Acrylic Album Template - How to Cut the Album - Part 3

Ready to cut

Before we get started, just another reminder. Please, please, please... follow all safety guidelines provided in the users manual for all power tools. I am not responsible if you cause yourself, or anyone else, bodily harm due to negligence misuse of any equipment.

Install a skip tooth blade on your scroll saw. If you don't have access to a skip tooth blade then look for a blade with small teeth, placed close together. The TPI should be in the 15 to 18.5 range. Anything under 15 TPI can chip the acrylic and will be very difficult to cut with.

Start your cut on an easy straight line. Turn on the saw, and gently press the acrylic stack to the blade giving the blade time to work it's way into the acrylic. Once the blade has caught hold, work your way along the design following your line. Turn the acrylic so you're always applying pressure towards the blade teeth. If you apply pressure pushing the blade from the side it will cause friction and begin to melt the acrylic.

As you cut you want to be aware of the acrylic sawdust. The saw dust is a good sign that you're operating the saw correctly. If there is no saw dust, and it starts to feel the blade wants to lift the acrylic, it means your blade is too hot and you're melting the acrylic. Keep the saw running and back the blade out of the design. The blade and the acrylic will need to cool off. The blade can cool fairly quickly, but the acrylic can take 15 minutes or more. I simply rotate my design and begin cutting again in a different location at least one inch from the hot spot.


Work your way around your design avoiding any tight curves until you have rough cut the entire piece. Tight curves tend to get hot very easily so it's best to eliminate the extra acrylic around the tight curve first.

As you cut, the blade will create a weak bond between sheets of acrylic and should hold them together. However it's very important if the sheets are shifting at all that you apply more painters tape around the areas you are not cutting on to hold the acrylic sheets firmly together. If the sheets are shifting against each other it will create friction against the blade and melt the acrylic very quickly. ... and it will keep happening over and over again, until you've got hot melted spots all over the entire album.



Next go back and work on the more difficult cuts. For tight curves, cut from one direction to the middle of the tight curve, back the blade out, and then cut from the other direction to complete the cut in the middle of the tightest spot. This really helps to eliminate melting the acrylic.

For cuts that come to a point, the same principle applies, start from one side. As you approach the apex of the cut apply very little pressure to the acrylic and don't overshoot your stopping point. As you complete the cut from the other directions make sure you end at exactly the same point. If you cut past the apex it will be very visible on your finished page.



On my next post I'll go over removing any melted acrylic spots and finishing the edges of the album.

Acrylic Album Template - How To Buy Your Acrylic and Preparing to Cut - Part 2

Now that you have your design is ready to go, it's time to:

Prepare to cut

There is a variety of options when it comes to the type of acrylic you decide to use. I usually purchase all of my acrylic at Home Depot. In my area, it is the best price and the most readily available source. I've looked at Lowes as well, but the thickness of the acrylic they carry is different that Home depot, and I find the selection to be either too thin or to thick.

Both stores carry two brands. The Lexan brand is higher quality acrylic. It can bend without cracking, and you can use your Crop-a-dile to punch holes in it with good success. It's also quite a bit more expensive than the secondary brand. Because it is more manipulative, Lexan might be a good option for a first time cutter. Especially if you do not have a drill press. I only buy the secondary brand.

Thickness varies in the acrylic. I prefer to use the .093 thickness, which is industry standard thickness for acrylic scrapbooking.

The acrylic can be purchased in sheets in a variety of sizes. If you have a table saw you can buy larger sheets, at a better price point, and cut them down to size. If you don't have a table saw, or don't feel comfortable using a table saw, then buy the smallest sized sheets which will accommodate the size of your design.

Tips on cutting down large acrylic sheets:

Before attempting to cut, please click here and read my disclaimer on following the safety guidelines of all power tools.

Don't try to start with the 48"x36" sheets for your first cut. Cutting acrylic is a lot different than cutting wood, and until you've developed experience it's best to start with smaller sheets. Nothing larger than 24 inches.

To determine how small to cut the sheets, measure the widest and longest parts of your design and add a 1/2 inch.

Use the table saw fence to ensure your cut is straight. While cutting keep the edge of the acrylic against the fence, and make sure the acrylic sheet stays flush against the top of saw table. The acrylic has a tendency to ride up the blade, which causes the table saw blade to rip out large chips from the acrylic. Not only will it ruin your acrylic, but it can cause injuries. Keep the acrylic pressed down against the table, and flush against the fence.

The end result should be 4-6 rough cut square or rectangular pages exactly the same size, slightly larger than the design template.


Now that you have all of your acrylic cut to size, decide how many pages the album will be. The scroll saw works much better when cutting more than one sheet of acrylic at at time, and when cutting the sheets together the end result is completely uniform pages. I always try to cut the entire album at one time- usually between 3-6 pages. For your first album, you may want to add one extra sheet. My first album started out with 6 pieces of acrylic and ended in 4 usable pages, due to cracks and errors from inexperience.

