SignCut Draw User Manual

September 24, 2021

About this User Manual

 SignCut Pro Suite installs three separate programs.

 SignCut Draw (PC only) - a program you can use for designing

 SignCut Pro 2 - the program you will use for cutting

 SignCut Spooler - a program you can use for managing jobs

 This manual covers SignCut Draw, a feature-rich vector designing program. Whether you are new to vector
graphics or experienced in other designing software, you’ll find an abundance of tools and functions to help
you design whatever is in your imagination!

 A separate user manual is available for SignCut Pro 2 and Spooler here.

Recommended Sections to Read

 Chapter 1 Preferences and Workspace: 1.01-1.02,1.04, 1.06, 1.08
 Chapter 2 File Handling: 2.01-2.04
 Chapter 3 Manipulating and Coloring Shapes: 3.01-3.06, 3.09-3.10
 Chapter 4 Working with Text: 4.01 – 4.03
 Chapter 5 Tracing and Drawing: 5.01 – 5.04, 5.06, 5.08, 5.10
 Chapter 6 Editing: 6.01 - 6.02
 Chapter 7 Designing: 7.01, 7.04 - 7.07, 7.11
 Chapter 8 Output: 8.01 – 8.05

Installing the Software

 Please refer to the SignCut Pro 2 and Spooler User Manual for installation instructions.

Feedback
 If you find any typos, incorrect information, or parts needing clarification, feel free to email me at:
sandy.mccauley@gmail.com.

________________________________________________________________

© 2019-2020 Sandy McCauley, All Rights Reserved

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Table of Contents
SIGNCUT DRAW USER MANUAL....................................................................................................................... 1
RECOMMENDED SECTIONS TO READ..................................................................................................................... 1
Installing the Software..................................................................................................................................... 1
1. PREFERENCES AND WORKSPACE............................................................................................................... 6
1.01 MAIN SIGNCUT DRAW SCREEN..................................................................................................................... 6
1.02 DEFAULT SETTINGS IN SIGNCUT DRAW......................................................................................................... 7
1.02.1 Default Settings – General................................................................................................................... 7
1.02.2 Default Settings – Editing..................................................................................................................... 8
1.02.3 Default Settings – Color Management................................................................................................. 8
1.03 SIGN SETUP (W1)........................................................................................................................................ 9
1.04 RULERS..................................................................................................................................................... 10
1.05 ZOOMING AND PANNING.............................................................................................................................. 10
1.06 UNDO, REDO, AND REPEAT......................................................................................................................... 12
1.06.1 Undo.................................................................................................................................................. 12
1.06.2 Redo.................................................................................................................................................. 12
1.06.3 Repeat............................................................................................................................................... 12
1.07 PROJECTS.................................................................................................................................................. 12
1.08 VIEW SETTINGS.......................................................................................................................................... 13
1.09 HELP RESOURCES...................................................................................................................................... 14
1.10 RIGHT-CLICK MENUS................................................................................................................................... 15
2. FILE HANDLING............................................................................................................................................. 15
2.01 OPENING AND SAVING FILES IN SIGNCUT DRAW.......................................................................................... 15
2.01.1 Opening a New File/Project............................................................................................................... 15
2.01.2 Opening an Existing SCD File............................................................................................................ 15
2.01.3 Saving a File...................................................................................................................................... 16
2.02 IMPORTING OTHER FILE FORMATS IN SIGNCUT DRAW..................................................................................16
2.02.1 Importing Vector Files........................................................................................................................ 16
2.02.2 Importing Raster Files (Bitmaps) in SignCut Draw.............................................................................17
2.03 CLIPART TOOL (U)...................................................................................................................................... 17
2.04 SENDING FILES FROM SIGNCUT DRAW TO SIGNCUT PRO 2..........................................................................18
2.05 EXPORTING IN OTHER FILE FORMATS IN SIGNCUT DRAW.............................................................................18
2.06 CLOSING AND EXITING SIGNCUT DRAW....................................................................................................... 18
3. MANIPULATING AND COLORING SHAPES................................................................................................. 20
3.01 SHAPE TOOL (Y)........................................................................................................................................ 20
3.01.1 Rectangle and Square (Y1)................................................................................................................ 20
3.01.2 Ellipse and Circle (Y2)........................................................................................................................ 21
3.01.3 Polygon (Y3)...................................................................................................................................... 21
3.01.4 Rounded Corner Rectangle (Y4)........................................................................................................ 21
3.01.5 Chamfered Corner Rectangle (Y5)..................................................................................................... 22
3.01.6 Scalloped Corner Rectangle (Y6)....................................................................................................... 22
3.01.7 Star (Y7)............................................................................................................................................. 23
3.01.8 Arrow (Y8).......................................................................................................................................... 23
3.01.9 QR Code (Y9).................................................................................................................................... 24
3.01.10 Displaying Snapping Points on Shapes........................................................................................... 25
3.02 SELECTING................................................................................................................................................. 25
3.03 DELETING................................................................................................................................................... 27
3.04 MOVING..................................................................................................................................................... 27
3.04.1 Moving Shapes Manually................................................................................................................... 27
3.04.2 Moving Shapes Using Position Settings.............................................................................................28
3.04.3 Moving Shapes Using a Dynamic Axis............................................................................................... 29
3.05 RESIZING................................................................................................................................................... 32
3.05.1 Resizing Shapes Manually................................................................................................................. 32
3.05.2 Resizing Shapes Using Size Settings................................................................................................33
3.05.3 Resizing Shapes to Match the Sign Area...........................................................................................34

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 3.06 ROTATING.................................................................................................................................................. 34
3.06.1 Rotating Shapes Manually................................................................................................................. 35
3.06.2 Rotating Shapes Using Rotate Setting in Object Edit.........................................................................36
3.06.3 Rotating Shapes Using Rotate Setting on the Toolbar.......................................................................37
3.07 SKEWING................................................................................................................................................... 38
3.08 MIRRORING................................................................................................................................................ 39
3.08.1 Regular Mirroring............................................................................................................................... 39
3.08.2 Making Mirrored Copies..................................................................................................................... 40
3.09 COLORING.................................................................................................................................................. 40
3.09.1 Color Palette...................................................................................................................................... 41
3.09.2 Color Palette Tools............................................................................................................................. 41
3.09.3 Select by Color (C)............................................................................................................................. 44
3.09.4 Custom Palette................................................................................................................................... 46
3.10 CUTTING, COPYING, PASTING...................................................................................................................... 47
3.10.1 Cutting to the Clipboard (Ctrl+X)........................................................................................................ 47
3.10.2 Copying to the Clipboard (Ctrl+C)...................................................................................................... 47
3.10.3 Pasting from the Clipboard (Ctrl+V)................................................................................................... 47
3.11 DUPLICATING.............................................................................................................................................. 48
3.11. Duplicate in Object Edit Mode.............................................................................................................. 48
3.11.2 Duplicate Function (Ctrl+D)................................................................................................................ 48
3.11.3 Dynamic Axis Duplicate..................................................................................................................... 49
3.11.4 Duplicating Shapes into Other Projects..............................................................................................50
3.12 CLONING.................................................................................................................................................... 51
3.13 FILTERING.................................................................................................................................................. 52
3.14 GROUPING AND UNGROUPING..................................................................................................................... 53
3.14.1 Group (Ctrl+G)................................................................................................................................... 53
3.14.2 Ungroup (Ctrl+U)................................................................................................................................ 54
3.15 COMBINING AND BREAKING......................................................................................................................... 54
3.15.1 Combine (Ctrl+L)................................................................................................................................ 54
3.15.2 Break Apart (Ctrl+K)........................................................................................................................... 55
3.16 ARRANGING (ORDERING) SHAPES............................................................................................................... 55
3.17 ALIGNING (E2)............................................................................................................................................ 57
3.17.1 Align to Selection............................................................................................................................... 58
3.17.2 Align to Sign....................................................................................................................................... 59
3.17.3 Align to Reference Object.................................................................................................................. 60
3.18 DISTRIBUTING (E3)..................................................................................................................................... 61
3.18.1 Distribute Horizontally........................................................................................................................ 61
3.18.2 Distribute Vertically............................................................................................................................ 62
3.19 GUIDELINES................................................................................................................................................ 63
3.19.1 Guidelines Dragged from the Rulers.................................................................................................. 63
3.19.2 Guidelines & Placement Tool (E1)..................................................................................................... 64
3.19.3 Automatic Guidelines from Selected Shapes.....................................................................................65
3.19.4 Hiding Guidelines............................................................................................................................... 66
4. WORKING WITH TEXT................................................................................................................................... 67
4.01 TEXT CREATION (R).................................................................................................................................... 67
4.01.1 Click and Type Text Entry.................................................................................................................. 67
4.01.2 Text Entry Using a Text Box.............................................................................................................. 67
4.02 TEXT SETTINGS.......................................................................................................................................... 69
4.03 CONVERT TO CURVES................................................................................................................................. 72
4.04 WELDING TEXT........................................................................................................................................... 73
4.05 WELDING TITLES IN IMAGINATIVE WAYS....................................................................................................... 74
4.06 CREATING A SHADOW MAT/OUTLINE ON LETTERING (A1).............................................................................74
4.07 STENCILING LETTERS.................................................................................................................................. 76
4.08 KNOCKOUT TEXT........................................................................................................................................ 78
4.09 AUTOMATIC NUMBERING............................................................................................................................. 80
4.10 SHADOW EFFECT (A4)................................................................................................................................ 82
4.11 BENDING EFFECT (A5)................................................................................................................................ 83
5. TRACING AND DRAWING.............................................................................................................................. 86

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 5.01 RASTER VERSUS VECTOR........................................................................................................................... 86
5.02 FINDING EASY IMAGES TO TRACE................................................................................................................ 87
5.03 BITMAP TOOL (I)......................................................................................................................................... 88
5.03.1 Importing an Image to Trace.............................................................................................................. 88
5.03.2 Image Adjustment Options................................................................................................................. 89
5.04 OPTIONS IN BITMAP TOOL........................................................................................................................... 93
5.05 CREATE LINE RASTER FROM BITMAP........................................................................................................... 93
5.05.1 Engrave Lines.................................................................................................................................... 95
5.05.2 Cut Lines............................................................................................................................................ 96
5.05.3 Diffused Lines:................................................................................................................................... 97
5.06 CREATE VECTORS FROM BITMAP................................................................................................................. 98
5.06.1 Color Identification Bars..................................................................................................................... 99
5.06.2 Color Selection Bar.......................................................................................................................... 103
5.06.3 Vectorize Options and View Options................................................................................................ 105
5.06.4 Trace Settings.................................................................................................................................. 108
5.07 BITMAP SIZE FRAME................................................................................................................................. 111
5.07.1 Resize a Bitmap Without Maintaining Proportions...........................................................................111
5.07.2 Resize a Bitmap Based on a Point of Reference.............................................................................112
5.07.3 Resize a Bitmap to Estimate Dimensions........................................................................................113
5.08 CREATE OUTLINE ON BITMAP.................................................................................................................... 114
5.09 CREATE CARD REGISTRATION MARKS....................................................................................................... 116
5.10 PEN TOOLS (T)........................................................................................................................................ 119
5.10.1 Drawing Straight Lines (T1)............................................................................................................. 119
5.10.2 Controlling Position, Size, and Angles While Drawing.....................................................................121
5.10.3 Adding Guidelines While Drawing.................................................................................................... 122
5.10.4 Drawing Bézier Curves.................................................................................................................... 123
5.10.5 Drawing an Arc................................................................................................................................. 125
5.10.6 Freehand Drawing (T2).................................................................................................................... 126
5.11 MANUALLY TRACING AN IMPORTED IMAGE.................................................................................................. 126
5.12 SEND BITMAP TO GRAPHIC TRACER........................................................................................................... 129
6. EDITING......................................................................................................................................................... 130
6.01 SIZE FILTER............................................................................................................................................. 130
6.02 SPLIT OBJECT TOOL (T3)......................................................................................................................... 131
6.02.1 Using Split Object to Break a Path................................................................................................... 131
6.02.2 Using Split Object to Bisect a Shape................................................................................................131
6.03 NODE EDITING BASICS.............................................................................................................................. 132
6.03.1 Node Size Preference...................................................................................................................... 132
6.03.2 Node Edit Tool (O)........................................................................................................................... 132
6.03.3 Selecting Paths and Nodes.............................................................................................................. 134
6.03.4 Adding and Deleting Nodes............................................................................................................. 136
6.03.5 Moving Paths and Nodes................................................................................................................. 137
6.03.6 Converting Paths.............................................................................................................................. 140
6.03.7 Converting Nodes............................................................................................................................ 142
6.04 ROUND OFF CORNERS............................................................................................................................. 143
6.04.1 Round Off Corners in Object Edit Mode...........................................................................................144
6.04.2 Round a Corner in Node Edit Mode................................................................................................. 145
6.05 REDUCE NUMBER OF NODES.................................................................................................................... 146
6.05.1 Reduce Number of Nodes in Object Edit Mode...............................................................................146
6.05.2 Reduce Number of Nodes in Node Edit Mode.................................................................................147
6.06 SPLIT PATH.............................................................................................................................................. 148
6.06.1 Splitting a Path at the Nodes............................................................................................................ 148
6.06.2 Splitting a Path on the Path.............................................................................................................. 149
6.07 JOIN PATHS.............................................................................................................................................. 150
6.08 STRAIGHTEN FUNCTION (O2).................................................................................................................... 151
6.08.1 Aligning Nodes Along Straight Lines................................................................................................152
6.08.2 Using Distance to Reposition Nodes................................................................................................ 155
6.09 CLONE SECTION (O3)............................................................................................................................... 156
6.10 HAIRCROSS SNAP..................................................................................................................................... 158

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7. DESIGNING................................................................................................................................................... 159
7.01 WHERE DO I START WITH LEARNING TO DESIGN?......................................................................................159
7.02 MEASURE TOOL (P).................................................................................................................................. 159
7.02.1 Measure (P1)................................................................................................................................... 159
7.02.2 Ref. Frame (P2)............................................................................................................................... 161
7.02.3 Dimensions (P3)............................................................................................................................... 164
7.02.4 Comments (P4)................................................................................................................................ 165
7.03 WEEDING LINE TOOL (T4)......................................................................................................................... 166
7.04 WELD TOOL (M)....................................................................................................................................... 167
7.05 ROTATED DUPLICATES.............................................................................................................................. 168
7.06 EFFECTS TOOLS (A)................................................................................................................................. 170
7.07 CONTOUR (A1)......................................................................................................................................... 170
7.08 PUNCH (A2)............................................................................................................................................. 172
7.08.1 Normal Punch.................................................................................................................................. 173
7.08.2 Overlap Punch................................................................................................................................. 174
7.08.3 Gap Punch....................................................................................................................................... 174
7.09 INTERSECT (A3)....................................................................................................................................... 175
7.10 FILL (A6).................................................................................................................................................. 176
7.10.1 Regular Fill....................................................................................................................................... 176
7.10.2 Random Fill...................................................................................................................................... 177
7.10.3 Packed Fill....................................................................................................................................... 181
7.10.4 Edge Fill........................................................................................................................................... 183
7.11 DASH (A7)............................................................................................................................................... 186
7.11.1 Advanced Dash................................................................................................................................ 186
7.11.2 Decal Cutting................................................................................................................................... 187
7.12 HATCH (A8)............................................................................................................................................. 189
7.13 RHINESTONE (A9).................................................................................................................................... 191
7.13.1 Guidelines for Rhinestone Pattern Design.......................................................................................192
7.13.2 Rhinestone Outline - Edge............................................................................................................... 193
7.13.3 Rhinestone Fill - Contoured............................................................................................................. 195
7.13.4 Rhinestone Fill – Matrix.................................................................................................................... 197
7.13.5 Rhinestone Fill –Horizontal Shift and Vertical Shift..........................................................................198
7.13.6 Adding an Outline to a Rhinestone Design......................................................................................199
7.13.7 Using Purchased Rhinestone Fonts and Designs............................................................................200
8. OUTPUT........................................................................................................................................................ 203
8.01 MATERIAL TAB.......................................................................................................................................... 203
8.01.1 Placing and Arranging Shapes onto the Material Tab......................................................................204
8.01.2 Split Graphics at Material Border..................................................................................................... 206
8.01.3 Nesting............................................................................................................................................. 207
8.02 MODULES................................................................................................................................................. 210
8.02.1 Creating Modules............................................................................................................................. 210
8.02.2 Arranging Modules on the Material Tab........................................................................................... 213
8.03 REGISTRATION MARKS.............................................................................................................................. 214
8.03.1 Registration Mark Options in Sign Setup.........................................................................................214
8.03.2 Registration Marks in Contour Cutting Applications.........................................................................216
8.03.3 Alignment Registration Marks.......................................................................................................... 217
8.04 PRINTING................................................................................................................................................. 218
8.05 SEND PROJECT TO SIGNCUT PRO 2.......................................................................................................... 219
APPENDIX A SHORTCUT AND ICONS........................................................................................................... 220

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 1. Preferences and Workspace

1.01 Main SignCut Draw Screen

 The following identifies various parts of the screen in SignCut Draw. Note the names of the items shown as
they will be referenced throughout this user manual:

Menu Bar Help Panel

Toolbar

Properties & Functions Bar

Tools Sign Area Design Board

Panel
Filter Colors &
Objects Panel

View Options
Bar

Rulers Shapes Margins

Project Bar

Design Board Bar

Status Bar Color Palette

 Hovering your mouse over most of the screen icons will pop up the icon’s name and available shortcut.
 While the shortcuts are shown with uppercase letters, use lowercase keys on your keyboard when
executing.
 On the Tools Panel, the shortcut keys (top to bottom) are in the same order as the alphanumeric keys
on your keyboard (left to right: Q, W, E, R, T, Y, U, I, O, P, A, S). When needing to switch back and forth
between any two tools, double-clicking an empty part of the Sign Area will toggle between the last two
tools used.
 Note that in some cases, as with functions on the Tools Panel, a shortcut key can be followed with a
number to provide even faster access to a function plus one of its options on the Properties &
Functions Bar. These shortcuts are written in this manual as, for example, E1, where you would press
the “E” key, release, and then you would press the number “1”. With other shortcuts, such as Ctrl+S,
the “+” indicates you hold down the first key while pressing the next (i.e. hold the Ctrl key while pressing
the S key).
o Alternatively, you can repeatedly press one of the letters to cycle through the options for those
particular tools.

