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Sunday, October 30, 2011

LD Freebie! Best Witches Tag Set


Have you finished putting together the goodie bags for the youngsters for tomorrow? Here is a Day-Before-Halloween freebie from Lettering Delights that is the perfect finishing touch for any treat bags. Just CLICK HERE or the image below to go to the Lettering Delights website to get it.


While you're there, don't forget to shop their Holiday Dollar Sale. LD has added even more products to the sale. The gift box SVGs are only $1!


Click HERE to see more pictures of the finished boxes.


The Holiday Dollar Sale ends on Monday. CLICK HERE to check it out before the sale is over.


Saturday, October 29, 2011

the Silhouette Cameo Review 3: How to cut to the Cameo with Make-the-Cut



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UPDATE: 
As mentioned in my post on Dec 12, 2011, please note that there is now a MTC Plug-in for the Silhouette Cameo. The printer-driver method shown in the following post is no longer required.

To download the MTC-Cameo plug in, please click here and  click on the Download button. You will need to upgrade your MTC program to v.4.1.0 in order for the Cameo plug in to work. After upgrading your MTC software, please download the Cameo plug in from that same download page.

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UPDATE (Nov 11): 
If you can't find the Silhouette Cameo when adding it as a printer, please CLICK HERE.
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"I'm back in the Stone Age!"

That's what I said to Hubby when I made my first successful cut to the Silhouette Cameo with Make-the-Cut. For those of you who are new to Make-the-Cut, the Silhouette SD plug-in wasn't always there. There was a time when using the cutter's printer driver was the only way to cut to it through Make-the-Cut (see how I did it then by clicking HERE). As there is currently no MTC plug-in for the Silhouette Cameo, I found that I could only use the Cameo's printer driver to cut with the program.

This is the video tutorial that shows how I cut to the Cameo using Make-the-Cut. Scroll down to see the written instructions.



Part 1: Add the Silhouette Cameo as a printer.

I am using Windows 7. To add the Cameo as printer, just click on the Windows button, followed by Devices and Printers.


Click on Add a printer, followed by Add a local printer.


Select a USB port and click Next.


Locate and choose the Silhouette Cameo (If it does not show up in the list, please read THIS). 

Click Next to move on.



Here is the next step:


By default, "Silhouette CAMEO" is the printer name.


I do not share this printer (ie. Silhouette Cameo)

Once the Silhouette Cameo has been added as a printer, we can proceed to Part 2.



Part 2: Setting up the printing options.

In Make-the-Cut, Select File, Print Options


Check the box next to Print Wireframe Only and leave all the other boxes unchecked.


Next, go to File, Print Setup


Select the Silhouette Cameo as the printer.


Click on the Properties button.


Change the paper size to 12" x 12". Check the box next to Use Carrier Sheet and uncheck Eject Medium. 

I did not change the paper Orientation (see pictures at the end of this post for further explanation).


Click on the Cutline Settings tab and click on Modify Color


Change the color to black by clicking on the box that is filled with black color.

 
It should look like this after the color-change. Click OK.


Now the program is ready to print(i.e. cut) to the Cameo.


It is a good habit to check the Print Preview before sending to print.


The Print Preview looks like that:


Just click on the Print button to send the job to the Silhouette Cameo!


The cutout should look like this:


If the orientation has been set to Landscape, the cut will look like this:





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Friday, October 28, 2011

LD Friday Freebie: Spooky Pinwheel Cut It Project



To get your freebie, CLICK HERE or the image above and add the item to your cart. Check out and pay $0! 


Don't forget to shop the Holiday Dollar Sale with the 25% coupon that you will receive with your freebie "purchase" confirmation. 



Thursday, October 27, 2011

the Silhouette Cameo Review 2 : The First Cut

For my first cut with the Silhouette Cameo, I chose to use an image that I had downloaded from the Silhouette Store. I don't have any special reasons for doing that other than I just  wanted to quickly cut something with the Cameo and didn't want to waste time selecting images.


The snowflake was brought to the virtual mat at about 4" wide. I reduced it by 50% which brought the size down to about 2" wide.

