Tutorial: How to import designs into Silhouette Studio

This blog post is for all Silhouette digital craft cutter users-- especially those who are new to the Silhouette or Silhouette Studio software.

I am going to show how you can import .gsd files into the silhouette software to cut. The .gsd file type is what I always save my free designs as for Silhouette users.

Also, this tutorial is on their mac software, but I am assuming it is basically the same in the pc software.

1. You need to download the file from my blog and unzip it. If you are just using the Silhouette, don't even worry about the .svg file in that folder (SVG files are for Cricut users who also have the additional program "Sure Cuts A Lot" which allows them to hook their cricut up to the computer and cut designs that aren't on their cartridges). Save the .gsd file into whatever file folder on your computer you have decided to keep downloaded cut files in.

2. Open Silhouette Studio. Select "File --> Import to My Library"



3. Select the file from whatever folder you have saved it in.



4. It will ask you to name the file and add keywords. This is optional but I went ahead and added a few to help me find it in case I have a lot of files in the future. Hit OK.


5. Next you have to access your library. I have highlighted the little shortcut button in pink. It's on the left of the screen. Click that to access your library.


6. Next you will need to click "My Own Designs." It is a sub folder of "My library". I have pointed it out with a huge pink arrow in this next picture. Double click on the design that you added in (in this example, it is the 2011 design.) When you double click it, it will be added to your drawing area.


7. Go back to your drawing area (by either closing the library with the "X" in the upper right corner of the window or by hitting the shortcut button on the left). The design is right there on the drawing area. I am not sure why it sometimes comes in colored weird, so I click the "Line color option" button at the top and change it to all grey. However, it isn't necessary to do this. It will still cut correctly without doing so.

Free 2011 Cut File

New Year's Eve is almost here! I hope you all have some fun plans. We have JB's family in town this week and so we will be celebrating with them.


I designed this download with the idea in mind that the "2011" could hang from the top of a scrapbook page.

Click here to download a zip file with a svg and a gsd file inside (for both Sure Cuts a Lot and Silhouette users).

Enjoy!

ps later today (or maybe tomorrow...) I will be doing a tutorial of how to load these files into the new silhouette software for anyone that needs assistance so look for that soon!

Merry Christmas

JB and I never got around to taking professional pics for our Christmas card this year. Can you tell? :)


This picture is from "Rooster Cogburn's Ostrich Farm" just north of Tucson. I was seriously afraid that they were going to attack me. They tried.

Vintage Print Baby Dress

Last night I whipped up this baby dress from (surprise) Made by Rae. It's her itsy bitsy baby dress pattern that you can get for free on her blog. Hers is for a newborn, so I did enlarge it quite a bit.

Other changes I made include sewing rickrack around the middle instead of piping and lining the skirt as well as the bodice. The strawberry print (though adorable) is very VERY sheer, so that's the reason for additional lining. It wasn't hard to add at all.



The fabric comes from an estate sale that I went to the other morning-- I got a whole tub full of fabric for only $5.00! ! After sorting through it, there wasn't as much as I had hoped because a lot of it was scraps under 3 inches big. Apparently this lady saved everything! But this strawberry print and a few others totally made it worth it.

ps I know that the new mother that I made this for reads my blog but I am hoping that she is too busy to catch this post... :)

Christmas Tag Printable File

I was working on a few little Christmas projects today and designed these tags to go on them. I love the crisp contemporary style.

Since I am in a very Christmas-y mood, I decided to share them with you as a free download!



Click here to download an 8.5x11 pdf file with 12 up on the page, all ready to print. I'm just trying to make it as easy for you as possible. I know how crazy things can get in the next 10 days. :)

I am planning on attaching them to little jars of jelly to give to my neighbors. Let me know if you use them and what for!

S & O Productions feature

I received an email the other day that a etsy treasury I was in was featured was featured on a blog, S & O Productions. It's a beautiful blog, check it out! and here is a quick shot of the beautiful treasury that was curated by Amanda of RustBeltThreads.

3D Ornament Tutorial

Coming soon to the Silhouette online store... some more 3D ornaments! I am including instructions on how to assemble one of them, and then the others are similar enough that you should be able to assemble all of them from looking at this.

1. Cut out all pieces.


2. Assemble grey top of the ornament first. Fold all tiny tabs over and use the one on the end to glue the sides together.


3. Insert the hanging loop into the two slits on the top of the grey circle. then glue it down using the two tabs, and glue the circle to the sides using the rest of the tabs.


4. This is what the top grey portion should look like assembled.


5. Fold all perforations that are on the main body of the ornament.


6. Use the long tab on the side to glue it into a circular shape.


7. Glue the tiny tabs all along the top portion.



8. Use the glued tiny tabs to connect each section to each other. Glue the tab to the back of the adjacent piece.


9. This is what it looks like after the top portion of the main body is all glued together. Next, attach the grey top to the main body using those two little tabs. So, stick glue on the outside of the tabs.


10. You will probably have to stick your finger or a pencil from the bottom of the ornament and use it to apply pressure to the inside of the grey top to get it to stick.


11. Fold down bottom portions and all done! You can glue these or adhere them to each other in some way but you don't need to. Also, on another version (the one with the stars) the bottom part is designed differently and you will need to use the tiny tabs to adhere the pieces to each other exactly like on the top half of this one.

There was an old lady...

who swallowed a horse. She died, of course.


A couple of weeks ago, my sister-in-law called me with a great idea. Her daughter loves the story "There was an old lady who swallowed a fly." She had the idea to buy a set of blank nesting dolls and paint the old lady and all of the stuff that she swallowed on them. I LOVED the idea and instantly agreed to help her out. I just put a few last touches on them this morning and couldn't wait to post them!

Baby Pants!

Over Thanksgiving I was up visiting the family and we had a baby shower for my sister.

As you are all probably aware by now, I am still majorly on my sewing kick (and I can't wait to share some of the cute things I have been making for Christmas!). So, for Cali's shower decor, I made a bunch of the basic baby pants and baby tights from my favorite sewing blog, Made by Rae. Rae is awesome and both of those pants are free tutorials/patterns from her site.

I stringed (strung? strang?) a line across the room like a clothes line and clothes-pinned the pants as well as some simple paper flowers (which I cut out with my Silhouette) to the line.

It turned out adorable. And best part? The decor doubles as my gift to her, so now she has a bunch of cute pants and tights for her little girl to wear when she arrives!