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  Any shortcut with the letter “F”, such a F1, F2, F3, etc., refers to your keyboard’s function keys along the
top.
 In order to better remember where major elements are located, note that the term “bar” is used when
components are laid out horizontally (such as the Toolbar) and the term “panel” is used when components
are laid out vertically (such as the Tools Panel).
 The Design Board refers to the entire white space available for placing shapes. The Sign Area refers to
the portion inside the blue dashed lines. The Margin area is between the green dashed lines and the blue
dashed lines.
 Shapes are the objects or images that you will be adding to your projects. They can be created from scratch
or imported from other sources.

1.02 Default Settings in SignCut Draw

 To open the Options window, go to Settings>Settings. There are two tabs of default settings: General and
Editing. Note that most of the settings will be covered in detail in later parts of the user manual and the
relevant section numbers are indicated in the following screenshots.

1.02.1 Default Settings – General

Select the General tab

Section 8.03.1
Select preferred Units and
Section 8.05 number of Decimal places for
display

See below Frequency of Autosave

Click on OK to save changes

 For now, the important settings that should be noted are:

 Unit: Select from inch, centimeter, or millimeter, based on what you feel most comfortable using. You
can also specify the number of decimal places you prefer. If you prefer to switch between units, there is
an icon on the Properties & Functions Bar that can be clicked at any time:

Click here to switch to

a different Unit

 Autosave time: Enter how frequently you want the program to save the current project in the event the
software crashes. When you reopen SignCut Draw, you will be provided a chance to recover the last
auto-saved version. To avoid the prompt, you can hold the Shift key when relaunching the program.

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  Node size: Whenever a shape is selected, it’s nodes (the points that connect one path to the next) will
appear on that shape as empty squares. You have three options for the display size of those nodes.
Choosing a size is entirely a personal preference and does not affect how the shape will eventually cut
(or print). Note that the large black squares are bounding box handles, not the nodes:

Nodes set to Small Nodes set to Medium Nodes set to Large

1.02.2 Default Settings – Editing

Select the Editing tab

Section 3.11.3

Section 6.10
Section 3.06.1

Click on OK to save changes

 Each of these settings will be covered in the sections indicated.

1.02.3 Default Settings – Color Management

 SignCut Draw also supports color profiles for various professional printers. Having the correct profile set will
ensure that imported graphics and graphics exported will look correct in other programs.
 Go to Settings>Color Management and two options appear. Select the correct color profile from each
drop-down menu. These will now be the default settings when importing and exporting files.

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1.03 Sign Setup (W1)

 In SignCut Draw, the Sign Area refers to the portion of the screen where you will create a project for
printing and/or cutting. To customize the dimensions, enter the Sign set up mode using one of the
following:

 Click on the Sign set up icon on the Tools Panel

 Press the shortcut W1
 Double click anywhere along the blue dashed line around the current Sign Area

 In Sign set up mode, the Properties & Functions Bar will have new settings:

2. Enter dimensions or
select a Preset 5. Click on Apply to Load a template
save
1. Mark the
Size option if
not already
selected

3. Landscape checkbox 4. Margins options Save this template

 The dimensions for the Sign Area can either be entered under Sign size or, if it’s a commonly used format,
selected from the drop-down menu under Presets.
 Margins can be set as guides so that you will be able to keep shapes within required boundaries, such as
for printing and/or positioning of registration marks.
 Entering a Margin size in the left most field will automatically fill in the same size for the other three
fields. Alternatively, different sizes can be entered into these other three fields.
 The Margins can either be entered as specific values, such as the 0.39” shown in the screenshot, or by
marking the % option and entering a percentage.

 When Margins are set to 0, the outside boundaries of the Sign Area will be green instead of blue.

With Margins Margins set to 0

 Frequently used settings can be saved as a Template. Click on the Save this template icon , enter an
appropriate name, and note the location where you are saving the template. When starting a new project,

use the Load a template icon to open a saved template.

 Note that while you are in Sign setup mode, any shapes already present on the Design Board will be
grayed out and inactive.

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 Note also that in the Presets drop-down menu, an option called Graphics Size will resize the Sign to match
the bounding box around the shapes already present in the project:

 Landscape is checked by default. By unchecking the box, the preset area will be turned 90 degrees.

 Another way to achieve this, while in Object edit mode (Q), is to hold the Shift key and click the Y/X

icon to resize the Sign Area (within the green dashed borders) to match the dimensions of the
shapes:

Shift + click

Sign Area resized to fit shapes

Original Sign Area

1.04 Rulers

 The horizontal and vertical Rulers at the top and left side of the Design Board are, as expected, based on
the Units specified under Settings>Settings.
 When a shape is selected, the Rulers indicate the location of that shape via a lighter shading:

Location of
selected shape

Location of
selected shape

1.05 Zooming and Panning

 SignCut Draw offers the following shortcuts for easy zooming. The icons are located on the Toolbar at the
top of the screen:

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  To freely zoom in and zoom out, roll the mouse wheel. When zooming in, use the location of the mouse
cursor to control the part of the screen that will become central to the zoom.

 To marquee zoom, press F2 or click the Zoom to frame icon and then drag the mouse to
encompass the part of the screen to magnify.

 To zoom in on selected shapes, press Shift+F2 or click the Zoom to selected icon .

 To zoom out one magnification level at a time, press F3 or click the Zoom out icon .
 To zoom in one magnification level at a time, press Shift+F3.
 To zoom in on all active of active color(s), press F4.
 To zoom in on all shapes, press Ctrl+F4.

 To zoom out to the Sign Area, press Shift+F4 or click the Zoom to entire sign icon .
 To zoom to 100%, press the Spacebar. Note that this can be changed to 200% by marking this icon on
the Toolbar:

 The Spacebar zooming shortcut can also be customized:

 With either the 100% or 200% marked and a desired magnification level on the screen, press
Shift+Spacebar to store that new magnification level.
 For example, you might have a specific shape you will be repeatedly zooming to. By selecting that
shape and pressing Shift+F2, you will be zoomed in the shape. If you then press Shift+Spacebar, you
will now have that zoom level saved:

 Further, in a case like this, it might also be desirable to zoom to that particular shape, not just to the
equivalent zoom level. To do this, press Ctrl+Spacebar new zoom level will be in bold type now:

 Panning: When already zoomed in, to make any location on the screen the center of the screen, move the
cursor to the desired new center point and use either of the following:
 Right click your mouse
 Press Z

Right click
mouse OR
press Z

Cursor placed here This is now the center of the screen

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 1.06 Undo, Redo, and Repeat

1.06.1 Undo

 As with most Windows applications, there is an Undo function to reverse the most recent steps performed.
You can use any of the following to execute the Undo function:

 Click on the Undo icon on the upper Toolbar

 Press Ctrl+Z
 Go to Edit>Undo

1.06.2 Redo

 As with most applications, there is also a Redo function in case you Undo too many steps or simply change
your mind. You can use any of the following to execute the Redo function:

 Click on the Redo icon on the upper Toolbar

 Press Ctrl+Shift+Z
 Go to Edit>Redo

1.06.3 Repeat

 SignCut Draw offers a very useful feature with the Repeat function which will repeat the last step executed.
To use the repeat function:
 Press Ctrl+R
 Go to Edit>Repeat

 For example, it can be used as a duplicate function. Select a shape and duplicate by pressing both the right
and left mouse keys while dragging. Then, use Ctrl+R to repeat as many times as needed:

Select shape Press right & left mouse buttons and Press Ctrl+R, as needed, to make more duplicates
drag to make a copy

1.07 Projects

 The Project Bar is located below the Design Board and consists of a series of tabs titled alphabetically.

Open projects Start a new project: refer to

Section 2.01.1

 Clicking on any Project Tab on the Project Bar will then access that project. Note that you can copy/paste
and cut/paste between open projects when needed. Refer to Section 3.10.

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 When switching from one project to the next, whatever Tool is currently selected will not automatically be
selected in the next project. However, other global settings, such as Show Fill and the Zoom level will be
the same for all projects.

1.08 View Settings

 In the lower right corner, above the Color Palette, is the View Options Bar. Note the section numbers
where the various uses of these functions are covered:

Dash hidden contours View registration marks

Section 3.09.2 and 3.16 Section 8.03.1

View dimensions and comments

View inactive objects Section 7.02.2
Section 3.09.3

View guidelines View bitmap mask

Section 3.19.4 Section 5.03.2

 To refresh the SignCut Draw screen either go to View>Update window or press the shortcut Ctrl+W.

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1.09 Help Resources

 The following options provide access for SignCut Draw help:

 Go to Help>Help for access to a user guide
 Appendix A contains all of the shortcuts and icons used in SignCut Draw, along with the section
numbers where instructions are covered
 The Help Panel on the right side of the screen provides information relative to the current function or
tool in use:
Scroll back or forward
Go to first Help panel on pages viewed
Help Panel tabs

o There are 3 tabs:

 Help tab: information pertaining to current tool or function in use.
 Keys tab: most commonly used shortcut keys
 Videos tab: links to downloadable videos covering various functions

o The information on each tab will change as you select different functions or tools. Clicking on
underlined blue links will open new pages for details. Scroll arrows at the top help you navigate the
pages you’ve accessed.
o The Home icon will always take you back to the original home page.

 Online support for SignCut includes:

o SignCut Pro Facebook Page
o SignCut Academy on YouTube
o SignCut Academy on Vimeo

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 1.10 Right-Click menus

 In several of the tools in SignCut Draw you can right-click for quick access to relevant functions to the
current activity. All of the options in these menus are available in the regular tool-bar above the workspace.

◊ While working with objects, the options are changed as needed. Some of this includes different
options while an object is marked, if the marked object is part of a group or is a clone of another
object.

◊ When using the Sign setup, the menus will display options for re-sizing the sign area.

◊ While using the Text tool, you can turn the text into curves.

2. File Handling

2.01 Opening and Saving Files in SignCut Draw

2.01.1 Opening a New File/Project

 When you launch SignCut Draw, a new blank Design Board will appear.
 To open a new file (start a new project), after you’ve already opened SignCut Draw, any of the following can
be used:
 Click on the + tab at the bottom of the screen, just below the Design Board. This will open
a new Sign Area without closing the current project. Note that you can continue to add new projects, as
needed, and each new one will be assigned the next letter in the alphabet.
 Go to File>New. A popup window will provide the option to save your current project (or close without
saving) before a new project is started.

 Click on the New icon on the Toolbar

 Use the shortcut W1 to open the Sign setup tool. The Load Template icon can then be used to import
a new Sign Area setup (assuming you’ve previously saved a template).
 Note that when starting a new project, it’s advisable to set up the Sign Area to match the final application
dimensions. Refer back to Section 1.03 for directions.

2.01.2 Opening an Existing SCD File

 An existing .scd file can be opened into SignCut Draw using any of the following:

 Click on the Open icon on the Toolbar

 Press Ctrl+O
 Go to File>Open
 Go to File>Open Recent to access a menu of the five most recently used files
 Drag and drop an .scd file onto the main screen of SignCut Draw

 Press Shift and click the Open icon on the Toolbar

 In the first three options above, a window will open where you can browse to locate the file you wish to
open.
 With the option of using a drag and drop method, the file will automatically open when the file is dropped
onto the Sign Area.

15
 The last option, Shift + clicking on the Open icon will open a window similar to the Clipart tool,
presented in Section 2.03. Refer to that section for instructions on setting up a Favorites folder for quickly
accessing files. Note that the Favorite folder used for the Clipart tool can be different from the Favorites
folder for opening files
 After a software crash, you should be given the option of opening one or more recovered projects due to the
Autosave function within SignCut Draw. To adjust the frequency in which projects are saved, refer to
Section 1.02.1.
 Note that other file formats besides .scd can be imported into SignCut Draw. Refer to Section 2.02.

2.01.3 Saving a File

 A file can be saved in .scd format using any of the following:

 Click on the Save icon on the upper Toolbar

 Press Ctrl+S
 Go to File>Save or File>Save As
 Close SignCut Draw and a popup window will provide you the option to save before closing.
 If you’ve made changes and wish to save under a different file name, choose File>Save As. Name the file,
choose a location, and click on Save.
 You can add Comments about your file using the Measure tool (P4). This can be handy for your own
future reference or for others using your files. Refer to Section 7.02.4
 You can also export files in a host of other formats. Refer to Section 2.05.

2.02 Importing Other File Formats in SignCut Draw

2.02.1 Importing Vector Files

 The following vector formats can be imported into SignCut Draw:

 To import any of these types of files into the current project:

 Go to File>Import. Browse to locate the folder containing the file.
 By default, all files with an importable file extension from the prior list will be displayed. If you wish to
filter the list to only display a certain type, select the desired type from the drop-down menu in the lower
right corner of the import window:

 Select the file and click on Open.

16
2.02.2 Importing Raster Files (Bitmaps) in SignCut Draw

 To import a raster file (JPG, BMP, GIF, PNG):

 Click on the Bitmap icon on the Tools Panel: or press the shortcut I.

 In the Properties & Functions Bar, click on the Open bitmap file icon and an import window will
open.

 The following raster formats are available for import:

 Browse to locate the folder with the raster file you wish to import. As with importing vector files, initially
all files with an importable file extension from the prior list will be displayed. If you wish to filter the list to
only display a certain type, select the desired type from the drop-down menu in the lower right corner of
the import window:

 Select the file and click on Open.

 You can also copy and paste images from other programs into SignCut Draw.

2.03 Clipart Tool (U)

 The Clipart function in SignCut Draw is used to find and add artwork to your project.

 To access this function, click on the Clipart icon on the Tools Panel or press the shortcut U. The
follow window opens:
Select image Category

17
 Close the Clipart window

 Click on the Category bar to open it and click on a category to show all images in it.
 To import a file, double left click on it.

2.04 Sending Files from SignCut Draw to SignCut Pro 2

 To transfer a project from SignCut Draw to SignCut Pro 2, have the file opened in SignCut Draw.

 Click on the Move image to SignCut icon on the Tools Panel (shortcut S). If SignCut Pro 2 isn’t
already open, it will be launched, and the project will appear.
 If any filters have been applied (as are covered in Sections 3.09 and 3.13), those filtered shapes will not
be transferred.
 If any shapes are selected, then only those shapes will be transferred.

 More details about sending files to SignCut Pro 2 are covered in Section 8.05.

2.05 Exporting in Other File Formats in SignCut Draw

 Besides saving as an .scd file, you can also export in the following vector formats: AI, DXF, EPS, and SVG.
 To export a file, go to File>Export, and the following window will open where you can name the file, select
the file format, and the location for saving:

Select a folder

Name the file

Select file type

Click on Save

 Click on Save to save your exported file.

2.06 Closing and Exiting SignCut Draw

 To close a current project, go to File>Close. If changes have been made you will be given an opportunity to
save the file.
 There are three ways to exit SignCut Draw. In each case you will be given the opportunity to save any
changes made to open projects:

18
 Click the closing X for SignCut Draw’s window
 Go to File>Exit
 Press Alt+F4

19
 3. Manipulating and Coloring Shapes

 This chapter covers the basic ways to modify shapes, such as resizing, moving, rotating, duplicating
coloring, etc. It does not cover special effects or node editing. These will be covered in later chapters.
 Note that while the singular term “shape” will be repeatedly used when describing various functions, it also
typically applies to a selection of shapes. For example, resizing a selection of three shapes uses the same
menu functions or mouse movement as a single shape. Any exceptions to this will be noted.

3.01 Shape Tool (Y)

 SignCut Draw offers the ability to add various basic shapes to the Design Board: Rectangle/Square,
Ellipse/Circle, Polygon, Rounded Corner Rectangle, Chamfered Corner Rectangle, Scalloped Corner
Rectangle, Star, Arrow, and a QR Code. Some of these have customizing functions which will be detailed
in Sections 3.01.1 – 3.01.10.

 To access these various shapes, click on the Shape tool icon on the Tools Panel or press the short
cut key Y. Then select the desired shape from the Properties & Functions at the top:

 Click on any shape’s icon to select that shape. Also, the shortcuts Y1, Y2, Y3, etc. can be used to select
one of the corresponding shapes. The titles of the subsections for each shape indicate the shortcut to use.
 Once a shape is selected, left click once anywhere in the Design Board and, as you move the mouse to a
new location, you will see the shape begin to form. Left click again to complete the shape. From this point
forward you can continue adding more of the same shape, or switch to a different shape, or leave the

Shape tool mode by clicking on the Object edit icon on the Tools Panel (shortcut Q).
 At any time, while in the Shape tool mode, you can change the Size, Position, Order and several other
settings once a shape is created and still selected. These various settings are also present on the
Properties & Functions Bar when in Object edit mode and will be covered in later sections of this chapter.
 You can change the color of the shape by selecting a color from the Color Palette in the lower right corner
of the screen. You can also toggle whether the shape is filled with color by clicking on the Show Fill icon
next to the Color Palette (Shift+F9). More about coloring shapes is presented in Section 3.09.

3.01.1 Rectangle and Square (Y1)

 After selecting the Rectangle shape , left click in two locations to add a rectangle to the Design Board.
 Holding the Ctrl key while dragging the mouse will force the aspect ratio to be 1, resulting in a square:

Left click mouse in two Hold Ctrl key and left click
locations mouse in two locations

20
3.01.2 Ellipse and Circle (Y2)

 After selecting the Circle shape , left click in two locations to add an ellipse to the Design Board.
 Holding the Ctrl key while dragging the mouse will force the aspect ratio to be 1, resulting in a circle:

Left click mouse in two Hold Ctrl key and left click
locations mouse in two locations

3.01.3 Polygon (Y3)

 After selecting the Polygon shape , left click in two locations to add a polygon to the Design Board:

 To the right of the Shapes menu, a setting is available to change the number of sides on the polygon:

Polygon shape is selected Change to desired number of

Sides

 Increase or decrease the Sides setting to whatever you want or need. For example:

Sides: 3 Sides: 6 Sides: 10

3.01.4 Rounded Corner Rectangle (Y4)

 After selecting the Rounded Corner Rectangle shape , left click in two locations to add a rounded
rectangle to the Design Board.
 Holding the Ctrl key while dragging the mouse will force the aspect ratio to be 1, resulting in a rounded
square:

Left click mouse in two Hold Ctrl key and left click
locations mouse in two locations

 To the right of the Shapes menu, a Radius setting is available to change the roundness of the corners:

Rounded corner rectangle

shape is selected Change to desired roundness

21
  Increase or decrease the Radius setting to whatever you want or need. For example:

Radius: 0.10 Radius: 0.25 Radius: 0.75

3.01.5 Chamfered Corner Rectangle (Y5)

 After selecting the Chamfered Corner Rectangle shape , left click in two locations to add a chamfered
rectangle to the Design Board.
 Holding the Ctrl key while dragging the mouse will force the aspect ratio to be 1, resulting in a chamfered
square:

Left click mouse in two Hold Ctrl key and left click
locations mouse in two locations

 To the right of the Shapes menu, a Chamfer setting is available to change the size of the cut at the corners:

Chamfered corner rectangle

shape is selected Change to desired cut

 Increase or decrease the Chamfer setting to whatever you want or need. For example:

Chamfer: 0.10 Chamfer: 0.20 Chamfer: 0.30

3.01.6 Scalloped Corner Rectangle (Y6)

 After selecting the Scalloped Corner Rectangle shape , left click in two locations to add a scalloped
rectangle to the Design Board.
 Holding the Ctrl key while dragging the mouse will force the aspect ratio to be 1, resulting in a scalloped
square:

Left click mouse in two Hold Ctrl key and left click
locations mouse in two locations

 To the right of the Shapes menu, a Radius setting is available to change the roundness of the scalloped
corners:

22
 Scalloped corner rectangle
shape is selected
Change to desired roundness

 Increase or decrease the Radius setting to whatever you want or need. For example:

Radius: 0.20 Radius: 0.30 Radius: 0.40

3.01.7 Star (Y7)

 After selecting the Star shape , left click in two locations to add a star to the Design Board:

 To the right of the Shapes menu are two settings to change the number of points and the sharpness of the
star:
Customize the star with
Star shape is selected these two settings

 The Points setting can be used to change the number of points on the star. The Ratio setting can be
used to change the angle of the inner points. For example:

5 PointsRatio: 38 4 Points, Ratio: 47 8 PointsRatio: 10

3.01.8 Arrow (Y8)

 After selecting the Arrow shape , left click in two locations to add an arrow to the Design Board:

 To the right of the Shapes menu are two settings to adjust in customizing the arrow:

Customize the arrow

Arrow shape is selected with these two settings

 The Width ratio widens or narrows the base/rectangular part of the arrow. For example:

23
 Width Ratio: 20 Width Ratio: 30 Width Ratio: 40

 The Head ratio extends or contracts the width of the head relative to the entire arrow length. For
example:

Head Ratio: 50 Head Ratio: 100 Head Ratio: 150

3.01.9 QR Code (Y9)

 After selecting the QR Code shape , left click in two locations to add an empty square to the Sign Area.
The QR Code window will open and you can now enter the information you wanted coded:

Enter QR Code
information

Option to export QR
Code as EPS file
Empty square where the QR
code will be created
Location for QR Code
file to be saved

 In the Text box enter the information you want the QR code to contain.
 Marking the Auto-export option will create an EPS file of the code and it will be saved in the Path
location you enter.

 After clicking on OK, the QR code will be created. Note that tiny slashed lines will appear which are useful
when cutting a code from vinyl and needing to weed out those interior shapes:

Tiny diagonal slashes indicate parts of

the waste material that would need to
be weeded

 If you wish to remove the slashed lines, click on the Filter objects with no fill icon on the right-
side Filter Colors and Objects Panel. Use Ctrl+A to select these lines and press the Delete key. Then
click on the icon again to restore the QR code.
 Note that the slashed lines will not appear in the exported EPS version of the QR code. This file can be
reimported, if you wish, for verification with your scanning app.
 Alternatively, you can also create a QR code without the slashes using this method:

24
 o Make sure the Sign area has Margins that are at least 0.394” (10 mm) in size (refer to Section
1.03).
o When initially selecting the QR Code shape, hold the Shift key while clicking. This will immediately
open the QR Code window.
o Add the information to be coded and click on OK. The QR code will be created and placed in the
lower left corner of the Sign in the Margin area:
When using Shift+ , the code will be place in the
lower left corner of the Sign, in the Margin area

o The QR code can now be moved and resized, as desired.

3.01.10 Displaying Snapping Points on Shapes

 At any time, you can go to Shape tool mode and display the snapping points (nodes and center point) on all
active shapes by pressing the left mouse and dragging slightly. A radial blue line pattern appears and, at
that point, the nodes will appear:

Cursor happened to be here

when mouse was dragged
Snapping points appear on slightly
all shapes

 To avoid creating a new shape, drag the mouse back to where you started and release the left mouse
button.

3.02 Selecting

 To select a shape, make sure the Object edit mode is selected on the Tools Panel (or press Q). Then
use any of the following methods:

 Click anywhere on the shape (along an edge or inside a closed shape):

Click here, along an

edge Or click here, inside
Shape is now selected
the shape

 Another way to select is to drag the mouse starting clearly outside of the shape’s boundary, to enclose
the entire shape (aka marquee-select):
As you drag the mouse, a blue
dotted line will indicate the
enclosure
Shape is now selected

25
 Once selected a shape will have 8 handles (small black squares) surrounding it and a small X in the center
of the shape. The handles can be used to resize the shape (refer to Section 3.05). Nodes that make up the
shape will appear as empty circles:

Handles for manual

resizing Nodes which construct
the shape

Center of shape

 Clicking inside the shape a second time will change the handles and the center X, plus their purpose. In
the following mode the handles can be used to rotate (refer to Section 3.06) or skew (refer to Section
3.07). The center X, which is now a circle with a dot can be moved to provide a reference for rotation.
This, too, will be covered in more detail in Section 3.06.

Handles for manual

rotating
Handles for manual
skewing
Reference for
rotation

 There are several ways to select more than one shape:

 Select the first shape and hold down the Shift key while clicking on additional shapes.
 Drag the mouse (marquee-select) to encompass the shapes. Always make sure you start clearly outside
the boundaries of the shapes you want to select.
 If you wish to select all the shapes on the screen, go to Edit>Select All (Ctrl+A).

 Note that the lower left corner of the Status Bar displays the number of individual shapes selected:

 The shortcut keys N and Shift+N select the next shape and previous shape, respectively.
 To select all identical shapes (type and size), select one and then go to Edit>Select Identical or use the
shortcut: Ctrl+I. Note that the color of the shapes can be different:

This green star is picked and Select The expanded bounding box The color orange is selected and all
Identical is applied indicates more of the same shape 4 of the stars of that size are
has been selected recolored orange

 To unselect all shapes, click anywhere else on the screen and selected shapes will be de-selected.
 Selecting by color is covered in Section 3.09.3. Selecting individual shapes out of grouped shapes is
covered in Section 3.14.1. Selecting shapes to hide (make inactive) is covered in Section 3.13.

26
3.03 Deleting

 To delete a selected shape, use any of the following options:

 Press the Delete key on the keyboard
 Go to Edit>Delete

 To delete all the shapes in the current project:

 Use one of the methods from Section 3.02 to select all shapes
 Then delete using any of the prior options listed for deleting a selected shape

3.04 Moving

3.04.1 Moving Shapes Manually

 To manually move a selected shape, hold down the left mouse button on any part of the shape (inside or
along an edge) and drag the shape to a new location.
 To move a shape and maintain horizontal or vertical alignment, hold the Ctrl key while dragging or use the
arrow keys on your keyboard.
 This distance moved by each tap of an arrow key is called the Nudge distance. The default is 0.04”. To
increase or decrease that setting, use the PgUp and PgDn keys on your keyboard or use the numbers
1 – 0 in the horizontal row of numeric keys (Note that a keypad on your keyboard cannot be used).
o The following shows the distances for each numeric key:
1 = 0” (0 mm) 6 = 0.394” (10 mm)
2 = 0.004” (0.1 mm) 7 = 1.968” (50 mm)
3 = 0.039” (1.0 mm) 8 = 3.937” (100 mm)
4 = 0.098” (2.5 mm) 9 = 19.685” (500 mm)
5 = 0.197” (5.0 mm) 0 = 0.04” (1.0 mm)

o The current Nudge distance is displayed in the Status Bar at the bottom of the screen:
Current Nudge distance

 If a shape has been rotated and you wish to then move the shape along the angle of rotation, hold the
Alt key while using the arrow key:

Red square is rotated Alt + right arrow key Red square moves away
(refer to Section 3.06) applied to red square from blue at the angle of
rotation that was applied

 Note also that as you manually move a shape, the Position is also updated in the Status Bar:

27
 Current Position

 Shapes can also be manually moved along guidelines. Refer to Section 3.19.

3.04.2 Moving Shapes Using Position Settings

 With a shape selected, the Position settings on the Properties & Functions Bar indicate the exact location
of the center of the selected shape with respect to the lower left corner of the Sign Area. For example, to
position this 1” x 2” rectangle at the very corner of the Sign Area, enter the following positions for the center
of that rectangle. (Note that when you enter new values, click on the Apply button.)

Y and X Position of Center of the rectangle is at

the shape’s center Click on Apply Y: 0.5 and X: 1.0

Reference location
Rectangle is 1” high Lower left corner of the
and 2” wide Sign Area

 You can enter new values into either or both Y and X windows to move the shape to a new location. Click
on the Apply button to complete the move:

Center of the rectangle is now

at Y: 1.0 and X: 2.0
New Y and X Position of the Click on Apply
shape’s center

Lower left corner of the Sign

Area

 Instead of entering a specific location, you can also move a shape a specific distance, called a Relative
Move. Mark the Relative box next to Position and then enter either a Y distance or an X distance to move
the selected shape:

28
 Center of the rectangle is now
at Y: 1.5 and X: 2.0

1. Mark the Relative option here

3. Click on Apply

2. Enter the distance to move

the shape

 Once you unmark the Relative option box, the new Position will appear:

 The Reference location, by default, is based on the center of the shape. However, this can be changed if
needed. Click on a different location, such as the bottom left corner, and the Position values will
immediately update:
Position based on center Position based on lower left corner

 Being able to change the Reference point is very useful when designing files that require specific
dimensions and alignment, such as score-and-cut projects.

3.04.3 Moving Shapes Using a Dynamic Axis

 A Dynamic Axis allows you to position and move a shape based on a reference point. Typically, this
reference point is based on a specific location on another shape although it can also be set anywhere at all
in the Sign Area. Note that a Dynamic Axis is similar to a guideline but with more specific applications.
Guidelines are covered in Section 3.19.
 To add a Dynamic Axis, hold the Shift key and drag from either ruler or from the intersection of the rulers.
As you are dragging, you will see a small line which will move as you slide the mouse cursor along the line.
This is the Reference point on the Dynamic Axis:

Horizontal Dynamic Axis Vertical Dynamic Axis Angled Dynamic Axis

 When the Reference point is moved close to a node on a shape or the geometric center, it will snap to that
position. Thus, for example, the following screenshot shows the Reference point positioned in the top right
corner of a 1” square:

29
 Once the Reference point is close to the location Once the Reference point is close to the center of a
of a node it will snap to that location shape it will snap to that location

Or…

 Once you have released the mouse, two new settings appear on the Properties & Functions Bar:

 Angle: the angle of the Dynamic Axis whereby a horizontal axis will display 0, a vertical axis will
display 90, and an angled axis will display 45
 Distance: how far the Reference point is located from the lower left corner of the Sign Area:

Distance

Reference point

Sign Area corner

 The Dynamic Axis and Reference point can now be used to position other shapes. As you manually move
another shape to the axis, it will snap to it:
Second shape snaps to the
Dynamic Axis

 To use in relocating a second shape, first you need to decide which part of the second shape you want
to specifically position a certain distance from the Reference point. Click on the shape at the location
spot. In this case, the center of the star is clicked:

Star is clicked at its center

 When a Distance is now entered, the center of the star will be repositioned along the axis at that
distance from the Reference point:

30
 The center of the star is now aligned on the
axis, 3” from the Reference point.

 On the other hand, if the bottom left point of the star had been clicked, then the bottom left point of the
start would have ended up on the axis:

The bottom left corner point The same Distance of The bottom left point is now 3” from
is clicked 3” is applied the Reference point.

 A vertical Dynamic Axis works in the same manner. In this example, the Reference point is in the center
of the square and the star’s upper point is clicked:

The star is clicked at the

upper point

A vertical Dynamic Axis is

added with the Reference After applying a
point at the center Distance of 3”, the top
of the star is now 3”
from the Reference
point.

 An angled Dynamic Axis works in the same manner as well. Note that the angle initially created when the
axis is dragged from the upper left corner is 450. However, the drop-down menu allows you to change that
angle, as needed:

The angle of the Dynamic Axis is

changed to 600

 In this example, the node on the right side of the star is dragged and a Distance of 2” is applied:

31
 Right side node is now 2” from
the Reference point at a 600
angle

 The Dynamic Axis function can also be used to duplicate shapes. Refer to Section 3.11.4.

3.05 Resizing

3.05.1 Resizing Shapes Manually

 To manually resize a selected shape, drag one of the handles along the bounding box.
 The corner handles will resize proportionately:

 The middle handles can be used to resize either the width or the height independently (called
stretching):

 You can also stretch a shape using the shortcuts Shift + arrow keys. The up/down arrow keys stretch
vertically while the left/right arrow keys stretch horizontally. Each key tap will stretch the shape based on
the current Nudge distance setting. Refer to Section 3.04.1 for instructions on changing that distance.
o Use Shift + Ctrl + arrow keys to resize proportionately.

 Note also that as you manually resize a shape, the size is being updated in the Status Bar at the bottom of
the screen:

Current Size

32
 When manually dragging a handle, holding the Shift key will result in the shape remaining centered. For
example, if the following circle, which is already centered inside a square, is resized either with or without
the Shift key, the results show the advantage of using the Shift key:

versus

Circle is selected Dragging upper right Circle is selected Holding Shift key while
corner toward the dragging the same corner (or
circle’s center any corner)

3.05.2 Resizing Shapes Using Size Settings

 The Size settings are available on the Properties & Functions Bar whenever Object edit, the Shapes
tool, or Bitmap is selected from the Tools Panel. For this section of the manual, the Size settings in the
Object edit mode will be presented:

Relative resizing option Proportional option

Click Apply to change to

new settings

Height and Width settings

 Height and Width settings can be directly entered or changed using the + and – buttons. After entering
new sizes click on the Apply icon.
 Mark the Proportional option to lock the aspect ratio between Height and Width. Thus, when changing
one setting, the other will automatically update to keep the ratio the same:
o With Proportional option unchecked and the Width is increased to 3.0:

Proportional option
unchecked

Only the width is changed

o With Proportional option checked and the Width is increased to 3.0:

Proportional option is
checked

The height and width are

both changed

 Mark the Relative option to resize a shape by a specific amount. Let’s say a rectangle needs to be 0.25”
wider. Note that when the Relative box is marked the entry fields become blank:

33
 1. Check the Relative option 4. Uncheck the Relative option

Original size 2. Enter amount to increase 3. Click New size

on Apply icon

 If you also have marked the Proportional option, then when entering a new value in one field, the other
field will automatically update with the correct amount to keep the aspect ratio the same:

1. Check both options 4. Uncheck the Relative option

Original size 2. Enter amount to increase in one field New size

and the other will update3. Click on
Apply icon

3.05.3 Resizing Shapes to Match the Sign Area

 In some situations, it might be desirable to resize the shapes in your project to match the dimensions of the
Sign Area. For example, you might want the largest possible size for 16 stars to be cut from one sheet of
cardstock.

 To do this, hold the Ctrl key and double click the Y/X icon to resize the shapes to match the Sign
Area (within the green dashed borders):

Ctrl + double click

Original Sign Area Shapes resized to fit Sign Area

 Note that it is also possible to resize the Sign Area to match the shapes, which might be desirable in
other situations. Refer back to Section 1.03.

3.06 Rotating

 This section covers four ways to rotate a shape in SignCut Draw:

34
  By manually dragging a rotate handle (Section 3.06.1)
 By using the arrow keys on your keyboard (Section 3.06.1)
 By entering a rotation value on the Properties & Functions while Object Edit tool is selected (Section
3.06.2)
 By entering a rotation value on the Toolbar (Section 3.06.3)

 Other ways to rotate shapes, specifically for the purpose of straightening bitmaps or vectors, are covered in
Sections 5.03.2 and 6.08.1, respectively.

3.06.1 Rotating Shapes Manually

 To rotate a shape, click on it twice to change the handles to the rotate/skew mode. Then drag any of the
four corner handles:

Drag either
of these two Or… drag either of these two
corner
handles

 To restrict the rotation to a certain number of degrees, hold the Ctrl key while dragging a corner or use the
arrow keys on your keyboard. Note that the default rotation is 15 0. However, that default, called the Snap
angle for rotation, can be changed in the Options window under Settings>Settings:

Default initially set to 150 Changed to 450

 While in either regular mode or rotate mode, pressing the Tab key will rotate a selected shape (or shapes)
in 900 increments clockwise. Holding the Shift key and clicking on the Tab key will rotate in 900 increments
counterclockwise.

