Silhouette Primer

The Silhouette Cameo is core to this process so it’s important to give some background so you’ll be better prepared to operate one.

Silhouette Cameo 5

The Cameo 5 is an electronically operated cutting machine. It’s similar to a laser cutter or a CNC machine. A computer controls the movement of the toolhead, which contains a small blade similar to a hobby knife, and the toolhead will cut the material. You can control various cutting parameters including the speed of the blade and the force of the blade, and you can cut various materials including paper, card stock, sticker paper, cardboard, vinyl, foam, fabric, and even leather. You can also purchase special add-on tools for foiling, embossing, and other purposes.

Additionally, the Cameo 5 supports Print & Cut. Print & Cut means the machine scans your printed page and automatically adjusts itself so that it’s able to cut precisely and consistently every time. You do not have to worry about aligning the sheets as the machine will make adjustments as needed. As long as the sheet is generally in the right area, the machine can compensate for placement and tilt. This is pivotal for card games because you want the backs of every card to be indistinguishable. More on Print & Cut later.

You only need to use a few buttons to operate a Cameo 5. First, there is the power button, which is on the right side of the machine. Second, there are the media load and media eject buttons on the bottom of the control panel. The buttons are used load and eject the cutting mat that carries your sheet. Lastly, there’s a repeat cutting job button that appears on the top of the control panel.

Silhouette Studio

Silhouette Studio is the software used to create cutting designs and control the Cameo 5. It is easy to use and has simple visual UI. You can create a cutting template by drawing shapes on then screen and when you are ready, the machine will cut those shapes out. You can do fancier things like import an image (with a transparent background) and the software can cut out its outline, which is great for stickers and collages. However, I’ve included cutting templates in this tutorial so you won’t need to make your own unless you’re interested in making cards in a special size or shape.

As mentioned before, an important aspect of this process is Print & Cut. You need to enable it in a cutting template in order to reap the benefits. When you enable Print & Cut, Silhouette Studio will do two things, it’ll add registration marks to your cutting template, and when you print, it’ll have the machine scan for registration marks before cutting. The registration marks are what the cutting machine uses to determine the orientation of your paper and make the proper adjustments when cutting. However, the templates in this tutorial already have Print & Cut enabled so you will not need to change anything.