Silhouette Cameo in the Classroom: A teachers guide to making your Class Awesome

Are you a teacher who needs more organization and fun in the classroom? Do you need to make inexpensive gifts for coworkers, family, and friends? Maybe you just want to take your classroom decor to the next level! With the Silhouette Cameo 3 and the right accessories you can do just that!

I bought my silhouette Cameo 3 from Amazon and got free shipping, and you should too! The pink one just came out in October of 2017 and it is amazing! It comes with a cutting mat and blade in the box, so all you need is some cardstock, vinyl, and a little bit of imagination to get off and running.

Some of my favorite classroom projects with the Silhouette Cameo 3 are below

  • Bulletin Boards with cut out letters. Laminate them and you can reuse them year after year! You can use Cardstock or patterned scrapbook paper along with the fonts on your computer to create stunning displays that will create a space worthy of inspiration and awesomeness that will have all of your teacher friends peeking in with awe
  • Labels for everything! Using adhesive vinyl like Oracle 631 or Oracle 651 you can label everything from clipboards, to bathroom passes, reading areas, folders, supply cabinets, and on and on and on. It is easily wiped clean from little kid germs, but can be removed if needed for something else. You can even get some in chalkboard material if you want to make some chalkboard labels!
  • Stickers! Using the print and cut feature you can make your own stickers for your planner, grade book, calendar, and to pass out to your kiddos whenever you want!
  • Class Door Decor! Welcome your kids to class with a fun inspiring display that shows off your personality. A fun door can set the tone for a great day, and can easily be changed with the seasons with a Silhouette Cameo 3!
  • White Board Labels just got way cuter with the Silhouette Cameo 3. Use vinyl to cut them out and apply with contact paper for a semi permanent way to keep track of the date, the weather, or who is the line leader this week. The possibilities are endless!
  • Teacher T shirts! Use the Cameo 3 to make the cutest t shirts for all of the school dress up days! I recommend Siser Stretch, which I will post links for below!
  • Personalized gifts! From Clipboards to cups, to pencil holders and bags, you can personalize almost anything with the Silhouette Cameo 3!
  • Photo Props, make the first day of school and class parties extra fun with some awesome photo props created with the Cameo!

Ok, So here is a quick list with links for what you need to do all of the fun stuff listed above

  1. Silhouette Cameo 3. You can buy it by itself or in a bundle! I like to buy things separately so I don’t end up with tools and accessories I never use, but here’s a great bundle for your convenience that includes vinyl for decals and sketch pens you could use to color awesome bulletin board letters!

2. Vinyl for decals, labels, and whiteboard labels. I recommend using Oracle 651 for all of these and here’s a great bundle that has lots of colors. I tend to use black a lot, so it would be wise to get a roll of that to save you some money! The bundle below comes with lots of colors so you can see them all and customize lots of different things! Never put this vinyl in the or microwave, and I recommend hand washing for cups so they last longer! 😉

3. Vinyl for Shirts I recommend Siser Stretch for ladies shirts so that the image has some give to accommodate your chest. It is also great for baby onesies or kids shirts that get stretched when pulled on and off. There’s a bundle with all the colors here, but you might just want to start with white and black until you have a shirt in mind you want to make. White and Black will get you through Dr. Seuss week 😉 You can also add some glitter vinyl which looks amazing on shirts. Never layer glitter vinyl on top of glitter vinyl, but you can put it on top of stretch no problem. 

4.Cardstock My favorite cardstock for banners and letters is Co’ordinations from JoAnn fabric. It comes in lots of colors and you can find it on sale regularly. I prefer the smooth finish over the canvas texture. It cuts beautifully, and can be laminated, or turned into a sticker with a Xyron machine easily. Make sure to check the app for a coupon!