For this first cut, I used Michael's Recollection cardstock and set the blade at 3. Bear in mind that this is my first cut with the Cameo and that I still have a lot to learn about it. I decided to use this setting based on what I saw on the instructional video that came with the cutter.


I must admit that while I was super excited when I saw what had been cut, I was also a little apprehensive. The mats for the Silhouette SD tend to be overly sticky when they are brand new. I did not "pre-condition/un-sticky" the Cameo mat before loading it into the cutter. I just peeled off the backing paper, stuck my cardstock onto it and loaded the whole thing. I was afraid to remove the cutout in case it rips due to the stickiness of the new mat.


I was so surprised when the cardstock peeled off easily from the mat! I was amazed.


I could have easily removed the snowflake and weed off the negative but I wanted to leave the little circles on the mat to show you how they looked.


It turned out to be surprisingly easy to remove the cutout from the mat. I was so very impressed!


Check out the little circles left behind. The triangles in the center were also very cleanly cut out.


The negative layer look so good I may have to find a way to use that on a card (e.g. use transfer paper).


I couldn't stop gushing about the Cameo to Hubby. I love the 2" snowflake! As soon as he turned his attention back to the T.V., I hurried back and decided to cut an even smaller snowflake. What if I reduced the size further by another 50%? That will make the snowflake about an inch wide. Can the Cameo handle that?


I loaded the mat and waited with bated breath as the cutter started to do its thing. Even when it finished cutting, I was still doubtful that it had gotten the job done.


I gently peeled back the cardstock and....


OMG! It cut out the 1" snowflake! Circles and everything! I was floored!


The circle-negatives are mere specks! That's so insanely amazing.


So now you know why I must do the review for the Silhouette Cameo. :-)


I know that many of you prefer seeing the cutter in action so I made a video for you too. In it I will also show you the differences between the Silhouette SD and the Silhouette Cameo. You can view it here:





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Edit to add the other posts in this series:

Part 0: Coming Soon: the Silhouette Cameo Review
Part 1: the Unboxing
Part 2: the First Cut
Part 3: How to Cut with Make-the-Cut
(part 3a: How to install the Silhouette Cameo driver)

Part 4: How to Print-and-Cut with Silhouette Studio.

Extra: The smallest cut.



the Silhouette Cameo Review 1: The Unboxing

On Sep 19 ohmycrafts (update: they are no longer in business) sent out an email that they were taking pre-orders for the Silhouette Cameo. The unit costs $215.99 after coupon and includes free shipping.

I placed my order within minutes of receiving that email.

UPS dropped off the box on Tuesday evening and I got to open it when all the kids are in school the next day. 

This is the box that UPS delivered..


..and this is what's inside.  :-)


This is printed on the box:



Here are the accessories..


...and this is the new 12"x12" cutting mat.

There's my Cameo!


Here it is out of the box..


...and uncovered.



Here is a closer look at the control panel.



This is how it looks like when the lid is up.


The Cameo weighs less than 6.5 lbs.


It is also only slightly bigger than the Silhouette SD..



...and quite a lot smaller than the Lynx.


These came with the Cameo...



...including Silhouette Studio v2.0. The instructional video is about 10mins long and is not boring AT ALL.



The new blade looks very different from the 3-cap system used in the Silhouette SD. The grey ratchet cap is used to change the setting on the blade.


I love the new 12" x12" mat! The adhesive is PERFECT. Unlike the smaller SD mats, it is not overly-sticky at all. Even though the mat is brand new, I was able to easily remove my first cutouts from it.


This is how the LCD screen looks like when the unit is switched on.


That's all for the unboxing. In my next post, I will show you how my first Silhouette Cameo cutouts look like.


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Edit to add the other posts in this series:

Part 0: Coming Soon: the Silhouette Cameo Review
Part 1: the Unboxing
Part 2: the First Cut
Part 3: How to Cut with Make-the-Cut
(part 3a: How to install the Silhouette Cameo driver)

Part 4: How to Print-and-Cut with Silhouette Studio.

Extra: The smallest cut.




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