Carol B contacted me late yesterday asking how she could create a bite mark in a cookie or an apple. Now the basic way would be to use the Ginsu knife tool and just hold down the left mouse button and draw the bite mark through the image and separate:

The problem is that I’m a lousy artist, thus my bite just doesn’t “work for me!” lol
So, I remembered the apple file that comes with KNK Studio and figured that it would be a good starting point because it has a bite taken from it. So, have a look at this video and you’ll see how I transferred that exact same bite to a circle to create the cookie:
Bite Mark Video
Thanks, Carol, for yet another great video idea!

Say thank you to Rayleen for today’s post! She sent me a similar file to the one above (on the left) and needed to crop a certain section so as to fit an existing size project.   I recreated my own version of the file and I think this could easily be something that you might encounter when trying to modify existing files.  The situation is this… you have a rectangular image that you would like to use but it must be converted to a square image to work in your application.  You can’t just resize it because it will distort the image and change the width of the outer portions of the frame:

So, you would like to crop it in a similar way that you do with photos. Basically, you would like to just cut out a portion of the image to use. This is amazing simple to do by just using any shape tool, arranging the shape over the part of the image you wish to crop, and then applying the XOR weld.

In this situation, you want to go one step further, which is to create a perfect square crop and maximize as much of the existing image as possible. So, watch the video and you’ll see how it’s done:

Cropping Vector Images

Valentine Mesh

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

Before I address the image above, two things I want to share with you:

(1) Accugraphic’s sites are currently down, thus the links to the cutters in my store here are not currently working. If all goes well, things will be back up and running next week. In the meantime, you can order by calling their 800-268-3672 number Monday-Friday from 8:30 am – 4:00 pm EST.

(2) My new reader subscription link is ready for those of you who like to be notified about new blog posts. Click on Subscribe above. Note that RSS is not yet supported by Google Chrome, so please use either Internet Explorer or Firefox to access the subscription page.

Okay, now let’s talk about the cute image above! Colleen S sent this file to me because she wasn’t sure how to get the dogs’ paws to show up in the image. Obviously just welding the paws to the sign wouldn’t provide the look she wanted, which was to clearly see the dog’s paws and give the impression that they were on top of the sign. Now, with most designs like this, the dog would be a different color and you could simply layer the paws on top. However, in this case even if you were to make the dog’s paws and the sign different colors, you would end up with parts of the sign appearing through the paws because the dog is designed as an outline image with hollow parts:

So, I thought about it for a while and then suddenly remembered the stenciling trick where you carve one image out from another and the effect is a kind of merging of the two images. While it’s not EXACTLY the same as seeing the dogs’ paws on top of the sign, the resulting look is kind of cool and, most importantly, Colleen was pleased with outcome. : )

To see the process, watch this video:

Stenciling An Image

Thanks to Terina who sent in her family business logo above for a slight editing change. The bottom of the “O” was open and she wanted to know the easiest way to close that part of the letter to match the top:



Now, I could have told Terina to just bring up the nodes, split a few of them, drag them over to the other side, weld the nodes to those on the other side, and then smooth out the curves. But whenever I see symmetry, I always think of a technique I call the “Flip and Weld” which can be used to easily reproduce the opposite side of any symmetrical object, such as this “O”.

It basically involves using the Ginsu Knife tool to break the image into two parts and discarding one of the parts. In this case it would be the lower half of the “O”. Then using the Flip function, a mirror image is created and overlapped on top of the original. The feature I love about the Flip function, versus the Mirror function, is that you have the option of retaining the original. Then by aligning the new side to just barely overlap the original, the two can then be welded and you obtain, a perfect symmetrical image:


And yes, I have a video for this process! Click on this link:
Flip and Weld

Keep this method in mind for both your manual and auto-traced images in which the original image is symmetrical. You will almost always notice slight differences from one side to the other and this can distort the overall appearance of the image. If an image is symmetrical both horizontally and vertically, then you can use the Ginsu Knife twice and end up with a quarter of the image to reproduce and Flip and Weld…. first one direction (say, horizontally), and then Flip and Weld it the other (thus, vertically) and obtain the perfect symmetrical image you wanted.

If you are designing a symmetrical image from scratch, using either basic shapes, hand drawing, or modifying an existing image, remember this method, as well.

Finally, this method can also be used in Rhinestone designing, when an outline (or even a fill) doesn’t end up with a symmetrical placement of the circles. In this case, only the Flip step is used. Here’s a video showing this:

Symmetrical Outlining with Circles

If you come up with a great application for the Flip and Weld, be sure to send it to me!

