Many thanks to Barnsley College, for inviting me to have a stall at their Christmas fair this week. I met lots of lovely students and staff, and since then I’ve been working on getting orders ready for their personalised wooden Christmas baubles.
Here is the latest bauble that I’ve cut so far today:
… and this is me boxing it up, ready to send off this afternoon. (Woo, get me with my TikTok ‘boxing-up’ videos!)
All of the hard work by me and my elves the last few weeks has paid off, and we have scored a Christmas #1 on Amazon!
At the moment when you see the wooden letter baubles on Amazon, they have a little orange flag with them that says “#1 Best Seller”:
I’m really happy about that! But of course, it’s only a Christmas #1 in a sub-sub-sub category of Amazon (i.e. “Handmade Ornaments”), and at the moment it’s still #9 in the “Handmade Products” category:
One day I’d like to get to number 1 in that Handmade Products category. Especially because at the moment #5 in the chart is a joke “million piece jigsaw puzzle”:
I suspect that people buy those as Secret Santa gifts for colleagues, and I have a strong suspicion that their colleagues would prefer to receive a nice wooden bauble rather than a plastic bag full of sawdust 🙂
Last month I wrote this article about experimenting with Amazon’s FBA (Fulfilled by Amazon) programme – where the basic idea is that sellers ship a load of products to an Amazon warehouse, then Amazon do the picking, packing and postage for them. I’ll try to remember to do a more detailed report when the dust has settled and the Christmas rush is over, but for now let’s just say that the experiment appears to have been successful. In fact it’s been so successful that I have scored a “Christmas number one” this week, and here is my screengrab to prove it:
As shown in the screenshot, my personalised Christmas letter bauble is now officially an Amazon Best Seller.
When is a #1 not a #1…?
OK, it’s a bestseller in a subcategory of a subcategory of a subcategory. But I’m still taking it as a win!
It was hard work, though. In order to get to that stage I’ve had to sell a lot of bauble ornaments. And in order to get to that stage I’ve had to make a lot of bauble ornaments. For six weeks in the run-up to Christmas it felt like my whole house was a mini factory full of baubles, wood sheets, ribbons, boxes, and wrapping materials. My family became my factory workers, and my cat became very confused.
The final batch of ornaments was only processed by Amazon yesterday (21 December), so maybe that’s too late for even Prime customers to order my products. But in the meantime I’m just going to bask in the glow of having achieved a Christmas #1 in the charts.
They keep selling out, so by the time you see this they might all be gone again. And in that case it won’t be worth looking at any of my shops. But for just this brief window in time, I’ve been able to achieve a bit of an ambition to be a chart-topper on Amazon.
(Feel free to skip reading this post if you aren’t interested in my laser-cut products and services, because that’s basically what this post is about. The basic suggestion is that the perfect Christmas family gift is one that I’ve made with my laser cutter…)
Apparently the December 2020 issue of Family Tree Magazine should be available for uploading and reading today. I already have a subscription to it via my local library, but I’ll be interested in this particular issue because it contains my first-ever advert in a magazine.
The issue includes a picture of what could be the perfect Christmas family gift…a personalised bauble:
OK – I probably should have put one of my family tree artworks in the ad instead of the bauble design (what with it being the “Family Tree” magazine), but
I wanted to be friendly and wish the magazine a merry Christmas, seeing as it’s their December issue, and
My family trees are bigger and more expensive than the baubles, so maybe fewer people would be interested in them.
So if you’re reading this post because you saw my ad in Family Tree Magazine, then welcome! Here is a picture of a Christmas tree ornament that could (literally) have your name on it:
This is one of my family tree artworks in comparison:
My Etsy shops:
I’m currently in the process of moving from my old ‘PolymerKay’ Etsy shop to my new ‘LaserSister’ Etsy shop. However, the personalised baubles should hopefully be available from both shops by the time you read this.
The shops contain a range of baubles; from pre-made letters to completely personalised messages.
…so in answer to the question of how to make a perfect Christmas gift for the family? Basically just visit one of the shops above, make an order including the family name, and I do the rest. Easy!
Do you have an idea for a personalised artwork that is a bit more ambitious? If so, please feel free to contact me, and I’ll be happy to discuss it with you.
(Free downloadable laser-cutting resource file of a Christmas tree bauble shape that can be personalised by etching it with a name, date, image, etc.)
