I often here people saying how difficult it is to compete against the "big boys." My answer to that is - don't be like the "big boys!" Be yourself and offer something exciting and unique!
Yes, I cannot deny that there are people out there who will always go for the cheapest option, but that is not true of everyone. There are people who want something a little different, special and unique and are prepared to pay a premium for that service!
For this 3rd and final part of this series, I would like to look at a few other ways that we can use our die-cutting machines for our designs and also within our businesses.
When we talk about personalising balloons, it does not always have to be sticking letters or shapes on to a balloon. There are other things that we can do with our machines.
Yes, I cannot deny that there are people out there who will always go for the cheapest option, but that is not true of everyone. There are people who want something a little different, special and unique and are prepared to pay a premium for that service!
For this 3rd and final part of this series, I would like to look at a few other ways that we can use our die-cutting machines for our designs and also within our businesses.
When we talk about personalising balloons, it does not always have to be sticking letters or shapes on to a balloon. There are other things that we can do with our machines.
Cutting Card Stock
If you like to be a little bit creative and are not adverse to making things yourself, then you will probably enjoy creating your own personalised ribbons too! This was one of the reason why I invested in my machine a few years ago!
I had a job where I needed to recreate a balloon (10 actually) that could be used as part of a promotion to celebrate Candy Crush Saga's 1st Anniversary. This is probably one of those occasions when you could easily say "I'm afraid that we don't sell Candy Crush Saga balloons," and lose a sale! I decided that I would offer the client the best alternative that I could, and that was to create my own Candy Crush Saga balloons along with hand-made Candy Crush Saga ribbons!
(This job was on behalf of Candy Crush Saga and therefore did not infringe any copyright laws).
Since then I have made a range of different ribbons to complement the balloons that I am working with.
I love this new "Have A Haunting Halloween" 18" Microfoil® Balloon.
There is something quite elegant about the design on this balloon! My mission was to find a way to add value and retain the elegance as well as the theme of this balloon.
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I love this new "Have A Haunting Halloween" 18" Microfoil® Balloon.
There is something quite elegant about the design on this balloon! My mission was to find a way to add value and retain the elegance as well as the theme of this balloon.
There is not a great deal that we can add to a helium filled 18" Microfoil balloon due to its limited lifting power! However, by simply adding a feature ribbon like the Bat ribbon that I have made here, it completely transforms the balloon!
To create the Bats, I found a suitable Bat shape on the internet. I then dropped (cut & pasted) it on to my Silhouette cutting board on my computer. I then simply traced around the shape using one of the many great facilities that the Silhouette offers. I then created a page of Bats, changing the size of my image so that I would have variety of different sizes, and then cut... and the machine dutifully does the rest for me!
To secure the Bat cut-outs to the ribbon, I just used a very small amount of Balloon Bond®. Balloon Bond is strong and not messy!
And finally, one of the most important parts of our business is our corporate identity - making sure that everyone knows who we are by turning up to a venue looking smart with our company logo clearly displayed on our shirts. Corporate clothing can be expensive, however, with the Silhouette Cameo you can create your own iron-on logos and names using a purpose-made fabric available from suppliers of the machine.
The only downside to owning one of these machines is that you can become a little bit obsessed and want to try out all the different creative projects that you can achieve with this machine!
Here are a couple of great links that I would like to share with you:
"50+ Genius Hacks for Silhouette & Cricut Machines" is from a great blog "The Pinning Mama." She has listed out some really great tips and hints for those of you using Silhouette and Cricut Machines - just click HERE for the link.
The only downside to owning one of these machines is that you can become a little bit obsessed and want to try out all the different creative projects that you can achieve with this machine!
Here are a couple of great links that I would like to share with you:
"50+ Genius Hacks for Silhouette & Cricut Machines" is from a great blog "The Pinning Mama." She has listed out some really great tips and hints for those of you using Silhouette and Cricut Machines - just click HERE for the link.
And, if like me you get a little frustrated at the selection of fonts that you have available to use, here is an amazing link to a whole selection of FREE fonts. These are from the PicMonkey Blog:
20 Free Font Resources to Improve your Designs
Simply download the fonts that you like. Be careful not to download too many as you will only get confused, and add them into your font library!
I hope that you have enjoyed this series of blogs informing how a die-cutting machine can add value to your designs and a little bit more!
Happy Ballooning!
Sue
www.suebowler.com
I hope that you have enjoyed this series of blogs informing how a die-cutting machine can add value to your designs and a little bit more!
Happy Ballooning!
Sue
www.suebowler.com
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