Mother's Day Picture Frame
Instruction
A wonderful way to celebrate Mother's Day is with a gift that embodies quality time spent with your mother. This ornamental frame is adorned with flower and heart motifs, and the phrase "Happy Mother's Day" elegantly encircles the lower corner of the frame.
The first task is to create a frame. I wanted to create a frame for a 5x7 picture, So i have sized the frame to be 5.5x7.5 to allow a little bit of padding. I also wanted rounded corners, so I added the square with rounded corners shape in XCS to the canvas.
To give the frame thickness, I used the outline tool and set the offset to .5 inches.
Select both vectors and choose the combine tool and the subtract option. This will subtract the inner vector from the larger vector, leaving our frame as a single item.
The next task is to add in the decorative elements the are around the frame. Simply position the elements and then unite them to the frame. I added two hearts and some flowers. You may need to overlap a rectangle to remove any small holes left around the frame where the shapes unite.
At this point it is a good idea to review what will be cut out for the frame. I saw that the middle of the flower would be cut out, leaving a hole, so I decided to remove this part of the flower by overlapping a circle and uniting it to the overall design.
I also wanted to add in some text to say “Happy Mother's Day” I wanted to let it wrap around the bottom of the frame. I wanted to use dancing script for the font, but it had some disconnected letters. I decided to outline the text and set the text processing to engrave. I set the outline to cut.
I also decided to use the curve function on the text to bend “Mother's” around the corner of the frame. After a matching curve was made, I used the outline tool again to match the new shape.
Next, I positioned each word so that the bottom overlapped the frame at the bottom. I then chose to unite each word's outline to the frame. I believe this must be done one word at a time and be careful not to select the actual letters that are set to engrave.
To help support the picture, I am adding a backing board. To create this part, I simply copied the frame design and overlapped the rounded rectangle in the center. I then used the unite tool to fill in the middle and create the back. I then added a circle as hole to hang the picture from. Be sure the use the snap allignment to get the hole in the center of the frame.
I am using a D1 with a 5w laser for this project, so my setting may need to be adjusted for your project. Be sure to review each process to be sure it will provide the right outcome.
I want the frame and all of its elements to be cut out. I wanted the text for “happy mother's day” to be engraved ( I have the text set in a different layer to help keep it separate). With all this in mind Select the elements and review the settings.
Finally, let's run the job on the laser. Be sure to follow the safety rules that are relevant to your laser. Always wear personal protective equipment when the laser is in operation.
Once the frame is cut out, simply add it the picture a boarder paper and then glue the frame together.