 The arrow keys on your keyboard will also rotate a shape while in the rotate mode:
 The left and down arrows rotate a shape clockwise
 The right and up arrows rotate a shape counterclockwise
 If the shape is still in resize mode (versus rotate mode), holding the Ctrl key while clicking on an arrow
key will also rotate the shape.

 The Rotation angle, which can be different from the Snap angle for rotation, is changed by using the
PgUp and PgDn keys on your keyboard or by using the numbers 1 – 0 in the horizontal row of numeric keys
(Note that a keypad on your keyboard cannot be used).

 The following shows the Rotation angle set by using each numeric key:

35
 1 = 0.10 6 = 450
2 = 10 7 = 600
3 = 50 8 = 900
4 = 150 9 = 1800
5 = 300 0 = 900

 The current angle is displayed on the Status Bar, along with how many degrees have been applied:

Rotation angle

Amount of rotation applied to

current selection

 Note that the Point of rotation about which a selected shape will rotate can also be moved:

Point of rotation Point of rotation is dragged

to a new location

 Thus, with the Point of rotation at the center, the shape will remain, essentially, in the same location in
the Sign Area. However, when the shape’s Point of rotation is shifted to the right, as in the prior
screenshot, the shape will move to the right. Guidelines are used in the following screenshots to
provide a point of reference:

Point of rotation at the Shape is still centered Point of rotation Shape is no longer
center while rotating with the guidelines offset while rotating centered with the
shape 450 shape 450 guidelines

 Note also that as you manually rotate a shape, the angle is being updated in the Status Bar at the bottom of
the screen:
Current rotation

3.06.2 Rotating Shapes Using Rotate Setting in Object Edit

 A second way to rotate a shape is to enter the desired angle of rotation on the Properties & Functions Bar
while in Object edit mode or in the Shape tool mode:

36
 Click on Apply

Enter rotation

 With the shape (or shapes) selected, enter the desired rotation and click on Apply. Note:
o Entering a positive number will rotate counterclockwise
o Entering a negative number will rotate clockwise

 Once a rotation value is entered, it will continue to appear in that field, in the same way as Size or
Position. If you wish to further rotate a shape by a specific amount, then mark the box next to Rotate
and enter the additional (or reduced) amount of rotation to apply:

Mark Relative option

Current rotation Enter amount to rotate

3.06.3 Rotating Shapes Using Rotate Setting on the Toolbar

 A third way to rotate a shape is available on the Toolbar. Note that this method is for situations in which the
rotation is only temporary and will be reset after other tasks have been implemented. There are two ways to
use this feature:

A Directly input the angle of rotation

 Select the shape and enter the desired angle of rotation on the right side of the Toolbar. Then click on
the Rotate image icon:

Enter angle of rotation

Click on Rotate
Rotation applied
image icon

Restore image angle

o After applying, an option to reset (Restore image angle) will appear, as well as the size of the
rotation you applied.

 If you rotate again, as shown below, the Rotation applied will update to reflect the additional change:
Enter angle of rotation

Click on Rotate
image icon Overall rotation applied

37
  At any time, clicking the Restore image angle icon will reset the shape back to its original orientation.

 Note that when using this rotation tool:

o Entering a positive number will rotate clockwise
o Entering a negative number will rotate counterclockwise

B Rotate so that a selected side becomes horizontal

 Hold the Alt key and double click on any part of the shape that you wish to become perfectly horizontal.
For example:

Hold the Alt key and double Shape is rotated so that the path is
click here horizontal

 The Rotate settings in the Toolbar will update to indicate the degree of rotation that was applied in
order to make that path on the shape horizontal:

Rotation applied

 At this point, duplicates of the shape are made (refer to Section 3.11 for duplicating methods):

 When the Restore image angle is now applied, all of the shapes rotate back and the duplicates are
aligned with the angle of the original shape:

3.07 Skewing

 Shapes can be skewed either horizontally or vertically:

Starting Shape Horizontal Skew Vertical Skew Both horizontal and

vertical skew

 To skew a shape, click on it twice to change the handles to the rotate/skew mode. Then drag a middle
handle on any of the sides to skew the shape:

38
 Drag up or
down here
Or… drag right or left here

3.08 Mirroring
 SignCut Draw offers several ways to mirror shapes both horizontally and vertically (also called “flipping”).
There are also easy ways to make mirrored copies.

3.08.1 Regular Mirroring

 To horizontally mirror a shape, select it and click on Mirror horizontally icon on the Properties &
Functions Bar:

Mirror horizontally

 To vertically flip a shape, select it and click on the Mirror vertically icon on the Properties &
Functions Bar:

Mirror vertically

 You can also mirror shapes by dragging a middle handle to the opposite side. To keep the size the same,
hold the Ctrl key while dragging:

Ctrl + drag this The shape is

handle to the right… mirrored

Ctrl + drag this The shape is

handle up… mirrored

39
  Another way to mirror shapes is to use Ctrl+Tab keys for a horizontal mirror and Shift+Ctrl+Tab keys
for a vertical mirror.

3.08.2 Making Mirrored Copies

 There are two methods for quickly making mirrored copies, depending on whether or not you need the
copies to touch or be at different positions.
 Using the same handle-drag method presented in the prior section, holding both the Ctrl key and the right
mouse button while dragging with the left mouse button will leave the original in place and position the
mirror copy to just touch:

Ctrl + hold right mouse button + drag

this handle to the right

A symmetrical copy is made

 If you need the mirrored copy to be elsewhere on the screen, either note on the rulers where you want the
“mirror” to be located or add a guideline in the new location first (refer to Section 3.19, if needed):

A vertical guideline is dragged from the left

ruler and will serve as the mirror

 Holding the Shift key, drag from the middle of the selected shape to be mirrored. A pink line will appear.
Align the pink line with the guideline or by observing the location along the ruler:

Holding the Shift key A pink line will appear Drag until the pink line is
begin dragging from the as you drag away from aligned with the guideline
middle the shape

 Release Shift key and the mouse. Press Enter. A mirrored copy will be placed the same distance from
the mirror as the original is located:

3.09 Coloring

 The Color Palettes Panel provides the tools necessary to recolor shapes, track which colors have been
used, select or hide by color and more. Note the names of the various parts and which sections cover those
parts:

40
 View Settings
Section 1.08

Custom Palette
Section 3.09.3
Select by color
Section 3.09.3

Color Palette
Color Palette tools Section 3.09.1
Section 3.09.2

3.09.1 Color Palette

 The Color Palette Swatch mode shows 66 available colors to use when coloring shapes. A continuous
gradient of colors can be toggled to replace this selection by clicking on the Continuous color swatch icon

on the Color Palette tools:

Click on Continuous color Click anywhere to

swatch select a color

Color Swatch mode Continuous Color mode

 To change the color of one or more selected shapes, click on any of the 66 available colors when in the
Color Swatch mode or click anywhere in the Continuous Color mode or select a color from the
Custom Palette (refer to Section 3.09.4).
 You also have the option to turn off the fill on one or more selected shapes by choosing the upper left
“color” box in the Color Palette Swatch:
Click on top left box

Red triangle and blue Selected shapes are now

square are selected shown in outline mode

o The fill can be toggled back on by clicking the same upper left box.

3.09.2 Color Palette Tools

 Just to the left of Color Palette Swatch are the Color Palette Tools which consist of six functions:

41
 View inactive objects
Show fill
Graphic warnings!
Default color

Continuous color swatch

Reduce colors

 View inactive objects - toggles Show versus Hide on shapes which have been made inactive.
Refer to Section 3.09.3.

 Show Fill (Shift+F9) – toggles Fill versus Outline on active shapes:

Show Fill Show Fill not

selected selected

Shapes are filled Shapes are displayed in

with color outline mode

o Pressing Shift and clicking the Show Fill icon (versus Shift +F9) will display a shape’s complete
outline if the shape is partially or fully hidden by another shape:

Show Fill mode Show Fill mode after pressing Shift +

Show Fill icon

o Alternatively, the Dash hidden contours icon on the View Options Bar will also activate Show Fill
and the outlines of the shapes:

 Graphics warnings! – indicates issues that could lead to cutting problems. Indent the icon and
any potential issues will appear as tiny triangles (blue, white, or yellow) as pointed out in the following
screenshot:

42
 o Blue triangles (like the one on top of the red shape) indicate two identical shapes are on top of one
another:

o Yellow triangles (like the four on the green shape) indicate an object is intersecting itself:

o White triangles (like the two on the blue shape) indicate two objects of the same color are
intersecting:

 Default color – set a new color to be used for new shapes added to the Design Board. With nothing
selected, click on any color on the Color Palette to set a new Default color.

 Continuous color swatch – toggles between Color Swatch mode (66 set colors) versus
Continuous Color (gradient) mode. Refer to Section 3.09.1.

 Reduce colors – decreases the number of colors used in a project. Click on the icon and a new
Reduce colors window will open. Then the process can be performed manually or automatically:

o Manually reducing colors: Drag a color you wish to replace on top of another color in the table. All
shapes of the dragged color will change. For example, if you drag red on top of green:

43
 Drag green square on top
of red square Green square is gone

Green shapes have been turned red

o Automatically reducing colors: Enter the desired number of colors and click on Auto reduce:

Yellow square is now missing

Enter desired Click on Auto

# of colors reduce
Yellow shapes have turned red

 Note that if you click on the Weld option it will remove any overlap between shapes of the same
color.

3.09.3 Select by Color (C)

 The bottom section of the Filter Colors and Objects Panel (or at the left side of the Color Palettes Panel)
is a column displaying all colors currently in use:

44
 Colors in use

Scroll to see more

colors, when Display all
needed shapes
Current shapes on Design
Board

 To make all colors inactive but one, click on the color you wish to keep. For example, if the red square is
clicked, then only the red shapes will show:
Faint outlines of
inactive shapes

Click on the
red square
Current shapes on Design
Board Only the red shapes are
active

 Note that the other shapes can still be seen, but not selected. To hide those inactive shapes, click on the
View inactive objects icon at the top of the Color Palette Tools panel:
View inactive objects View inactive objects not
selected selected

Faint outlines of inactive Inactive shapes are

shapes are visible hidden

 Note that while working with a single color, the Rulers will change from gray to the color that’s selected,
such as red in this example:

 To work with a different color, press its square, such as blue, and the red shapes will now become inactive
and the blue ones will appear and be active:

45
 Click on the
blue square

Red shapes are active Blue shapes are now active

 At any time, the Select/deselect all layers icon can be clicked to restore all colors. Clicking it a second
time will make all colors inactive. A shortcut for this function is Shift+C.
 Another method for selecting by color is pressing the shortcut C. Each time it is pressed a different color is
selected to be active. Eventually pressing C will return all colors to be active.
 If there are colors that are so similar that it is difficult to distinguish which one you want to make active,
select one of the shapes of that color and hold the Shift key while clicking on the Select/deselect all layers

icon . That color will now become the active color.

 Holding the Shift key while left clicking on a color toggles that color to be active or inactive. Thus,
 If you wish to make more than one color (but not all colors) active, left click the first color to make active
and then hold the Shift key while clicking on additional colors.
 If you prefer to make one or more colors inactive while leaving other colors active, hold the Shift key
and click on each color.

 Note also that a selected shape can be recolored to one of the other colors by right clicking that color. For
example, the yellow circle and the blue star are selected. Then the color red is right clicked:

Select shapes to recolor The selected shapes

Right click on the
red square change color

3.09.4 Custom Palette

 The Custom Palette updates each time a new color is selected. It can also be used when recoloring a
shape in the same way as the Color Swatch below it.
 To clear one of the colors on the Custom Palette, right click on that color.
 To customize a color, press Ctrl while left clicking the color. The following Set color window opens
where you can enter either RGB or CMYK values for a new color:

46
 Mark RGB option Mark CMYK option

Enter RGB
Enter CMYK
values
values

Revised color Revised color

appears appears

o After entering new values, the updated color will appear as New and you can click on OK to accept.
color appears
If you had one or more shapes selected, they will change to the new color.

 To lock a color to the Custom Palette, press Shift while left clicking a color. That locked color will
remain on the Custom Palette even after closing and reopening SignCut Draw. A small lock will appear
on any locked color:

Color is locked to the

Custom Palette

o To unlock a color, repeat by pressing Shift while left clicking the color. To keep that color unlocked,
you will need to close the software and reopen.

3.10 Cutting, Copying, Pasting

 The following three functions can be applied to shapes within the current project or applied across other
open projects.

3.10.1 Cutting to the Clipboard (Ctrl+X)

 To cut shapes to the clipboard (copy to the clipboard and delete from the Design Board), first select the
shape or shapes and then use any of the following:

 Click on the Cut icon located on the upper Toolbar

 Press Ctrl+X
 Go to Edit>Cut

3.10.2 Copying to the Clipboard (Ctrl+C)

 To copy shapes to the clipboard, first select the shape or shapes and then use any of the following:

 Click on the Copy icon located on the upper Toolbar

 Press Ctrl+C
 Go to Edit>Copy

3.10.3 Pasting from the Clipboard (Ctrl+V)

 To Paste shapes from the clipboard, use any of the following:

47
  Click on the Paste icon located on the upper Toolbar
 Press Ctrl+V
 Go to Edit>Paste

 There are also other ways to make copies of shapes. Refer to the following Section 3.11 Duplicating.

3.11 Duplicating

 There are several other ways to make copies of a shape or selection of shapes. The following subsections
cover each one.

3.11. Duplicate in Object Edit Mode

 In Object edit mode, enter a new position for the copy and click the Duplicate icon. To make a clone, hold
the Shift key while clicking the Duplicate icon:

Click on Duplicate icon to create a

Enter location copy
for duplicate
Or Shift+click to create a clone

 Note that using the Relative option will allow you to create equally spaced multiples:

Mark the Relative option

Enter the relative position for

each repeat relative to the last Click on Duplicate repeatedly
to create copies

3.11.2 Duplicate Function (Ctrl+D)

 To access Duplicate, first select the shape(s) and then use either of the following:
 Press Ctrl+D
 Go to Edit>Duplicate

 As you repeat the Duplicate function you will see the repeats align diagonally down the Design Board:

Select the first shape

to duplicate

Each time Duplicate is

applied, the next repeat is
spaced in the same X and
same Y direction from the Last copy created
last

48
 To change where the duplicates appear, go to Settings>Settings and click on the Editing tab. The
Distance for duplicate settings controls the space and direction for duplicates:
Select the Editing tab

Change the
distances as
desired

 A positive value for Hor results in copies being added to the right of the original; a negative value would
place them to the left.
 A positive value for Vert results in copies being added above the original; a negative value would place
them below.
 Note that setting Hor to 0 would result in a column of repeats. Setting Vert to 0 would result in a row of
repeats:

 You can also overlap repeats by making the distance smaller than the shape itself:

3.11.3 Dynamic Axis Duplicate

 In Section 3.04.3 it was shown how to precisely position shapes using a Dynamic Axis. When a Dynamic
Axis is in place, the Duplicate (+) icon on the Properties & Function Bar allows one to repeatedly click to
make copies of the second shape that is being aligned with respect to a Reference point:

Duplicate icon

 As an example, a 1” circle is to be duplicated. A horizonal Dynamic Axis is created with the Reference
point towards the left side of the Sign area:

49
 The Distance is set to 0.25” and, before using the Duplicate function, click on Apply. Then the Duplicate
icon can be repeatedly clicked to create an array of repeats placed 0.25” to the right of the last one:

2. Click Apply

1. Enter spacing 3. Repeatedly click An array of repeats is

Duplicate created

 If the Distance had been set to 0.50” then the circles would appear like this:

 This function can be used to fill an area with repeats when needed:
o Create a single row using a horizontal Dynamic Axis with a Distance slightly larger than the
shape’s width so that the repeats do not overlap:

o Select the row created and add more rows using a vertical Dynamic Axis and a Distance slightly
larger than the shape’s height (in this case the same as the width):

3.11.4 Duplicating Shapes into Other Projects

 If you need to copy and paste shapes to another project, select the shapes and hold the Shift key while
clicking on the Project tab at the bottom of the screen:

50
 Red and blue shapes
appear on tab C

1. Select red and blue shapes 2. Press Shift and click on tab C
 only on
You can also tab A
click on the + tab to have the selected shapes copied and pasted into a new project file.

3.12 Cloning

 A clone is a duplicate of another shape that will automatically change properties (such as color, size,
rotation, etc.) when another of its fellow clones is changed.

 There are two ways to create clones:

 Select any shape (or more than one shape) and go to Edit>Create Clone (Ctrl+Shift+D). A duplicate is
created in the same way as was shown in Section 3.11.3, however the new copy will be a clone:

A duplicate/clone
Create Clone is is created
Arrow and circle are applied
selected

Arrow is resized and

recolored Cloned arrow is also
resized and recolored
One of the red arrows is
selected

 Select any group of shapes and go to Edit>Turn to Clones (Ctrl+Shift+C). If the shapes are different,
they will all take on the properties (type, size, color) of the shape that was on top:

Turn to Clones
Three shapes are selected – red is applied All three shapes are
circle is on top now red circles

51
 Circle is recolored All three circles are
One of the red circles is blue recolored blue
selected
 To release a clone, select one or more (or all) of the shapes and go to Arrange>Release Clone.

