Mint It!! Custom Wedding Stamp using the Mint

Hello, Janet here.
I'm excited to bring you another project and tutorial using the Silhouette Mint™. In my earlier post, introducing the Silhouette Mint™, I showed how to make a stamp using an entire design from the Silhouette Design Store. Today I'll show you how to make a custom wedding stamp design combining two files, a shape and personalised with the bride and groom's initials. The technique shown could easily be used for other stamps combining a number of elements.

MATERIALS USED:
Mint Machine & Software
Mint Inks - Ash Blue & Teal
Mint Stamp Kit - 30mm x 30mm
Fonts and Designs from Silhouette Design Store
Arrow File (one of the 50 free designs)
Wedding Stationary Envelopes, for example.



STEP 1: PREPARE THE DESIGN

The Tree

I chose the Tree Slice file, designed by Sophie Gallo, from the Store and downloaded it into the Mint software.Like the Silhouette Studio® software, newly downloaded files can be found in the Library in the Recent Downloads folder. I also downloaded the two fonts used, LW Stencil and LW Perfect Print. N.B. Fonts already installed in the Silhouette Studio® software are available in the Mint Software.

To use the design, double click the image, and it will open in Design View.  Open the Stamp Settings Window and select the size of stamp you want to use. I chose 30mm square.

To automatically centre the design and make it as large as possible on the stamp, follow these steps:

1. Select the image, 
2. Open the Scale Window and 
3. Click Fit to Stamp.

The Heart

Open the shape tool and select the heart. Draw a small heart and rotate it to an upright position. Make a second heart, but drag the sizing handle to make it slightly smaller. Select it and fill it with white from the Preview Colours at the bottom of the window.

Align the white heart on the black one and group the two together (Object > Group). Drag the heart to the centre of the tree slice. Adjust the sizing proportionally by holding down Shift and Alt keyboard buttons and clicking and dragging any one of the sizing handles.

The initials

Now to add the initials. Click Text Tool to open the Text Window and type the initials and a plus sign. Highlight the text (highlighted characters will have a blue cast and are enclosed within a green box).  Select font style and approximate size (I chose LW Stencil Font #57509 for a 'carved' look and a font size of 12).

Ungroup the text and move it into position. If you drag without ungrouping first you may find that the text leaps to the edge of the heart - it is attempting to fit your text to the path of the heart. You can now fine tune the placement of the individual letters. Click, hold and drag each one into place (I moved the plus sign upward).

The Arrow 

Open a new design window (File > New). Click Show Library (I saved my free designs to their own folder) and double click on the Arrows file.

N.B. The arrow design in the tutorial is slightly different from the image photos. The one in the tutorial is easier to use.

Ungroup the design (Object > Ungroup) and delete the unwanted arrows (highlight by clicking, then Edit > Delete).  Now to make an offset so the arrow will show on the dark portions of the stamp. Select the arrow and activate the Offset Window by right-clicking with your mouse and selecting Offset.

Now this immediately makes a big offset which isn't needed (shape with a red outline). Just select it and delete. Now the Offset Window is displayed and we can make useful offset selections.  To make the offset I followed these steps:

1. Select Offset
2. Adjust distance to 0.25"
3. Select Round
4. Click Apply.
   

By default, the shape contained within the outline is clear, it needs to be opaque white for the arrow to show on the dark background. Select the offset (but not the arrow), open the Palette Options, click on the Fill Button (centre) next to the Preview Colours and choose white from the colour palette. Then select the arrow and the (near invisible) offset, group them (Object > Group) and then copy them (Edit > Copy).

Open the Tree Slice file and paste the arrow (Edit > Paste). Re-size and Rotate using the drag handles.  Then use a right mouse click to bring up the order options and click Send to Back until the arrow  is behind the heart, but in front of the tree slice.

The Date

To complete the design you can add the wedding date using the LW Perfect Print font (use method above as for the initials)

STEP 2: SEND DESIGN TO MINT

When you are happy with the design open the Send to Mint window. The screen display changes to show how the stamp will look on the slide (it reverts to black and white and the design is automatically reversed) and the Send to Mint Window is displayed.

