Mixed-up Monster Magnets
You may have seen this idea on the Silhouette blog by my talented fellow design-team member, Annie. I think we bought the shapes in the Silhouette online store at the same time because I had created my own set of monsters by the time I saw her pictures and realized she was making a post about it. I put the idea aside until my youngest son was looking for something different to do one day.
These files are cut files that I filled with colors and patterns to turn into print & cut files. I used the Silhouette printable magnet paper, which is thin enough to cut but makes great paper dolls (and monsters). I gave these monsters a home by putting them all in a small lunch-box style metal container purchased at a craft store. This way they are easy to take with me for the kids’ entertainment and come with their own magnetic surface to stick to. (It was very helpful last week when we sat in a church meeting in the same room for over two hours.) This set, and more, will accompany us on our annual summer road trip.
My four-year old loved putting these little characters together. So did my older kids. In fact, I think they’re pretty fun myself!
Shapes Used:
Build-A-Monster: body base
Build-A-Monster: eyes
Build-A-Monster: hair
Build-A-Monster: hands
Build-A-Monster: horns/antenna
Build-A-Monster: mouth
Build-A-Monster: feet
Build-A-Monster: noses
I love my silhouette, however, I don't think either the blade is sharp anymore or I'm doing something wrong. I haven't even had it a year yet. I can't get it to cut through the sticky vinyl even. When I saw this I thought, there is no way mine would cut that. Do you mind sharing what settings you used to be able to cut this? I hear the blade usually last a long time. I'm sure its me.
Thanks so much!
The blade life varies depending on what you have cut with it. If all you ever cut is vinyl, it may last for several months. If you cut a lot of chipboard or glitter paper, expect much less. (I don't think any blade will last a year unless you rarely cut anything.) I cut this magnet paper with the default settings of blade 4, speed 1, thickness 30.
Blades can be a little different from each other, but I've found most of mine cut fine on the default settings. Always do a test cut (cut a small shape like a star on some part of the page that won't be used) with a new material or a new blade to try out your settings. If the blade is dull, you might get a little more life by bumping up the blade from a 4 to a 5 or whatever it is in your situation. You might need to cut this magnet paper on a 5 or even a 6 if your blade is dull.
Good luck!