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With Trick or Treating just around the corner and the nights getting darker, use this little trick to help keep your little one safe while out and about this Halloween!


Turn any storm lantern into a temporary spooky Halloween lamp.




Open a new project in Silhouette studio and select some spooky silhouettes from your library (or from the Silhouette store).





Trim a sheet of paper to the correct height to fit within your lantern. Measure the inside of your lantern by rolling up the sheet of paper and placing it inside the lantern. Allow the paper to unroll until it touches the sides, mark the paper where it overlaps. Remove the sheet from the lantern and trim off the access. Measure the sheet of paper and create a rectangle the same size on your virtual workspace.
 Use the scale tool located in the top toolbar to easily get the correct measurements. This rectangle gives you a guideline to keep your design within. I have turned this line blue as I will cut it separately from the main design.

Arrange your silhouettes within the guidelines.


Tip: Remember that the left edge will meet with the right edge when curled around inside the Lantern, make sure they will match up. You can check this easily by copying your design and placing the copys next to each other. Remember to delete the copy before sending to the cutter.

Load a sheet of acetate onto the cutting mat and load into your machine. click "send" in the software.

When the send window opens choose cut by "line" and ensure that only the blue line will cut.

Tip: Active cut lines are bold and inactive lines that will not cut on this pass are faded. 

Choose the correct cut settings for your media and remember to carry out test cuts to ensure a clean cut.  Send the project to your cutter and allow the job to complete. unload the mat and remover the media.
Place some dark coloured vinyl on the cutting mat and load into the machine.

 In the send window unselect the blue line cut and select the red line to active cut.


Select the correct media in the material list and carry out test cuts to ensure a clean cut. Send the project to the cutter and allow the job to complete.  Unload the mat and remove the media from the mat.
Remove all the unwanted pieces of vinyl leaving only the design on the backing sheet. Lift the design from the backing sheet with some transfer tape and apply to design to the piece of acetate.




Roll the acetate so it fits into the lantern. Lower into place and allow to unroll to the inside edges of the lantern. Replace the lid in the lantern and enjoy some safe trick or treating.



After all the fun, simply remove the sheet and store for next years fun.

Desing used:

Open silhouette studio and type the intended participants names by clicking on the text tool and then on your virtual page, use your keyboard to add names.
 By opening the text panel you can choose any a font that is installed on your computer, simply select one from the drop-down menu. If you are unsure what your text will look like in a particular font simply type the word and select the word by clicking at one end and dragging the mouse to the other end, the word will become highlighted click on any font type in your menu and the word will change to that font ( you can scroll through all your fonts one by one using the arrow key on your keyboard .   Big blocky fonts work best for this project. I have chosen Accord Heavy SF, bear in mind the age group you are working with when making your choice.

Select a flag type file from your library (lots of different styles are available from the silhouette store if you do not have one). You will need a flag for each name. Resize each of the names to make it fit nicely inside one of the flags.

Arrange the flags and names to make the best use of your media. I am using silhouette chipboard as its sturdy but not too bulky to place inside a book.(ensure your page settings match the size of your media).

 Select some designs from your library or the store to use as embellishments. Resize the designs so they will fit onto the flags. This is done by clicking on one of the boxes in the corner of the design and dragging it inward.
Arrange the embellishments to make the best use of the media.use the rotate button located in the transform panel to rotate you pieces where necessary.
Send the project to your silhouette from the material menu select chipboard and carry out a test cut, adjust the settings if necessary. Click send to cut your project.

Give each child a flag and place all the letters and embellishments in the center of the table with some markers and/or paint, perhaps put out some glitter and gems.
Let the children's creativity flow.
For younger children, this project also works well if the letters and embellishments are cut from silhouette self-adhesive card  weed the unwanted card away leaving only the "stickers"

Designs used:

PRODUCTS USED: