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Special Edition: Fussy Cutting Making You Fussy?
Good Morning and welcome to another Special Edition post, brought to you by your favorite bloggers! This week we are participating in the monthly Silhouette Challenge Group post — which is sure to be bursting with ideas and inspiration!
The inspiration for today’s post comes from our complete lack of patience for fussy cutting. In case we have any newbies here today, fussy cutting is cutting out a shape or image with scissors or a craft knife. We used to run into this a lot with our paper crafts that used stamps. So what do you need fussy cutting for? Well, being able to cut out stamps and images allows you to add dimension and extra character to your project, such as using 3D dots. There are sets available that come with a die specifically made for that stamp, but not nearly enough to make an entire collection out of them (darn!). Well, happy day, we have found a solution. Allow us to demonstrate using a method developed for clear stamp sets that turned out to be quite simple.
The first step is scanning the acetate sheet that comes with your stamp set. This is usually a thin plastic or printed paper that demonstrates what the stamps will look like. We have chosen the Wicked stamp set from Close To My Heart. If you don’t have an acetate sheet, you can simply stamp your image onto a sheet of paper (using dark ink) and scan (be sure to let it dry!).
So once you have the images scanned and saved to your computer, import the images into the Silhouette Studio software. If you are not familiar with how to do this, check out all the wonderful tutorials on YouTube for a quick lesson. We’ll wait here while you check them out. Back already? Okay, let’s proceed. So now you have the images imported into Silhouette Studio, simply use the TRACE function to create the cut lines. Once you have the cut lines, select the entire “stamp” area and create an OFFSET. Again, if you are unfamiliar with either of these processes, check out YouTube. Tip: when creating your OFFSET, remember that the thinner you have your settings on, the more careful you’ll have to be when stamping your image.
Now that you have your offset, you can move it to the side and delete the cut lines you created. You don’t need these, only the offset. Once you have your offset cut line set up on your page and ready to cut, feel free to cut away!
Some additional tips we have learned along the way…
- Matching stamp and die sets are still the easiest way to go AND they are portable when you go to crafting events.
- This method is also great for when you have a matching die, but want to create a layered look.
- Remember to save all of your stamp die cuts to your library so you can use them again for your next project!
Once you get done with the initial setup, using this feature to match your stamps is super easy! It will help you add so much more than a “plain” stamp to your projects! Here’s an example of what we were able to do using this shortcut…
So what will you be able to do using this alternative method to fussy cutting? Do you have any other great ideas or tips to share with your fellow crafters? We’d sure love to hear them!
And if you’d like to check out some more Silhouette creations, here’s a collection of projects by my Silhouette Challenge buddies… they always have fabulous ideas!
Crafting with Glitter Just Got Easier by Create & Babble
Birthday Invitations Homer Simpson Style by Black & White Obsession
DIY Planner Dividers by The House on Hillbrook
3D Haunted Forest by Chicken Scratch NY
Pumpkins and Peacocks Fall Mantel by joy & gladness of heart
DIY Cheers Garland by Rain on a Tin Roof
Wedding Gift Wrapping by It Happens in a Blink
Glitter Monogrammed Pumpkin by unOriginal Mom
Halloween Family Rules by Tried & True
Faux Stitched Speech Bubbles by Get Silvered Craft
A Mario Bros. Backsplash by Please Excuse My Craftermath…
Halloween Spooky Eye Luminaries by A Tossed Salad Life
Addressing Invitations with a Silhouette Cameo by My Favorite Finds
Halloween Party Treat Bags by The Thinking Closet
“Create” Wooden Pallet by Lil’ Mrs. Tori
Spooky Halloween Bats Garland by TitiCrafty
Decorated Pumpkins by Tanya’s Creative Space
Cute Wedding Card by Zanaree
Learn to Tie Your Shoes by From Wine to Whine
Cut Fabric With Your Silhouette by Cutesy Crafts
Cookie Lee Jewelry’ Gift Bags with a Purpose: Sharing Thankfulness by An Elegant Touch
Halloween Banner by Sowdering About
Interested in joining us for our group posting event next month? We’d love to have you. Simply fill out the new member request form, and Lauren from The Thinking Closet will get you squared away.
Thanks for stopping by today! We are (once again) entering this fabulous card into a few challenges. Be sure to check out the other wonderful participants to see what they can inspire within you!
DL.ART Thankful Thursday October Linky Challenge
2 Creative Chicks Spooktacular Linky Party
Craftin’ Boutique Challenge #11
Tagged: Card, cardmaking, Challenge, cut, fussy, group, halloween, silhouette, tutorial, witch
Great idea to banish those scissors! I imagine this would be such a timesaver for stampers 🙂
It definitely is! Thanks for stopping by!
That’s really cute! I love it! I agree, fussy cutting is no fun!
Thank you and thanks for stopping by!
Love how sassy your witch is!
Thank you, we love it too!
What an incredible job you did on this!!! I really love the colors and the layers!
Thank you! It was a lot of fun to make!
Oh my gosh!! This is a brilliant idea! I refuse to fussy cut. So time-consuming and imprecise. I can’t wait to try this. Thank you for sharing.
Awesome! So glad you like it! Let us know how it works out for you!
So talented:)
Josie
Craftin’ Boutique personal blog
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Love that offset tool! Once I discovered it, it just opened up a whole new world of possibility. I feel like that’s always the case with the features on my Silhouette machine. Anyway, you’ve truly helped out a bunch of people with this tutorial…and I’m diggin’ your Halloween card. Now, that’s a witch I’d like to hang out with. She looks fun! Lol.
Thanks, Lauren! We really appreciate you checking out our blog and having the blog hop for us to participate in! It was a blast!
Wow- now I know what fussy cutting is and this is a really helpful thing to read- I have something that i know I can use this on already! thanks a bunch!
[…] From here on out, you’ll decorate this as you would a handmade card. You can use your Silhouette Studio (as I did) and do print-and-cut pieces for your sayings, OR you can use your stamp collection if you have one. Not sure how to use your stamps to make your own die cuts? Check out our long-ago post on Fussy Cutting Making You Fussy? […]