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11 Must-Know Silhouette Tips, Tricks, Shortcuts & Work Arounds {March Month in Review}

Silhouette, tips, tricks, shortcuts, work arounds
March was only Silhouette School's second full month since our January launch...and it sure was a busy one. In March, we got schooled on a lot of tutorials, shortcuts and work-arounds for those pesky problems that creep up in Silhouette Studio. Everything from how to turn free PicMonkey designs into Silhouette cut files to making perfect shapes, installing new fonts in Silhouette Studio and cleaning a dirty cutting mat.

Silhouette Offset Tutorial for Beginners

Offset, Silhouette, tutorial, beginners
Today we're answering a reader question about making duplicate images in different sizes so they can be used together.  The question comes from Michelle who asks:

"I am wondering if you can help me make a duplicate cutout 1/4" bigger than another. I have downloaded the baby boy onesie template... I want to use the (onesie) to be a different color that is 1/4" bigger, but when I try to do it my proportions don't come out right. Any suggestions??"

I also own the same baby boy motif, that Michelle is working with, so I will use it for this tutorial.

Burlap Easter Bunny Banner (Substitute Teacher Project)

burlap, banner, easter bunny

So if you follow our sister site, Two It Yourself, you know that I may could quite possibly be considered a burlap-aholic. Seriously. I think I have a problem. I currently have 50+ yards of burlap sitting in my craft room. I am not exaggerating.  That's exactly why I am so excited to share Cheryl from Snaps of Ginger's burlap bunny bunting project with you today.

Cheryl created this adorable Easter bunny banner using paper-backed burlap from the Recollections Organic Textures Paper 12"x12" Pad cut on her Silhouette. Genius - right?!  Since I am a huge fan of all things burlap and I make a banner for pretty much every season (again, I am serious), I immediately knew I wanted to share this easy Easter project with all of you.

So go on..hop on over to Snaps of Ginger and see how Cheryl whipped up this adorable bunting in no time with the help of her Cameo.

If you'd like to apply to substitute teach on Silhouette School just click here to apply. 

http://www.123contactform.com/form-821418/Apply-To-Guest-Post

Thanks for coming to class today at Silhouette School.  If you like what you see, I'd love for you to pin it!


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ExpressionsVinyl Logo

How to Find & Download Free Designs in Silhouette Online Store

Find, download, designs, Silhouette online store

There are currently 12 free designs in the Silhouette Online Store.  The SOS is offering one free design a day until March 27. Originally, the each design would only be offered for a limited time, but the rules have changed.  Until the end of the sale, all of the free daily designs will be available for free!

That means you have until March 27 to download all 12 of the free designs - including this week's design of the week.

(Free) DIY Photobooth Props using PicMonkey and Silhouette

Photobooth props, PicMonkey, Silhouette, DIY, do it yourself, free
I posted a little sneak peek of my photo booth props on the Silhouete School Facebook page last week and was immediately asked where the design could be purchased.  Guess what peeps - it's FREE courtesy of PicMonkey!

Have you caught on by now?  I love me some PicMonkey. If you aren't familiar with the monkey swing on over and check out the most fabulous and FREE photo editor and designer on the web.  I'm not even joking.  PicMonkey has tons of free designs and since you can save them in JPEG format that means they can be converted to free Silhouette designs, as well.  (More on importing JPEG and GIFs to Silhouette Studio in a minute.)

Today, I'm going to share a fun tutorial on making DIY photobooth props.  Photo booth props often include mustaches, beards, hats, glasses, tiaras, lips, thought bubbles and the list goes on depending on the theme of the party, wedding, or celebration (or perhaps you're just making them for your kiddos for no reason other than you're a rock-star mom)! Guess what...PicMonkey is totally at rock star status, too! Let's get started.

10 Silhouette Ideas to Add Curb Appeal to Your Home

Silhouette idea, curb appeal, home
Today's officially first day of spring!  And in honor of the season all about flowers, butterflies, and chirping birds, we're taking our lesson outside.  Around here spring means sprucing up the outside of our home with color and fresh new decor.  The Silhouette can come in really handy for outdoor decor.
Note: You'll notice many of these projects include vinyl - be sure to use the indoor/outdoor vinyl for the best results!

How to Cut Oversized Stencils on Silhouette (Wider than 12")

Cut, oversized, stencils, Silhouette, Silhouette Studio
I love my Silhouette and I rarely feel limited by it - even though I have the smaller Portrait.  But on a recent project even the larger CAMEO wouldn't have helped me.  I was making a large burlap Easter banner/flag and a stencil that was limited to just 12" wide (or in my case 8" wide) would have just looked lost on this large flag.  They say necessity is the mother of invention...and I needed a bigger stencil so I figured out a way to do it.