Chad has been unable to get this site’s FeedBurner account to cease sending those regular emails saying “this site has been changed.” Thus we will be switching to RSS as a subscription service. Please sign up with the RSS once you see it appear on this home page and unsubscribe from the other service IF you continue to receive emails. It’s kind of ridiculous to assume that you’ll get more emails once we delete my FeedBurner account, but I’ve seen stranger things happen! lol

Again, I’m sorry for the inconvenience! But I hope to make it up to you in new videos, handy tips, and other useful information.

Linda N contacted me a few days ago and couldn’t figure out why the boxes around her selected image extended all the way down to the Sign Blank border instead of being positioned around her image:

Well, this will always mean that there is MORE selected than what meets the eye.  So,  to find the “hidden object” I performed a marquee-select, but started right below the large object and then extended beyond the bottom of the Sign Blank.  Sure enough, something hidden was obviously selected:

Now I’m always curious about these things, so I tried increasing the size of it, but the program simply wouldn’t allow that. I also tried zooming in… but that didn’t provide anything to see either. But the nice thing is that I was able to simply click on the Delete key and get rid of it.

Then the question becomes… what was this? And what made it happen?  Well, when the itty bitty object cannot be resized, then I’m not sure what that object was all about.  I don’t think this sort of thing happens with files being created from scratch in KNK/ACS Studio, but I could be wrong. Instead, I think it’s more likely some little quirky thing that showed up when some alternate file format was imported… such as .ai, .eps, .dxf, .wmf, etc. Either way, it really doesn’t matter as long as it can be so easily removed from the file.

But if the itty bitty quirky object can be resized, then you’ll probably be able to see what it is.  For example, I’ve had a number of other customers make the mistake of setting the font size too small in the Text Smart Bar:

When this happens and the text is subsequently typed, the user will see something odd on the screen but not realize that it’s simply their typed text at an extremely small size:

Most users will actually think their Text function in the software is “broken” or just suspect that they’ve done something to cause it. That’s why it’s important to take note of the fact that you CAN cause this by setting the text size to 0.01 or some other extremely small size. But in this case, if you go up to the Smart Bar and increase the size of the object, you’ll find your text and then slap your hand on your forehead and say, “Oh duh.  Now, I know what I did!”

This same sort of thing can happen when drawing a shape. This happens less frequently, but it’s possible to draw, say, a star, and then as you are clicking away, you actually just barely drag your left mouse button and create a tiny second star:

And if that second tiny star is actually on top of the first star, then with Fill turned on, you’ll never even realize it’s there.  Thus, one of the reasons I always suggest to my customers that they turn off the Fill to look at their images before cutting:

Now, another possible situation occurs if you have Fill turned on when you open the file and there are objects that have been colored white, clear, or invisible. You may not be able to see them!   But if you check the Job Palette on the right, you will notice that one or more of these “trouble colors” might be present.

Back to the original example, let’s say there is a white object present instead of the itty bitty object. By simply turning off Fill, look what shows up:

Note that you also may NOT see these objects show up if “No Line” is enabled for the Line Style. However, at this point, I’m wandering away from our initial topic and into an entirely different topic about line style. And this post is about itty bitty objects! But, if you have an interest in better understanding this particular topic, then look up “Line Style” in the KNK or ACS User Manuals or check out the downloadable video in my store called: Line Style versus Fill.

First off, I appreciate all of my readers here. Thank you for your support throughout 2009. Sorry I haven’t had new info to post. It’s not from a lack of ideas… just a lack of time with the holidays.

Also, there’s an apparent glitch with the Feed Burner subscription and I know a lot of my subscribers are getting daily messages about a change at my site, but there’s no update. I will have Chad look into this when he returns from vacation. I’m not familiar with the ins and outs of these services and hopefully he’ll be able to troubleshoot and fix the problem. In the meantime, I appreciate your patience with this issue. I have disabled this plugin until it can be reviewed.

Have a VERY Happy New Year! And be sure to watch for new cutting tips and tutorials in 2010!