Stack the acrylic sheets and tape tightly together with painters masking tape. as shown.

The tape should go all the way around the stack about 2 times. Once at the top, once at the bottom, and once on each side. It's very important that the acrylic pieces do not shift while cutting on the scroll saw or it can bind up the blade and cause the acrylic to melt.

Once the acrylic sheets are secure, glue your design to the top of the stack. First make sure the surface of the acrylic is free from acrylic saw dust, then use Fabri-tac glue or spray glue to adhere the design to the front of the acrylic stack. Your paper design doesn't need to be cut out, but should be trimmed so it fits on the acrylic.

Now you're ready to start cutting, which I will cover in the next post.

Acrylic Album Templates - How to Guide for Creating an Album Template. Part 1.

I designed and cut my first shaped album in September of 2007. It was this lovely snowflake album. I've been hooked ever since.

In October 2007, I designed the following house shaped album, decorated it, and sold it on ebay. Approximately one month later another acrylic manufacturer used my design without my permission and began to mass market the album. If you're a scrapbooker it might look familiar.

I was so disappointed! It really challenged my faith in humanity. As it turns out it's going to cost me $THOUSANDS$ to pursue legal action, and while there is no question I would win in a legal dispute it's just not worth my effort or attention.

So instead I'm going the shareware route and I plan to make my Acrylic House Album Template available for free personal use. (I'll post that later.)


The finished album...

For now, I'm going to post detailed step by step instructions for exactly how to cut your own shaped albums with standard garage tools.

Today I'm starting with Designing your template

(Disclaimer and legal mumbo jumbo)
Through out this guide I am going to be demonstrating with my dress album template. If you love this album, I'm flattered, but PLEASE do not copy the album. It is my design, and is copyright Camille McClelland 2008. All of my designs shown on my blog, on eBay and in various other online photo albums are copyright protected and may not be used without my written permission. Please feel free to design your own dress album, just don't make it exactly the same as mine... I do scrap for hire, so if you see something you really must have please leave me a comment with your email and I will be in touch.




I'd like to take a minute to discuss which tools we will be using to create the album. If you do not have access to a majority of these tools you may not be able to complete a shaped acrylic album.

Also, (Here's the disclaimer part) I am not responsible for any injuries incurred while working with acrylic using my guide as reference. Always follow the safety guidelines on all equipment and tools. Use safety goggles and a breathing mask when cutting. The acrylic can become hot, the edges can be very sharp, the acrylic saw dust can get in your eyes and down your throat. Act responsibly, and if under 18 years of age, get your parents permission.



Tools needed:
Table saw (Optional)
Scroll Saw (a band saw may work, but I've never tried it)
Skip tool scroll saw blades (Other blades do work, but not nearly as well)
Dremel or similar hand held rotary tool
Drill press (a standard drill will work, but you may have more mistakes)
Metal files (optional)
Sandpaper - 200 grit or higher
Power Sander - Optional




Designing your first template

For your first album try to create a design with simple lines, and limited tight curves. It should be large enough to accommodate the size of your pictures. I always prefer a subjective, asymmetrical shape, rather than a symmetrical standard shape. For example cutting a perfect circle--and getting it perfect-- is much more difficult than cutting the shape of an asymmetrical mushroom.

Draw your finished design out on paper in actual size. I prefer to use graph paper but solid white paper works just as well. Consider hole placement for the binder rings or ribbon and mark them on the paper. Keep in mind the album needs to open and close. Make sure the placement of the binder ring holes will not limit your ability to open and close the book.

Next, make a second copy of the design. I like to keep a master template of all my designs so if I need to recreate the album I don't need to worry about redrawing it, or marking up a finished album. Make sure the outline is dark and very easily visible.

Now you're ready to get your acrylic and prepare to cut.

Which will be the next post...

Oh Man....

We've got some work to do....

Just to clarify, this is an issue of reading the words, not knowing what color is which. This is also an issue of not caring, and using whichever color you want where ever you want it because you don't want to read the words...

When We Come Up For Air.

The past couple weeks have been really bad for me. I just got so down. I felt completely worthless, ugly, stupid, fat.... you name it, if it's a negative emotion I was feeling it.

I'm still hurting so much inside. It feels like the rest of the world is moving on anyway, and I'm stock in some kind of personal vortex. Have you ever seen a child going down a slide, and the poor kid is screaming the death cry the whole way down? That's about how I've felt. Like a screaming child going down the worlds longest corkscrew slide. Down, down, down. You want to get off, but you can't. The people who love you want to help you off, but can't. And so you're stuck. Going down, but not enjoying the ride.