5. Other Necessary Accessories The machine comes with a mat and cutting blade, but you also need weeding tools and transfer tape to work with vinyl. My favorite weeding tools are actually dental picks like these, and my favorite transfer tape is Contact paper for beginners. It is super inexpensive, and doesn’t leave residue when you are removing it. Make sure you buy the one with the blue grid lines. The new one they came out with has gray lines and doesn’t work as well! The paper cutter allows you to cut the edge of vinyl or cardstock straight so you can reuse the unused part easily. The scraper on the far right below helps you transfer vinyl onto the contact paper, and then onto the surface you are applying it to. I have been known to use a kitchen spatula when I couldn’t find mine, but this one works well, and is inexpensive!

6. Nice to have If you are going to make lots of shirts I highly recommend a heat press. It will save you lots of time and your shirts will last longer. If you are just starting out, maybe get one after you master cutting the other vinyl things! Xyron sticker machine. It turns anything you cut out with the silhouette into a sticker! They also have cartridges you can add to turn things into magnets, or laminate, but the sticker things is what I use the most. It makes applying letters to banners so much easier!

 

That should be enough to get you started! I can’t wait to see what your classrooms look like! Join us in the Cameo Class group beginning January 2017 where we work together to create a project step by step together! It’s a great place for beginners to come and learn how to use the software!

Here are some teacher designs available for download in the Silhouette Studio library just to give you a sneak peek. They are all available for purchase for 99 cents normally, and can be found on sale throughout the year! Make sure you check in every week for the free design they give you!

and here’s some cute teacher project ideas!

 

 

Happy Crafting,

 

 

Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post contain affiliate links that pay me a small commission, but you pay the same price, for recommending them. That money is used to maintain this blog!

 

Thanks for reading. If you like this and want more crafting tips and tricks subscribe to the blog!

 

 

 

 

Black Friday deals on Silhouette Cameo 3 Stuff!!! Woohoo!

Are you looking for some awesome Black Friday deals on Vinyl, heat presses, Silhouette Cameo 3 cutting machines and accessories? Here is my list I have been compiling to keep track of everything I have seen that I will be picking up, and a few great deals that I thought were too good to pass up! Don’t get overwhelmed by all of the amazing deals today,have fun and be patient the websites may be running slow with everyone shopping!

First up is this amazing deal on the Silhouette Cameo 3 cutting machine with free shipping on Prime! I bought a bundle with my first Silhouette Cameo, but lots of the extras included were not great quality, and I don’t use most of it, so I recommend finding the best deal on the machine, and then buying the better supplies, which I am listing some of below!

If you prefer a bundle, this one looks awesome with 12 sheets of Oracle 651, and 12 Siser HTV sheets!

Cameo Cutting Mats! I have one for glittery messy stuff, and one for everything else! I love ordering on amazon with free shipping since I can’t use a coupon in the store on these!

 

This generic brand of mats is also getting rave reviews from several Cameo users. Check out the reviews!

Heat Press. I love my 15×15 inch clam shell heat press. I have made shirts for our Disney trips, birthday shirts, personalized blankets, bibs, and 40h birthday sashes. I made dishtowels, aprons, and popsicle koozies too. This thing is an amazing way to generate income, and if you have small kids you can use it to make so many things!!!

Silhouette Cameo Autoblade works great on the Silhouette Cameo 3! Swing Design is a great place to shop for Silhouette accessories and when you purchase from their amazon shop you get free shipping if you have Amazon Prime

Vinyl Deals Join the group CSDS Vinyl on Facebook to snag the coupon codes for some amazing deals on Vinyl all day today! Be advised shipping may be a little longer than normal due to the high volume of people taking advantage of these amazing deals, but trust e it is worth it. These deals only happen once a year! They also have an amazing selection of printed vinyl, and they carry Oracle and Siser, my two favorite brands of Silhouette vinyl!

https://csdsvinyl.com/product/10-10-printed-adhesive-assortment-pack/ref/6518/

Don’t forget to join the facebook group to get the coupon codes!

This bundle also gives you a great variety of colors with Heat Transfer Vinyl and Oracle 651. If you don’t want to hunt down a great deal on individual things, buy great product from a great place and start looking for what you’re going to make with all of your new stuff once it arrives!