3.13 Filtering

 Before covering how to filter the displaying of certain shapes, note that there is also a Size filter function
which will delete shapes below a desired size. Refer to Section 6.01.
 The Filter Colors and Objects Panel is used to make shapes inactive or active. The bottom portion
regarding color was covered in Section 3.09.3. The top section includes the following four functions:

View Bitmap

Filter selected clones

Filter selected objects
Filter objects with no fill

 View Bitmap: When a raster image (typically JPG, PNG, BMP) has been imported, the option to show
or hide this image can be toggled using this function.
 Filter selected clones: If you have clones in your project and you want to hide (make inactive) all
shapes but the clones, select one of the clones and then click on the Filter selected clone icon:

Click on
this icon

One of the blue circle Only the blue circle clones

clones is selected are now active

o Note that another non-clone shape could also have been included with one of the clone circles and
it, too, would have remained active. Similarly, if there are other cloned shapes, then selecting one
clone from one group and one clone from another group could then have Filter selected clones
applied and all the clones of both groups would be active.

 Filter selected objects: An assortment of different shapes can be selected and then, after clicking on
Filter selected objects, all unselected shapes will be made inactive:

Click on
this icon

Two shapes are selected All of the other shapes are

made inactive 52
  Filter objects with no fill: In Section 3.09.2 it was shown how to turn off the fill on closed shapes. If you
wish to inactivate all shapes that are still filled, click on the Filter objects with no fill icon.

Click on
this icon

Shapes on the Design Shapes with fill become

Board inactive

o Note that because the purple line is not a closed shape, it also has no fill. Therefore, it is also not
made inactive.

 To shut off all filters (i.e. to make all shapes active), double click the Select/deselect all layers icon
at the bottom of the Filter Colors and Objects Panel.

3.14 Grouping and Ungrouping

3.14.1 Group (Ctrl+G)

 The Group function is used to combine shapes so that they can be more easily moved, resized, rotated,
etc.
 After selecting two or more shapes, the Group function can be applied in any of the following ways:

 Click the Create group icon on the Properties & Functions Bar

Create group

 Press Ctrl+G
 Go to Arrange>Group

 Once the group is created:

 Clicking on any shape within that group will select all shapes in the group.
 If you need to select only one shape, hold the Ctrl key and click on that shape.
 If you need to select several shapes (but not all of them), continue to hold the Ctrl key while adding
more shapes to the selection. Note that shapes from other groups can also be added to the selection.
 If you need to deselect a shape you’ve added to the selection, click on it again while still holding the Ctrl
key.

53
3.14.2 Ungroup (Ctrl+U)

 The Ungroup function is used to separate a group of shapes into original shapes.
 After selecting a group, the Ungroup function can be applied in any of the following ways:

 Click the Ungroup icon on the Properties & Functions Bar

Ungroup
 Press Ctrl+U
 Go to Arrange>Ungroup

 After ungrouping, the individual shapes can again be selected separately.

3.15 Combining and Breaking

3.15.1 Combine (Ctrl+L)

 The Combine function is used to combine individual paths, curves, and lines into a single shape. This is
one step further than grouping.
 After selecting two or more shapes, the Combine function can be accessed in any of the following ways:

 Click the Combine objects icon on the Properties & Functions Bar

Combine objects

 Press Ctrl+L
 Go to Arrange>Combine

 If the Combine function is applied to the following shapes (a red circle on top of a blue star), the circle is
essentially cut out from the star creating a hole:

Before applying Combine After applying Combine

 To confirm that the center of the star has an actual hole versus a white circle on top of the blue star, the
shape is moved on top of a green square:

Combined shape The hole in the star fills with

the green color behind it
54
 As shown above and in the following example, if you apply Combine to shapes of different colors, they will
all become one color because a merged shape is regarded as a single shape, even if the parts being
merged do not touch:

Before applying Combine After applying Combine

 The resulting color will always be based on which shape was the bottommost before applying Combine.
Refer to Section 3.16 for more details on how to control order of shapes.

3.15.2 Break Apart (Ctrl+K)

 The Break Apart function goes one step further than Ungrouping. It is used to separate a shape into all the
individual parts that make up that shape. This is basically the opposite function to Combine.
 After selecting a combined shape, the Break Apart function can be applied in any of the following ways:

 Click the Break Apart icon on the Properties & Functions Bar:

Break Apart
 Press Ctrl+K
 Go to Arrange>Break Apart

 The following screenshot shows Break Apart being applied to the star shape with a hole to separate the
inner circle (also called a child shape) from the external star (also called a parent shape):

Before applying After applying Break With Fill turned off, the The circle can now be
Break Apart Apart: all one color inner circle is now seen selected and moved

 Once you apply Break Apart, you have complete editing control over every individual shape within a
design. But be careful! It’s also easy to inadvertently move an individual shape (especially the tiny ones) and
you can risk compromising the design. Thus, only use Break Apart as needed and, when the editing is
completed, either regroup or recombine the shapes.

3.16 Arranging (Ordering) Shapes

 The shape order affects the visual appearance on the Design Board. The following example shows five
overlapping shapes:

55
 The order of the 5 shapes, (from top to bottom)
red heart
blue star
yellow triangle
purple square
green circle

 Note also that the Dash hidden contours icon on the View Settings bar can be toggled to alter how
overlapping shapes appear:

Dash hidden contours Outlines of all shapes are

now visible

 Any of these shapes can be moved up or down to change their order. The Order functions are accessed
using one of the following:
 Click on an Order icon on the Properties & Functions Bar:
Moves shapes up

Moves shapes down

 Go to Arrange>Order and select one of the options

 Use one of the shortcut keys, shown as follows:

 The four options for changing the Order are:

 Move object to top Shift+PgUp

 Move object one step up Ctrl+PgUp

 Move object to bottom Shift+PgDn

 Move object one step down Ctrl+PgDn

 In the prior example, the yellow triangle is selected, and each option shows what will change if it is applied:

Move object to top

Triangle moves to the top

56
 Move object one step up

Triangle moves above blue

star but is still below red
heart

Move object to bottom

Triangle moves
to the bottom

Move object one step down

Triangle moves below

purple square but is still
above green circle

 It is worth noting that if any of the other colors had been inactive, the movement of the triangle would have
been the same.

3.17 Aligning (E2)

 To access the aligning functions, click on the Guidelines & placement icon on the Tools Panel or
press the shortcut E2. The Properties & Functions Bar will now display the following after marking the
Align option:
3. Vertical alignment 2. Alignment reference
options options Set a reference object

1. Mark the Align option 5. Click on

Apply to align

4. Horizontal alignment options

 The first step is to mark the Align option to see the various settings.
 Alignment reference options:
o Align to Selection refers to all shapes that have been currently selected
o Align to Sign refers to the area bounded by the dashed green lines
o Align to Refence Object allows you to select a particular shape to which all other objects will align

 Vertical and Horizonal Alignment options control how the shapes will align as will be shown in examples
which follow.

57
3.17.1 Align to Selection

 The following three shapes, in their current relative positions, will be used to illustrate what happens when
each alignment function is applied. Note the location of the bounding box handles with the shapes selected:

 With the shapes selected, the vertical alignment options are:

 Top: aligns shapes along the top side of the bounding box around the selection
 Center: aligns shapes through the horizontal center axis of the bounding box around the selection
 Bottom: aligns shapes along the bottom side of the bounding box around the selection

Top: Shapes align with the top of Center: Shapes align with the Bottom: Shapes align with bottom
the selection horizontal center of the selection side of the selection

 With the shapes selected, the horizontal alignment options are:

 Align Left aligns shapes along the left side of the bounding box around the selection
 Align Horizontal Center aligns shapes through the vertical center axis of the bounding box around the
selection
 Align Right aligns shapes along the right side of the bounding box around the selection

Left: Shapes align with left side of Center: Shapes align with the Right: Shapes align with right side
the selection vertical center of the selection of the selection

 Combinations of any vertical setting and horizontal setting can also be applied. Not all combinations will be
shown, but here are 3 examples:

58
 Top + Left Center + Center Bottom + Right

 A shortcut from aligning selected objects along the top, left, right, or bottom of the selection is to hold the
Ctrl key and double click above, to the left of, to the right of, or below the blue dashed border of the Sign
Area, respectively:

Ctrl + double click Ctrl + double click

above the blue left of the blue
dashed border dashed border

Ctrl + double click

right of the blue
dashed border

Ctrl + double click

below the blue dashed
border

3.17.2 Align to Sign

 The following three shapes, in their current relative positions, will be used to illustrate what happens when
each alignment function is applied. Note the location of the green dashed line of the Sign area.

 With the shapes selected, the vertical alignment options are:

 Top: aligns shapes along the top side of the green dashed line
 Center: aligns shapes through the horizontal center axis of the of the green dashed line
 Bottom: aligns shapes along the bottom side of the of the green dashed line

59
 Top: Shapes align with the top of Center: Shapes align with the Right: Shapes align with bottom
the Sign’s margin area horizontal center of the Sign’s side of the Sign’s margin area
margin area

 With the shapes selected, the horizontal alignment options are:

 Align Left aligns shapes along the left side of the green dashed line
 Align Horizontal Center aligns shapes through the vertical center axis of the green dashed line
 Align Right aligns shapes along the right side of the green dashed line

Left: Shapes align with left side of Center: Shapes align with the Right: Shapes align with right side
the Sign’s margin area vertical center of the Sign’s margin of the Sign’s margin area
area

 As with Align to Selection, combinations of any vertical setting and horizontal setting can also be applied.
Not all combinations will be shown, but here are 3 examples:

Top + Right Center + Center Bottom + Left

3.17.3 Align to Reference Object

 To make one of the shapes the reference object for alignment, select it and then click on the Set a

reference object icon . Then select all shapes, including the Reference object, and proceed as with
either of the other situations.

 For example, using the same sample shapes, the blue star is selected and made the Reference object.
Here are several examples of what will happen when an alignment is now applied:

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 Bottom Left Center + Center

 To release a shape from being the Reference object, select all shapes and click on the Set a reference
object icon.

3.18 Distributing (E3)

 The Distribute function rearranges shapes so that they are equally spaced apart.
 Like the Alignment function, you can Distribute to Selection (equally space the shapes between the
end-most shapes) or you can Distribute to Sign (equally space the shapes between the green dashed
boundaries).
 You can space horizontally or vertically or both.

 To access the Distribute function, click on the Guidelines & placement icon on the Tools Panel or
press the shortcut key E3. The Properties & Functions Bar will now display the following after marking the
Distribute option:
2. Distribute based on Selection or
based on Sign Area

4 Click on
1. Mark the Apply
Distribute option

3. Distribute horizontally or
vertically

3.18.1 Distribute Horizontally

 To illustrate horizontal distribution the following sample of five circles are selected:

 If Selection is marked, then a Horizontal distribution will move the inner circles (those between the red and
purple) so that all five are equally spaced:

Selection + Horizontal

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 If Sign is marked instead, then a Horizontal distribution will move all the circles so that the first and last are
aligned with the left and right sides of the green dashed Sign border and then spaces the circles evenly:

Sign + Horizontal

3.18.2 Distribute Vertically

 To illustrate vertical distribution this pattern of five circles is used:

 If Selection is marked, then a Vertical distribution will move the inner circles (those between the red and
purple) so that all five are equally spaced:

Selection + Vertical

 If Sign is marked, then a Vertical distribution will move all the circles so that the upper and lower are
aligned with the top and bottom sides of the green dashed Sign border and then spaces the circles evenly:

Sign + Vertical

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3.19 Guidelines

 Guidelines are very useful when designing projects, such as boxes or pop-up cards, from scratch. They can
be added to the Design Board in three ways:
 Dragging your mouse from the Rulers onto the Design Board
 Duplicating an existing guideline, but with new settings
 Double-clicking the Rulers after selecting a shape
 To make sure shapes will snap to guidelines when being moved, go to View>Snap to guidelines to make
sure that option is checked. As you then move a shape towards a guideline, the bounding box around that
shape will snap to the guideline, as will the center “X” on a shape:

 Note that this section covers guidelines while in Object edit mode or while in Guidelines & Placement
mode. Section 5.10.3 presents additional ways to add guidelines while in Pen tool mode.

3.19.1 Guidelines Dragged from the Rulers

 A vertical guideline is added by placing the mouse cursor anywhere along the ruler just to the left of the
Design Board and dragging the mouse to the right. Alternatively, you can press the shortcut V.
 A horizontal guideline is added by placing the mouse cursor anywhere along the ruler just above the Design
Board and dragging the mouse downward. Alternatively, you can press the shortcut H.

 An angled guideline (45O initially) is added by placing the mouse cursor over a Guideline icon at
either end of the horizontal ruler and dragging the mouse onto the Design Board.
 Immediately after dragging a guideline onto the Design Board, it can be manually rotated:
 Click anywhere along the guideline and a small blue circle will be planted:

 Hover the mouse over that point until the cursor changes to a rounded, double-headed arrow:

 Begin dragging the cursor and the guideline will begin to rotate:

 Holding the Shift key while rotating will force 15 O increments of rotation.
 As you drag a guideline towards a shape, the guideline will snap to a node location or to the center of a
shape if the mouse cursor is placed at that location. Note the location of the black arrow cursor on the
various nodes and the center of a star:

63
 You can also angle a guideline to pass through any two nodes on a shape. First drag the guideline so that it
snaps to one of the nodes. Then manually rotate until is snaps to the second node:
Drag guideline until it Guideline passes through
Rotate guideline until it the two nodes
snaps to first node snaps to second node

 The shape can now be moved along that guideline by first placing the cursor along the end of the shape
that aligns with the guideline and dragging. Note that you want to see the outline of the shape before
releasing the mouse:

Place mouse cursor along

shape’s edge Drag to new location along
guideline but do not release
until shape appears.

 For specifying exact locations for guidelines when shapes are not being used, refer to the next section.

3.19.2 Guidelines & Placement Tool (E1)

 The Guidelines & placement tool allows you to enter specific settings for guidelines, plus a few more
tasks.

 Click on the Guidelines & placement icon on the Tools Panel or press the shortcut key E1. The
Properties & Functions Bar will now display the following after marking the Guidelines option:

Click on Apply to save

Guideline location new settings
Remove guideline
1. Mark the Guidelines
option
Remove all
guidelines
Create a new
Guideline angle
guideline

 Use the steps from Section 3.19.1 to add a guideline to the Design Board. Note that with these settings
now displayed, the Guideline position setting will update as you drag the guideline, making it possible to
position the guideline manually to a specific location.

64
  While in the Guidelines mode, you can also use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move an active
(red) guideline.

 Alternatively, with the guideline selected (it will be red in color), enter a new Guideline position and/or
Angle. Click on the Apply icon to save.
 To add a new guideline, select any existing guideline, enter new settings, and click on the Create a new
guideline icon .

 To delete a single guideline, select it and use one of the following:

 Click on the Remove guideline icon on the Properties & Functions Bar

 Click once on the right-side Guideline icon

 To remove multiple guidelines in the reverse order in which they were created, press the Ctrl key while

clicking the right-side Guideline icon . Note that after each deletion, you should release the Ctrl key
and then press again before clicking the Guideline icon. This method also works when in Object edit
mode.

 To delete all guidelines, use of the following:

 Click on the Remove all guidelines icon on the Properties & Functions Bar

 Double click the right-side Guideline icon

 Go to View>Remove all guidelines

3.19.3 Automatic Guidelines from Selected Shapes

 Guidelines can also be created to align with the bounding box around a selected shape.
 Select the shape and double click anywhere along the horizontal ruler to add horizontal guidelines and/or
anywhere along the vertical ruler to add vertical guidelines:

Double click top Double click

Ruler left-side Ruler

 A variety of shortcut keys will further control which guidelines are added:

 A quick way to add both horizontal and vertical guidelines around a selected shape is to double click the

left-side Guidelines icon :

 Shift + double click: adds a single guideline along top or left side (depending on which ruler you
choose):

65
 Shift + double click top Shift + double click Shift + double click left side
Ruler left-side Ruler Guidelines icon

 Ctrl + double click: adds a single guideline along bottom or right side (depending on which ruler you
choose):

Ctrl + double click top Ctrl + double click Ctrl + double + double click left
Ruler left-side Ruler side Guidelines icon

 Shift + Ctrl + double click: adds a guideline through the center of the shape:

Shift + Ctrl + double Shift + Ctrl + double Shift + Ctrl + double click left
click top Ruler click left-side Ruler side Guidelines icon

3.19.4 Hiding Guidelines

 To hide the current guidelines, click on the View guidelines icon on the View Options Bar:

Toggles View versus Hide for guidelines

 Note that if View guidelines is turned off, adding a new guideline will automatically turn View
guidelines back on again.

 To delete one or more guidelines, refer to the last part of Section 3.19.2.

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 4. Working with Text

4.01 Text Creation (R)

 To activate the text input function, click on the Text icon on the Tools Panel or press the shortcut R.
The Properties & Functions bar will update with these settings:

Alignment options Spacing between

Font drop-down menu Arc options Slant text
characters

Letter height while

entering text Spacing between lines
Expand text Spell check

 There are two ways to enter text in SignCut Draw:

 Click on the Design Board and begin typing (Section 4.01.1)
 Create a text box (aka text frame) to force the text size (Section 4.01.2)

4.01.1 Click and Type Text Entry

 Preselect a font from the drop-down menu and enter a Letter height. Note that both can easily be changed
later. Click anywhere on the Design Board and begin typing:

Flashing cursor indicates you can

continue typing at this position

 If the text needs to be on more than one line, press the Enter/Return key on your keyboard at the point you
wish to begin a new line and continue typing:

 If you want to create several separate text shapes, type the first and then click anywhere on the Design
Board and begin typing your next choice.
 When you have finished creating the initial text shape(s), you can drag your mouse across the letters to
apply other text settings or press Esc to return to the Object edit tool.