Quick! Christmas is coming! (*or not, if you’re reading this in February.) The whole world is trying to cash in on it join in with the festivities. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just relax for a moment and create a quick and easy laser-cut Christmas tree decoration (or room/door/window decoration, if you make it bigger) without having to put any time or effort into designing one for yourself? Well, that’s what this free downloadable SVG file is for. Download it, open it in your graphics package, insert a name, then cut it from your preferred wood or acrylic. Hey presto – you’ve got a quick Christmas tree decoration. You’re welcome 🙂
It’s very quick and easy to cut from sheet of wood (e.g. 3mm laser-grade plywood), and makes a great (fast!) gift.
The downloadable file is a PDF file, but if you prefer a different format then I have also posted the design on Vectorstock.com as a free-for-personal-use file in various different formats.
I hope you found this resource useful. If you can think of any more tutorials or designs that you’d like to see in future then please let me know. You can use the comments section or the ‘Contact Us’ page, or interact via the social media buttons.
And if you’d like to receive more laser cutting information information, tutorials and files, then please go ahead and sign up for the newsletter.
(This post was originally on my KayVincent.com website, but now that I’ve got the LaserSister.com site I am moving or copying a lot of the laser-related articles over here. That way I should end up with a website full of posts relevant to laser-cutting, and can leave the other website/blog as a more general source of info.)
How to Make Quick and Easy Personalised Christmas Tree Ornaments Using a Laser Cutter
Here is a step-by-step tutorial on how to make quick and easy personalised Christmas tree ornaments with a laser cutter. It shows how to create a really simple round bauble shape that you can then etch with a message or image. Alternatively, you could decorate it by hand (or give/sell it to someone else so that they can decorate it by hand). If you’ve got access to a laser cutter then this could be a great (fast!) boost to your Christmas income.
If you don’t have time (or can’t be bothered) to go through the steps learning how to create the shape yourself, just click on the button below and it will take you to a (free) pre-made version of the design so that you can immediately start using it and cutting your own personalised Christmas baubles with your laser cutter. The vector design is done for you, so all you have to do is put your own text on there and it should be ready to cut.
The reason I’m using CorelDraw is because that is the recommended software for my particular laser machine, but most other vector-drawing software has similar commands and effects (although the tools and menus might be called something slightly different).
Step-by-Step: How to Make a Simple Christmas Bauble Shape With a Laser Cutter
1) Start a new blank document in CorelDraw. Mine uses millimetres as the measuring unit. If you want to change that, just click anywhere in the blank document and the “Units” dropdown should appear along the top somewhere:
2) Use the Ellipse Tool to create a circle 80mm wide (Tip: Hold down the Ctrl key at the same time as you are drawing, to make sure you end up with a circle instead of an oval)
If the circle didn’t come out at exactly 80mm, you can change it. Make sure that the ‘Lock Ratio’ button is selected, then type “80″ into the width for “x:”
3) Use the Rectangle tool to create a rectangle 15mm wide by 9mm tall
If you don’t get exactly that size it doesn’t matter, but if you want to use precisely those dimenstions then:
Use the Pick Tool to select the rectangle
Un-select the ‘Lock ratio’ button so that the x and y measurements can be changed separately to each other
Type in “15″ for the x measurement, and “9″ for the y measurement
(then it’s usually best to go back and re-select the ‘Lock ratio’ button)
4) Align the two objects on the same central line
Use the Pick tool to select the circle and rectangle. Then press “C” on the keyboard. This will make sure both objects are lined up vertically with each other.
(You can also go via the menu: Arrange> Align and Distribute> Align centers vertically)
5) Position the rectangle on the top of the circle
Use the Pick Tool to select just the rectangle.
Then either use the ‘down’ key on the keyboard to move the rectangle, or hold down the ‘Ctrl’ key and drag the rectangle downwards.
Aim to get the bottom corners of the rectangle just inside the circle:
6) Create a 5mm circle for the ‘hanging loop’
Use the Ellipse tool to create a circle with a 5mm diameter. (Remember to hold down Ctrl + C to make it a perfect circle instead of an oval.)
7) Create a 12.5mm circle as the outside part of the ‘hanging loop’
Use the Pick Tool to select the 5mm circle, then duplicate or copy it*.
