Steampunk Top Hat - The Longest Journey

Yogi here today with my 1st project for the blog - loving this newest cutting file "Steampunk Top Hat" from Suzanne - BIG GRIN

"Is this the man in your life? Or perhaps his alter ego!? Assemble this hat as you please in colours of your choice and it’s ready to go on a card front or scrapbook page."

Instead I decided to create an easel card with the file - real easy to do... and I'm finally finding a use for some of my Kanban cardstock. I thought they were perfect for a Steampunk theme.


I opened the Silhouette file in Sure Cuts A Lot software. Increased the image size of everything at once until my hat was approx 6.5"w. I then ungrouped everything and only selected my main hat piece, elongating it till it became approx 4.5"h. I copied and pasted the hat onto a new sheet and welded a rectangle that was the height of my hat (4.5"h) and 2.5"w. After cutting out the hat/rectangle from a chocolate brown cardstock, I scored the rectangle at the 2.25" and 4.5" points creating the front part of the easel.

I cut the main hat piece from Kanban "Pearl Glaze Farfalla - Coffee Brown Background Card". It's a relatively thick cardstock, so to be on the safe side, I cut twice. My blade is really used so I wanted to be safer rather than sorry... The gear band I cut from Kanban "Bella Paisley - Mocha Luxury". All the other elements from cream toned 110# cardstock. I cut a second main hat piece from the cream cardstock which I'll cut down and use for my quote/card stopper.

I adhered the main Kanban hat piece to the front portion of the rectangle, matching it up with the floor hat.

The hat brim was inked with "Walnut Stain" and embossed with Distress "Walnut Stain" embossing powder, then burnished.

The bottom portion of the hat piece was embossed with Cuttlebug "Swiss Dots" embossing folder, sponged with the brown, then high points sanded down.

The gear parts on the hat band - the cross piece was inked with Versafine "Vintage Sepia" and embossed with Emerald Creek Hot Stuff "Chic Camo" embossing powder. The circle over layer with Distress "Walnut Stain" embossing powder.

The 3 decorative gears with Judikins "Rustique Tin Can" embossing powder.

back of easel

The 2 larger buttons were sponged with either "Tumbled Glass" or "Crushed Olive", then run through my embossing machine using Cuttlebug "Mesh" embossing folder, high points hit with the same color pads and clear embossed. The smallest button was just colored with "Broken China" and clear embossed.

The feather I lightly sponged with the olive, created score feather lines with a small balled stylus, then direct to paper with the tumbled glass.

On the extra main hat piece I cut straight across the brim section. Inked my quote ("The Longest Journey...") stamp using Versafine Sepia all over and hitting here and there with Black Onyx, clear embossed. Sponged around the edges with a dirty brown sponge. Adhered to floor of card with 3D foam tape.

As a final touch added some small manly type buttons with a glue tool.

Remember Dad Forever - 15 Minute Wonder

Hi y'all, Robyn here, shepherdess of the Quietfire Design Team and die hard (pun intended) digital designer and cutter.

I put off buying a digital cutter for a long time, for lots of good reasons.

 When the combination of Suzanne designing for Silhouette

 and a really good sale finally had me pushing the

 Buy It Now

 button,

 and I made my first cuts- trial by fire- Wedding decorations! I could only say, 

"Why have I waited so long?!"

Now Miss Cameo and I are BFFs and I hope this new Quietfire blog devoted to digital cutting will enable you to join the fold!

Excluding design time, if you are familiar with your cutter, this card can be made in 15 minutes start to admire!

Mom  Dad ,Remember to Breathe, Forever

On the Mat

These are three separate files available in the Silhouette Store.

If you need sgv files some are available at Quietfire Design 

and contact Suzanne for others not posted.
It can be difficult in the silhouette store to tell what size the designs are, so always ask if you have questions. 

Remember, unlike dies, you can resize and manipulate them to almost anything you want.

For this simple card, I made no changes at all to the elements.

Ungroup and go!

This is what my working mat looks like.