11 Free Silhouette Files in 11 Days

So Tuesday is my favorite day when it comes to Silhouette...you know why? Because every Tuesday the Silhouette Online Store offers their new free weekly design.  This week is NO exception...but there is even better news this week.  

This week the Silhouette Online Store announced it would offer 11 FREE Silhouette Files - one a day - between now and March 27.  The free silhouette design-a-day giveaway started Monday, March 17. The cute little 'Hi' Speech Bubble below was Monday's free design.

Now usually the free weekly design is available all week - so whether you swing by on Tuesday or the following Monday it's up for grabs.  But these 11 free designs will be available for a limited time only. 

The 11 free Silhouette files coincides with the Silhouette Online Store's current 50% off all designs sale.  If you haven't checked out the online store yet, you really should - even if it's just to download the free designs of the day!

Note:  Silhouette School blog is not associated or affiliated with Silhouette Online Store or Silhouette America in any way. I was not compensated in any way for this blog post. 

 

Thanks for coming to class today at Silhouette School.  If you like what you see, I'd love for you to pin it!


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Get Silhouette to Cut on Different Paper in One Cut (Fail Proof)

Cut, Silhouette, different paper, one cut, Silhouette tutorial
Have you ever cut a design with lots of little pieces that all need to be cut on different colors or patterns of paper?  There's no need make various cuts, you can actually do it with just one cut - the secrets in the set up.

How to Make 3D Paper Flowers the Easy & Free Way (Silhouette Tutorial)

3D, paper flowers, Silhouette tutorial, Silhouette Studio
Spring is coming and that can only mean one thing - flowers!  Today's lesson at Silhouette School is on how to make paper flowers the easy (and free) way using the Silhouette.  This is a basic tutorial and one that, once you master, can easily be customized.

What we're going to do is take one basic flower design and use it to make a 3D flower by cutting it several times in different sizes.   But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

First you need to find a flower design to cut.  If you have a flower that you like in your library - go ahead and use that.  I looked through a few different flower and nature dingbat fonts (You do know my trick on getting free designs from dingbat fonts, don't you? Click here NOW! Go on...I'll wait) and settled on this flower.   It's the "P" (capital P) from the Kalocsai Flowers font.  More here on how to download and install new fonts into Silhouette Studio. 


Silhouette Loud: Should my machine be making all this noise?

Silhouette, loud, noise Is your Silhouette loud? Are you concerned it's too loud? You're not alone.  It's a question I have gotten repeatedly from readers concerned there's something wrong with their machine.  Mary Jo is among them.  She writes:

"My big question is this - is the machine supposed to be really noisy?  I've been noticing that it is..."

So here's the thing - the Silhouette is not a quiet machine.  My machine is what I would consider loud.  Do I think it's louder than the manufacturer-issued Silhouette User's Guide suggests? Probably.   Do I think they are downplaying the noise the machine makes? Yes.  Do I think there's reason to be concerned?  In most cases, no.
 The official line from Silhouette is this:  "Please note that the Silhouette is unfortunately not a whisper quiet unit. The sounds you are hearing are likely normal."

Abnormally loud noise coming from the Silhouette machine could likely be caused by the motor if the packing tape that was used to keep it in place during shipping was not properly or completely removed.  The manufacturer suggests making sure any tape that was connecting the motor to the side of the machine is completely removed. 
 Thanks for coming to class today at Silhouette School.  If you like what you see, I'd love for you to pin it!


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Silhouette CAMEO 4: New Silhouette Machine Coming 2019

  Silhouette CAMEO 4: New Silhouette Machine Coming 2019

Silhouette CAMEO 4, Silhouette CAMEO 4 release date, New Silhouette CAMEO, Silhouette CAMEO 4 features, Pre Order Silhouette CAMEO 4, Pre Order CAMEO 4, Silhouette CAMEO 3 vs CAMEO 4

Click here to sign up for our emails to get notified about the Silhouette CAMEO 4 Release Date, Pre-Orders and More!


Note: This post may contain affiliate links. By clicking on them and purchasing products through my links, I receive a small commission. That's what helps fund Silhouette School so I can keep buying new Silhouette-related products to show you how to get the most out of your machine!


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Silhouette Fill Color / Pattern Not Filling (Troubleshooting Tutorial)

Fill color, pattern, not filling, Silhouette tutorial, Silhouette Studio, troubleshooting

Having trouble getting the Silhouette Studio Fill Color or Fill Pattern to actually fill?  You've come to the right spot.  The problem is likely very simple - the edge of your design is not closed.   If you are only getting a partial fill it's likely due to your design elements not touching or being welded together.

Basic Silhouette Pop Up Card Tutorial (Free .Studio Pop Up Template)

Pop-up card, Silhouette, tutorial, Silhouette Studio, free template
The Silhouette makes creating pop up cards pretty easy! This tutorial will take you through the basics and once you get comfortable you'll be able to get as creative as you want with your DIY pop up cards.

