The Inspiration Studio Software has so many amazing tools that we often lose track of some of the smaller but no less useful features. The Italic tool is one such feature. We are all familiar with the term Italic, but perhaps familiarity makes us unable to see the potential hidden there. You may ask, “What is she talking about? Italic is for fonts, right?” Let me help you look at this tool from a different angle. (Pun intended. :))
We have all experienced it….THE BOX finally arrives at our door. We clear a spot in our craft room or craft space, we set the kids in front of a video and we open THE BOX. We are so excited. We have had visions of the wonderful things we will create, so much so that we can’t sleep at night. We KNOW it won’t be instantaneous. We are not after immediate gratification, we know that something this fantastic will take some perseverance to learn. But WE ARE READY!! We set the Inspiration up, admiring the pretty color and shiny surface. We install the software, download the upgrades and dive in to creating. It doesn’t matter whether it is a star, a circle or a word….we are almost shaking with anticipation. Now is the time to CUT IT OUT….
I will admit that sometimes I am stumped when it comes to choosing a topic for Tricky Tuesdays. At those times, I usually just start playing with the Inspiration Studio Software hoping to come up with…Inspiration. That is how this lesson began. I was exploring the Draw Polygon tools and realized that I could easily make scalloped circles! Eureka! I had done this technique ages ago (Yes, I am a dinosaur when it comes to Pazzles!) and tucked it back in the furthest recesses of my mind. Was I ever excited when I remembered it.
I think one of the most valuable attributes of the Pazzles Inspiration System is the ability to create anything I need for a project. I can choose from hundreds of fonts and most of them are free on the internet. If I can’t find exactly what I have in mind I can make it look the way I want. I have COMPLETE CONTROL over the results. I don’t need to buy a new cartridge or download to get the look I want. I don’t need to settle for something that is so-so. I don’t need to pop in one cartridge and keyboard overlay, cut ONE thing, pop in another cartridge and overlay, cut ONE more thing and repeat, repeat, repeat. In the Summer Splash page pictured here, I altered the fonts to fit the theme. Simple ways to alter fonts are to tilt the letters or resize them as I did for the word ‘laugh’. (Use the Break text by Character option under the text menu to separate the letters.) But did you know that you can change the fonts in other ways?
Do you like your own handwriting? I have to admit that I don’t like mine very much. But it is mine and anyone who knows me will recognize it immediately. I remember as a teenager I envied the girls who were making their own beautiful lettering and doodles. I always wished I could do that but I struggled to get a decent grade in penmanship so making a beautiful signature was always something out of reach. I think I am too old to reinvent my penmanship but I do wish mine was prettier.
I hope you had a great Fourth of July! I know I did. I ate way too much food, stayed up way too late and had way too much to clean up on Monday. Now that I have recovered it is time to look at the pictures I took. I have 9 grandchildren who live nearby and the annual fireworks-in-the-backyard event gives me lots of great pictures to scrapbook. I had one picture of my grandson, Jeshua, from last year that begged to be the ONLY picture on the page. I like the idea of featuring a single picture on the page but don’t always want to fill the page by using a lot of journaling. That is when I like to use paper lace overlays. They fill the page, add dimension and are a lot of fun to design. Pazzles sells a wonderful CD of paper lace designs but you can also make them yourself.
Did you know that you can make your own fonts in the Inspiration Studio Software? YES!! You can! You could take your own handwriting or maybe your children’s handwriting and turn them into fonts to cut. You can also take a favorite font and turn it into a single stroke font for journaling with our Pen Tool.
Recently, someone asked on our forums how to measure just one part of an envelope. There were many answers. Each person had their favorite method, some used the measuring tool, others liked to use line guides. It didn’t take long for me to realize that my favorite is to draw a rectangle or square.
But, I’m not really upset because my paper is what’s distressed. I recently wrote an article and created a project for a magazine that featured the Pazzles Distressing Tool. I fell in love with the distressed look all over again. I realized that distressing is a whole lot more than a bit of sandpaper on some white core cardstock. I used to think of distressing as being somewhat imprecise but with the distressing tool I can be very detailed.
I am beginning to think the Inspiration Studio software is kind of like Mary Poppins' carpet bag. Everytime I look in it, I pull something else out. What amazes me is that sometimes what I find is not really related to cutting at all. Summer is just around the corner. That means vacations, gardening, camping, swimming and...... boredom. If you have children you know what I am talking about. Boredom is as inevitable as scraped knees and grass stains in the summer. It can be frustrating for moms especially when their own time to craft and create is cut short.
Have I mentioned that I LOVE fonts! They offer so many possibilities for creativity and can be huge time savers. In my first blog on fonts, I showed you where to find fonts, how to download them and how to use fonts without installing them. My second blog was all about Dingbat fonts, those fabulous fonts that are images instead of letters. Today, I want to encourage you to look at alphabet fonts a bit differently and find the amazing potential for designs hidden there.
