Silhouette How Did You do that: Doily Edge Cups

Thanks for visiting today! Not only do I have a tutorial for you today, but also, If you didn't take the chance to enter the Silhouette Cameo giveaway that I am hosting...now would be a great time to enter! Details are at the bottom of the post!

Hope you are getting excited for Thanksgiving and then we'll be rolling into the Holidays shortly after that!

I know I am super excited! First off, I love all the family parties, and the excitement of the kids. One of the other things that I love is baking cookies and making candy to share with my neighbors. It's even better if I have something pretty to put my creations in. That's why I designed decorative cups this week for the Silhouette store.

These designs were made to be cut with the Silhouette Cameo or the Silhouette Portrait digital cutting machine. 

The digital cut lines for these cup designs are found in my portfolio at the Silhouette Store.

These cups can be used for gifting small treats, or using in your office for organization. They also would be fantastic as luminaries for battery operated tea lights.

To assemble these cups, you will use the same technique for all the designs. I will show you how to assemble the basic cup because it has a lid, and you will want to see how that goes together. I call this one the ice cream pint. (it's a little smaller than a pint of ice cream, but pretty close in size when finished.) 

I'll also show you how to assemble the window area on the window cups. 

All the other cups will use the same technique to assemble the base and to glue the side seam. 

Okay...Here we go!

1. Cut all the pieces from double sided card stock.

2. Bend the paper back and forth to "train it" into a curve shape.

3. Fold all the base tabs, and choose which side of the card stock you want to show on the bottom. I like the contrasting card stock color to show on the base.

4. Put glue on the tabs on the base.

5. Line up the tabs with the bottom edge of the piece of card stock that will become the container, and glue the first tab. I like to use Clover Wonder Clips to hold the card stock together while glueing. You can also hold the tabs with your fingers. (you will have to wait until it dries a bit if holding with your fingers.)

6. Start curving the card stock around the base tabs, and continue glueing all the way around. Notice that the tabs butt up right next to each other as you glue them around. Continue clipping as you go.

7. Finish glueing all the way around. 

8. Move onto glueing the side seam.

1. Put glue into the side seam, and seal with your fingers.

2. Turn cup on it's side and flatten the seam edge from the base to the top, making sure to smooth out any buckles or puckers. 

3. Hold until glue is set or clip until dry.

4. Move onto assembling the lid.

1. Fold the tabs around the lid, and apply glue to about half the tabs (you will add more as you go, you just don't want it to dry too quickly.) 

2. Start your slightly thicker strip of paper at the first tab. Hold with your fingers or a clip.

3. Continue to glue the strip around the entire edge of tabs until you come full circle, making sure to add glue where the strip ends overlap.

4. Get the slightly narrower strip, and glue this to the inside of the lid. Hold the strip inside the lid with your fingers or clips until the glue dries.

5. Find your circle piece and glue the top of the lid, and adhere the circle and smooth from the opposite side.

Let everything dry and place the lid on the cup. 

Fill with treats for a simple gift.

Now I'll show you how to do the window variation.

It only takes a few extra steps:

1. Before you start the steps above, you will want to glue the window into your cup.

2. You will want to cut the window shape that is slightly larger than the tree (in this case) from transparency film.

3. Glue the edges of the transparency down first.

4. Glue the rectangular shape with the tree window in it next.

5. While the glue is still tacky, train a curve into your card stock. Take the time to smooth out anywhere if the paper wants to buckle.

6. Go to the assemble the base section, and then follow through the rest of the steps. 

Silhouette Tutorial: Ice Cream man box

I don't know about you...but I like to eat ice cream year round...and that means any time is a good time for ice cream themed projects. The ice cream theme is perfect for birthdays, showers and gift giving. With ice cream on the brain...I created a little ice cream man box for your future parties and gifts.

Here is a link to the design in the silhouette online store: Box Ice cream Mouse 

This design can work on both the Silhouette Cameo or the Silhouette Portrait. If you use the Silhouette Portrait, ungroup the design. Select the main box piece, turn it so that it is straight up and down, and not on a diagonal. Regroup all of the piece, then scale the design to 70%.