Follow the steps in your instruction booklet, ensuring the Mint is switched on (button on the top glows blue). Click Start Mint. This prepares the Mint for the slide. Insert the slide in the slot (the word Mint will be upside down) with the pointed end of the slide facing into the machine. Gently push the slide in until you hear the machine start up. Then allow the slide to feed through at its own speed. In a few moments the printed slide with emerge from the opposite slot.

STEP 3: PREPARING YOUR SLIDE

Slide the plastic stamp mount into the stamp base until it clicks into place. Remove the paper liner from the stamp mount, exposing a sticky pad.  Carefully tear the slide open and remove the slide (take off the plastic film if it has remained on the stamp) then align the printed stamp onto the sticky pad with the design uppermost.

STEP 4: INKING THE STAMP

Follow the directions for inking the stamp in the instruction booklet using the Ash Blue and Teal inks. Further hints and tips can be found in my earlier blog post.

STEP 5: USING THE STAMP

The stamp can be used to decorate an array of wedding related items. As the ink is a pigment type it will stamp on a variety of surfaces and isn't limited to card and paper. Initially the bride used the stamp to embellish her invitation envelopes. She plans to use the stamp to decorate her wedding breakfast napkins and napkin rings and I'm sure she'll find many other uses for it.

Although this stamp was designed for a wedding, the same method could be used to personalise stamps to decorate items for all manner of parties and events.

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DESIGNS USED:



PRODUCTS USED:

Using a cut file as a stencil - Water Colour Layout

Her heart was a secret garden scrapbook layout.

I love floral cut files and I also love watercolours so it was time that I combined the two to make this scrap book page.

What you will need:

A cut file of your choice
Some watercolour paints, or you could use acrylic paints, texture paste, modelling paste, mists and sprays.
I also used some embroidery thread.
Paper/embellishments. 


I used this design from the silhouette store:

I like it as it gave me lots of opportunity to use different colours and shades.

The how to do it bit

I started out by cutting my design out of regular textured card stock...

These were the settings I used...

Here is the finished cut, I laid it over a blank piece of card stock and you can see how I made the shape large enough to cover the whole back ground...

Next up I gathered my watercolour set and my brush with a built in water well, but any brush and a jar of water will work the same.

Now on to the fun part, essentially colouring in YAY!

You can see that I tried to create different shades and tones. You will also see that I go onto the edges of my cut file. I don't worry about being too neat as watercolour lends itself to a softer and sort of blurred edge look which I love.

I continue with the process choosing various colours until it's all been filled in. REMEMBER to keep wiping your brush off in between colours. I just use a piece of kitchen roll...

Here are the picture of it all coloured in still with the cut file on top...

now for the big reveal...

Seriously, how pretty is that! The bleeding is almost cloud like and so so soft.

Now hopefully you are getting to know me well by now and you know I just couldn't leave it like that - oh no, not me!

I decided I wanted to add some stitching, in a sort of  crewel work embroidery style. In order to do this I needed holes to stitch through. I just popped in holes using my needle where I was going to stitch. Sometimes it's the centre of a flower, others just the petals. I also did a section on each leaf. A handy tip is to use a needle threader to get the embroidery floss through the small eye of the needle.

 Here are the holes on the front...

Here are the holes on the back, you will see I just use tape to secure it as I don't like knots making my layout unable to lie flat...

Here is the back of the layout when stitched HA!...

Here is the final layout where I have used some patterned paper in quite soft colours to back my photo and some leaves for embellishments...

Close ups of the flowers and stitched details...

The added bonus is that you are left with this beauty to play with (I have plans)...

Isn't that just amazing, I have a great idea for another layout with this left over stencil, it's a good job I scrap for twin girls!!!!!

I hope this has given you some ideas, the possibilities are endless and I just love this machine for that very reason.

'Til next time
C x
(tillyandarthur)

PRODUCTS USED:

Challenge :: Design of the Week - Print & Cut Admit One Ticket

Hi folks, Welcome to another free design of the week challenge
a really versatile one this week, have you seen the awesome flip book our Design Team member Nadine made with it in this mornings post? 

I love the fact that they have been designed to join together too so you can have a strip of them, a bit like you get at the amusements! 

Our design team member Sara has also made this really trendy invitation for her daughters birthday with it too! Be sure to check out her blog for more of her lovely makes!

Fancy having a play with this weeks freebie? We would love to see what you make!

An InLinkz Link-up