Silhouette sketch pens in your cameo – this I will show you in a little more detail with a very simple design:

Again we start with the plain washi tape – I moved it into the upper left corner because that is where I usually want the Cameo to cut.

Now choose your type tool and change the options in the text style window according to mine (font is wingdings3 and text size is 72pt), click somewhere in your workspace and type: gggg

If you try to move your arrows by clicking on the little circle you will see that the letters (or in that case arrows) will try to align with the path of your tape. That’s a great feature to keep in mind for other projects but not at all what we want now, lol

 

So change back to your move tool to move the arrows or use the align window.

Next open the cut style window, select your tape and click on “no cut” – the tape lines will gray out and the arrows will stay red. This step is saving you the trouble of moving things off the cutting board and re-aligning them later. Not that important in our little project today, but a major time (and material saver) in more complicated projects.

Open the cut window, select the sketch pen (and don’t worry about the other settings). Exchange the blade for a sketch pen of your choice. Load your medium into the Cameo and press “cut” and wait until the sketching is done. DO NOT UNLOAD AT THIS POINT! (Sorry for shouting, but this is important to make sure your project will be perfectly aligned, lol)

Now go back to the cut settings, assign the arrows as “no cut” and the tape as “cut edge”:

Back to the cut window and this time pick the blade and the printable sticker paper (or whatever other paper you’re using). Take the sketch pen out of the Cameo and re-enter the blade (without removing the cutting mat). Press cut.

Voilà, your custom washi tape is ready for using. :D

I case you wonder why I didn’t use the print-and-cut for this, here are some more thoughts about the use of the sketch pens. I like that they give a different texture than a printer. I love the added color options the sketch pens give me, think white, gold, silver – these are colors your printer cannot print. I love having outlines done with the sketch pen and being able to color them in with markers without the problem of running ink. I prefer using a sketch pen (if it’s possible) for a smaller project, because I don’t end up having the print-and-cut-markings on my paper.

I just put some basic cutting file sets into my store, they are 33 % off until June 9th – including the full washi tape set:

 

I would love to hear what other themes you would like to see a tutorial for: rhinestones, fabric projects, fusible appliqué, … Let me know either here in the comment section or via pm in the forum :D

Thank you and have a wonderful day! :D

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Cutting your own text with the Cameo

by Min on 22 April 2013
in Hybrid,Silhouette Tutorial,Tutorials Pin this scrappy stuff!

Today I will show you how easy it is to cut your own custom text with the Cameo Silhouette. Our project will be a simple “Thank you” card:

 

Open a new file in Silhouette Studio. We will start by defining the size of our card – this step does make sense even if you’re going to use a pre-cut card, because it will help you to determine the size and placement of your text.

So pick the rectangle tool and draw a rectangle

My rectangle is supposed to be 8 x 6 inches, since I want to create a card that does open at the bottom. For me it is easier to draw any rectangle and then adjust the size in the scale window, rather than trying to get the measurements exact while drawing it out. So if you’re like me, open the scale window, enter the measurements you want to have and don’t forget to press the “Apply” button:

Now we will start adding the text, so open the text window by clicking on one of the “A” symbols and start typing your text:

Next start playing with the settings – for my card I chose “Cooper Black” as font, but do play around and find one that fits the occasion and the person you want to give the card to. Maybe something with a more modern look? Or a script type font?

When you have chosen a font to your liking let’s adjust the size and maybe the spacing of the letters with the options in the Text Style window. (You are not limited to the sizes in the drop down window, just click in it and enter the font size you want to use and press return to change it.)

To place your text you can either just move it around until you have placed it to your liking or open the adjust window to help you, esp if you want it to be centered:

Done?  Save your project and then it’s time to cut!

First move your card (and the text with it) to the upper left corner, so you won’t have a lot of waste. If you use a precut card, move the card shape off the cutting board – but leave the text exactly where it was.

Open the cut window, adjust the settings to the kind of paper/cardstock you’re using, place your card on the cutting mat, insert it into the cameo and press the “cut” button in your studio software. (If you’re like me, enjoy watching the Cameo cut and listen to it’s “music”, lol)

When you take your cut off the cutting mat, be careful not to lose the tiny parts in the middle of the “o” and “a” – it will save you from crawling around on the floor looking from them (yes, I speak from experience, lol).

Fold your card (if it’s not prefolded) and admire it. ;)

You can either leave it at that or pick a paper to go inside your card, the one that will shine through your cut letters, and glue it inside the card. Cut a stripe large enough to cover the cut out area or line the inside completely with it. And now is the time when you need the tiny cut out pieces – place them inside the “o” and “a” and glue them in place.

If you wanted to you could easily do a second card by gluing the cutout letters to another piece of cardstock. Or save them in a jar or box for another project. ;D

That’s it for today – now have fun using this for all kinds of great projects!