4.01.2 Text Entry Using a Text Box

 Instead of clicking once on the Design Board, you can drag your mouse to create a text box and begin
typing. The text size will automatically fit the box and then begin to decrease in size as more text is added.
 This might be used when needing to fit text into a specific width on, say, a greeting card. To start, add a
rectangle to use as a guide for the size you’ll need. In this example, we want to fit “Happy Birthday” into
a rectangle that is no larger than 1” x 5”, thus that’s the size of rectangle that will be added to the Sign
Area (refer to Section 3.01.1 for instructions on adding a rectangle to a project):

67
  Click on the Text tool and, after selecting a font, click and hold the mouse button so that the middle of
the cursor is approximately in the upper left corner of the rectangle. Then drag the mouse to the lower
right corner and release:

Align cursor at upper right corner Start dragging mouse to create a Once text box matches the
of rectangle text box rectangle release mouse

 Now begin typing the text. Once the text reaches the right side of the text box, it will begin to shrink in
height so that more letters will fit. Once you have completed typing the text, you will find that the width of
the text matches the rectangle you created:

When you start typing, the The text will begin shrinking All of the text you want to type
letter height will be the same in size once it reaches the end will fit into the rectangle
as the text box of the text box

 In the event the text does not fill the width of the frame you plan to use, the Expand text icon can be
used to increase the size of the typed text proportionately to fill the text box:
 For example: a 1” x 5” rectangle is again used and when the text is typed, it is apparent that the end of
the text box won’t be reached. When the Expand text icon is clicked, the lettering dimensions are
proportionately increased so that the phrase reaches the end:

Before applying Expand text After applying Expand text

 If only the word “cake” were entered and Expand text applied, the letter height would have been even
larger:

Before applying Expand text After applying Expand text

 Note that unless you are typing into a text box, the Expand text icon will be grayed out on the
Properties & Functions Bar.

 If you need the text box to be in a very specific position in the Sign Area:
 Drag a guideline from the top ruler and position that guideline where the bottom of the text box should
be located.
 Align the small horizontal line on the text cursor with that guideline (Note: This horizontal line on the
cursor is not the bottom of the cursor but rather a very tiny horizontal line slightly above the bottom):

68
 Tiny horizontal line is aligned
with the guideline

Tiny horizontal line to use

Guideline for alignment

 Drag your mouse up and to the right to create the text box. When you enter the text, it will be aligned
with the guideline:

Create the text box from

Text aligns with the guideline
the alignment spot

4.02 Text Settings

 Font: The fonts which appear in the drop-down menu are those you have installed in Windows.
 To change to a different font, click anywhere in the text or, if you are in Object edit mode, select the text
and return to the Text tool. From the font drop-down menu, as you hover over the name of a font, it will
appear in its font style to help in selecting the font you want to use:

As you hover your mouse over a font in

the drop-down menu, a sample of the
font appears above and to the right

o Note that you can also press a letter and the drop-down menu will skip to the first font beginning
with that letter.
o When you locate the font you want to use, click on it and your text shape will switch to that new font:

69
 Letter Height: Use this setting to change the height of the letters. If you drag your mouse over one or more
letters first, then only those highlighted letters will be affected by the change:

 Note: if the Letter Height is set taller than the Sign Area size, then the Letter Height will automatically
be reduced to 1/3 the Sign Area dimension when you click inside the Sign Area to begin entering your
text. To avoid this change, hold the Ctrl key and create a text box instead.

 Alignment: As in other text programs, such as a word processor, the Alignment options are used to
change the justification of the text:

Left Center Right

 Arc: The two Arc options will curve the text. When either is selected, a new Radius setting appears which
controls the curvature of the text:
Mark an Arc option

Enter a Radius setting

 Note that it’s best to create multiple lines of text separately versus using the Return/Enter key to create
the two lines of text. Thus, just the “Happy Birthday” is entered as a text shape and several Arc Radius
options are tested:

Radius set to 4 Radius set at 3 Radius set at 2

 The other Arc option curves the other direction. Testing the same Radius settings yields the following:

Radius set to 4 Radius set at 3 Radius set at 2

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 Expand text: Use this function when the text being entered into a text box isn’t large enough to fit the box.
Refer to the prior Section 4.01.2 for instructions and examples on using Expand text.

 Check Spelling: One text object at a time can be checked for spelling. In this example, the word “Birthday”
was misspelled. When the shape is selected and the Check Spelling icon clicked, the following window
opens:

Misspelled word is identified Skip if the spelling is correct

Will update when a word from Replace misspelled word

the Suggestions list is picked

Add word to SignCut Draw’s

Suggested replacements dictionary

 The Check Spelling function is very much like those in word processing programs. The identified word
is flagged and a list of suggestions appear. If the word is correct, you can choose to Skip or, first, Add
to the dictionary if it’s a word you will be using in the future. If the word needs replacement, select a
choice from the Suggestions list or type in the correct spelling in the Replace with field. Then click on
Replace and the text will be modified.

 Char. Distance: The Character Distance setting allows you to change the distance between the letters in
the text. In the example using the Arc option, the lower letters are a bit crowded:

 Select the text and, because the letters need to be spread out, the “+” icon next to Char. Distance will
be repeatedly clicked until the letters visually appear less crowded.

Click on “+” until a desired Spacing is now more visually

spacing is achieved appealing

 If you only want to space the letters in one part of the text, then before using Character Distance, drag
the mouse across the letters you want to space:

Drag mouse to highlight letters Click on “+” until a desired Spacing is now larger between
to be spaced spacing is achieved letters in “best friend”
71
 Line distance: When creating multi-lined text, the Line Distance setting can be used to increase or
decrease the spacing between lines:

Select text shape Click on “+” until a desired line There is now more spacing
spacing is achieved between the two lines

 Shear: Shear is used to slant letters, similar to making them italicized. As with Character Spacing, you can
apply to all the text or to just a certain selection. In this example, only the second line of the two-line text
shape will have it applied, thus only that line is highlighted:

Drag mouse to highlight letters Click on “+” until a desired Second line is now slanted
to be sheared Shear is achieved

4.03 Convert to Curves

 In the example created in the last section, both lines of text are the same color. In order to recolor parts of
the text, a function called Convert to Curves needs to be applied. In Object edit mode, select the text and
use one of the following:
 Go to Arrange>Convert to Curves
 Press the shortcut Ctrl+Q
 Click on the Convert to curves icon that will be located on the Properties & Functions Bar. (Note- this
icon appears in place of Break apart because a text shape is currently selected):

Convert to curves

 After applying, every letter in the text can now be individually selected and modified as an individual shape.
For this example, the entire second line of text will be selected, and a new color applied:

 More customization can easily be done, including recoloring other parts and changing the sizes of
certain letters. In this example, the word “Cancun” is made larger and the words “a” and “paradise” are
recolored black:

72
4.04 Welding Text

 When a font with overlapping letters is used, removing the overlap is almost always desirable. Otherwise,
when cutting, the letters will cut into one another.
 The Fill is turned off for this example, so that the overlap is easy to see:

Overlapped areas of letters

are easier to see with Fill
turned off

 To remove the overlap, select the text shape(s) and apply Convert to Curves (Ctrl+Q) as presented in
Section 4.03.
 Then, with the text still selected, apply the weld in one of the following ways:

 Click on the Weld objects together icon on the Properties & Functions Bar, while in Object edit
mode
 Go to Edit>Weld
 Press the shortcut M

 After welding the overlapping lines are removed:

Applying the Weld tool

removes the overlap

 The overlapping letters will not always be positioned exactly as needed for welding. To adjust the spacing,
either use the Character Distance setting presented in Section 4.02 or, manually move the letters with
arrow keys:
 When using Character Distance, highlight only those letters you want to respace. For example, if you
want to move the “B” and “i” in the Happy Birthday example closer together, first highlight the two letters.
Then decrease the Char. Distance setting. Note that all the letters to the right of the “i” will also move
with the “i”, thus maintaining their spacing:

Drag mouse to highlight letters Char. Spacing is decreased to Convert to Curves is applied
to be moved together increase the overlap followed by Weld

 When manually moving letters, Convert to Curves is applied first and the letters then selected and
moved with the arrow keys, as needed.

73
4.05 Welding Titles in Imaginative Ways

 Some fonts simply do not work well with the traditional overlapping of the letters to be welded into one piece
for cutting. For example, let’s take an extreme case with Arial font and the name, “Billy”. Note what happens
when you overlap and weld the letters in this particular font:

Type the letters Overlap the letters Weld the letters – undesirable result

 Most crafters will start looking for a different font… one with ligatures (extenders) that easily connect the
letters to one another. However, many fonts with ligatures are script fonts and may not convey the desired
look. As an alternative, look for objects that can be used to connect the letters. A basic thin rectangle is an
easy solution. Just align it along the bottom of the letters and weld:

 However, the objects to use for the welding do not have to be so basic. Look for objects that will tie into a
theme. Here are just a few examples:

 More about using the Weld tool is covered in Section 7.04.

4.06 Creating a Shadow Mat/Outline on Lettering (A1)

 Creating one or more mats (also referred to as shadows or contours) can be created using the Effects tool
in SignCut Draw:

 Begin with the lettering created, selected, and sized for the final project:

 Click on the Effects icon on the Tools Panel or press the shortcut A1. The Properties & Functions
Bar will now display the following:

74
 For 2 mats, mark both of
Mark the Contour these options
Mark Keep original
option

Click on Apply

Enter Contour sizes Option for Separate

Inner

 The Contour effect is covered in full detail in Section 7.07. Note that up to three contours can be
created at one time. In this example, two are being created, thus the boxes for Contour 1 and Contour
2 are marked. Since these mats are larger than the original, the Outside option needs to be selected.
Note: If you continue to check a box next to Outside, other options will appear.
 Below the Contour options, the sizes of the contours are entered. In this example, the first mat will be
0.06” from the original and the second will be offset another 0.03”, thus 0.09” from the original.
 Keep original should be checked because the original is still needed for the project. Otherwise, it would
be deleted leaving only the contour layers. Note that a random color will be assigned to the new
contour when Keep original is marked. You can, of course, change that color, as desired.
 Separate inner is also being selected for this project. To better understand the purpose of this setting, a
simple ring shape is used and a single contour is added in two different tests, one with Separate inner
marked and one without:

versus

Initial shape Separate inner Separate inner

option marked option not marked

o There appears to be no difference. However, if you drag the shapes apart, you’ll see that with the
Separate inner option marked, there are actually 3 shapes whereas with the option not marked,
there are only 2:
Note inner circle

versus

Separate inner option marked: the inner circle Separate inner option not marked: the
of the contour is its own shape contour is just one shape

o The Separate inner option provides you the opportunity to have a “blacked out” background for the
contour. After creating the contour, the separate inner shape can be deleted, resulting in this:

 Using the settings in the prior Contour screenshot, the resulting contours initially appear like this:

75
 The colors of the contours are changed by selecting each one and picking the desired colors from the Color
Palette:

Note the various inner contour shapes

 At this point, it is decided to black out the background by deleting the separate inner contour that was
created. This results in our final version:

Inner contour shapes are now deleted

4.07 Stenciling Letters

 When creating a stencil, you keep the “waste” or “negative” of a cut. When using regular fonts, such as
Arial, some of the letters, such as an “A”, “B”, “d”, and “e”, will not work because they have interior paths
called child shapes. Those child shapes are not connected to the waste portion of the material and will be
lost from the stencil as shown below. The red arrows indicate the child shapes inside parent shapes for the
letters “d” and “e”:

After cutting and lifting the stencil

from the mat, the interior parts of
the “e” and the “d’s will be cut
away.

 To avoid this, a procedure called stenciling can be used to connect the area outside of the letters to the child
shapes, essentially eliminating them. This involves placing rectangles to bridge the outside and inside of
these child shapes and applying a function called Punch.
 If you already have a rectangle around the text, change the color so that you can make that color
inactive (refer to Section 3.09.3):

Black is selected so that

the blue border is
inactive

76
  Add a small rectangle to the Sign using the Shape tool (Y1). The width should be approximately the
thickness of the lettering. The height will be modified, as needed, for each letter. Select a new color for
this rectangle:

Width is a bit too large Width is better suited based on

letter sizing

 Make copies of the rectangle for each letter to be stenciled. Then arrange and resize the rectangles
over each letter to be stenciled:

Rectangles are duplicated Rectangles are moved over the letters and
the height changed as needed

 With the text and rectangles selected, go to Edit>Punch (Ctrl+M). Then move the rectangles away.
The letters should now have stenciled gaps created by the Punch function.

Apply Punch (Ctrl+M) Move rectangles to verify

letters are stenciled

o IMPORTANT: if the rectangles are created before the text, then they will be below the text and the
Punch tool will have the opposite effect, cutting the rectangles with the lettering. Thus, when
needed, use the Arrange icons presented in Section 3.16 to make sure the rectangles are on top.

 Delete the rectangles and recolor, if desired. Select all and apply Combine. Show the Fill and verify the
stencil design looks correct:

Completed stencil

 Note that the Punch function is also located on the Properties & Functions Bar for the Effects tool (A)

. After selecting the text and rectangles (as presented previously), click on A2 and then click on the
Create (Apply) icon:

Punch option Create

Additional Punch settings

77
  You’ll observe there are more settings available for the Punch function when accessing it using the
Effects tool. These settings will be covered in Section 7.08. However, an example of using the Gap
option will be covered in the following Section 4.08.

4.08 Knockout Text

 A knockout technique involves overlaying one image on top of another and then merging the two so that the
overlap between the two images is, essentially, cut out and replaced with that part of the top image. This is
a popular design technique for HTV (heat transfer vinyl) applications so a typical high school design is used
as an example:

 To create this effect, arrange a shape on top of the text (Note that tips on preparing suitable text for a
knockout are presented later in this section):

 Select all and press A3 to activate the Effects tool and the Intersect option. Click on the Create icon:

Intersect option Create

 There doesn’t appear to be a change, however when you drag away the original shape, you will see the
intersection that’s been created.

Select top shape and drag away Intersection (gold part) and The original shape can be
original text remains discarded

 At this point, however, there is still the overlapping of colors as evidence when using the shortcut C to
activate each color separately. The letters haven’t been cut out:

78
 Thus, the Punch tool is used to cut out the intersection from the original text. Select all and press A2 to
activate the Effects tool and the Punch option. Select the Gap option and enter a gap Distance to apply.
Click on the Create icon:

Intersect option Create

Select Gap Enter a Distance (Gap size)

Select all and apply Punch Text is punched out by intersected shapes
and desired gap is applied

 Using the shortcut C to scroll through the 3 colors, one can now see that there is no overlap of one color
over another:

 When preparing text, you want as little “white space” as possible. Thus, here are some guidelines:

 Select a thick dark font.

 After creating the text, move rows of letters together until they almost touch.
 Reduce spacing between letters, but make sure the text is still readable.
 The text does not need to be all one color. Thus, you can recolor parts of it if you wish.

 Once the text is created, apply Combine to each color “group”. This will reduce lagging in the
processing of the Effects tools.

 When aligning the top image over the lettering, note that anything extending outside of the image or over
white areas will be deleted. So, size the image accordingly:

79
 Top image extends beyond the Much of the image is lost
edges of the lettering

Image is sized smaller so that most of Better result

the helmet is over the lettering

 Note that this tutorial for knocking out text isn’t just for text. It can be used on any combination of vector
shapes. Because it is so popular with lettering, its presentation in this chapter seemed appropriate.

4.09 Automatic Numbering

 The Automatic numbering function is used to create an array of multiples with sequential numbering. The
first step is to create the text object that will contain the number. In this example, a tag shape will be used.
Note that the text object must contain a “#” character for the numbering:

Text must contain #

 Move the tag to the lower left corner of the Sign because the process fills from left to right and from bottom
to top:

Position shape in lower

left corner of the Sign

 Select both the shape and the text and, on the Properties & Functions Bar in Object edit mode, click on

the Automatic numbering icon :

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 The following window opens: Automatic numbering

 First number: starting number (smallest number)

 Last number: ending number (largest number)
 Step: increment (whole numbers only)
 Copies: number of repeats for each shape with a given number
 Distance: spacing between shapes
 Min. digits: add leading zeroes in front of numbers

 In this example, 3 sets of tags, numbered 1 through 10 will be created:

 After clicking on Create, the Sign is filled with a total of 30 tags.

 If the Min. digits had been set to 2, instead of 1, the singular digit numbers would have had a “0” added:

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 Important: the total number of shapes must fit within the boundaries of the Sign or shapes will be missing.
For example, if the number of Copies had been set to 4, then none of the Box 10 tags would have been
created:

4.10 Shadow Effect (A4)

 SignCut Draw offers a Shadow function which greatly enhances the visual appeal of text:
 To utilize this function, select the text object, click on the Effects Tool (A), and mark the Shadow option (or
use the shortcut A4):

Shadow orientation Enter an offset

Mark Shadow Distance
options

Click on Apply

 The Shadow orientation options control which direction the shadow is placed with respect to the original
text.

 Distance is how far the shadow is located relative to the original text.

 Here are a few examples using 1” tall text:

Orientation: Upper left Distance = 0.1”

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 Orientation: Lower left Distance = 0.2

Orientation: Upper right Distance = 0.15”

Orientation: Lower right Distance = 0.075”

 Note that there is no overlap between the original and the shadow layer. In the last example shown, the
shadow is dragged away from the original showing what would actually cut:

 The shadow layer can, of course, be recolored if the text will be printed or to reflect the colors of material
that will be used when cut:

4.11 Bending Effect (A5)

 The Bending effect fits the selected text into one of seven shapes. To utilize this function, select the text
object, click on the Effects icon (A), and mark the Bending option (or use the shortcut A5):
Select a shape from the
Mark Bending drop-down Presets menu
Custom Frame
option
Click on Apply

 Here is the text to be used in this example:

 The seven shape options are:

 Arc Bottom:

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  Arc Top:

 Ball:

 Cinema – a Star Wars effect that works better with multiple lines of text:

 Double Arc Bottom:

 Double Arc Top:

 Flag:

 The Default option in the drop-down menu will reset the text back to normal.

