Garden Markers {A Silhouette CAMEO tutorial: Trace feature}

Container gardening is just my speed. It’s enough commitment to get my hands dirty and enjoy the fruits of my labor, but not so much that midway through the summer I’ve thrown in the towel on my very thirsty little plants and have nothing to show for the high expectations I set back in the spring. (And trust me. I’ve been there…more times than I care to admit.)

And this year, with the help of my Sihouette CAMEO, my garden is not only thriving, but looks super cute, too. Don’t worry. You can certainly create these adorable garden markers without the CAMEO. If you have questions as to how the directions might change or where you can find substitute supplies, just leave me a note in the comments and I’ll be sure to get back to you as quickly as possible!

And for those of you with a CAMEO, pay special attention to “the bonus”, where I go over in detail how to use the CAMEO’s trace feature. If you’re not familiar with what it does, you can trace any shape, graphic, etc. that you open in the Silhouette software, and then cut it out. (I use it to cut out my logo…a little trick I learned to make my own custom shaped business cards!)

Enjoy,

Nikki, In Stitches

Materials:

• Wooden spoons (found in the unfinished wood section of the craft store!)
• White paint and paintbrush
• Mod Podge
• Scrapbook papers (small 6″ x 6″ scraps will work fine)
• Silhouette CAMEO black adhesive backed vinyl and transfer paper
• Silhouette CAMEO and related supplies (i.e. cutting mat, Silhouette Studio software, etc.)

*NOTE: If you don’t have a Silhouette CAMEO, alphabet stickers will work just fine to label your spoons!

Directions:

1. Paint spoons and let dry completely. (You bet I’m using my “what to do with your old phone book” trick!)

2. While one of your spoons is still wet with paint, “stamp” it on a piece of scrap paper. Cut this shape out and use it as a template to trace and cut out the scrapbook paper you will Mod Podge to the inside of your spoon.

BONUS! Here’s a quick tutorial for using the CAMEO’s trace feature! If you don’t have a CAMEO, skip down to #3!

• Trace the oval “stamp” you just made with your freshly painted spoon, and scan it into your computer as a JPEG.
• Open this file in the Silhouette Studio software. (You may need to resize the image. For me, it’s simply a matter of resizing the box around the traced shape to 8.5″ x 11″….a standard paper size.)

• Open the Trace window.
• Click ‘Select Trace Area’.
• Draw a box around the oval. (The selected area will appear bright yellow!)

• Click ‘Trace Outer Edge.’
• Drag the oval to the side and your traced shape is left behind!

• Delete your original drawn shape!

A few notes before you move on:

• I cut two shapes to a page. Just copy your traced shape (Select the shape. Click ‘Edit’. Click ‘Copy’.) and paste its duplicate (Click Edit. Click Paste.).
• I also used 6″ x 6″ pieces of scrap paper. To change your paper size, open the Page Tools Window. Change the width and height of your paper to the desired size. (You may have to move your ovals around to make sure they fit on the page!) Then send to the CAMEO and cut!

3. Use the Silhouette CAMEO to cut out the names of the plants in your container garden on Silhouette’s adhesive backed vinyl. (I made sure my words measured approximately 1″ x 2″, but you may have to adjust the size depending on the size of your spoon.) Using Silhouette’s transfer paper, transfer the names of the veggies, fruits, and herbs to the inside of your spoon. (NOTE: Need some tips for getting this done simply and easily? Check out my video “transferring adhesive backed vinyl letters with Silhouette transfer paper” tutorial here!) Give your spoons one last coat of Mod Podge.