1. Higher Cutting Force: With over 800g of cutting force in the KNK Groove-E and over 950g in the Klic-N-Kut Maxx, you have the power to cut a wide range of materials, from gift wrapping tissue paper to 0.02” styrene, from wall vinyl to most chipboard. Be sure to check out the photos in the Gallery section of this site: 20+ Materials You Can Cut with a KNK


2. Faster Speed: No worries about waiting painfully long times for projects to cut or watching your cutter go into Pause mode to cool down. Our cutters will cut faster than even suitable for most materials or as slow as you need! This gives you the control to cut at just the right speed for your project.


3. Excellent Construction: The Klic-N-Kuts are made almost entirely of metal, making them strong, durable, dependable machines designed to cut day after day, month after month, year after year.


4. Latest Features: Our machines come with bolt-on tables which can extend, unsupported, beyond a desk or table to free up space. The fully-adjustable blade holder seat allows you to insert virtually any blade holder you own, as well as, pens, markers, embossing styluses and more. For accurate print-and-cut applications, the Groove-E comes with an insertable alignment pin while the Maxx models have a built-in laser alignment light.


5. Available Accessories: Besides receiving a regular blade and thick materials blade, you can also purchase a punch tool, engraving tool, sliver blade, and fabric blade, all of which widen the applications possible in your crafting. Photos using some of these tools may be seen at: Creations Using Accessories in the KNK. There are also three sizes of mats (carrier sheets) available or you can order one to be custom cut to the dimensions you need.


6. Exceptional Software: It’s impossible to even list the enormous number of functions plus bells and whistles available in KNK Studio. Suffice it to say that if you can imagine it, you can design it! Our customers find KNK Studio more than able to meet their needs without resorting to any other graphics programs. Time and again, I hear reports back that KNK Studio is addictive! The latest version has a vectorization wizard for excellent color or monochromatic tracing of raster clipart, including images you scan from magazines or small images you copy/paste from Internet sites. The built-in jogging function provides accurate print and cut actions using a three-registration mark process. And there are dozens of ways to customize images and text to make your own unique designs. Have a look at the designs in this photo album.


7. Wide Availability of Free Files: The software comes with over 4000 cutting files plus many of our wonderful customers have freely shared their creations over the past 3 years at message boards and Yahoo groups. You can also import a wide variety of vector formats to have ready-to-cut files, such as .ai, .eps, .wmf, .dxf, and even vector .pdf. These files can then be easily edited or cut as-is.


8. Detailed Documentation: The Klic-N-Kut Maxx/Groove-E User Manual contains over 100 pages of step-by-step tutorials, screen shots, and recommended procedures to make it a comprehensive guide for learning and referencing.


9. Vast Experience: Accugraphic Sales, Inc is the company behind the Klic-N-Kut and has over 25 years of experience in the digital die cutting business. Machines ship from their Florida-based facility and, in the rare event of a mechanical problem, all repairs are handled by them at the same location.


10. Superb Customer Support: All KNK dealers sign a contract agreeing to learn the machine and provide basic hardware and software support. Personally, I go a mile further than that by providing free videos and customized free classes to my KNK customers by phone and VNC so they learn (1) how to operate their new KNK, (2) the basics of using the software, and (3) the principles of cutting. Time and again, I see those who invest the time in these classes get launched to success with their new KNK and begin creating and cutting everything in their dreams! It can’t get any better than that!

For more information on the Klic-N-Kuts, click on the Comparison Charts tab or the Shop tab. Note that in order to receive the additional educational support package, you will need to contact me in advance of the sale so that you will be noted as one of my customers. I can be reached at: smccauley45@cox.net .

This is Cara’s adorable Christmas card! Her husband, Bryan, designed the file and they cut out the parts on their yellow Klic-N-Kut. Because I had recently assisted them with getting their KNK to cut from Vista 64, they shared this file and photo with me and I then received permission to share with all of you! Thanks, Bryan and Cara!

The link to download this file is:

Scroll Tree

Note: This file is only available in .KNK format.

BeCca contacted me last week with a stick tree that was impossible to cut due to extremely thin branches. So, I used the same process I’ve shown in several of the designing videos on this blog to make the branches thicker. The difference in this particular case was that part of the image needed to remain unchanged.

Ginsu to the rescue! lol I simply cut off the branches, thickened them using the Stroke and Fill tools (combined with the Basic weld), and then reattached the branches to the trunk. The new Thickening Images Video shows the process in detail. Note that I also have videos in my store which cover more details on using the Ginsu Knife and Polyarc Editing.

Finally, after having a partial crash of my site after a Word Press update a week ago, I now have the Store back in business! So, if you have been trying to purchase the new tracing videos without success, they are now available again:

Downloadable Videos