Thursday, March 15, 2012

Silhouette Cameo Tips for Cutting Cardstock

I was reading Samantha Walker's Blog yesterday and she gave some great tips that I wanted to share with you.

Have you ever wondered how to cut textured card stock like Bazzill? 
Well...you're not alone...I've had to experiment with settings until I figured a few things out.  
First off...one magical setting for Bazzill does not fit all. 
Your cut settings should be determined by your paper thickness and the detail within your design.  
For very simple designs...I'm finding that you can get a beautiful cut with your blade set on a depth of 4, speed of 3 and thickness set at 33.  

However, if you cut a detailed design you should bump up your settings to a blade depth of 5, speed down to 2 and thickness at 33. Then you will also want to click on the "double cut setting" on the right of your cut settings screen.  
Silhouette Customer Service has recommended blade depth settings between 4-6 for Bazzill card stock. They also agree, that one setting, does not fit all situations. 

So...how do you know whether to cut lighter or heavier...here's a few trouble shooting signs to watch for.  

Problem: Paper cutting most of the design, but not quite all the way through...
Suggestion: make sure you have your "double cut" box checked (for detailed designs), or set your blade depth down one more level (for simpler designs.)

Problem: Paper cutting the design, but the corners of the design, where the blade turns, are "mucking up."
Suggestion: slow down your speed, change your blade depth to cut a little lighter (if it's on a 6 try a 4 or 5) Then make sure double cut is checked to ensure a complete cut through.  When your corners start messing up with the paper pushing up, that means that the blade is pushing too hard for the details in the design, it needs to have less pressure and cut those corners more slowly twice in order for it to go smoothly around the bends."

I agree with Samantha and in addition, I cut my textured Bazzill with the textured side down. And when at all possible, I prefer the Bazzill Smoothie Cardstock, I always have plenty of white smoothie on hand. It has an ultra smooth finish I love it for card bases.


I'm finishing up a new project and I hope to have it ready for you tomorrow.
Thanks for stopping by!!
Hugs, Lisa


5 comments:

  1. Very pretty, I thought I have used that bazzzil paper before without problem I too used blade 4. I love the shapes they are very pretty, I can imagine all kinds of things. Have a great evening.

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  2. Thanks for your help! I'm cutting the Bazzill right now and it seems to be working very well! Even on the intricate Project Life cards I downloaded!

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  3. Thanks so much for the publicity! You are very sweet to use my files and talk about them on your blog. I hope that you enjoy them in your crafts.

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  4. OMG!! Wish I had thought to google and find this several days ago!! ;-) I am making decorations for a baby shower out of bazzill. I have tossed so many sheets. Frustrated I FINALLY googled, found you, and VIOLA!! It cut like butter!! Seriously. I am in love with my machine again, and not ready to toss it out the door. LOL Thank you!! I have bookmarked this for future use. THANK YOU!

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  5. I am not sure how you machines are cutting bazzill on a 4, my machine will not cut paper on a 4. I used the same settings and had to set the blade to 8 and cut twice to get it to cut. And yes the blade is new. Could there be another problem?? I am going crazy with this machine, it doesnt want to cut anything.

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