Constantly Stamping

Video Tutorial - How to create cut files for your Silhouette Cameo using the punches from the MDS software

I promised that I would have more video tutorials about how I used MDS2 files to create cut files for my Silhouette Cameo. I have had a difficult time running the Silhouette Studio software and the recording software at the same time so it has been a little more difficult that I had hoped. I managed to put together this short video about how to use the .svg punch files to make cut files, but I am working on more videos on how to use the .svg stamp brushes in MDS2 to make cut files as well as how to utilize the print and cut features of the Silhouette. So bear with me because there are definitely more tutorials coming soon.

Today's video uses punches from the MDS and MDS2 software to create cut files using the Silhouette Studio Designer Edition Software.

Perfectly Preserved Treat Jars

The other day I showed you one of the baskets that I gave my downline who attended regional convention. This is one of the stamped projects that was included in the basket. It was inspired by Erica Cerwin but with a few slight modifications. After all, there is only so much you can do to make it unique. I found my jars in the glass container section of the craft & hobby store. They just happened to be on sale at 50% off the regular price, so I got them for around $1.25 each. I thought they looked very similar to real canning jars, but around the size of baby food jars. I filled the jars with fall-colored M&M's candy. I managed to fill about five jars with one 12.6 ounce bag...with just a few left overfor me...yummmmmm.

I cut the fabric for the tops of the jars with the Large Scallop Circle die out of Orchard Designer Fabric. I secured them to the top of the jars with colored hair ties in a coordinating colors. Then I stamped the jars, toppers, and flowers on Very Vanilla CS and ran them through the Big Shot using the coordinating Cannery Framelits Die Set (#127822). I have to tell you that I love this stamp set and matching dies so much that I am thinking about purchasing a second set...no kidding!

After I had stamped and cut out the images, I assembled them and attached them to the jars with a double layer of Dimensionals. HINT: I found it much easier to work with the Bakers Twine after I sprayed it with heavy starch and ironed it. It is much easier to tie those tiny little bows if the twine has some body to it. Let the twine cool and stiffen up a few minutes before working with it. I did this to several long strips of twine so that I have it available when needed.

SVG Files for MDS2

WOW...I have received several emails asking me about my electronic cutter and how I created the vinyl cut files that I used on the projects in yesterdays blog post. So I have decided to put together a series of videos to try and answer your questions. It will probably take me a few days to work through it all, but I thought I would start with the very basic thing you need to know...What is an .svg file and why it matters.

An .svg stands for Scalable Vector Graphic. The reason it matters is that you can re-size it larger or smaller and it maintains its integrity and doesn't pixelate. I have been told by SU that all of the new stamp brushes for MDS2 will be .svg files. This is important to know because you won't be able to use the new files with the old MDS software. That means you will need to upgrade to MDS2 or MDS2+ to use the new downloads. This file format also makes it easier to create cut files for your e-cutter. I don't know about all e-cutters or software, but I do know for the Silhouette Cameo that you will need to upgrade to the Designer Edition of the Silhouette software in order to recognize the .svg files.

The first video I have made is to show you how to determine if the file you want to purchase for My Digital Studio or other software you are using is in the .svg format. I will have more videos coming soon, but this should help a little.

Chattanooga Regional Convention

I spent Friday evening and all day Saturday with several of my downline yesterday at the Stampin' Up! Regional Convention in Chattanooga. We had an amazing time stamping and learning fun and exciting ideas. The camera on my cell phone wigged out and I don't have any candids from the trip. I have asked the girls to send me copies of their pics, but in the meantime I thought I would share some pictures of the goodie baskets I made for the girls. This was the first time for many of them to attend a SU event, so I wanted to help make it a wonderful experience.

For the baskets I started out with popcorn bowls that I bought at the local dollar store. I put my electronic cutter to good use and customized them with the SU convention logo and added "Chattanooga Regional". You will notice that I used my Silhouette Cameo to personalize several gifts. (I will tell you more about that later.) I wanted these to be over-the-top WOW, so I took  some left-over frabic from a home dec project and stitched up basket liners. I knew I wanted include stamped projects using the Orchard Harvest collection and this fabric went well. The best part is that it didn't cost me a penny because I already had several yards in my fabric stash.

I added some felt flower accents using the Flower Folds and Circle #2 die for the flowers and the Autumn Accents die for the leaves. Here is a close-up of a burlap pencil case I decorated. I included a package of hand wipes in each one. These were really cute and only took a few minutes. I used hot glue to assemble and attach them to the project. I purchased the pencil cases at a big box discount store for only a dollar each. Woo hoo...you can't beat that!

