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!

mmmm

I am still drooling over the sugar cookies that I baked up for a baby shower this last weekend. I was frosting them at about midnight and got all crazy with the patterns in the icing. They were way soft and fluffy cookies too-- it's a recipe I found in JB's family cookbook-- Sour Cream Sugar Cookies.

And we have a winner...

Thanks to everyone who entered to win a Silhouette download card from my blog!

The winner is Lynne who said:



I will be contacting her today to send her prize!

Thanks again!

Christmas Crafting Already?!

I am excited to share this adorable mini-accordion scrapbook project that my mom made. I think it's such a cute idea.

My little brother is still in Northern Italy serving a mission for our church, so he won't be home for Christmas (but will be shortly after! Yay!). So, he will miss the annual "Nativity Story" skit that that grandkids do on Christmas Eve. So, my mom dressed all of my nieces and nephews up in the Nativity clothes and took pictures of them. She then created this adorable little book to send to my brother.

Besides being a great gift to send to someone who isn't going to be home for the holidays, I think it would make a great decoration to sit on a shelf or across the mantle.




ps. don't forget, today is the last day to enter to win a Silhouette download card by commenting on this post!

Silhouette Download Card Giveaway

NOTE: GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.

Did ya'll get that email from Silhouette this week that said the Quickutz issued download cards will expire on Dec. 31st of this year? Well, when I received it, it made me remember that I had a $25 Silhouette download card tucked way away in a box at the top of my closet!

I have dug it out, and am offering it to one lucky reader as a prize for being so lovely and reading my little blog. :)

So here's the deal:
-To enter, become a "follower" of my blog and then comment on this post. Pretty easy.
(And if you already follow the blog, just go ahead and commend and let me know).
-Include your name and email address ("loni AT email DOT com" or "loniatemaildotcom")

An additional entry in the drawing will be given if you blog, tweet, or facebook the giveaway. Just comment again and let me know that you did so!

This give away will close Wednesday night. I will use a random number generator and announce the winner on Thursday.

Good luck!

Hey/Hay

I am loving this "Hey" themed treasury. Just in case you don't know, a treasury is a member curated list of items for sale on etsy, in this case curated by OhMyAmersand (you won't be disappointed if you click the link to her awesome shop). I never cease to be amazed by the creativity of sellers--and treasury curators, in this case--on etsy.

(free) Snowflake Download

Sorry I have been MIA for quite a while! I went to visit my family for a week, and I have been playing catch up on all my work since I got back. To make up for it, I have a free download today. Enjoy!



Click here to download a zipped file with a .gsd and .svg cut file inside.

3D snowflakes

I designed these today for the Silhouette online store, and am way excited about them. I want to make tons of them to hang in my front room all through the holidays. Wouldn't that be lovely?

Bag Tutorial Roundup

I have been bookmarking tons of different bag tutorials as I run across them on the web for weeks now. I thought I would share some of my favorites!



1. The One Hour Bag from Skip To My Lou
2. Little Boxy Pouch Tutorial by three bears
3. Free Diaper Bag Tutorial by makebabystuff.com
4. the basic messenger bag by mmmcrafts
5. For Pleat's Sake tote by U-hangblog
6. Pleated Pouch by Skip To My Lou

This is me embracing AZ

I set aside a Saturday a few weeks ago and put up two dozen jars of prickly pear jelly. Why do they call it "putting it up," by the way?

I used this recipe from homegrown evolution.

I do have a few different pointers about how to harvest your prickly pear fruit. I called up a friend of mine who has been canning prickly pear jelly for over 30 years. Here are a few of her pointers: don't bother burning off the spines. just harvest your fruit (with big metal tongs, like the bbq grilling tool ones), rinse it off, and then stick it in the freezer overnight. Pull it out, let it thaw, and then mash it with a potato masher. Strain the pulp twice, once with an old (but clean of course) pillow case, and the second time with a strainer and cheese cloth. Then your juice is ready! Also, it can be used for more than jelly. You can also make syrup, use it with lemonade as a drink, or marinate meat with it.

I'm so glad I called her! Not only did her pointers help out a ton, but she also had a great anecdote about not washing the pillowcase with your underwear after you are done using the case to strain out the pulp and pricklies... I will let you imagine the rest... :)

Hey Interweb Friends!

If you hop on over to Freckled Nest right now, Leigh-Ann is doing a big giveaway that includes one of my airplane mobiles and a lot of other awesome handmade items.



Just thought I would give you a heads up ;)

Kitchen Watercolors and free download

Last week I got together with a group of my friends and we had a "craft day" which was a blast! I decided that I had to craft something just for me and not to be sold in my shop! I feel like I craft a lot, but my home doesn't usually reap the benefits (though sometimes I do decorate my own home with things and then just take them down if and when it sales. Is that weird?).

I decided to make these silhouetted images of food and kitchen items to hang in a row in my kitchen. The way I made them was, I cut watercolor paper into 5x7 pieces. Then, I cut out all of the images I wanted out of regular white cardstock, in the middle of a 5x7 rectangle. I took each image and lightly spray glued it to the water color paper, and used the cardstock as a kind of mask. The watercolor did blled into the cardstock in a few places, but mostly i was just careful not to not paint up to the VERY edge.

After it had dried for a few minutes, I peeled off the cardstock mask and voila! nice silhouetted images!

I am offering the whisk as a free download!



Click here to download a zipped file with a .svg file and .gsd cutting file of the whisk image.

3D Bat!

So. This will be in the Silhouette online store later this week (hopefully later today!) Here are the instructions of how to put it together!

Here are all the pieces. There are two different little shapes (bottom right corner) and you will end up using one or the other. The rounded one is for if you are hanging it with string or fishing line, and the rectangle one is if you are hanging it with a ribbon.



1. Connect the wing shapes.


2. Slide the body shape over the intersection of the wings.


3. Take the little circle with the legs and fold the legs so that they point down.


4. Take the leg circle and slide it over the bottom part of the bat's body. You will need to bend the bat's body, as shown.


5. spread out the wings and body pieces as shown.


6. Take the hanging piece, fold along the perforation, and put a dot of glue on the side without the hole cut into it.


7. Slide the hanging piece onto the back of the bat, so that it glues onto the underside of one of the wings.


8. Attach ribbon and hang!