Only the three elements I have on the white area will cut.
The flowers are available files too!
Coneflower Sunflower QueenAnnes Lace

 *****TIPS*****

• Use quality paper- at least 60 lb for Quietfire Design hand lettered designs with very fine thins!

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• If you live in a humid climate, iron your paper before cutting. Damp paper =poor cuts.
• Use sharp new blades when cutting fine designs.
• Use a mat just sticky enough to hold your paper down well.
• Slow the  cutting speed down.
• Cut with less blade depth and double cut.
• TAKE YOUR TIME removing the die from the mat. Press down well on all the drop outs to help them stay behind.

If you are a newbie - take heart! we are all here to help you enjoy our files and your cutter!

Here's to  all Dads on Earth and above!

Please visit RainbowWeaves for some back story and a peek at my work desk!

Comments and Questions welcomed!

Flip Flop and Butterfly Cards

Hi, Connie Nichol here with a couple of cards I created with electronic die cutting files from Suzanne Cannon for Quietfire Design.  So quick and so cute!  These files - flip flop or butterfly accordion cards are available from the Quietfire Design website as svg files and as studio files from the Silhouette Design store if you happen to have a Silhouette Cameo digital cutting machine.

I cut out the flip flop shape first from black Core'dinations cardstock to serve as the card base and then with Simple Stories patterned paper.  Using the patterned paper gave a very summery feel.  To make both a right and left shoe, I flipped the image to make a mirror image before cutting the second time.  

Not the easiest thing to photograph.  Here's another view:

For the butterfly accordion card, again I used Simple Stories patterned paper (two kinds) and Core'dinations cardstock to create a quick cheery card.  The stickers and enamel dots are also from Simple Stories. 

These cards were published in the Creative Scrapbooker Magazine Summer 2016 issue as part of a feature on shaped cards.  Be sure to pick up a copy and have a look!  

Welcome to Quietfire Digital!

It's Suzanne here today to introduce you to the new Quietfire blog dedicated primarily to my digital designs.  Although we feature them occasionally over on Quietfire Creations, the cutting files were getting a bit lost amongst the rubber stamps and dies.  Now they have a place where they can shine!

 

 

Most of my digital cutting files live over at the Silhouette America Online Design Store.  If you're new to digital cutting, I frequently tell people digital cutting machines are sort of like an inkjet printer that cuts shapes instead of printing letters.

 

 

 

 

 

I love cut shapes, but I really don't enjoy cutting by hand.  You just can't imagine how excited I was when I first got my Silhouette Cameo and cut my first words!  The Cameo is an amazing machine.  It didn't take me long to approach Silhouette and offer my designs to them.  I was delighted they accepted me as a designer for their online store.  It's been over 2-1/2 years now (and over 400 designs) and I have learned so much about designing cutting files - and some days I think Illustrator (which is the software I must use to finalize all the designs) and I will even be friends!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few months ago I received an email from Silhouette inviting me to their Summit meeting.  I was honoured to be one of a handful of designers to attend. Silhouette treated us to three nights' accommodation and meals (including a dinner cruise!) .....  at the Sheraton at Waikiki.  It's almost too good a location for a meeting!!!

 

There were over 100 people attending plus the Silhouette people.  It was wonderful to meet and talk to so many of them and re-introduce myself to those I'd met at CHA.  Wait till you see the new items they are introducing later this year!  There are lots of things I'm itching to get my fingers on to play with - and you're going to love them, too!  As soon as they make the information public, I'll share it on this blog.

 

 

See?  I told you this was a working trip!!

Posts here might be intermittent till we get going, but I know you'll find inspiration from the designers who are sharing their projects using the Quietfire files.  If you don't have a Silhouette machine, I have some designs on the Quietfire site in SVG format. If there is something you'd like to see there or if you need a commercial license for a design(s), just drop me a line! My contact link is in the sidebar.

 

If you don't have a digital cutting machine at all, then there is a whole amazing world out there waiting for you!  I hope I can be of assistance.

 

Thanks very much for checking out the new blog!

Happy cutting and creating!

Suzanne