I've questioned everything. Not just about why this happened, but everything I've ever been taught. I've been in a very unhappy place. I did not want to listen to the Lord and I stopped praying. There just didn't seem to be a point in it.

And then the most amazing things started to happen. First I was prompted to do something that turned out to be extremely helpful to someone I love very much. I didn't recognize it as a prompting, until after it happened. It touched me very much that the Lord would allow me to be an instrument in his hands to help someone I love so much when I had turned my back on him. Then yesterday a couple women from church stopped by to visit me and shared the most amazing message with me. They helped to clarify the atonement in a way I had never considered and that my Heavenly Father does suffered the pains of the world. He suffered and shared my pain, every bit of it, and more. I've heard this for a long time, and thought I believed it, but I didn't truly know it in my heart till now. It just didn't seem to apply to me. There have been other things that happened that I don't feel comfortable sharing here, but every time one of these things happened I would get this feeling in my heart that this was my Heavenly Father letting me know he does suffer with me, and has suffered more than me, even over the loss of my little Vincent. He loves me very much, and desires for me to know my worth, and feel joy in it.

I think Heavenly Father allowed me to hit rock bottom just so he could show me how much he loves me and that he really is aware of my pain and loss. So I could really understand it. You never can understand how good water is until you've been without it for days. So it was with me and my Father in Heaven's love.


I didn't realize that when Vincent died it was like a small crack in the windshield. Since his death the crack has been creeping and spreading and growing larger everyday. Some days it slows to a stop and some days it streaks quickly in all directions, but it never recedes. Cracks don't heal themselves. Heat and fire is needed to reform the glass.

Windsheild glass is actually made up of 2 pieces of glass with a heavy duty piece of plastic sandwitched between the two. Because of this the glass must be carefully recycled.

With effective processing, there is no need for windshield glass to be a solid waste.
Once damaged the glass will never be the same again. But it can be recylced into something new, and beautiful, and useful.


This is were I am. In the process of changing permanently into something new. Still useful, still whole, still complete, but different.
I'm not there, but at least now I can understand where I'm at and what's happeneing.

Ahhh... My little offender in training!

So shortly after The kids left for school, and I finished my last post, I look outside and this is what I see.



My very own little peeping tom in training. This is such a proud moment.

He says he saw a bird...

The happiest day of the year.

Yes, I am so over being one of those moms who cries on the first day of school.

Sure I will miss Noah and Jennica while they are gone, but they were definitely ready to go back, and I was more that ready to send them back. It's been a very long summer what with everything... Our days lacked structure because I never did keep my act together for more than just a couple weeks at a time.

I just feel back for Aaron. With his late birthday he doesn't start kindergarten till 2010, and he is SOOOO ready right now. He was looking for his backpack this morning so he could go to school too.
Noah and Jennica were so excited we had to leave for the bus stop 10 minutes early... Why? So we could stand around an extra 10 minutes and wait for the bus or course!

With the kids good friend and neighbor who starts kindergarten this year. He's been looking forward to this day for years. It just killed him to see Jennica and Noah leave for school the past couple years without him.


It's going to be a great year. I can feel it!

Eagle Island State Park

Today I was outside weeding my garden when I suddenly thought about Eagle Island State park, and that I really wanted to take the kids and go- right now. This is so out of character for me. I just don't act on a whim like this. Ever.

So anyway, I when right inside and called my sis to see if she wanted to go too. She had some important things she couldn't put off, so I offered to just pick up her kids and take them with me.

I am so glad we went. It was a beautiful day. The weather was perfect. When we first arrived, there were quite a few people there at the beach, but within an hour and and 15 minutes almost everyone left and we practically had the entire place to ourselves. (Hope we didn't run them off!)

Aaron eating grapes.

The water in the beach area is pretty shallow and nice and warm. All the kids were playing together, and since most of the kids are older I didn't need to worry about them to much. I was able to lay in the shade under this large tree and enjoy the perfect weather.

Jennica and Emily were busy digging a murky water hole (they called it a pool) for Jennica to sit in, and Noah and Ethan were building a plastic cup sand castle village or something.






While Noah and Ethan were digging they found a "real live worm!" Noah had to have a picture of it.

It was such a nice day. It never would have been so nice if I had planned it ahead of time.

Tomorrow is the official last day of summer vacation. This was a really nice end to summer. I have to say, I haven't been the best mom since April... but the last 3 weeks have been just awful. I've been horribly depressed about Vincent and not pleasant at all to be around. My poor kids haven't been able to do very much because I've been so upset and anti social. No playgroups, no trips to the library, or the park... just hanging around the house or playing with the neighbors.