Have a great week,

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Let’s make a Zipper Gift Card with your Cameo

by Min on 8 April 2013
in Silhouette Tutorial,Tutorials Pin this scrappy stuff!

Today I have a card project for you – a card that’s fun and very useful if you want to gift a picture, movie tickets – or money.

Here’s your link to download the cutting files for free (click image to download):

 

Let’s start by opening the file CGD_zipcard2.dxf in your Silhouette Studio software, it will look like this:

That’s the top part of the card. To make sure, that all parts will fit together and result in a 4 in x 6 in card, we will have to resize those pieces. Notice the little square at the bottom? It is supposed to be 1 in x 1 in.

If you’re not seeing grid lines or rulers on your workspace turn them on (see arrows in above picture) and set the spacing to one inch. Then select everything and resize. Holding the shift key while resizing will ensure you won’t distort and make the process easier.

Ungroup everything (Menu “Object” > “Ungroup” or Shift +u) and move the sizing square (and the writing) off your workspace. Now pick a paper if you haven’t done so yet – I chose to use a paper from my new “Zipped” collection (which is DOTD today for 70 % off  ;D ) that I had printed on cardstock.

Since I have never cut that kind of cardstock before, I did a test cut (actually it was more than one, lol) on a piece of that paper that I did not need for my project. I put it on the cutting mat, loaded it into the Cameo and pressed the little test cut button in my cutting window. Doing that enabled me to change the setting for the knife without wasting a lot of paper. :D (the test cut is really small, so you won’t need much paper for testing)

Move your cut pieces off the cutting mat and put them aside. If you want to use the cutting file for another project, go ahead and save it as .studio file. Thus you won’t have to go through the resizing again next time.

Now we will do the zipper part. Open the file CGD_zipcard3.dxf and repeat the resizing process:

Ungroup and move the square off the workspace.

If you want to use a patterned paper for the zipper, leave the pieces as they are. If you’re going to use a solid paper/cardstock – or like me a metal foil – let’s move those pieces around so we have less cutting waste. (Don’t forget to change the size of the cutting paper – see arrows – so you’re not accidentally moving your pieces to areas without paper)

As I said, I did use Silhouette’s Printable Silver Foil for my zipper parts, so I had to adjust my cut settings accordingly:

Now it’s time to stick your zipper parts on the already cut parts from your card – that is a little bit tedious, but so worth the effort:

Have you already picked your background paper? As you can see in the above picture, I printed one of the “Zipped” papers onto a 4 in x 6 in card, so I did not need to cut it. If you want to cut your background from a bigger piece of paper or cardstock, use the file CGD_zipcard1.dxf – and don’t forget to resize, lol.

Now we’re almost done!

If you look at the top or “pocket” pieces for your card you will notice two flaps on the sides. Fold these backwards, where the Cameo made those tiny cuts to help you fold.  Put glue on the inside of those flaps, position the pocket pieces on your background and glue in place.

Last attach the three pieces for your zipper pull, first the somewhat heart-shaped base, then the pull and the little rounded rectangle on top of it.

Voilà, here’s your card!

All that’s left to do, is to fill it and personalize it with a greeting or sentiment! :D

I hope you enjoyed this project – and I would love to see your finished cards in our Hybrid Gallery!

Have a great day!

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Dyeing Easter Eggs – Cameo Style

by Min 25 March 2013

Hi, Min here again, with a fun Easter project. I’m the one who’s responsible for dyeing Easter eggs in our family – including my parents, in-laws and my sister. That means I’m usually dyeing around 40 eggs. For years we had beautiful multi-colored and patterned Easter eggs, but at some point our teenage daughter decided [...]

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Trace, print and cut with the Cameo …

by Min 11 March 2013
Thumbnail image for Trace, print and cut with the Cameo …

… or how to get even more use out of your digital scrapbooking kits. ;D Today I want to show you one of my favorite things to do with my Silhouette Cameo – turning a piece of word art or a kit element into a cutting file. Depending on the “paper” you’re using you can create  [...]

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Simple Primrose Spring Wreath

by Min 25 February 2013
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Working with the happy colors of my Primrose Fairy Collection was so much fun that I decided to create a Primrose Spring Wreath, using my Silhouette Cameo. It is so nice to be greeted by the happy Spring colors on my door, while everything else outside is still very wintery. Here’s a tutorial, complete with [...]

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Valentine’s Card Hybrid Project – with cutting files

by Min 11 February 2013
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Hi all,   Today I’m here to show you how to create a beautiful glittery Valentine’s card with your Silhouette Cameo – and if you don’t own one (yet) there’s also an idea on how to make a card without one.   Material needed: 1 sheet of (red) cardstock, 12 x 12 in 1 sheet [...]

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