First, remove your blade from my machine and replace it with your sketch pen of choice (I chose bronze from the metallic set). Then, select NO CUT, which in this case, means NO SKETCH. Then, holding down the shift key, click on the outside of the frame until they are all highlighted. So, first click on the scissors to open the cut style window. Now, you need to tell your Silhouette which aspects of the shape to sketch and which to leave be. 20” font to type out my text and used the align tool to “align center.” That way, I can select which parts to sketch and which to print later on.

So, since I’m doing a sketch and cut, it’s important to highlight all of the shapes and ungroup and release compound paths.

Once I sized my frame to dimensions I was happy with, they were fruitful and multiplied to fill up my mat to the max! Now, I just drag the the shape to the corner, and use the ruler tool to size things. No more meticulous counting of blocks to figure out dimensions like I had to do before the upgrade. That’s why I rely on the visual ruler to properly size my shapes. You’ll see in my screenshot that sometimes, the dimensions around the shape are bigger than the shape itself. The ruler is one of my favorite features of the Designer Edition software. I found a frame I liked (capital V) and sized it using my handy dandy ruler tool. Remember my monumental discovery last month that there is a FREE font of different types of frames called KG Flavor & Frames? Well, that came in handy again. Here’s a tutorial for how to make your own place-cards…or really any sketch and cut project! The same tips will apply. Plus, I’ve been eager to try these sketch pens ever since I first got them in (cough) December. While sure, I could have printed these, I really like how the metallic sketch pens have some texture and really look hand-drawn (hand-drawn with incredible penmanship). Our dinner guests will no longer be stricken with panic when it comes time to be seated, and they have no idea where to sit. ( Click here to see THAT tutorial!) In the matter of a few minutes, I was able to design, sketch, and cut my own custom place-cards. I recently made some cute place-card holders out of plastic animals from the Dollar Tree. You betcha I’ll share all about what makes the Designer Edition so great, as well as give you link and code you need to get a discount, but first, let me share an easy tutorial for how to use sketch pens to design your own place-cards. (Yes, you can imagine me and my air-quotes to amp up the nerdiness factor.) The Designer Edition software is “boss,” as my students would say. Rumor has it that this is one of their most popular promotions, and there’s good reason why.

This month it’s all about the Designer Edition software. Howdy, folks! It’s a brand new month, which means there’s a brand new Silhouette promotion comin’ your way via yours truly…plus, another Silhouette Portrait Giveaway!

Silhouette business edition promo