Start by opening up Silhouette Studio. 

I have the Portrait so I worked on two different pages due to the size of my card, but if you have the cameo you'll probably have room to work in just one work space.  Either way we'll start with a blank work page.

Click the Draw a Rectangle tool (circled below) and draw a rectangle the size you want your card.  Keep in mind the rectangle will be folded in half so you actually want the card twice as long as you want the card to be.  I wanted my card to be 4x6 so I made a box that's 8x6.

How to Make Die Cuts to Match Stamps

Die cuts, match, stampsI'm so excited that we have a Sub in the classroom today!  I'm cutting right to the chase and handing over the reigns to two lovely ladies - a mom and daughter team....

Hi there! We're Becky and Glenna from My Paper Craze and we're honored to share a Silhouette tutorial with you today! We started off as paper crafters before we discovered the all-powerful Silhouette electronic cutting machines. While we tinkered with a little of everything, we {LOVED} making handmade cards. We amassed large stamp collections and ooo'd and ahh'd over all the beautiful stamps we could collect and use. Our favorites were the stamps with matching die cuts, so that we could add that special "pop" on our cards or layouts.

With that little intro said, our whole world of stamping opened up when we discovered this neat trick using our Silhouette machines... Making Your Own Die Cuts to match your stamps! Gone are the days of creating your layout around your stamps, but rather altering your stamps to match your layout! The rule of thumb is that if you can trace your image then you can cut your image.  I'll show you how I created the die cut file for the flower on this card.

How to Cut PicMonkey Designs in Silhouette Studio

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut
I'm so excited to share this fun tutorial with you today because it combines two of my favorite programs - PicMonkey and Silhouette Studio.  If you're not familiar with PicMonkey, it's a free online photo editing and design website.  The graphics, designs, and fonts are outstanding and the capabilities when it comes to photo editing are endless.  Any screen grab you see on Silhouette Studio that has things circled or arrows or text..it's all powered by PicMonkey :)   Today I'm going to show you how to bring designs you've made in PicMonkey over to Silhouette Studio.

Since PicMonkey is free to use the designs are free, as well, for personal use.   Today I'm going to show you how to turn a basic PicMonkey design into a cut file.

Go to PicMonkey.com.  Click Design at the top.

On the left side click the butterfly icon to open up the overlays (designs).

Scroll through until you find a design you like.  I am desperately wishing for spring so I'm going to make three flowers.  I pulled over my flower designs from the bursting blossoms set and then added stems from leafy greens set.  I resized and got my design all ready in PicMonkey.

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut, flower

Now save your design by clicking 'Save' in the gray toolbar at the top.  Name the file and make sure it saves as .jpeg.

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut, jpeg

Open up Silhouette Studio and at the same time navigate to the folder where your PicMonkey design saved.  Click the name of the file and drag it into Silhouette Studio.  For more help on importing a JPEG into Silhouette Studio click here.  It's going to come in looking enormous so use the corner squares to make it small enough to fit in your Studio work area.

Click the 'Open the Trace Window' icon (circled) at the top. Then click 'Select Trace Area'.

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut, trace

Now use your mouse to draw a box around your design.   A yellow highlight will now appear around your entire design.  From the trace area menu click the 'trace' button.  If you only want only the outline of your design then you would choose 'Trace Edge' instead.

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut, tracing

A thin red outline now appears around your design.  You can now grab your original design and pull it out of the way to delete it.

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut, trace

You can cut now if you're ready or you may need to do a little bit of cleaning up on the design.  You can see that the leaves have a double line.  I don't like when my designs cut that way so I'm going to fix it by right clicking > release compound path.  Now I can move the inner part of that leaf out of the design and delete it so I get a cleaner cut that's easier to work with. I also want to make sure that the flower petals on the middle flower cut as one big line so I weld them together. (Click here for a basic welding tutorial.)

And when I'm ready, I can send the design to cut.

Here's how my flower designs cut on card stock.  Of course, you can cut on any medium you'd like...and the possibilities of use are endless!  It's always nice to have an extra free source of designs, isn't it?

PicMonkey designs, Silhouette Studio, cut, flowers

Next week I'll be sharing a few more fun spring craft I made with some of these flowers.  Here's a sneak peek at how I used one...the tutorial is up now on our sister site Two It Yourself.

DIY, do it yourself, spring banner

 Also, be on the lookout for a tutorial on how to turn PicMonkey design into print and cut files.  

By the way, if you decide you're a PicMonkey luvah, like I am, there is a paid upgraded version that unlocks more designs and fonts.  I think I paid about $33 for the year...totally worth it!

Thanks for coming to class today at Silhouette School.  If you like what you see, I'd love for you to pin it!

Note: This post contains affiliate links. By clicking you are helping to support Silhouette School. All opinions are 100% my own.


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