New Toy!

Here is the first cut I made using my new Silhouette Cameo machine, assorted butterfly shapes cut from a sheet of 12x12 scrapbook paper. (It did cut the antenae perfectly, but they were so tiny they just tore off when I removed them from the sheet.)

For a while now I have been researching and pondering if I should get an electronic cutting machine for my paper crafts.  I downloaded a couple of versions of software to play around with, read countless reviews, watched Youtube videos demonstrating these machines and finally came to the decision that the new Silhouette Cameo was the right option for me. 

For about a month before I purchased it, I worked on learning to use the software to design projects so that when it arrived I would be ready to use it. I am so glad I prepared ahead of time!  It was wonderful to be able to pull it out of the box, plug it in and start making things. There is a learning curve to be able to use the software to trace images from my computer and to adjust the cutting lines-- I am still working on certain kinds of images that need interior cuts as well as the outline.

 This is a free calendar project from the Silhouette store blog.  Each week they give away a file. I used the March calendar grid to make these 6x6 pages. I created the shamrock border by finding a clip art image, replicating it in the Silhouette Studio program and welding the shapes together.  The background square and the rectangle of coordinating papers were also cut using the machine.

 I grunged these up using Tim Holtz distress inks in Pine Needles and Peeled Paint. I love how these turned out and I am madly thinking of new things to make using this wonderful tool.

Edited:  I am adding this to a linky party so you can see how some others have used the free shapes from Silhouette. The link up is sponsored by Maggie Mullins' blog.

I used the shape jan-april calendar C03093.

Happy Crafting!

Gale