 Note that the frames can be customized while in the Bending effect mode. With any of the choices, the
frame can be customized by holding the Ctrl key and dragging any part, including the corners:

Hold Ctrl and drag at each red arrow Shape fits a new frame

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  Note that after you click on Apply, this new shape will cover the text. It can be dragged away and
deleted; however, it might be a shape you want to save for future use as a Custom Frame, covered
next.

 The Custom Frame option allows you to select any shape to fill. For example, an arrow shape is added to
the Sign Area. Select the arrow shape, instead of the text, and click on the Select custom frame icon.
Then click on the text and click on Apply:

1. Select the shape to fill 2. Click on the Select

custom frame icon:

4. Click on Apply and the text fills the shape 3. Select the text

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 5. Tracing and Drawing

5.01 Raster Versus Vector

 All graphics are either raster (also called bitmap) or vector and there is no third type. While you can often tell
by the file format, even that isn’t always a good way to know for certain. For example, a PDF file can be
made from either raster images or vector images and some PDF’s will contain both types.
 You may not be able to tell, at first glance, whether an image is a raster or a vector. For example, this
screen shot shows the same image in both formats:

Raster Vector

 Most everyone today owns a digital camera and, at the very least, has heard the term “mega-pixel.” A pixel
is a square that is black, white, or colored. Photographs are made up of millions of these pixels to create the
image you see. If you zoom in close enough on any raster image, you can see these tiny pixels. But when
you zoom in close on the same area in the vector version, you will instead see lines and curves, not
squares/pixels:

Raster Vector

 A vector image isn’t made up of pixels. Instead, a vector is like a connect-the-dot puzzle in which little dots
(called nodes or points) are connected to each another with paths (either straight lines or curves). Digital die
cutters need those paths so that they can communicate to the cutter where the blade should travel in order
to cut what you want… kind of like a road map. In SignCut, the nodes are represented by small open
squares like this:

 As mentioned earlier, you can often tell whether a file is a raster or a vector based on the file format. Here
are some guidelines:

Raster: BMP, JPG, GIF, PNG Vector: AI, EPS, DXF, SVG Either: PDF, sometimes EPS & WMF

 To convert a raster into a vector, SignCut offers both automatic and a manual trace function. Because the
automatic tracing feature in SignCut is so fast and powerful, it is always worth trying it first. The only
situation in which it may not be able to provide the results you need are (1) the image is very tiny or has a
very poor resolution or (2) the image has poor contrast between one part and the next. For example,
imagine a brown dog lying on brown carpet. How would the software know what part is the dog and what
part is the carpet? Thus, you may need to manually trace some images, so both functions are covered, in
detail, in this chapter.

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5.02 Finding Easy Images to Trace

 What qualifies as an easy image? The obvious answer is “an image which gives you the results you want!”
But those who are new to the vectorizing process do not always realize which images are going to be easy
and which ones are not. Note that you shouldn’t be discouraged from trying to trace anything. But when you
are learning the process, working with easier images will make the learning stage go smoother. So, here are
a few guidelines in selecting images:
 Black and white images are easier to vectorize than colored images
 Colored images with flat colors are easier to trace than those with variegated colors
 Large, high resolution images are easier to trace than tiny, low resolution images
 Images with tiny details will be more difficult to trace than simpler images with fewer details
 Photographs are usually the most difficult to trace, especially when some of the colors blend (such as
the brown dog on the brown carpet, mentioned earlier).

 For your own personal use, there are many images that can be found on the Internet. Use Google Images to
search and find images based on keywords. Google Images also has filters at the top of the window (under
Tools) to limit your search to black and white, as well as to clipart or line drawings. For example, after
searching on the word “cat”, one can limit the images in this way:

Click on Tools to open

Change to Clip art to submenu
find better images for
tracing

 Adding the word “silhouette” in a search, will also produce images that are typically very easy to auto-trace:

Search on “cat
silhouette”

Easily traced
images appear

 When you find an image you want to trace, click on it first to bring up a larger version. Then right-click and
select Save image as from the popup menu. Note: If you use a browser other than Chrome, the popup
menu may have slightly different wording for saving a file.
 IMPORTANT! Before tracing any Internet images, be sure to check the Terms of Use at the site hosting the
image.

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5.03 Bitmap Tool (I)

 The Bitmap tool (shortcut I) on the Tools Panel provides the necessary functions for importing a
raster image and performing automatic tracing. When activated, the Properties & Functions Bar initially
displays these options:

Image adjustment options Trace options

Section 5.03.2 Sections 5.04-5.09

Import image
Section 5.03.1

Apply
5.03.1 Importing an Image to Trace
 To begin the tracing process, click on the Open bitmap file icon and an Import window will open.
Browse to the folder containing the bitmap image you wish to open and trace:

Browse to locate
folder

Click on the file and it

will appear under File
name:

Click on Open

 If you tend to keep raster images in one particular folder, then holding the Shift key while clicking on the
Open bitmap file icon will open a Bitmap window where you can set up a Favorites folder in the same way
as was shown for setting up a Favorites folder for your SCD files (refer to Section 2.03).
 Note that you can also copy/paste bitmap images from what’s been copied onto the Windows clipboard
(such as from Google images) into SignCut Draw.
 After selecting a file and clicking on Open, a popup window will provide two options:

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 Resize the Sign Area
dimensions to match the
bitmap dimensions Resize the bitmap dimensions to
match the Sign Area dimensions

 Either choice is acceptable since both the bitmap and the Sign Area can later be changed. If the first
option is selected, then the margin boundaries of the Sign Area will now touch the bitmap boundaries:

Option 1: Adjust sign

size to original bitmap
size

 If the second option is selected, the bitmap is sized to fit whichever dimension (X or Y) constrains the
shape:

Option 2: Adjust bitmap

size to current sign size

 Note that the image will not extend beyond the green-dashed margins inside the Sign Area.

5.03.2 Image Adjustment Options

 The following adjustment options are available on the Bitmap Properties & Functions Bar to alter an
image before tracing:
Invert bitmap Adjust Brightness

Hide bitmap

Apply changes
Crop bitmap using
drawn path

Adjust Contrast Change dimensions

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 Hide bitmap: will toggle the bitmap image on or off. This is useful during the process of tracing an
image. When you toggle the image off, the actual trace lines can be inspected more closely. Note that
you can also toggle the bitmap using the View Bitmap icon at the top of the Filter Colors & Object
Panel (Section 3.13):
Toggle image
on/off

Toggle image
on/off Or…

 Invert bitmap: will toggle the inverse version of the image:

 Brightness: increase or decrease the overall lightness of every part of the image. Use it to alter the
image for easier tracing or for printing preferences. For example:

Brightness: -20 Brightness: 0 Brightness: 50

 Contrast: Make the lighter parts lighter and the darker parts darker. Use it to alter the image for easier
tracing or for printing preferences. For example:

Brightness: 50 Brightness: 50
Contrast: 0 Contrast: -30

 Dimensions: Changing either dimension will then proportionately change the other dimension so that
the aspect ratio remains constant. Note that it is possible to resize the bitmap to extend beyond the
borders of the Sign Area, thus you may need to change your Sign size (W1) after deciding upon new
dimensions:

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 After changing dimensions of bitmap, Sign Area dimensions updated
the image extends beyond the Sign
Area

o You can also resize the bitmap by dragging one of the corner handles.
o If you need to resize the bitmap without maintaining proportions, refer to Section 5.07.1.

 Crop bitmap: Virtually any shape can be used to crop the bitmap image according to what you need:
o In Object edit mode, arrange the crop shape over the bitmap. Note that it’s easier to align a shape
if Show fill is turned off.
o Press I to return to Bitmap tool mode. Click the Crop bitmap using drawn shape icon:

In Object edit mode, arrange crop In Bitmap mode, click on the Crop
shape over the bitmap image bitmap using drawn shape icon

o This crop shape is referred to as a Bitmap Mask. To view the outline of this shape, click on the

View bitmap mask icon on the View Options Bar:

Click the View bitmap mask option

o The Bitmap Mask can be resized and moved (with respect to the bitmap). Press I to return to
Bitmap tool mode and select just the Bitmap Mask. Resize and move, as desired. For example:

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 Or….

 When in Bitmap tool mode, you also have the following functions to use on a bitmap image:
 Selecting and deleting using the Delete key
 Moving the image by dragging it
 Rotating the image by clicking a second time to change the handles and then dragging the rotate
handles (refer to Section 3.06).

 If the bitmap image is crooked, there’s an easy method for straightening it. While still in the Bitmap tool
mode:
 Drag your mouse from the top ruler downward until you reach a spot to use as a horizontal reference. In
this example, we want the two hooves on the ox to be even:

Drag the mouse

downward, starting at
the ruler…

When the red dashed guideline is near the

hooves, release the mouse

 Release the mouse but do not click away. Instead, begin dragging the guideline to rotate it until it’s
parallel with the two hooves. Note that the guideline does not necessarily need to be right on top of your
reference point, just parallel to it:

This is good… … and this is good, too

 Left click on the guideline. It will vanish and the bitmap image will automatically rotate:

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 Left click once on the
red-dashed guideline Bitmap rotates based on the angle of
that guideline

5.04 Options in Bitmap Tool

 There are six options, four of which are related to vectorizing a bitmap and then two which have other
related purposes. Note the section number where each option will be covered in detailed:

Create line raster from bitmap Create vectors from bitmap Bitmap size frame
Section 5.05 Section 5.06 Section 5.07

Create CARD registration Create outline on bitmap Send image to Graphic Tracer
marks Section 5.08 Section 5.12
Section 5.09

5.05 Create Line Raster from Bitmap

 The name of this trace option suggests a raster file is being created, however the result is actually a vector
shape made up of a particular pattern of lines that are spaced in such a way that the result appears to be a
raster image.

Original photo Line raster from bitmap

 Note that flat colored clipart would not be suitable for this type of trace as the effect is dependent on
variations of light and dark pixels. Instead, for converting flat clipart to a line pattern, refer to Section 5.06 (a
tutorial on tracing clipart) and 7.12 (a tutorial on filling a vector shape with a line or hatched pattern for
engraving).

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 After importing a bitmap image, click on the Create line raster from bitmap icon and the following
window opens. However, note that the window will change settings depending on which Application option
is selected in the top row.
Application options

Settings to be covered
Settings to be covered (will
(will vary by
vary by Application)
Application)

Click Create after selecting option

and settings

 The three Application options create three different types of patterns, as shown here:

Cut lines option Engrave lines option Diffused lines option

 When zoomed in at ~200%, and Show Fill turned off, you can see the differences in the type of vector
“cuts” that will be made. In the subsequent subsections, it will be noted which tools or materials would
be suitable for each option.

Cut lines option Engrave lines option Diffused lines option

 After selecting the desired Application and entering appropriate settings, click on Create. Depending
on the settings chosen and the size of the bitmap image, it can take quite some time to generate the line
pattern. It’s often best to do something else while waiting: make a cup of coffee, respond to a few
emails, pet your dog. 😊

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  Once the line pattern is created and the window is closed, the image on the screen will still have the
imported raster visible. Hide the raster, as needed, to view the results of the trace.

5.05.1 Engrave Lines

 This option is presented first as it has settings in common with the other two. It is used in engraving
applications, both scratch and rotary. It can also be used with other tools such as pens and markers. When
selected, the settings are as follows:

Select Engrave lines

Direction of line pattern

Density of line pattern

Tool settings

 Direction of line pattern: Select from either Horizontal or Vertical:

Horizontal Vertical

 Density controls how many lines will be generated based on the size of the bitmap. If the number is set
to the minimum of 1, then in a case like this example, there are so few that the pattern isn’t
recognizable. At the maximum of 5, the pattern is very clear but takes much longer to generate and will
take much longer to engrave as well.

Density = 1 Density = 3 Density = 5

 Tool Settings

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 o Tool diameter: is the width of the line made by the tool tip as it’s engraving, drawing, foiling, etc. If
it’s not specified on the particular tool in use, a test line can be made and then measured with a
ruler or with a caliper. Very thin lines, such as those made with a scratch engraver, may not be
measurable, so testing with a few small patterns first (e.g. try a diameter 0.01” and test larger or
smaller as needed) will help you determine what works best.
 The difference in the pattern between two Tool diameters is shown here:

Tool diameter = 0.02” Tool diameter = 0.04”

 Zooming in on the nose, you can see how the pattern differs when the Tool diameter is larger:

Tool diameter = 0.02” Tool diameter = 0.04”

o Tool overlap: this setting helps compensate when the measurement of the tool diameter isn’t
perfectly measured. It also helps compensate if small amounts of slippage occur on your machine.
Essentially, the pattern lines are overlapped, by the percentage entered, while being executed so
that no unintended gaps occur in the fill pattern.

5.05.2 Cut Lines

 Use this option when cutting the pattern from thin materials such as vinyl:

Select Cut lines

Direction of line pattern

Density of line pattern

Bridge option Frame option

and settings and settings

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  Direction of line pattern and Density are essentially the same settings as with Engrave lines:
o Direction – choose either Horizontal or Vertical, as preferred
o Density – enter a value from 1 to 5 where the higher the value, the clearer the image

 Add bridges: Mark this option to add connections perpendicular to the Direction of the line pattern.
These connections help stabilize the final cut when weeding and applying.
o Bridge count: enter the number of bridges needed. Entering 2 will result in bridges at the far ends
of the pattern. Entering more than 2 will result in additional bridges equally spaced through the
pattern.
o Bridge width: enter the desired width of the bridge.
o Here is an example where two bridges were added:

Left side bridge, zoomed in Bridge count: 2 Right side bridge, zoomed in

 Add frame: Mark this option to place a rectangular frame around the entire pattern for a finishing touch
to a project.
o Frame width: Thickness of the frame to be added
o Here is an example where a frame has been added. Note that the frame consists of two rectangles
and is not filled with a pattern:

Frame width: 0.2” With Show Fill turned off

5.05.3 Diffused Lines:

 This third pattern option is also used in engraving applications, both scratch and rotary. It can also be used
with other tools such as pens and markers. As was shown in Section 5.05, it creates a different pattern of
lines in comparison to the Engrave Lines option:

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 Select Diffused lines

Density of line pattern

Tool diameter

 The Density and Tool diameter settings are essentially the same settings as with Engrave lines:
o Density - enter a value from 1 to 5 where the higher the value, the clearer the image
o Tool diameter – enter the width of the line made by the tool tip as it’s engraving, drawing, foiling,
etc.

 Testing the effect of these settings:

Line Density: 2 Line Density: 4 Line Density: 4

Tool Diameter 0.02” Tool Diameter 0.02” Tool Diameter 0.04”

5.06 Create Vectors from Bitmap

 This trace option converts a raster image into a vector file which can then be cut from a range of materials,
depending on your cutter and the intricacy of the design.

 Once you have imported the bitmap image, click on the Create vectors from bitmap icon . The
following window opens:

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 Color Identification Bars
Section 5.06.1

Color Selection Bar View options

Section 5.06.2 Section 5.06.3

Trace settings
Trace settings Section 5.06.4
Section 5.06.4

Vectorize options Close

Section 5.06.3

5.06.1 Color Identification Bars

 These two bars allow you to control what colors or shades get traced.
 The upper scroll bar is used for both black/white and grayscale tracing:
 Decrease this setting to add more distinction between colors and increase the number of individual
paths recognized and traced. Increase to lessen the distinction between colors and decrease the
number of individual paths recognized and traced.

Original raster Changes in what will be traced as the scroll bar is moved from left to right

 The + and – icons to the left of the scroll bar are used to add or remove intermediate “shades of gray” to
the trace:
Click + icon once to add an
intermediate gray

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 Continue clicking + icon to
add more shades of gray

Shades of gray are

now identified

 By introducing a particular number of intermediate gray shades, you can create a monochromatic,
contour-layered project from a photo:

o The individual shades can then be scrolled to add more or less to the image, as preferred:

Individually scroll the bars to control

the amount of each shade

o Each shade is the result of the Threshold setting which will also be covered in Section 5.06.4.

 Note that at any time you can view the original imported bitmap image by clicking on the View bitmap
icon below the scroll bars:

View segmentation selected View bitmap selected View segmentation again

selected

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  More about the View options is covered in Section 5.06.3.

 The lower scroll bar is used for color vectorization:

 Similar to how the + and - icons are used on the upper scroll bar to increase or decrease shades of
gray to be separately identified, the + and – icons on the lower scroll bar can be used to identify colors
in the original raster.
 Before increasing the colors to be identified, the following original bitmap will be displayed in black and
white, similar to the earlier bitmap of the owl image:

Original raster Default settings will produce a black and white trace

 Before switching to color tracing, double click the – icon on the upper scroll bar so that only white is
selected. Note that nothing will then appear:

Top bar is set

Click the –
to all white Nothing appears because only
icon once
white is selected

 Then, by increasing the colors one at a time, the original image can be reproduced so that it is virtually
identical to the bitmap:

The color pink is identified and

shows up on the screen
Click
once

Clicking a second time adds in a yellow

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 Note that when a new color is added, the yellow part of the cake, as well as the yellow and orange in the
flames on the candles all appear as the same yellow. But by continuing to add colors, the original clipart
image appears to be recreated:

All colors have been added

 With some images, you may not initially end up with the colors being identified. For example, here is a
clipart image of three flowers that are red, orange, and purple:

 When all of the colors are added on the lower scroll bar, the red and purple flowers appear as the same
color and subsequent clicking on the + icon doesn’t separate the two colors:
Both flowers are the same color

Repeated clicking only adds in black boxes

 In order to separately identify the red and the purple, first click on the View bitmap icon and an
eyedropper cursor will appear. Use this eyedropper to click on the color to be replaced. Then click on
one of the desired colors on the bitmap image:

2. Click on the color 3. Use eyedropper cursor to

to be replaced click inside red flower

1. Switch to View bitmap

 That in-between color that was originally identified will be replaced with the color selected with the
eyedropper. Note also that one of the black boxes at the end is now gone:

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 Original color identified Color from eyedropper One black box now remains

 Repeat for the other color by first clicking on one of the black boxes that was added at the end. After
clicking on the purple flower, that color will also be added to the selection:

With this box selected

Replaced with color from
eyedropper selection

 Click on the View segmentation icon and the result now matches the original bitmap:

Original selection of colors Selection after replacement

5.06.2 Color Selection Bar

 Once you have the colors identified for the tracing, clicking once on one of the colors in the lower scroll bar
will activate the color selection settings:
Click on a color

Select all Combine colors

Exclude color Put color at bottom

 When a color is selected a thick blue border surrounds that color, as indicated in the prior screenshot (the
black color in the lower scroll bar now has a blue border). The four settings allow you to do the following:
 Select all – select all colors on both scroll bars and deactivate the color control icons

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 Exclude color – remove the selected color from the trace. Normally, you will see a black “X” placed
across the box of an excluded color, but the X won’t be visible on black. As an example, it is also shown
what would happen if orange had been selected instead:

Black is excluded (but cannot Orange is excluded (X

see X) appears in box)

versus

Exclude color Exclude color

 Put color at bottom – move the selected color to below all other colors. Note the difference in what the
trace result will be when black is moved to the bottom. Essentially, it blacks out the shape which is
sometimes preferred for applications such as a paper piecing.

