Make It: Bottle Light Making Bottle Lights with the Westmont Library Makery
Introduction Welcome to the Westmont Library s Make It: Bottle Light program! We re very pleased to have you. In this program, we re going to make a simple bottle light. We will do this by: Selecting images Cutting them out with the Vinyl Cutter Affixing them to the bottle using transfer paper Let s get started!
Selecting Images part 1 There are two main ways you are probably going to get your images. Those are: Google Image Search The silhouette image folders on the desktop The first thing you should do is think about what sorts of images you want and where you intend to place them on the bottle. The bottles look like they have more space than they do, and unless you are using very small images you will be unlikely to get more than 4-5 images on the bottle.
Selecting Images part 2 If selecting from google: Search for the type of image you want (we recommend searching for silhouettes specifically) Change the search results to Images Once you see an image you want: Right-click on the image Select Save As Save the image to the desktop Make sure the images you select are high resolution (800 x 600 or bigger) and will look good in silhouette
Selecting Images part 3 The vinyl cutter is going to print silhouette outlines with no internal detail, so plan accordingly Avoid images with holes in them Works! Doesn t work :( If you find an image with a hole in it that you really like, all may not be lost. Look for the slide on using the Threshold function further down.
Getting your images into Silhouette Studio Open Silhouette Studio Go to File->Open, then find your image on the hard drive Open your file Repeat this process for more images (note: Silhouette opens each new image into a new project by default, but you can copy/paste those images into the same project once they re open) Continue until you have all your images in a single project You re going to be cutting from an 8.5 x 11 inch piece of material, so under Design Page Settings select the Letter option from the drop down menu under page size. The Vinyl Cutter doesn t deal with detail at the edge of the cut area well, so make sure you have a buffer around your images
Opening Images cont d File->Open, find the Silhouette Images Folder or your image on the desktop
Opening images cont d Select the image you want then either double click or select and press OK
Working with your images You may want to resize your images in order to fit them on your page better If you resize, hold down the Shift button on the keyboard and drag from the corners of the image. This will keep the length/width ratio the same (ie avoid stretching or smushing the image) As you position your images, make sure to leave some buffer area around the edges of the page. The Cameo doesn t always handle cuts at the edges of pages well. If something goes wrong, remember you can always Undo changes, either by pressing Ctrl + Z or by pressing the Undo area in Silhouette Studio
Resizing images Hold the Shift Key down and drag from the corner of the image
Prepping your images to cut Select the Trace function in Silhouette Studio Press the Select Trace Area button Select Trace Outer Edge in the Apply Trace Method section Drag the square or rectangle over all your images Select Cut You will see red outlines of your images Once you have the red outlines, you no longer need the original image, so select and delete the original image
Prepping images to cut part 1 Press the Open the Trace Window Button
Prepping images to cut part 2 Press Select Trace Area and Drag the selection area over your images
Prepping images to cut part 3 Select Trace Outer Edge while the selection area is over your images
Prepping images to cut part 4 Your images will now have a red outline. If you move your images, the red outlines will stay in place.
Prepping images to cut part 5 You can now delete your initial images. The red outlines are the cut paths the Cameo will use to make your stickers.
Threshold Function If you have an image you like with holes in it, you may still be able to use it. To do so: Instead of using Trace Outer Edge, Use Trace Adjust the Threshold slider until the image is solid yellow You should get an outline of the image without all the holes, which you can then send to the Cameo
Connecting to the Vinyl Cutter Connect your laptop to the vinyl cutter via usb cord Make sure the vinyl cutter power cord is plugged in Turn the vinyl cutter on You should see an indication on your laptop screen that you are connected to the vinyl cutter
Connecting to the vinyl cutter
Prepping the vinyl cutter part 1 Get the cut mat and load your vinyl sticker material onto it, so the material is flush with the sides of the grid Position the cut mat up to the vinyl cutter The Arrow on the cut mat should be pointing to the vinyl cutter The line of the bed of the vinyl cutter should line up with the start of the grid on the cut mat. This is a green line with arrows, and you should use it to line up the cut mat. Press the Load Mat button on the vinyl cutter. The vinyl cutter will take up the cut mat
Prepping the vinyl cutter part 2 Go to Cut Settings in Silhouette Studio Set Cut Style for Selected Shape to Cut Set Material Type to Vinyl (NOTE: This would be different if we were using a different material, and there are a number of presets in the Silhouette Studio Program) (If you are using one of the new vinyl cutters, disregard below) Scroll down and take note of the Blade Number Setting under Silhouette Ratchet Blade Set the Blade to the recommended number setting and place it back in the blade holder of the machine Once the blade is set, you are ready to start the job! Press the Send to Silhouette button on the laptop to get going
Prepping the vinyl cutter
Prepping the vinyl cutter
Unloading the vinyl cutter
Removing your stickers Do not try to just pull your stickers off the decal backing. They are likely to tear or bunch up if you do First, remove all the materials that isn t your stickers. Do this gradually, make sure to gently press your stickers down to keep them from coming up too or tearing Once your stickers are all that s left on the backing material, cut a piece of transfer paper just big enough to cover one sticker and use that to remove the sticker Keep the sticker on the transfer paper and use that to place the sticker on the bottle, then smooth the sticker out Repeat until you are out of stickers
Remove the material around your stickers
Use Transfer paper to remove your stickers
Place your stickers on the bottle
Placing the LED Lights in the Bottle Take your LED lights out of the packet Feed them down the bottle Use the stick to press the lights down and position them in the bottle to your liking Turn the lights on from time to time to see how you re doing Once you have your lights the way you like them, you re done!
Placing the LED Lights in the Bottle