20+ Silhouette CAMEO Tutorials, Tips, and Tricks (including Intro to Silhouette Studio V4)

Oh, May, where did you go? It was a super busy and productive month around Silhouette School with lots of exciting news and announcements ... and of course lots and lots Silhouette CAMEO and Silhouette Studio tutorials.

This month Silhouette Studio was officially released, I took you behind the scenes at the Oracal vinyl factory, I released my first Virtual Classroom on using the text tool like a pro in Silhouette Studio, and shared tutorials on everything from using the new Tracy By Color tool to how and why you should be using public domain fonts!

In case you missed anything, I've gathered it all right here for you. So..have at it!

How to Change Silhouette Studio File Preview Icons

Did you now you can change the preview icon for the Silhouette Studio files that you save to your hard drive?

On a MAC it’s really easy to do - although you will have do it manually for each file.

Free Father's Day Card for Silhouette CAMEO from Lori Whitlock

Oh it's everyone's favorite Friday of the month...not just any ol' Freebie Friday, Freebie Friday with Lori Whitlock!!

The last Friday of every month we partner with one of our favorite designers and she never disappoints. This week Lori's sharing a free Father's Day card download.

Saving Adobe Illustrator Files for Silhouette Studio (SVG and DXF)

While I have always stressed that I think Silhouette Studio is a powerful software program and one that really can do pretty much anything I need design-wise - there are things that it just can't do. For example, you can't export as an SVG in Silhouette Studio (until V4.1 is released when the option is offered to Business Edition users.)

Because of that many designers - and those who were working in graphic software before Silhouette Studio - work in Adobe Illustrator to create SVG and DXF files which can be opened in Silhouette Studio.

Silhouette School contributor Kati is here today to show us exactly how you can export as an SVG or DXF from Illustrator for use in Silhouette Studio and other software programs!

Exclusive 48 Hour Deal From The Hungry JPEG and Silhouette School (and My Must-Have Picks!)

Oh happy day! You guys know how much I love The Hungry JPEG...well guess what?! We've partnered up with the geniuses behind my favorite commercial font and graphics bundle site to offer a deal like you've never seen before!!

This is a sponsored post but all opinions are my own

Ahhh...what would you say if I told you I have an exclusive 20% off discount code for you that can be used site-wide at The Hungry JPEG?!  Hello.....ANYTHING! Current bundles. Fonts. Graphic Packs. $1 .80 deals. Anything. 

Cookie Stencils with Silhouette CAMEO for Beginners (Plus the Best Cookie Stencil Material)

If there's one thing I'm intimidated by it's cookie decorating!!! I just can't....but I'm quickly learning that even a cookie decorating beginner like me can make awesome cookie stencils with Silhouette CAMEO to fake my skills!

I'm so excited to have Nancy from The Colorful Cookie on Silhouette School today to share her beginner tips for making cookie stencils with Silhouette CAMEO or Portrait.

Free Silhouette Studio Designs: Patriotic Stars Set

Memorial Day is right around the corner so I thought I'd share a patriotic design with you as this week's Freebie Friday!

This set of free Silhouette Studio cut files can be layered on vinyl, HTV or paper or be used as a print and cut!

Free Set of Summer Fun Silhouette Cut Files (And How to Sketch and Cut)

I know yo uhow you guys like free Silhouette cut files so today I'm so excited to share not only a free set with you - but a fun (and free) way to use them!

Silhouette School contributor Cat over at Pocketful of Posies is here today to share this little tutorial on making a Vacation Memory Jar Project and offer you a full set of summer fun cut files! 

Where's the Silhouette Pixscan Mat Option?

If you're a fan of the Silhouette Pixscan mat, like I am, you may have noticed a change in the software that took place in one of the updates along the way.

 
There's no longer a Pixscan mat option in the Silhouette Studio Design Settings window...it's like it just vanished!

14 Free Use-However-You-Want (Public Domain) Fonts for Silhouette Crafters

So...let's have a little chat about fonts.  I know there's a lot of confusion about how fonts (and designs) can be used when crafting - specifically when it comes to selling items in physical form and selling digital files.

It's something that holds a lot of Silhouette crafters back from moving forward with actually selling...but if you know what you're looking for when it comes to fonts you can legally use, you should be good to go!  That's why today I'm sharing 14 of my favorite Public Domain fonts.

Layering Vinyl Hack with Silhouette Studio Paste In Front

One of the things I like best about The Hungry JPEG bundles is all the commercial use graphics. They're perfect for print and cut and for layering vinyl - once you get them set up correctly. 

This is a sponsored blog post but all opinions are my own.

The May Bundle is stocked full of awesome fonts (as always) as well as a bunch of graphic sets. That got me thinking about the fastest way to convert all.these.designs into layered vinyl designs. You guys - the secret's in the right click!

Updating to Silhouette Studio V4 from V3: What To Know to Ease the Transition

So you're a Silhouette CAMEO 3 beginner and you're wondering why Silhouette Studio looks sooooo different in all the tutorials from what you're seeing on your screen?!  Or maybe you're a Silhouette CAMEO V3 user and you're concerned or nervous about updating to Silhouette Studio V4 - which was just officially released (along with a whole bunch of new Silhouette products for 2017).

