Let’s Explore v4 – Patterns, Print Bleed & Show/Hide Library

It is so hard to just show one feature in a post. This post started out as a one to show you how to add patterns to your designs so that you can print unique creations and use digital papers. But, then it morphed.

Today we will talk about 3 features in the v4 software.

What are patterns used for?

Patterns can add a unique element to your creations that you can print out.

You can access patterns under the Fill Color Panel – Patterns Tab located on the right side.

Filling a design with a pattern can open a whole new world of possibilities. I have these card pieces on my design mat and I want to fill them with one of the new digital pattern that’s available at Sparkleberry Ink called Choose Happy Digital Pattern Collection.
With everything going on right now, these patterns were released to bring out a little bright color and happiness. I saw them and knew I had to create something with them.

Select the objects you want to fill with the pattern and then in the Fill Color Panel – Patterns Tab (Tab 3), choose the Pattern you want to fill it with. And watch the magic happen.

I set up my page to do a Print and Cut and then printed a 12″ x 12″ page with my Canon TS9521C printer.

I use the same steps each time that I set up a print and cut project and have great success with it. It is one of my favorite things to do.
Find more information on print and cut check out these posts:
Print & Cut Basics
Print & Cut Tips
How to Print & Cut Larger with Silhouette

Adding patterns to the Silhouette library is a Designer Edition upgrade feature. Find out more about the Pattern Fill Panel HERE.

Print Bleed

Something that is new in the v4 software is a feature called Print Bleed.
What this does is it will bleed the outside edge of your design color out away from the design. This helps when you are doing a print and cut to eliminate a white border that you may have around the design.

The Print bleed can be found in the v4.4 software on the Page Setup Panel – Registration Marks Panel.

In previous versions of v4, the Print Bleed is found on Tab 1 of the Page Setup Panel.

Once the Print Bleed option is checked, then you can adjust the distance you want the bleed to have from the design. However, something to note here is that the print bleed does not show up on the design screen and it applies to all objects on your screen.

As each design is different, it can also affect designs differently. For instance, a design that is made up of different parts that are all individual pieces and colors, it will bleed all of those colors of the individual pieces. Print bleed works well on a single object, a graphic file, or print and cut design.

I printed 3 different patterns from the Sparkleberry Choose Happy Digital Patterns Collection and then I picked one from the Silhouette Design Store called Arrows Background Paper by Miss Kate Cuttables – Design #296677.

This time when I added the pattern I used a different method though. On the Design tab in the bottom left corner, there is now a Show/Hide Library option.

Click on this little folder and the Library will expand out from the left side, so you have a split screen and can see both designs in the library and on the design mat at the same time.
Of course, your screen size will determine if this is a suitable feature for you to use or not.

Select the object on the screen and choose one of the patterns from the Patterns folder in the library and it will fill with that pattern.
This will work for adding other designs to your current design mat in the software too.
(Sometimes you may notice it will add an extra pattern piece, you can just delete what you don’t need.)

In the Advanced Options of the Fill Color Panel – Patterns tab (3rd tab), you will find options for panning the pattern, rotating it, or scaling it as well.

Sometimes I find it hard to see the little patterns that show up in the Patterns Tab on the Fill Color Panel. They are not well organized and the pattern photo is small, so using the Show Library split panel can be an option to make it easier to find a pattern you are looking for.

Go big or go home, right? When I cut out papercraft projects that have several pieces to them, I tend to make extras. I can set these pieces aside to assemble at a later date or have extras on hand. In this case, I cut the pieces to make 6 each of 4 different pattern designs. So I have 24 cards that I can now send out to friends.

Once the file is set up in the Silhouette software is it just a matter of loading and unloading the cutting mat each time and I just started making piles for each set of cards.

A couple hours later and I had all the pieces to assemble these cards. About half way through I had the thought that I could hook up another machine and then cut from multiple machines at the same time to make it go faster. But, I was enjoying cutting with the Cameo 4 and didn’t go that route.

But it’s an option – check out how to use multiple Silhouette machines at the same time HERE.

Now here is the really fun part!

I love being able to create custom designs with my Silhouette and make the cutting of all the pieces go so smooth. I embellished these cards with a few stamps from Close to My Heart and they are ready to send off.

What are you creating with your Silhouette today?
I’d love to see it over on my Facebook group at Silhouette Secrets with EllyMae.

Save this for future reference by pinning the image below.

Enjoy!

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