Then change the second circle so that it is 12.5mm across:
*To make a copy of any shape, you can do this by selecting the shape then:
using the shortcut of Ctrl + D
… or by copying and pasting (Ctrl + C then Ctrl + V)
…or by using the Step and Repeat menu and clicking ‘Apply’. (If you can’t see the Step and Repeat menu go to Edit > Step and Repeat)
8) Link the two circles to convert them into just one object
Use the Pick Tool to select both circles. Then press Ctrl + L to link the two objects together to make them into one doughnut-shaped hanging loop (this is important for a Step 12 later, when the ring is ‘welded’ to the rectangle shape).
9) Align the hanging loop and rectangle
Use the Pick Tool and highlight the bauble and the rectangle at the same time (e.g. either draw a box around them both, or select one shape then hold down the Shift key while selecting the other shape.) Then press “C” on the keyboard to align them both on the same central line.
10) Reposition the hanging loop
Use the Pick Tool to select the hanging loop, then move it down (using the cursor key, or hold down “Ctrl” button at the same time as dragging the object down) until the bottom of the loop overlaps the top of the rectangle:
11) Use the Boundary tool to combine the rectangle and large circle
Use the Pick Tool (and hold down the “Shift” key) to select the rectangle and large circle at the same time.
…then use the Shaping Tool to create a boundary. This will now be the main bauble shape.
You can find this tool via Arrange > Shaping > Boundary (make sure that you un-select “Place Behind selected” and “Leave Original Object(s)”):
12) Weld the hanging loop and main bauble shape together
Use the Pick Tool to select the hanging loop, then click the “Weld to” button (If you can’t see the Weld To button, you can find it in Arrange > Shaping > Weld.)
Then click on the outline of the main bauble shape, and the two shapes should then weld together.
You should now have a simple bauble shape, ready for cutting!
Now you can use the Text Tool to add a personal message for etching onto the ornament, which will make a really quick and easy gift for someone.
Speaking of Christmas – here is a gift for you! I’ve created a free downloadable file for you to use with your own laser cutter, if you like. Just click the button below and it will take you to the downloadable resource.
Following on from the previous post where I was making some new cards with William Morris style alphabet designs, this is my latest experiment. Same design, but this time it’s etched onto a round wooden coaster instead of cut into card or paper.
If you have a laser business it’s often hard to find the time to create new designs when you are already busy with making existing products. One way to save time is to use existing “stock” images, to help fast-forward the design process.
There are many stock image services online where you can find existing vector designs, created by professional designers or independent artists. And each of these websites has a huge range of images, suitable for just about every occasion.
Note: Although these images are ‘royalty free’ (you don’t have to keep paying every time you use them in your own products), the designs do usually cost something to actually buy in the first place.
There are also different types of license that you purchase. It is often free or fairly cheap (e.g. $1USD, or £1GBP per image) to download an image if you are just buying it for your own personal use. However if you want to sell products with these images on them, you usually need to buy an ‘extended’ license, which lets you make multiple copies of the designs and sell objects which include them.
Screenshot of choosing a vector image license in Dreamstime
Luckily, there are also a few rare sites and collections which include free royalty free images (!) for commercial use. In other words, this is where either the image is out of copyright, or the artist has given permission for other people to make multiple copies of their designs and sell objects that include it.
Examples of some of these sites include CraftsmanSpace, Vector4Free, FreeVectors, BUT be careful again that the license allows commercial use (i.e. it lets you copy the image and use it on products that you sell).
Screenshot of a free vector on craftsmanspace.com
Once you’ve found a suitable vector image on the website, here are the general steps you will need to follow:
Step 1: Download the image and save it in a folder or system where you’ll be able to easily find it again (e.g. create a folder called “vector downloads for commercial use”).
Step 2: Open a new document in your drawing/design software (e.g. CorelDraw).
Step 3: Import the saved vector into the new document.
Screenshot of free vector image imported into CorelDraw
Step 4: Then depending on your laser system: if you want to cut the image, make sure it has got hairline (or very thin) outline, and if you want to etch the image, make sure it hasn’t got the thin outline.
So that’s it. Instead of spending hours drawing and tweaking your own designs (when you could be doing some lasercutting), just search for a vector that you like, make sure that you’ve got the rights to reproduce it commercially, and download it into your drawing software.
Hope you find this article useful – if so (or if there’s something else you think I should have mentioned), please feel free to comment or use the Contact page. Cheeers.