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Here’s a link to try prime free if you have never used it. I order all of my birthday gifts, pull ups, and even some food for my sons school snacks all from Prime Pantry. It saves so much time, and helps me avoid the fruit snack aisle at the grocery store!
Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial
Happy Crafting,

 

Disclaimer: The links above pay me a small amount to share great deals with you which I in turn use to keep this blog running. Thanks for looking, and let me know if you see any great Black Friday Deals somewhere!

Make Wood Signs with Vinyl Step by Step

How to Make Wood Signs with Vinyl

Check out the BEST How to Make Wood Signs with Vinyl tutorial Here. It includes, supplies, tips, and tricks, and step by step instructions!

Are you wanting to make wood signs with vinyl? Here’s a complete tutorial showing you the supplies I use and the steps I take to make wood signs with vinyl.

I love to make wood signs with vinyl because I don’t have to finish the entire project in one night. I rarely have time to complete any crafting projects in one night with my son running around. Using this process, you can start and stop as needed. Lets get started.

Supplies to Make Wood Signs with Vinyl

1.Pick your base-  Lowes has a great selection of Pine, my favorite, but if you aren’t comfortable with a saw, or have been forbidden from using it because your husband thinks you don’t pay attention, then a blank sign from Hobby Lobby or Michaels are the perfect choice to make wood signs with vinyl.

I like to use Pine when I make wood signs with vinyl.  It stains and paints easy, is smooth and requires little sanding. Also worth mentioning, I can staple a hanger on the back by myself. You can also make wood signs with vinyl from pallet wood, old fence panels, or an old cabinet door! The smoother the wood, the less bleeding you will encounter, but I have tips below to help prevent bleeding!

2. Stain or Paint- My favorite wood stain when I want to make wood signs with vinyl is Rust-Oleum Kona . It comes in several colors and dries in an hour or so, so I can stain my wood while my son is sleeping, apply the stencil I cut out with my Silhouette Cameo 3, and seal it in the same day!

*Remember to work in a well ventilated area and wear a mask if you are sensitive to fumes*

Chalk paint has almost no smell. If you are sensitive to fumes, I recommend using it to make a wood sign with vinyl. It goes on like butter, fills in some or all of the wood dents, and can be distressed in different ways.

Annie Sloan chalk paint is amazing! If you try other brands, and then this brand you will never go back! I pick up my chalk paint at a local boutique, but you can make your own chalk paint, or order it on line too. I love chalk paint over staining when I make wood signs with vinyl because it doesn’t give off the harsh smell that stain does. As a result,  I can paint in the garage while my son is decorating a bird house or watering plants. You might be able to find it in a local boutique, but here’s an amazon link below just in case!

 

Acrylic paint- If you aren’t quite ready to invest in chalk paint to make wood signs with vinyl, you can use acrylic paint. My favorite one is Americana in White. It dries fast, gives great coverage, compared to other acrylic paints comes in lots of colors, and is affordable! I normally have to do a few coats with this depending on the color i’m using. It also is more likely to peel up when removing the stencil, but a quick touch up can fix any boo boos.

 

 3. Paint Brush- I like to use foam brushes and just toss them afterwards to apply the paint and stain when I make a wood signs with vinyl stencils. They don’t leave the brush strokes that a regular paint brush leaves, they apply a smooth coat, and you can dab them in an up and down motion when filling in the stencil. This helps prevent bleeding. Because I am cheap, I sometimes cut the tip off of one  and then use it again for the next sign if the paint hasn’t saturated the brush!

4. Oramask stencil Vinyl for stencil or oracle 631- I prefer the Oramask Stencil Vinyl with my cutting machine when I make wood signs with vinyl stencils because it is a little see through. This makes it easier to see where you are placing it on the sign. It also easily tears off in pieces when you are removing it which can be helpful. In addition, the blue film isn’t as sticky as vinyl, but gives a great seal. It is made for making sign stencils. Definitely a game changer for me when I started making signs to sell.

