Resolution, Procrastination, and Silhouette Imagination

 

August 1 is just as good as a time as any to make a resolution, right? I never make New Year’s Resolutions, so why not make one for August 1?

I’ve given up on not biting my nails. So, I’ve decided to get in gear and get back on the blogging routine. I started slowing down while I was sick during the first 3 months of this pregnancy. Then, I slept through the next 3 months. Now, we’re 6.5 months along (YAY) and I’m getting some energy back. I’m also starting a super busy month of work. But, I seem to do better when I’m super busy. When I have too much free time, I just seem to nap.

So, here’s to getting back into blogging. I have a lot of stuff to write about!

First up: my first project with my Silhouette…. that I bought in February. Yup, that’s right. I’m that much of a slacker. It didn’t just apply to blogging. It applied to everything including fun things (like the Silhouette) and important things (like cleaning).

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been working on a project. It’s not that it was that intricate or difficult. Again, it’s because I’m a slacker.

(I should have realized this when Dustin asked me a few months ago, quite hopefully, “so, when are you going to start nesting?” We both laughed… me from the couch and him from the kitchen where he was fixing supper… he’s a keeper, that one)

So, I present: the project that took me a month and should have taken an hour.

Ok, so it’s kinda three projects. But still, it was an afternoon project, not the lengthy process that I drug it out to be. Hudson actually outgrew the onesie that I originally bought for this project while I was procrastinating.

Part of the reason for dragging this project out: I’m cheap. I wanted to avoid buying iron on transfer and tried cloth with iron on stuff on it first. Then bought print and cut iron on transfer stuff… then broke down and waited for my shipment from Silhouette. So, basically, these cost me at least triple what they should have. But, I’ve got supplies for days!

I never did figure out how to get my fabric to cut neatly. Here’s my first attempt:

Blah. That got promptly thrown away and caused my first break in productivity. Which, I guess was good since this started out saying “Hudson” and he would already not be able to wear the clothes with his moniker attached in blue fabric.

So I waited patiently (slackers can be very patient). And worked on my design while my shipment headed my way. Since I was working on something for 2 boys and one girl (nephews and a niece), I tried to find appropriate things to add to their names. Hudson is a farm baby and Hadley is obsessed with Thomas the Train. The green crane can pass as Cranky to a 2 year old, so it wasn’t all too difficult to fine what I wanted… and in one purchase!

Then, I just laid them out on the page. I wanted them to be a bit more than just a name with a picture, so I altered Hudson’s name a little to make it look like it was being pushed by the dozer. (Or at least that’s the look I was going for :))

It was super easy. Those Silhouette people created this for people like me. I just highlighted his name and then UNGROUPed it. I kept Hallie’s a bit simpler. Once I saw the butterfly, I thought it was cute enough with no ‘extra’ added to it.

Then I was able to rotate the ‘n’ until I thought it looked intentional and not just a sloppy, slacker accident. Once it was in the right place, I highlighted all the letters and the bulldozer and regrouped it all so it was easier to move around.

For Hadley’s, I just clicked his name and used the green ‘thing’ at the top that appeared and rotated it so it looked like the crane was picking it up… or putting it down.

Immediately before this step in the photo above. I got stuck though. I used the Silhouette to cut the images out (luckily, the iron on transfer reminded me that I needed to reverse the images!). But, I’m a nailbiter (in case you forgot since I mentioned it an hour ago when I started typing this massive post).Nailbiters have a difficult time getting the negative image off the clear sheet.

So, Mom came over to can some veggies and I used her nails to get them started. A step that was impossible for me to do alone took us about 5 minutes to accomplish. (Dustin is not very accepting of a nailbiter’s woes, so I waited on Mom instead of asking him and being told I shouldn’t bite my nails :))

Hudson and Hallie will get their shirts when I see them tonight (the main reason why I finally ironed them on… again, a 5 minute job that I put off) Hadley’s is going in the mail to head to California soon too.

I do have an older niece, but I thought she’d enjoy the tattoos more than a shirt. So, once I get those done (ok, and the tattoo material ordered… ) I’ll get started on those and inform you of all the nitty, gritty, boring details :)

 

*Anyone else notice a trend in the baby names in the family lately? I told Dustin I almost feel the need to find an H name for the unknown gender baby who is coming in 10 weeks or less*