Most of you know I love using My Digital Studio and now the images are available in .SVG format. This is great because not only can you resize them without the image distorting, you can also use them with your e-cutter to create cut files. For the water bottles I used the new Tweet Leaves digital stamp brush (#131230)($5.95 US). If you have ever cut vinyl on an e-cutter you know how difficult it can be to "weed" (pull away the negative pieces) of digital cut files, so to save time I omitted the inside portions of the images. It still gave a great effect, but it with much cleaner cuts and a whole lot less work. I personalized each bottle with the name of the recipient. I had never used aluminum water bottles before, so I decided to do a test run to see if the vinyl would stay on. It worked really well, but I would recommend hand-washing. I also noticed that the bottles sweat when filled with ice water, so I decided so whip up bottle huggies using self-adhesive fun foam and some Essentials Designer Fabric (#126892). This was a super easy sewing project and I was able to make several in just a short amount of time. I used an old water bottle huggie that I had laying around as a template and added about a half-inch to the sides so it would slide on easily.

I will tell you more about our road trip and have more stamping projects to share with you this week. Doesn't it sould like fun? I would love to have you join my team of fun and creative stampers. Just contact me today at cmcc3@comcast.net to find out how. 

"Fall-ish" Comforting Medallion Card

Cooler weather has finally arrived and Fall is in the air. This monochromatic card in Cajun Craze is perfect for this time of year. I love the beautiful background dsp from the Comfort Cafe collection. I stamped the medium medallion from the Daydream Medallion set in VersaMark ink and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder.

Yes, this is yet another one of my convention displays. I am quickly coming to an end of those projects, but I have been busy working on downline gifts for the upcoming regional convention, so I definitely have more things to share.

Floral Frames Medallion Box

Today's project uses the Floral Frames Framelits die (#127012) as the foundation. I started by die cutting the largest flower from the set twice out of Basic Black card stock. I stamped the largest image from the Daydream Medallion set (#126465/126467) in Basic Black on Whisper White card stock and then die cut it with the second largest flower die from the set. I made the sides of the box with Basic Black card stock and covered it with a piece stamped Whisper White using the Daydream jumbo wheel. (Note: to get a deeper image, I went over the stamped image with a black marker. A little tedious, but worth the effort.)

For the flowers on the top of the box I used the medium flower from the Fun Flowers Bigz die (#121812) to cut DSP from the Brights stack (#117155). I layered on some beautiful Daffodil Delight Seam Binding Ribbon (#125583) and used a hot glue glue gun to attach everything to the top.

 

Daydream Medallion Scrapbook Page

I know I've said this before, but one of the weird things about being a display stamper is that we can only use pictures of our immediate family. It feels really strange to scrapbook a picture of myself and then send it in for display. I found this old picture from my honeymoon over twenty years ago, so I used it. LOL! I am not a big scrapper, so I have to force myself to come up with something for each stamp set. With that being said, this is the 8"x8" page sample I did for the Daydream Medallion set. It is a fairly cut and dry page, but there is just one thing I want to point out. I also used the Ex Libris background stamp on this page. I stamped it twice and then only used the bottom portions to create a symmetrical design behind the photo. I like the idea of being able to stretch the use of a stamp by using it in unexpected ways. By placing the photo over the place where the two images meet, you can't even tell they are spliced together.

CAS Medallion Cut-away Card

I hope your weather is as beautiful where you are as it is here this weekend. It is absolutely perfect outside in Nashville today. I have yet another convention display sample to share with you. This card was inspired by an incredible stamper by the name of Maile Belles. She is well know in the stamping community for her CAS style. Back in the spring, Maile featured several cards where she cut away a portion of the card front to reveal the card stock underneath. This card isn't based on any one card in particular, it is really the technique that intrigued me.

I will warn you that this card isn't as "simple"as it appears. First you will want to have a stamp-a-ma-jig (stamp positioner) handy. You will need to be very precise in the angle that you stamp the medallion. You may even want to draw a light pencil line on the card stock so that you will know exactly how to line things up. You will also need to line-up the inside medallion. In additional, I used an exacto blade and ruler to cut away the portions above and below the medallion. After everything was stamped and ready, I mounted it on a Pacific Point card base and added a simple button/bow.

Have a wonderful day!