5.Contact Paper-The Contact Paper is used to transfer the stencil from it’s paper backing to the wood. Once you have it on you can use a Scaper like this one to  smooth the stencil onto the wood. I sometimes use a kitchen spatula or plastic spoon when I can’t find mine! =)

  

 

6. Stencil- I use my Silhouette Cameo 3 and Silhouette Studio Software, which is included, to create the designs I use when I make wood signs with vinyl. I have been using this brand for several years and just upgraded to the new model.

I used it to cut the stencils for all of the signs below! My Cameo Craft Class group will be learning to use this vinyl in the future to make signs. If you are interested you should join us! It’s an on line instruction on how to make everything step by step!

7. Sealer- After you apply your painted stencil, I highly recommend sealing it. Chalk Paint has a wax sealer you can use, but it has to be reapplied every so often, which I don’t have time for, so my go to sealer for al signs is Minwax Polycrylic in Satin Finish . It comes in glossy too, but i prefer the satin! It doesn’t yellow over time, and can be applied with the foam brushes too!

 

Steps to Make Wood Signs with Vinyl Stencil

  •  Cut your wood and sand the edges until its smooth. Clean all the excess dust and dirt off with an old cotton shirt or paper towel
  • Apply your stain or paint with a foam brush to one side and let it dry. Once dry, flip and stain the other side. 

    painted signs ready for stencils to make wood signs with vinyl
    I came up with different ideas to put on each sign, and wrote it out before designing in Silhouette Studio 4.1.
  • Cut out your stencil! I like to measure my sign and then draw a rectangle that size in the Silhouette Studio 4.1 software so that i know how big i can make my design. place the stencil material blue side up on your cutting mat, cut on the matte vinyl setting, and then weed out the part you want to fill in with paint. 
Silhouette Studio 4.1 Designs to make wood signs with vinyl
This is what the design software looks like when I set up my designs for cutting Oramask Stencil Vinyl
stencils made for wood signs with vinyl
Weeding the stencil vinyl before applying it to a wood sign
  •  Use contact paper to transfer the stencil to the sign. I like to use it because it’s not too sticky, and it’s clear making placement on the sign easier. You can use other transfer tape, I just prefer contact paper for this particular project. For longer signs it is easier to start at the top and line up the edges of the contact paper with the edge of the vinyl backing paper. Then slowly roll down and smooth with the scraper.
apply contact paper to stencil to make wood signs with vinyl
Applying Contact Paper to Stencil

 Once the stencil is secured to the contact paper, gently lift it off the backing ensuring you pick up all the pieces, and line up the top corners and gently smooth down. For longer signs, keep the backing paper close in case you need to put it under the design. This can aide in lining up the stencil to the sign.

applying contact paper to make wood signs with vinyl
slowly removing the contact paper from the sign
Burnish when you make wood signs with vinyl
Burnishing the transfer tape

Make wood signs with vinyl

  •  Fill in the Design with paint.  Once the stencil is on the sign, use your foam brush to gently fill in the stencil. I like to start towards the middle and work my way out. Make sure you don’t get too much paint. Dab off the excess on a paper plate a couple times before you dab the sign. If your wood surface is bumpy add a coat of Mod Podge to the stencil edges and let dry before you paint. This will help make crisper lines. After 2-3 coats of paint you can remove the stencil. Use a sewing pin to remove the inner parts of A’s E’s O’s etc easily.

make wood signs with vinyl tutorialpainting stencil on oramask to make wood signs with vinyl

If you are newer to stenciling there are tons of places to get designs when you want to make wood signs with vinyl. You can check out the design store here for some ideas including one of my best sellers the Hot Cocoa sign.  https://whimsywillowcreations.com/product/hot-cocoa-cut-file/

  • Seal-One last step to make wood signs with vinyl. Seal that bad boy with a thin coat of Minwax listed above. Let it dry overnight. Here in Houston I let mine dry 2 days.