Fear not - Silhouette America released a major free update to the Silhouette Studio software in May 2017 referred to as Silhouette Studio V4. While the software looks a little different - it acts completely the same - (but better!)

Free Last Day of School Silhouette Studio Design Set

The last day of school is quickly approaching so for this week's Freebie Friday I have a full set of free "Last Day of School" Silhouette designs for you to download.

Every year my kids like to wear a last day of school shirt so their friends can sign it!

New Silhouette Products for 2017: Machines, Foils, Software and More!

As they do every year around this time, Silhouette America released a list of new Silhouette products for 2017 during the annual meeting in Hawaii.  And...officially launched Silhouette Studio V4.

Unfortunately, though I was invited, I was not able to attend this year's meeting - BUT I can confirm the full list of soon-to-be-released new Silhouette products for 2017 products which includes several updated and limited edition machines.

Oracal Vinyl Heaven: Behind the Scenes at Orafol

If you guys thought you loved Oracal vinyl before... you're going to be obsessed now! Last week Orafol the parent company that manufactures Oracal vinyl - known to most Silhouette crafters as Oracal 651 and 631 vinyl- along with other adhesive films and tapes invited me down to their USA headquarters and factory for a development meeting and tour. Mind blown.

You guys I had no idea there was so much that goes into manufacturing adhesive craft vinyl...and there's so much more of where that came from! There's so much that the craft world hasn't even seen yet and I'm so excited for you guys to see some of the possibilities and things that will soon be hitting the market....and don't worry - I went armed with your vinyl wish lists!

Etching and Embossing on Foil Sticker Paper with Silhouette CAMEO

We talk a lot about making stickers with Silhouette CAMEO and Portrait on Silhouette School - but today I wanted to show you a variation on the traditional print and cut stickers.

This is a sponsored post but all opinions are my own.

I was playing around with some printable gold foil sticker paper from Online Labels when I had this light bulb moment thinking...I bet I could etch - or even emboss - on these sheets. Sure enough...it was a huge success.

How to Add Silhouette CAMEO Rhinestone Designs To Any Surface

Did you know you can basically put rhinestones on anything? Totally true!

The secret is to use this special heat-safe rhinestone adhesive called Bling Anything Thing from The Rhinestone World. I've shown you the magic of this stuff before...like when I made a rhinestone skin for my CAMEO 2 or turned the Silhouette School logo into a rhinestone decal for my CAMEO 1.

But today I thought I'd go one step further and really put this stuff to the test - you know see how much it can really handle!

10 Must-Have Craft Blanks and Packaging Supplies (at Wholesale Prices)

I get asked a lot about where to find wholesale craft items and packaging supplies without having a wholesale account. Today I thought I'd introduce you to one of my secret stashes! 

This is a sponsored post, but all opinions are my own

I have been shopping at PaperMart for years!! When I was selling at craft shows and on Etsy I used to get all of my packaging - including paper shopping bags - from PaperMart because their prices and selection can't be beat.

Free Graduation Design Set for Silhouette Crafters

It's Friday and you guys know what that means around here. Freebie Friday!

This is a sponsored blog post, but all opinions are my own

For this week's free Silhouette Studio design file giveaway I've teamed up with Cuttable Designs to give away not just one free design - but a full set of 26 commercial use graduation designs!!

Silhouette School Launches First Virtual Classroom: Master the Silhouette Studio Text Tool

You guys!! I'm so excited to announce the release of our latest product: our first ever Virtual Classroom titled "Master the Silhouette Studio Text Tool."

You guys made me do this. Really you did. Here's the thing...I am constantly asked to travel to here, there, and everywhere. It's just not possible - this is a 2.5 (wo)man operation, we have littles, and there's work to be done (a lot of it) on Silhouette School blog and Silhouette U. It's all a whole lot of work that can't be done from the air or a hotel. 

Even when I do travel - which I do multiple times a year (check out where I'll be later this year on the Events page) - it's not always to the places where you are. That ALWAYS leads to questions from people about if my talks/classes/presentations will be streamed live or recorded. Honestly - it's just not possible to do that. BUT Bob and I had this light bulb moment a few weeks back and we think we've found something just as good - if not better!

We're taking retired content - content that's still 100% still relevant but no longer among the presentations I'm teaching - and converting them into virtual classrooms. I'm thrilled to say our first Virtual Classroom: Master the Silhouette Studio Text Tool is now available

How to Use Silhouette Studio V4 Trace by Color

The new Trace by Color feature in Silhouette Studio V4 is perhaps one of the biggest attractions to the new version of the software. It certainly makes tracing multi-color images much, much easier and it's likely to push many to upgrade to Designer Edition.

This is a sponsored post but all opinions are my own.

For example let's say you buy one of those fabulous commercial use graphic and font bundles from Craft Bundles. If you import the PNGs for these designs - tracing can take quite a bit of time and manipulation. But with Trace by Color it's as simple as click-click-click.

21 (More) Silhouette CAMEO Tips, Tricks, Tutorials, and Free Designs

I don't know where April went...but wow it flew by! If you missed anything on Silhouette School - and we were jam packed with Silhouette tutorials, tips, tricks and free designs - we've got ya covered!

Like we do every month I'm sharing a wrap up of everything we covered. So here are the 21 Silhouette CAMEO tips, tricks, helpful hints, free Silhouette designs and more that were shared in April 2017!