The file does have several pieces, but I'll show you how to cut efficiently and also give you a little tip to help move the project along a little faster.

Open the file in the Silhouette Studio software. Cut the main box piece from white card stock.

Set the box piece aside.

Next select the grouped pieces and slide them over as shown in the photo above. They have already been grouped in areas that can be the same color. This will make your project go a little faster. Go ahead and cut strips of paper to accommodate the areas on the screen that correlate with your cutting mat.

Depending upon how new your mat is, because you are cutting several smaller pieces of paper at the same time, you may want to tape down the edges of the paper strips to prevent movement when cutting. 

****Time saving tip: use Silhouette's adhesive paper and it will make the following steps (where you paper piece the mouse) go much faster. This paper comes with adhesive and a removable backing. This paper is specially designed to adhere to the cutting mat so that the removable backing grips instead of slides like some removable backings. 

After you have all your pieces cut, assemble in the order above.

 Continue building up your pieces adding the wheels.

Then add the spokes, fender, and hub.

 Add the ice cream cone silhouette.

 and the ice cream.

Add the striped awnings.

 Now crease the main box.

 Start attaching sides beginning with the bottom of the cart.

 Glue the second side on the bottom of the box, making sure that corners line up. 

 Now attach the cart freezer door. Be sure to put the glue on the right side. Insert the tab into the top of the cart.

 You can choose to have your door hinged on the side with the mouse or the opposite side.

 Hold the freezer door in place until the glue is set.

 Go to the next side of the cart, and glue both sides.

Now put glue on the flaps of the top of the freezer box. Pinch them into place.

 You may want to hold them in place while drying with Clover Wonder Clips. (made for quilting but the come in handy for crafting--especially for holding projects together while gluing!)

Glue the awning roof together. I'm using Tombow mono adhesive it's a great paper glue that holds paper well without curling it.

 (Please note, I changed the design slightly after assembling this and decided to continue the awning all the way around. You will need to fold down the front awning and attach it to the sides, and find the separate piece of awning to glue to complete the awning all the way around.)

attach the colored roof piece.

Bring both sides of the mouse together at his back and attach the tab to the other mouse.

Clip it together to hold it together while drying. You may want to add a dot of glue to hold the mouse ears together, but it isn't necessary.

Now fill the cart with candy or another special treat. 

Hope you enjoyed this project!

Happy Crafting!

Samantha Walker

Hexi-box Silhouette Tutorial

If you saw my Silhouette house box tutorial yesterday, this box is put together in a very similar way. I almost put this tutorial with that one as a variation, but there were enough differences, that I thought it needed it's own. You may want to reference that tutorial as well for further help.

This project will cut on the Silhouette Cameo, or the Silhouette Portrait. If you use the portrait, you will need to scale down the file to 90%, and make sure your paper orientation is used to your advantage.

First you will need to cut two of the carousel horse box pieces. Cut all the other pieces in the file using this method described in the link.

After you've cut all of your pieces, organize them, then find the triangle and rectangle panels. Put glue on the back side of the carousel horses and glue around the edge of the panel, then center the panel over the horse so that the panel is on the inside part of the box. (I like to use a good paper glue like Tombow mono adhesive so my paper stays flat.)

 Now after all the panels have been glued on, glue the two box pieces together at the tab.

Now crease the box bottom at the dotted line...

Work around the box with glue to attach the walls of the box to the bottom of the box. I use these cute little clips to hold it together while gluing...They are designed for quilting and sewing, but I hijacked them into my regular craft stash as they are sooooo handy!

 Work all the way around the box glueing the tabs as you go.

Keep going all the way around the box until you come to the tab at the end, then glue both the tab at the end and the bottom of the box tab to complete the box.

 Remove the clips, then thread ribbon through the slits in the carousel roof.

Pull the ribbon so that the roof pieces come together, then tie a bow.