 If you plan to make lots of signs, these sawtooth hangers are amazing, and less expensive than buying them at the hardware store normally! I attach them with my staple gun, or you could use command strips to hang them too!

 

Finish projects sold well at my craft show!

Wood Signs at A craft show
Craft Show Display with ornaments and wood signs

I want to see what you create! Join us on Facebook at Cameo Craft Class to share!

 

Happy Crafting,

Kathy Whimsy Willow Creations

 

Disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links for products I have used to create crafting projects. I am sharing with you. If you plan to craft and purchase from these links, thanks! I get a small percentage that goes towards keeping this site live!

 

Super Cute Christmas Fonts and SVGs

Where to find cute Christmas SVGs and fonts you ask? I was looking for Christmas SVGs and Christmas fonts to cut yesterday, and look what I found y’all! The Christmas Craft Bundle that has everything we need this holiday season to craft down the days until Christmas! This file will save me hours of time searching for designs and fonts, and get me in the craft room preparing for my next craft show! I cant wait to decorate my house for Christmas!!! I love snowmen, and Santa, and living with my 5 year old son who loves to help me make fun things! Below I posted pics of some of the cuteness…I’m going to be so so busy…join me!

– 21 fonts included in the bundle and all of them have commercial use for life rights!

 

– Over 160 SVG files, Here are a few of my favorites, all with commercial use rights so you can create and sell what you make guilt free!…there are so many more in the package, but the package is only $29! I have paid $3 each for svgs on Etsy, and this is 160 for $29, and it has fonts too! Check it out. Link posted below

 

– Over 800 Design Elements….I saw some awesome lightbulb frames, and wreaths and and and this is going to be all I need the next 5 years to make Christmas stuff. I can’t believe it’s on sale for only $29. I paid more than that for one font!

That’s a lot of Christmas Crafting y’all! It has SVGs for Santa Sacks, Countdown to Christmas Chalkboard signs, Monogram Snowman frames, and so much more. Check these out, and click the picture below to to see all of the included designs!

It’s only $29 on sale, so grab it before they change the price.

Happy Crafting,

 

If you like this post, you may also like the Silhouette Cameo 3, I use it to make all of my crafty projects!

 

Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links that pay me a small amount which helps me pay for the upkeep on this blog!

How to ship ornaments

How do you ship glass ornaments so they don’t break? I’m no expert, but I have shipped over 1,000 just like this, and I’m here to share my best shipping tips with you! Don’t be scared. People love to buy Christmas ornaments for Christmas gifts, and personalizing them with a silhouette cameo is easy, so don’t let shipping hold you back!

  1. Put a scrunch of packing paper in the bottom of the box
  2. Wrap the ornament in 2 12×12 sheets of bubble wrap.
  3. Place ornament inside box. I use 6x6x4 for the M&M style ornaments and 5x5x5 inch for the medium round and 6x6x6 for the large round size.
  4. Fill in the top of the box with more packing paper so that the ornament doesn’t move.
  5. Ship First Class Mail. Do not ship priority unless you double box. Priority mail takes boxes up to 70 pounds and your pretty ornament will be destroyed!

You can print labels from home using your home printer and tape them to the box, or if you start selling and print lots of labels get a DYMO 4XL label printer. It was by far the best thing I bought my crafting business last Summer, and I use the aftermarket labels below. 220 rolls for $8 is a great deal and saves so much packing tape! With the Dymo 4xl you can print labels with Etsy or Paypal, and they have discounts on shipping with USPS and even Fed EX.

Here are the supplies I use to ship if you need quick links!

  

I hope this was helpful to you!

 

You might also like these Super cute fonts for Ornaments:
Super Hero Ornament Font

Delaney Script Ornament Dont

Cookies Ornament Font

 

 

Happy Crafting,

Disclaimer: Links in this blog post are affiliate links which pay me a small commission to share my knowledge with you. That small percentage pays for my web hosting and crafting supplies, so I can make more blog posts! Thanks!