What is Illustrator?
Illustrator is a graphic design software used to do anything from creating art, to making files to laser engrave. In Illustrator, you start with a canvas of any size and add elements until you have a finished drawing. This drawing can be laser engraved, printed, or even made into a vinyl decal. We will be using Illustrator to laser engrave a keychain, and create a vinyl decal.
Above: A picture of some of the tools I used, and a picture of the finished keychain in Illustrator.
How to use the laser:
1. Load up your Illustrator file on Illustrator.
2. Press print in Illustrator and select the Laser Engraver
3. Open the Illustrator file in the Laser software.
4. Adjust the settings (such as speed) to your liking.
5. Make sure the engraver is engraving on the material and print.
1. Load up your Illustrator file on Illustrator.
2. Press print in Illustrator and select the Laser Engraver
3. Open the Illustrator file in the Laser software.
4. Adjust the settings (such as speed) to your liking.
5. Make sure the engraver is engraving on the material and print.
Above: A picture of my Illustrator file for the vinyl cutter
What to do once you have your vinyl:
1. Lay it flat on a table
2. "Weed" the vinyl by removing all the background with a dental tool
3. Apply transfer tape to the front of the vinyl using a squeegee
1. Lay it flat on a table
2. "Weed" the vinyl by removing all the background with a dental tool
3. Apply transfer tape to the front of the vinyl using a squeegee
Above: Final vinyl design applied to my computer
What I learned: From this introduction to Illustrator and vinyl/laser cutting, I gained a better understanding of what Illustrator is/does, learned how to laser cut, how to apply a vinyl to a surface, and got better at using the softwares for both the vinyl and laser cutter. I think this introduction has definetly prepared me enough for the individual projects, and I hope to get to those soon.
What I learned: From this introduction to Illustrator and vinyl/laser cutting, I gained a better understanding of what Illustrator is/does, learned how to laser cut, how to apply a vinyl to a surface, and got better at using the softwares for both the vinyl and laser cutter. I think this introduction has definetly prepared me enough for the individual projects, and I hope to get to those soon.