Hello, Janet from the Crafting Quine blog here again. My Facebook feed is already full of lovely Valentine's projects but, rather than making cards for Valentine's Day, I prefer to make 3D decor cardstock projects. The Heart Bowl (#39182) file by Snapdragon Snippets looked perfect for sharing some special chocolates on Valentine's Day. As I was putting the first one together, I thought it would be fun to share some tips for preparing and assembling cardstock projects generally. I hope you'll find them useful.
1. Fit more to a Sheet
I like to be economical with my cardstock, but the six decorative panels didn't quite fit on a 12" x 12" sheet of cardstock, and it seemed a pity to use two sheets. The pieces just needed to be rearranged to fit them on. Select the set of decorative panels, and with a right click of the mouse, select ungroup from the resulting menu. Move the two right hand pieces further to right, and then move the middle two up. Then they all fit on with space to spare.
2. Cut v Score Lines
In a recent post in one of the American Silhouette Facebook groups we were discussing who used the dotted lines for creasing fold lines. It seems that many of us no longer use them. I like to use a shallow cut line instead as I prefer the neater finish.
To make the cut lines use the line drawing tool and draw a straight line along the existing dotted lines. I make the new line a different colour and then ungroup the original design, deleting the dashed lines. With the decorative panel pieces it was only necessary to change one of the pieces, then copy it five times (note - the new lines are orange).
3. Cut by Line
If you use Cut by Line option in the Send tab you can chose different cut settings for the crease lines and cut lines. If you have made continuous lines as above, you can change them to shallower cuts. Even if you leave the dashed lines as they are you can make them less deep and therefore less noticeable. For crease lines in my regular textured cardstock I use the 'Vinyl, Glossy' setting and reduce the Force to five and slow down the speed if the lines are complex. I like to cut the crease lines first, so I click and drag the crease line action to the top of the cut list. You'll also notice that I've used the second blade holder with the Ratchet blade, manually adjusting the setting to a Depth of one. This is optional, but I tend to leave the ratchet blade set at one in my machine all the time.
4. Liquid Glue
When I'm assembling my project I like to use a liquid craft glue. A liquid glue that grabs quickly, but still allows some movement of the pieces for a short time is ideal. You may have heard this referred to as 'wiggle room'. I like to have some time to ensure that the alignment of the pieces is good before leaving it to dry. With the instant adhesion of double-sided tape, if your placement isn't exactly right on the first attempt, often the only solution is to re-cut the pieces. I also like liquid adhesive because it makes the cardstock a little more rigid when it dries - a positive advantage for most 3D projects.
5. Adhesive Eraser
Some crafters don't like to use liquid glue because of its potential messiness. If you apply too much liquid adhesive it can ooze onto top surfaces. My tip is immediately remove any excess with your finger tip and to then to rub away any unwanted adhesive once it has dried a little. I use an adhesive eraser. I've been using this one on black cardstock so it looks a little grubby, but still works fine.
6. Adjusting the Size
I loved the first bowl, but its capacity for chocolates was far bigger than I'd anticipated. I realised that I'd need a smaller version. To reduce the size of a 3D project, select all the files pieces and then either:
(1) drag the size smaller proportionately (by holding down shift on your keyboard),
(2) use the sizing function and reduce it by a percentage, or
(3) type in a measurement for the whole group of pieces (once you've clicked on the padlock to lock the relative dimensions).
To make the this file as small as I have done - open the Transform panel, and on the Scale tab click 50%. All the decorative panels for one bowl now fit on one 6" x 6" piece of scrapbook paper.
That leads me to my final tip. If you do reduce the size of a project significantly, consider using thinner materials. For the smaller bowls I abandoned the textured cardstock I'd used for the large bowl in favour of patterned paper and lightweight cardstock. It was then easier to fold and handle the smaller pieces.
I hope you find these tips useful. If you have any tips of your own to share, please add them in the comments.
Here are links some other 3D cardstock projects on the blog. Just click on a pic to visit the page for that project.
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Bye for now,
GREAT tips Janet, thank you, I have changed the dotted lines to a different colour and used "score" instead of cut, I have had good results with that.
ReplyDeleteFaith
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Thanks for your comment Faith. There are a number of possible score/fold options (I don't like to use score for moving flaps as it can weaken a hinge). I guess its a case of knowing which to use, and when - there is another post right there!
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