I’m sure you will all agree that it is very hard to keep a secret. Especially when that secret is really exciting and you KNOW that others will be just as excited as you are when they find out. We, here at Pazzles have been sitting on a secret for a long time now and today I finally don’t need to hold it in ANY longer! We are introducing a new line of Wall Vinyl in addition to the vinyl we already sell. The Wall Vinyl is in a mat finish and comes in 12 amazing colors for practically any décor style.
I’m back after taking a week off. My newest little grandson, Dustin, decided to surprise us all by arriving 3 weeks early! I have been busy taking care of my 4 other grandkids and helping my daughter catch up on her work. I have to say that I am exhausted and I salute all of you Moms out there! I had forgotten how much work 4 kids can be. To make it up to you I have added another video on making peaked scalloped frames and borders. This week I wanted to give you some great tips on positioning your scraps so that you can easily cut out several pieces at one time. There is no need for a gimmicky laser light to find the edges of the paper. The method I am showing you today is just as fast and easy too. As I am working, I have one big bin that I place my scraps into. When I have a chance or when the bin is too full, I sort my scraps into colors and store them in separate containers. When I start a new project, I decide on my color theme, look for a base or background paper and then go to my scraps. Sometimes I don’t find anything but usually I can find a piece or two that will work. I love it when I can cut virtually everything from scraps but that does mean a lot of small pieces of paper to cut.
Long, long ago in a time now considered ancient by many of you, there was a TV show called All in the Family with Archie Bunker. He had very little patience for his wife Edith and often called her a “dingbat”. That was not a nice use of the word and it was absolutely FORBIDDEN in my home. Thankfully, the term dingbat has become an acceptable term due to the popularity of dingbat fonts. Dingbat fonts are fonts that use shapes and designs instead of letters and numbers. Type an A and you might get a candy cane, type B and you see a reindeer. I entered “dingbat fonts” in my Google™ search window and came up with several dingbat font sites. I was really surprised at the variety of fonts available. I even found SpongeBob™ and Winnie the Pooh™ dingbats. The Dutch Tile here was made using a Dutchmen font and a POrnaments font.
Who doesn’t love scallops? They are so much fun and I don’t think they have ever NOT been fashionable! Big scallops, small scallops, mini scallops and scallops on scallops can be found everywhere in scrapbooking and card making projects, home decor and fashion. The trick is how to make those scalloped looks yourself without pulling your hair out in the process!
A while ago, I created a photo mat for a picture of my granddaughter Kirsten. What made this photo mat special was that Kirsten’s photo was framed inside of a cutout of her handprint. I also had scanned and cut out her signature. The result? A framed photo of Kirsten at age 5 with her handprint and signature done at age 5 as well. I loved it so much that I used it on our HSN segments. It became very popular and quickly ended up in our consumer convention booth. I am sure many of you have seen it. What was it about that project that resonated with so many people?
By now, I would imagine that a lot of you have been exploring the ability of the Inspiration software to convert clipart to cutting files. The process of auto tracing (vectorizing) a drawing, photo or clipart never ceases to thrill me each time I use it. I can let so much more of my own personality show in my projects by being able to use the design I want instead of settling for a “whatever works” image.
Recently, a Hobby Lobby store opened in our area. Now, I know some of you have had Hobby Lobby stores near you for a long time but this is the first one in Idaho. My daughter, Leslie and I have gone a tad crazy in the home décor section of the store. We have been inspired to spruce up certain dull areas of our homes. Leslie has been redecorating (or should I say finally decorating) her back porch bathroom so that her little girls will use it instead of Mommy’s bathroom.
Who doesn’t like to save money? I know I do! That is one of the reasons I love my Pazzles Cutter! I never have to buy a font or image if I don’t want to. The ability to use all True Type fonts opens up new horizons for me. And it doesn’t cost me a single penny.
The word KISS brings to mind a lot of different things. We all have sung the school age song: “Tommy and Suzy sitting in a tree…... K-I-S-S-I-N-G!” We might think of baby kisses or romantic kisses and someone who tries to gain favor by “kissing up”. However, when it comes to those of us who love cutting paper, KISS CUT is at the top of the list. Kiss cut is also referred to as perf lines, stitch marking or dashed lines. They are often used for fold lines on boxes and cards. They can also make delightful borders around projects.
Have you ever thought about some of the terms that are used in the Inspiration Studio software? Do you know what the terms Segment from Path, Convert to Path and Open Path mean? If you have worked in other programs like Adobe Illustrator you probably do. The rest of us have usually figured out the general meaning of a lot of the terms through consistent use of the software. It can be a bit confusing when you are first learning though. For all of you new users let me define a few terms for you that will make using the software easier.
Have you ever stumbled across a tool in the Pazzles software that you were unaware of or did not realize how it worked? Has it so radically changed how you create that you wonder how you ever functioned without it? I cannot even begin to count the number of times this has happened to me over the course of the last 7 years. This tutorial may be just such a moment for you.
One of the additions in the Inspiration Vue is an optical eye for print and cutting clipart. If you have our previous model, the Inspiration, you can still do an accurate print and cut though using this method!