{ranai}

Last Thanksgiving my mom and I purchased a Silhouette Cameo to share (and mayyyybe only I use it). I’ve been having a blast creating all sorts of crafty things with this amazing gadget. One of those things is a giant (kid sized) cut-out of Minnie with layered cardstock and foam board that I made for a 1st birthday party.

Here were the steps I took to make it, and a quick video of what my file looked like.

1. Decide how big you want your cut-out to  be. I wanted mine to be as tall as the little ones at the party so I was shooting for 32″.
2. Buy a foam board that is big enough to accommodate the entire background of your project. I bought a piece at Hobby Lobby that was 32″x40″.
3. In Design Studio set your Design Page Settings to the size of your foam board.
4. Find an image and trace it. I like this video tutorial that shows you what to look for, how to release the compound path, separate the pieces, etc.
5. Once the image is traced but before you release the compound path, size the image on the page to the exact size you desire. Copy it and paste it off to the side so you have a backup in case you mess it up. (I did!)
6. Right click on the image to release compound path and fill the pieces with the appropriate color that corresponds to the cardstock you want to cut it out of. This step is really important to keep you organized so don’t skip it!
7. Move the pieces off the board and organize them by color.
8. DO NOT RESIZE INDIVIDUAL PIECES AT THIS POINT. Only resize if everything is grouped together.
9. Resize your Design Page Settings to 12×12 to reflect the paper you will be cutting.
10. Cut out all of the layering pieces. I cut all of the black together, then pink, then white, then beige. I put all of my pieces in a zip lock until I was ready to put them on the foam board.
11. Make a template for the foam board.  Start by making a copy of your background/silhouette shape and move it off the design board (I like extra pieces because I’m still learning and often make mistakes!). Then use the knife tool and cut it into sections that can fit on a 12×12 piece of paper. I used scrap paper because it’s nothing you will see in the final project. Cut all of the pieces out. Here is my example of how I did this!
12. Put the pieces on the BACK of the foam board. It should be a mirror image of what you see on the screen that way the front is the correct direction. This is puzzle style. You want it to be pretty precise so take your time. I adhered it using easy-tack so it wouldn’t damage the board when I took them off.
13. Trace the template with a pencil and remove all of the pieces of paper. You should be left with the shape you traced!
14. Carefully cut the shape using a hot knife (can be purchased at most craft stores or on Amazon). Take your time with this. Cut just inside of your trace line.
    
15. Layer all of your cardstock pieces on the foam and glue them down with a tape runner or other adhesive of choice.
    

    

    
16. Enjoy your finished project!