Back when I first
organized my baking cupboard and created labels with my Silhouette, I didn't really think about how all the handling would affect the skinny letters. (And there really is a lot of handling. I love to bake!)
I really liked how the (intact) labels looked, but a girl can only live with
f our and
brown gar and
sal for so long.
Last week,
Farm Chick Serena posted on her blog about making
pantry jar labels out of pieces of fabric or wallpaper which are covered with Con-tact paper and marked with a Sharpie. Seeing her photo finally inspired me.
(Aside: I was at Costco last night and saw that they are carrying Farm Chicks in the Kitchen in paperback. Yay! It's going on my Christmas list.)
I'd been wanting to try cutting fabric with my Silhouette, and I had a piece on hand that was perfect for my
kitchen:
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| Sandi Henderson Meadowsweet 2 Strawberry Fields in Robins Egg |
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I chose this shape because a) I like it, and 2) I wanted to see how cleanly the machine could cut the fabric with those curves and points.
First, I cut a section of fabric to 8.5 x 11 and then ironed on a corresponding piece of
Silhouette fabric interfacing.
(I used the Sewable simply because I think I'll be needing that one less and wanted to conserve my package of Clean Cut. Either one would work fine for this project.)
While that cooled, I prepared the Silhouette for cutting. Here are the steps in case you'd like to try it yourself. Just be sure to click on your shape to select it each time, otherwise you won't be able to modify it
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*Please click individual thumbnails for larger and more readable images.*
FOR THE FABRIC PART:
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| 1. After specifying your page size, choose your shape from the library and open it. |
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| 2. Open the Scale Window and specify the width & height that you want your label to be. I chose 2.5" x 2" for the fabric part. (More on the clear overlay later.) |
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| 3. Under Object at the top, choose Ungroup and then click & drag the center section off your work area. |
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| 4. Click on that extra piece and delete it. |
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| 5. Open the Replicate window and click Fill Page. If you can't see this option on the bottom right (I couldn't--must have to do with my laptop's screen size), go to to menu at the top and choose Object > Replicate > Fill Page. This will automatically and evenly distribute your shape over the page size you've selected. |
Now you're ready to cut the fabric using the Thick Media carrier sheet. Put on your pink blade cover and choose
Fabric (with interfacing) in the cut settings. Make sure the carrier sheet box is checked. I used regular quilting weight cotton and did not need to double cut.
FOR THE CLEAR LABELS:
I bought my labels at Office Depot since I had a coupon, but you can also find them other places and in different brands. For these, the regular price at my store is $9.99 for 10 sheets.
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| 1. Open a new file and set your page orientation to Portrait. |
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| 2. Since you'll be sending your label sheet through your printer and then through your Silhouette, you need to print registration marks. The optical eye in the Silhouette reads these registration marks in order to know where to start cutting so that the end result is just as pictured on the screen. Cool, huh? To do this, click the Registration Marks button, check the Show Reg Marks box, and adjust the margins if necessary. (I made all of mine .5" so that I could fit two columns of labels.) |
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| 3. Repeat steps #1-5 from the fabric labels above. I made the dimensions of these labels 2.75" x 2.25" so that there would be a border of adhesive. You'll notice that because of the registration marks, filling the page allowed for only 8 of my labels on one sheet, so I ended up having to use two. |
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| 4. Open the Text Styles Window to add your label text. (I used Antique Type, centered: 48pt for the one-word titles, 36pt for two, and 32pt for three.) |
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| 5. To make the text solid, open the Fill Color Window, click on a text box, and choose the color you want your letters to be. There will still be a red outline around them, but it will not print that way. Repeat for each text box. |
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| 6. For the cut settings, choose Label Sheet (with adhesive back) and change from the pink to the blue blade cover. |
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| 7. After clicking Send to Silhouette, you will see this screen asking if you want to print your drawing. Go ahead and choose that option. Make sure your labels sheet is in your printer! :) When it's done, place it on a regular carrier sheet and load it into the Silhouette. |
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| 8. Before proceeding, save your file and then go through and delete every text box! Otherwise the Silhouette will cut out all of the words on your labels. (Ask me how I know...) You only want it to cut the outside of the label. At this point, you'll be asked if you want the machine to detect the registration marks before cutting. You do, so click that option. |
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| 9. The machine will make all sorts of foreign noises, and then ideally you will get a screen that says "Detection of registration marks was successful." At that point, click Cut page. |
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Repeat steps 4-9 if you need additional labels.
Now all that's left is to apply them! Remove a clear label, lay it upside-down, and center a fabric label upside-down on top of it. Press firmly, then flip it over and adhere it to your jar or canister. The interfacing is great because it makes the back of the fabric slightly tacky, and then the overlapping edges of the clear layer hold the label on securely.
If you'd like to create your own labels with these exact dimensions, you can download the Silhouette Studio file for the sheet of 12 fabric labels
here and the sheet of eight clear labels
here.
If you have any questions about the tutorial or the materials I used, please don't hesitate to leave a comment!