Now find the flag piece and get a pin or a toothpick to use as the flag post. Put a decent amount of glue between the layers--without being so much that it oozes when you press the sides together. You want your paper to become somewhat pliable while the glue is wet, so that you can curve your flag like it is rippling in the wind. See the transformation below.

Because this box comes in two pieces, it finishes up at a nice size. The base of the hexagon is approximately 7 inches across. You can fill it with treats, or a gift.

I also have a few other variations of this box:

Happy Crafting!
Samantha

House boxes Silhouette Tutorial

Today I have a fun series of boxes that have cute little feet which make the box portion sit above what the box is resting on. (If you like this box, you will want to see my carousel hexi box tutorial too.) These instructions will work for all of the variations of the box in the Silhouette Online store.

First off, this box will work with both the Silhouette Cameo and the Silhouette Portrait cutting machines. If you use the Silhouette Cameo, you will not have to resize the box, it is already at the maximum size for 12 x 12 paper, so skip the Silhouette Portrait users paragraph.

Silhouette Portrait users only:
You will need to make sure that your paper orientation is right, and then in your Silhouette Studio software, you will need to select the cutting file, then in the go to the Object menu and select the first option:"transform" then select "scale options," then in the dialog box on the right  hand side of the screen, scale this to 90% by typing in 90% in the box that says 100%. After you have successfully scaled your cutting lines, then move the design onto the live cutting area of your screen--making sure that not edges hang off. You will need to cut the main box portion and the contrast windows separately to fit all the pieces.

Cut all the pieces and lay them out.

 Please note that I used double sided card stock, so that I didn't have to use two different papers. (Card stock is: Carta Bella double sided card stock All Hallow's eve collection Marshmallow Kraft)

 Orient your cut object so that the color you want on the inside of the box is facing up.

 Then glue on the backside of the design, and around the edge, then press on the contrasting "window." Make sure that you have the correct side facing out the window. My box will be a kraft color, with white showing through the windows.

 After you've glued on all 4 squares, then find your square that has tabs on all sides.

 Fold up each tab along the dotted line.

 Now crease your box on all dotted lines.

Now we are going to set in the bottom of the box. I like to use a good paper glue like Tombow Mono Adhesive.
It won't warp or wrinkle paper--and it sticks REALLY good. I buy this stuff by the case...literally.
I hate to run out in the middle of a project, and I've become quite a fan of this glue.

Now orient your main box so that the side without the tab is on the left.
**IMPORTANT step** Glue two of the tabs in this way:
One tab go ahead and make a glue bead all the way across the tab.
On the second tab, Glue about 3/4 of the way across the tab--leaving a 1/4 inch making sure there is no glue on that end.

Find the 3/4 glued tab and line it up with the box side on the left that doesn't have a tab. We are leaving this glue-less portion to make sure we can tuck in the tab on the opposite side of the box. Now Line up the next side with the bottom box piece, this will naturally form your first corner.

Note:
I'm not a self proclaimed octopus. I wish I were. It would be dreamy to have eight arms while crafting--being able to hold multiple things while waiting for glue to dry. Recently, I found a way to mimic having 8 arms. I discovered these quilting clips a few weeks ago for my new obsession with fabric.

These clips have seam markings on them for 1/4 and 1/2 inch seams.  While they are intended for aiding sewing projects, I've discovered that they are fantastic for so many other things--like holding things together while you are waiting for glue to dry. I can hear the angels singing hallelujah praises over these little clips.

Now go ahead and glue the other two tabs on the bottom of the box and attach the remaining two sides of the box around the bottom piece.

Now we are going to glue the box tab--make sure you put the glue on the correct side. (Hint: the correct side to glue is the side that is the same color as the outside of the box.)

Go ahead and tuck that side tab in--remember, we saved space for by not glueing that one portion of the box bottom tab. Voila! It fits!

 Now fold all of the roof pieces outward.

 Thread a ribbon through all of the little slits on the roof tabs.

For the finishing touch, tie a cute bow in a complimentary colored ribbon, and you are done!
I also have these variations of the house box or tent-top box:

Happy Crafting!
Samantha