Silhouette - One Color Vinyl Cutting and Application

When I first bought my Silhouette, I was a little bit overwhelmed with the software and the capabilities of the machine, so I decided to go to a local class to become acclimated with it.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that the software interacts very similarly to Photoshop in design aspects, so I became much more comfortable with it.  The class helped me to figure out the general process for cutting and I wanted to share some basic info with you today, just in case you are new to the machine or need a little refresher course.

The following information is how I cut and apply vinyl to a project, but the general cutting information would hold true for any cutting project.  Two important things I learned about using my Silhouette with vinyl:

**  Glossy Vinyl = Permanent (use on most projects such as cups, etc. that will receive hard use)
     Matte Vinyl = Removeable (use on walls or other short-term projects that you will want to easily change)
**You do not have to use a full sheet of vinyl when cutting.  This may seem self-explanatory to you, but, it was quite freeing for me to know that I could just cut a small piece and save the rest.  Of course, it also means that I can save every scrap because it could be used at a later time. This is especially important when you are doing a design with different colors or several designs at one time, which I often do.

This particular tutorial is for basic, one-color vinyl cutting and application.
Let's get started.

1.         I always move my image to the upper left corner, to conserve as much space as possible.  Looking at the measurements, I can tell that I will need a piece of vinyl approx. 4"w x 5" tall.

2.     I don’t have a picture of this part, but . . .If you are using a brand new cutting mat, it will be too sticky.  This sounds weird, but turn it face down on a rug or other fabric surface and press down and remove a couple of times to make it a little bit less sticky.  If you don’t do this, you may not be able to get your pieces off after cutting.

3.     Position the piece of vinyl on your cutting mat, in the same spot as your design is located.  

4.     Click on the “Cut Settings” icon in the top right of your Silhouette software.   Here you will see all the settings appropriate for your cut.  Be sure that you have selected “vinyl” as your material type.


5.     Now, take your blade out of your machine by turning the handle to the left so that it will pop up.  Check what number it is set on.  (Mine was set on #3).

6.     Looking back at my “Cut Settings”, I can see that the recommended blade setting is for #1.  Personally, I have found that it does not always cut through at #1, so I prefer a #2 setting. 

7.     To change my blade, I set it in the hole in the front of my machine.

8.     Turn the blade handle until you see the 2.

9.     Drop the blade back in its holder.

10. Turn the handle to the right to secure the blade.  Now you are ready to cut.

11. Load your machine by lining up the left edge of your mat with the raised line on the Silhouette bed.  I keep one hand on the mat while I press the ENTER key.   Occasionally, it will grab the mat and pull it in crooked.  If this happens, press the ENTER key again to unload and try again.  It is important that it load straight.

12. This is what it looks like when it is loaded and ready to go.

13. Be sure that you have clicked “out” of the design boundary, so that the design boundary is no longer showing.  I learned the hard way that if not, it will just cut the portion of the design that is outlined and in some cases, that is not the entire design that you are trying to cut. (this picture shows the design boundary—Click out of this so it is not showing)
           

14. Press the “Send to Silhouette” button at the bottom of your screen.

15. Once cut, you will press the "ENTER" button to unload the cut.  It is sometimes hard to even tell unless you have really good lighting.

16. Carefully peel away the unwanted vinyl from around your design.


17. Use a pick to get the small inner pieces.

18. Cover your design with transfer tape.  I try to always be sure that I have a straight line at the top and bottom to make positioning easier.
(I have some Main Tape Transfer Tape left from other projects, so that is what you will see me using.  The process would be the same for Cricut brand, Expressions brand or whatever, but they might sheet style, rather than a roll.)



19. Use the side of your fingernail or the handle of your pick to burnish the vinyl to the tape by rubbing all over the design.

20. Carefully lift the tape from the design, making sure that the vinyl adheres in all areas.

21. Place the design on your surface and burnish again with your fingernail or handle of the pick.  Pay special attention to any thin, curly areas of your design.