I thought maybe once I got passed the due date things would get better, but now all I can think about is how he would be here now, and he's not. It's like loosing him and missing him all over again. I keep thinking about how old he would be, and what I would, and would not be doing if I had a newborn infant to care for. I'd still be depressed because I always get post pardum depression... so I guess I have that. My baby would be about four weeks old now.

I wonder how long I will stay in this funk? I don't have a whole lot of desire to get out of it. That's probably bad, but I just don't really care.

Aaronisms

Tonight I was making macaroni and cheese from the box for my kids for dinner. Andy had Noah, and Jennica at the elementary school for meet the teacher night, so it was just Aaron and I.

He was asking me what I was doing when I poured in the milk, added the butter, and powdered cheese. I told him we just had to stir it up and it would make cheese sauce.

He says to me, "But mom, I don't want to turn into a Pizza." (yeah, what??? I don't know either.)

I told him he would be a yummy pizza....

He told me, "but mom, pizza is not made out of people."

Back to Boulder Lake

Last week my parents and sister and I decided we would head back up to Boulder lake for one last summer trip. Usually we don't do a lot of camping without bathrooms or running water, but since this was last minute we didn't have a lot of options. Everything else was booked out.

I am so glad it worked out that way. I was expecting the area to be packed with only one week to go before school starts back up, but it was pretty empty. We pretty much had the entire camping area at the base of the reservoir to ourselves.

There were tons of ripe huckleberries all over the area. They were so good. I wanted to pick enough that I could bring some home, but we couldn't stop eating them all.

My dad is just an amazing guy to have out camping. Not only did he wire the entire camp with lights using bulbs from vehicle tail lights and a computer UPS, but he build tripods to cook with and for the baby jumper. On Sunday morning I woke up to the sound of a blower. It was my mom blow drying her hair. Keep in mind there is no running water, bathrooms, or power available in this area.

Here's breakfast the first morning. sausage, hashbrowns, fried eggs, english muffins, juice and of course huckleberries.


The camp are was very nice and level, but the dirt was very dirty dirt. If that makes any sense at all... The kids were always filthy.

On Saturday we decided to all head out and finally find Louie Lake, now that we know where it is. The hike was much easier without our packs, but a bit tough for the kids, especially Aaron. Andy and I were excited to try some fishing. As soon as we reach the lake there is a sign that says no live bait, and catch and release under 20 inches. The fish were jumping like crazy, but we didn't get so much as a nibble. We had worms and wanted to use them so bad.

Pete was driving up from Boise to meet us Saturday afternoon, so my parents, and Jill, and all the younger kids, decided to head back down to camp to meet up with him. Andy and I stayed at the lake with my nieces Sariah and Emily. When we get back to camp we find out that mom and dad, and Jill and all the kids missed a turn off in the trail and hiked quite a ways out of the way. Poor Aaron was so worn out and tired that every time they stopped to rest he would say, "You go on... just leave me here" They laid down a mat and he rested for about 5 minutes then he was good to go again.

On Sunday we tried fishing at the reservoir. There was one older gal there fishing about 50 feet from us. She was pulling the fish out of the lake like a mad women. While we sat there... not catching a thing. Her husband was down on the other side of us, and he was doing pretty well too. Finally they left and we moved to where the husband had been fishing and finally had some luck. We caught six trout in about an hour right at the end of the day. Dinner was already finished so we took the trout home and we'll have them for dinner real soon. Pan fried with butter and fresh herbs from my garden. YUM.



On Sunday night for dinner we had barbecued ribs, corn on the cob, sweet potatoes, salad, and wild huckleberry cobbler. It was fantastic.

This is how you eat corn on the cob when you have 2 missing teeth and two more loose ones.



After dinner we packed up and heading back to Boise. Jennica was stuck in the middle seat and was so tired. She wanted to lay down and so Aaron said to her, "You can lay on me Jennica." I love it when they're sweet to each other.

I love the Boulder Lake area. Can't wait to go back.

All is right in the world.

From my BFF who is way cooler than me... Just wanna make a permanent record.

My new Tag

I have finally decided today to leave by eBay scrapbooking design team.

*sniff* *sniff*

I'll miss the girls of PFOP very much, but I'm a bit of a flake right now and I am not all that interested in selling premades or paper piecings.

So anyway, My signature on discussion boards has always been a PFOP tag such as this:

But now that I'm leaving I need to come up with my own tag. I took some pictures yesterday of a beautiful gerber daisy my friend gave me. And I thought I would try using it.

So here's the picture:


Crop Crop...


Photoshop Colored pencil effect... that's pretty cool, but not what I want...
Ah perfect! When I use it to sign my posts it automatically creates a link back to my blog.

I like how it looks right now, but I'm so picky it will probably get on my nerves. And then I'll have to change it again to something a little more mellow, and a little less yellow.

What do you think? I'd love to know if you got to my blog by using my new tag....