22. Lift one corner of the tape to be sure that the vinyl is adhering to the surface.

23. Slowly remove all of the transfer tape.


24. If you find an area where the vinyl is not sticking to your surface, place the tape back down and burnish that area again.


25. Remove the tape and Voila’! 

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Day 18 - VLOG

Well, for this prompt, I first had to look up "VLOG" to be sure that I knew what one even was.  Then, not knowing what in the world to VLOG about, I decided to just resort to re-posting a video that Jana and I made several years ago.  While visiting her prior to a big vacation that we were taking, we designed and constructed packing folders for our clothes.

(There is a link to the tutorial in the Projects tab above).   Since we weren't sure that people would know how to use it, we recorded a "how-to" video.  Not exactly a VLOG, I guess, and it pictures Jana rather than me, but I was recording it.  By the way, these things are really great for packing shirts compactly with minimal wrinkles.   So, here it is:

Green DIY

I certainly don't consider myself any sort of health nut----my diet and habits can definitely attest to that. But, while considering my word of the year, "Purpose", I have become more concerned about being more healthy and making small changes that can impact the environment in a positive way. I tackled one of those small changes this weekend.

With my laundry room "re-do" well underway, I decided that one change I could make is to switch to more natural laundry products. After seeing lots of different options for homemade laundry detergent, I settled on the recipe I found over on Go Green Street. This was an easy-peasy recipe, with only 3 ingredients needed (I love the packaging on that Dr. Bronner's soap). I found all of them at Drug Emporium and the total cost was about $9 for enough laundry powder to last me months! So, not only is it pretty and safe for the environment, but it is VERY cost-efficient, too. And did I mention that it smells good, too?!?! I chose the lavender soap, but Dr. Bronner's comes in lots of different scents.

First I grated the bar of soap into a large bowl. One bar makes over 2 cups once grated.

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Next, I measured out the Borax and Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (not baking soda) and stirred them together really well. Lastly, I poured it into a pretty jar that I found on the sale table at Hobby Lobby a few weeks ago. The whole process only took about 15 minutes and my whole kitchen still smells really nice from the lavender soap! I made one other little change---I really like to use dryer sheets but have been reading about how unhealthy they are, both for the environment and for our bodies. So, I made my own natural ones! I cut some plain terry washcloths in half, zig-zagged the edges, and placed them in a jar filled with a fabric softener mixture. (I used Mrs. Meyer's lavender fabric softener diluted with water) I can now take out a cloth, squeeze out the excess liquid and toss it in the dryer with my clothes. Normal dryer sheets are pretty cheap so I don't know if my homemade variety is that much cheaper, but it definitely is not any more expensive and will be much better for us. (that's the cloths in the square jar I found at Target)

Last Minute Gifts, Part Two

The other gift I made for Dan this evening is a Birthday Card Organizer. I could have purchased one, but they all seemed so "girly" and just didn't quite fit what I was looking for. So, I made my own. I wanted it to have a calendar for each month and a pocket of some sort to store cards in. In addition, I wanted an area to store Get Well and Sympathy cards. So, here's what I came up with.

I purchased a colorful three ring binder and a package of manila envelopes and set to work. First, I removed all the clasps from the envelopes. You don't have to do this, but Dan would have some difficulty managing these, so I just took them off and replaced them with velcro. (this is what I do with lots of my teaching games) I debated laminating the envelopes, as I do with teaching games, but decided against it since I just ran out of time I wanted Dan to be able to write on the calendar . I designed my own calendar pages and after printing them, trimmed them and mounted them on colored cardstock. I added a strip of patterned paper to the top and used my Cricut to cut out the letters of each month. I punched holes in the envelopes. . . . . . added file tabs to the sides (these are Post-It brand) and inserted them into the binder. I filled the envelopes with a variety of greeting cards that he can send to family and friends. I have been uploading the full tutorial over on Scribd, but it's taking forever, so I'll have to post the link later. Here's the tutorial if you want to download it here.