Black is selected and vectorize applied

Instead, Put color at bottom is clicked and black The trace is blacked out
moves to the far left. Then vectorize is applied.

 Combine – combine two colors into one. Select one color, click on Combine, and then select a second
color. A new in-between color is then created. In this example, the yellow color of the cake will be
combined with the yellow in the candle flame:

1. Select a color 3. Select another color Colors are combined

2. Click on Combine colors

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 Two different Yellows are
yellows combined

o Additional combining could be performed on the combined yellow plus the orange. This would then
make the flames on the candles all one color:

1. Select combined yellow 3. Select orange Colors are combined

2. Click on Combine colors

yellow and orange

Flame contains both
Yellow and
orange are
combined

5.06.3 Vectorize Options and View Options

 Before presenting the trace settings, note the locations of the Vectorize and the View options:

View options

Vectorize options

 There are two Vectorize options:

105
  Vectorize all – trace all colors using the current trace settings. When this option is clicked, the entire
image is vectorized, unless certain colors have been excluded (as covered in the prior Section 5.06.2):

All colors are traced

Click on Vectorize All

 Vectorize selected – only trace the current selected color(s) using the current trace settings. In the
prior birthday cake example, only the color pink is selected and when the Vectorize selected is clicked,
only the pink shapes appear:

Pink is
selected

Only the pink icing is traced

Click on Vectorize selected

o Note that when another color is selected and Vectorize selected is clicked, then that color is added
to the tracing results, not substituted. This is very useful in building the final trace in a step-by-step
procedure:

Blue is
selected

The blue candles are added

Click on Vectorize selected

o The process continues either one color at a time or by selecting more than one color, if the same
trace settings will be applied.

 A few more points to keep in mind:

 Each time you click on either of the Vectorize icons, the trace settings that are currently showing are
applied and any prior tracing of that selected color is substituted.

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  Before either of the Vectorize icons are clicked, the lower right icon is an X and clicking on it will cancel
and close this window. Once either of the Vectorize icons have been clicked, the X icon changes to the
normal Apply icon:

Close button Apply button now

appears

 If you need to cancel any of the vectorizing actions you’ve taken, click on the Undo button repeatedly to
cancel each step you’ve performed. Eventually you’ll no longer see any traced shapes and you can
begin again, if desired.

 Once you are happy with the tracing, click on the Apply icon or press Esc. The Vectorize window will
close and the traced shapes will be in the Sign Area aligned with the original bitmap image.

 There are three View options in the Vectorize window:

 View bitmap: clicking this option will display the original bitmap:

View bitmap is selected Original bitmap image

 View segmentation: clicking this option will display the results based on how many colors are currently
identified on the Color Selection bar:

View segmentation is selected Bitmap image based on Color

Selection options

 View vectors: clicking this option will display the current results of the trace using the settings that have
been chosen:

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 Vector image based on what colors
View vectors is selected
have been traced

o Of course, if the Vectorize All option has been clicked, then all of the colors would appear in the
tracing.

 Note that when using certain options in the Vectorize window, the View option will automatically change.
For example, if a change is made with the Color Selection settings, the View Segmentation option will be
activated. When one of the two Vectorize options is clicked, the View vectors option will be activated.

5.06.4 Trace Settings

 The five trace settings help you optimize the results for the wide range of bitmaps you may need to
vectorize. Prioritizing your bitmap choices using the list in Section 5.02 will make the process of tracing
much easier. In fact, with some bitmaps, adjusting trace settings might not even been needed. However, it’s
worth taking the time to understand the purpose of these settings and when you might need to adjust them.
 When adjusting settings, use the following guidelines:
 It’s normally advisable to only change one setting at a time and check the results. Zoom in by using the
mouse scroll or Shift+F3.
 Only work with one shade (in monochromatic tracing) or one color (in color tracing) at a time.
 Keep track of the settings you’ve already tested.

 The five settings are:

 Resolution - Adjust based on the original bitmap image:
o Decrease if the bitmap is large or the resulting trace is too detailed
o Increase if the bitmap is low resolution or the resulting trace is missing detail

 Threshold or Amount - Adjust to control how much or how little gets traced. Note that when the upper
scrollbar is used for monochromatic tracing, the setting is called Threshold. When the lower scrollbar is
used for color tracing, the setting is called Amount.
o Threshold: In Section 5.06.1, it was shown that dragging the lines separating black and white or
shades of gray can alter how the bitmap is traced. The Threshold setting reflects those changes
being made and, alternatively, the same changes could have been made on that scrollbar. First,
click one of the shades to select it, then the Threshold setting can be changed:
1. Click on a shade The width of this shade box is
now larger

2. Scroll to a higher or lower value Threshold is now higher

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 o Amount: The lines separating individual colors on the lower scrollbar are not movable. Instead,
each color is treated individually and the Amount setting allows you to increase or decrease the
range of pixels of similar color. This is an important setting when the image contains variegated
colors versus flat colors, such as in a photo.

 All colors initially have an Amount setting of 0. Select one color at a time and scroll up or down
to increase or decrease, as desired:
1. Click on a color

2. Scroll to a higher or lower value Amount is now higher

 By increasing or decreasing the Amount setting on the various colors identified, different results
can be obtained:

 Tolerance – This setting controls how tightly the trace line fits the original bitmap. A low Tolerance will
hug the original bitmap borders more precisely but will usually result in more nodes. A high Tolerance
will more loosely fit the original bitmap borders but will result in fewer nodes. This being said, the
resulting trace may also appear to be the same, in which case it would make sense to use the higher
Tolerance for fewer nodes:

versus

Original bitmap Tolerance = 1 Tolerance = 18

 Corners – This setting is used to sharpen or soften the trace lines. For example, when tracing a box
pattern, one would expect to need a higher Corners setting. On the other hand, when tracing a teddy
bear, a lower setting would be expected.

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 o In the following example, the initial trace of a silhouette cat image indicates two spots where the
trace line is too sharp when the default value of 4 is applied:

Red arrows indicated spots where the

trace line is too sharp

Corners = 4

o By decreasing Corners from 4 to 2, those spots where the trace line was too sharp, now have much
smoother curves:

Trace line around cat is much

smoother

Corners = 2

 Size Filter – This setting is used to filter out small shapes. Sometimes these shapes are just random
pixels that show up from, say, a dirty scanner bed. Other times they are shapes that make up the design
but will be too small to cut and are not needed.
o At the default of 1, all small shapes will be traced. As the Size Filter is raised, increasingly larger
sized shapes will be ignored.
o For example, when vectorizing the birthday cake, two tiny blue shapes appear above the candles:

These little blue shapes

are not needed
Small blue shapes are gone

Size filter = 1 Size filter = 7

o In another example, fewer leaves are wanted for the trace of the following tree. A much larger Size
filter setting is needed because of the relative size of the leaves:

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 Original bitmap Size filter = 40 Size filter = 70 Size filter = 100

5.07 Bitmap Size Frame

 This option can be used for three purposes:

 Resizing a bitmap image without maintaining the original width and height proportions (Section 5.07.1)
 Resizing a bitmap image based on a point of reference within that image (Section 5.07.2)
 Resizing a bitmap image for the purpose of approximating the dimensions of another reference in that
image (Section 5.07.3)

5.07.1 Resize a Bitmap Without Maintaining Proportions

 In some situations, you may want to resize a bitmap without maintaining the aspect ratio, even if it slightly
distorts the image.

 For example, a bitmap image is currently sized at 3.8” x 4.00”. However, this bitmap will be resized to
4” x 4” in order to more evenly appear on a 5” x 5” greeting card. With the Bitmap Size Frame icon

selected, the following settings appear on the Properties & Functions Bar:

Click on Bitmap Size

Frame These now appear
Current bitmap size

 Enter a new Height of 4” and click on Apply. The image is resized accordingly:

Enter new Height

Click on Apply

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 o Note that the Size settings on the left side of the Properties & Function Panel will retain the
dimensions that were in place before using the Bitmap Size Frame function. To update those
dimensions, press Q to leave the Bitmap mode and then re-enter Bitmap mode and click on the
image.

5.07.2 Resize a Bitmap Based on a Point of Reference

 This function is applied when you need to resize a bitmap based on a particular part of the image that needs
to be a certain size.
 The following clipart will be used in a project. Let’s assume that you’ve already purchased some 0.25”
googly eyes (which will be glued on top of the existing printed eyes). The goal is to resize the bitmap so
that the size of the printed eyes is 0.25”:

0.25” googly eyes will be glued over the

printed eyes

 Click on the Bitmap Size Frame icon and drag the corners of the pink rectangle so that they fit
one of the eyes:
Drag the corners of the … until the rectangle fits
pink rectangle… one of the eyes

 Enter 0.25” and mark the following box to maintain the proportions for the bitmap:

2. Enter desired size

3. Click on Apply

1. Mark this box

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  Note that instead of dragging the existing pink rectangle, you can also left click twice to create a new
rectangle (in the same way you would add a rectangle as a new shape).

5.07.3 Resize a Bitmap to Estimate Dimensions

 The following image is used as an example for this tutorial although, in actual situations, this would most
likely apply to a photograph of an actual building:

 The goal is to design a sign to replace Bakery without needing to measure the actual sign. It’s easier to
measure, say, one of the glass windows instead. Let’s say the width of the window is 65 inches.

 With the bitmap image imported into the Bitmap window, click on the Bitmap Size Frame icon and drag
the pink rectangle so that it borders the glass pane of the window:

Pink rectangle is dragged to

fit the glass pane

 Mark the Proportional option, enter the actual Width of the glass pane, and click on Apply:

Bitmap Width Mark Proportional Enter actual Width Click on Apply

 The bitmap image is resized to match the actual building. Click on Y to enter Shapes mode and create
a rectangle that fits the Bakery sign. This rectangle now serves as an approximate template to use in
sizing the new sign to design in SignCut Draw:

Size a new rectangle to fit

~Dimensions of actual sign
the sign in the bitmap

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5.08 Create Outline on Bitmap

 This option can also be used for vectorizing a shape. It can be very convenient for print and cut (contour cut)
applications because of the ability to offset or inset the trace/cut line. You also have the option to manually
trace the image, when needed.
 For this tutorial, an example of tracing an image for a contour cutting (print and cut) application is chosen:

 After importing the bitmap, click on the Create outline on bitmap icon and the following additional
settings appear:
Offset from image borders Blackout option (no internal shapes)

Apply

Create outline on bitmap Adjust sharp turns in the tracing

 The Distance setting is how far the trace line will be placed from the borders of the image:
 If you want the trace line to follow the print line, set Distance to 0:

Distance set to 0

Trace line follows the

printed image

 If you want a contour cut around the printed image, such as used for stickers, set the Distance to a
positive number:

Enter a positive Distance

Trace line is offset from

the printed image

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  If you want an inset cut line which is often used to allow for some error when cutting along the print line,
set the Distance to a small negative number, such as -0.02 inch (-0.5 mm).

Enter a negative Distance

Trace line is inside the borders of

the printed image

 To apply the settings, click on the Create All icon. The orange dashed lines will turn magenta indicating the
tracing is now set. To hide the original imported image, click on the Hide Bitmap icon. You will then see
what lines will cut with these settings:

Click here to hide imported bitmap

 For contour cutting, the internal cut lines are typically not needed. To omit them, first click the Undo

button at the top of the screen to back up a step. Next, click on the Create outline bitmap icon
again, and mark the option for Outer only. Click on Create all. You will still see the internal trace lines,
however, once you hide the original bitmap again, you’ll observe the internal cuts are now removed:

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 Mark this box to remove
internal trace lines

 If the trace lines are not fitting the original bitmap to your satisfaction, a Threshold setting can be adjusted.
To do this, click on the Black and white icon and the Tolerance setting will light up and be adjustable:

1. Click on Black
3.Click on Apply
& white

4. Click on Create all

2. Threshold can now be changed

 If a tighter fit is needed, lower the Threshold setting and more nodes will be added. If a looser fit is
needed, raise the Threshold setting and fewer nodes will be used.
 Note that clicking on the Apply icon above the Threshold setting will allow you to examine the trace
before clicking on Create all. Thus, you can continue to make changes to Threshold until you are
satisfied with the results.

5.09 Create CARD registration marks

 If you prefer to print from another software program and you own a cutter with automatic registration mark
detection, you will need to add CARD registration marks so that SignCut Pro 2 will perform the contour
cutting procedure.
 The design to be printed may be raster (e.g. JPG, PNG, BMP) or vector (e.g. AI, EPS, SVG). Because this
particular part of the user manual covers the Bitmap mode, it is assumed that a raster image is being
imported. If the design is in a vector format, refer to Section 8.03.2 for instructions on adding CARD
registration marks.
 Inkscape will be used in this tutorial as the software program for printing. The instructions should be
straight-forward enough to be applied to any other graphics program you may choose to use instead.
 A bitmap image has been imported into Inkscape and duplicated for printing:

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 The CARD registration marks need to be small circles (typically 5 mm) and they must be positioned in
horizontal and vertical alignment with one another. Begin by just placing one black circle outside of the
image and then copy/paste and more three others around the bitmap:

 Use the alignment tools in the software program (Inkscape in this case) to create a perfect rectangular
formation outside of the bitmap images:

Select two circles at a time and click on Black circles are perfectly aligned as
appropriate icon to align indicated by the red dashed rectangle

 Export the bitmap and the four black circles as a raster file and import into SignCut Draw using the Open

bitmap file icon (refer to Section 5.03.1). Because you want to maintain the same sizing, select the
Adjust sign size to original bitmap size option:

Resize the Sign Area

dimensions to match the
bitmap dimensions

 After clicking on OK, the bitmaps and four black circles should now appear in the Sign Area:

117
 Click on the Create CARD Registration marks icon and the following window opens:

 Click on OK and circular registration marks will be added and centered with the four black circles created in
the other program. Because the marks are thin red lines, you will need to zoom in to see them:

A very thin red line appears along the

edge of each black circle

 Use the trace function presented in Section 5.08 to add the desired cut lines to the bitmap. Note that
because the CARD registration marks were added first, the black circles are not traced during this process:

Magenta contour cut lines

are added

 Click on the Move image to SignCut icon (or shortcut S) to transport the cut lines and CARD
registration marks to SignCut Pro 2 for the cutting process:

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 CARD marks appear in all
four corners

Magenta lines are in place

for contour cutting

5.10 Pen Tools (T)

 The Pen tools (shortcut T) on the Tools Panel provide the necessary functions for drawing. When
activated, the Properties & Functions Bar initially displays these options:

Freehand tool
Section 5.10.6

Drawing tool Weeding line tool

Section 5.10.1 - 5.10.5 Section 7.03

Split object tool

Section 6.02

 The Drawing tool and Freehand tool are covered in this section. The other two are covered in later
chapters based on the organization of this user manual.

5.10.1 Drawing Straight Lines (T1)

 To activate the Drawing tool, click on the icon or press the shortcut T1.
 To draw a single straight line, use your mouse to click once where you want to start the line and click again
where you want to end the line. Then immediately press the Enter key:

Left click once Move cursor to where you want to To stop drawing, press Enter key
to plant a node finish the line and click again

 If you wish to continue drawing a connecting straight-line path, keep left-clicking each time you need to
change directions. Each click plants a node at that location:

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 Left click to start and left Move to a 3rd location and left Move to a 4th location and left click again.
click at a 2nd location click again.

Move to a 5th location and left click again. Continue clicking until you are ready to
end. Press the Enter key.

 If you want to draw perfectly vertical lines or perfectly horizontal lines, hold the Ctrl key while clicking:

Press Ctrl key to add only

horizontal or vertical lines

 If you are drawing a closed path then, just as the cursor approaches the starting node, a small circle will
appear over that first node and you can click one last time to end the process. Alternatively, without moving
the cursor near the first node, you can press Shift + Enter to also close the shape. The shape will
automatically join the first and last nodes and fill with color, provided Show fill is activated:

Left click to start Move to a 3rd location and As you approach the start, watch Left click and the shape will
and then left click at left click again for a small circle to appear over close. When you move the
a 2nd location that first node cursor away the shape fills with
color.

 A few key points to note:

 Immediately after left clicking to plant a node, you can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move
that node, if needed, before moving on to plant the next node.
 If you need to go back to a prior node, click the Undo icon repeatedly to return to that node.
 If you need to join the last node to an open node on another shape, left click near that open node and
the path will automatically attach:

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 Existing open shape Draw new lines Place cursor over the end Newly drawn path joins
of existing open shape onto the existing shape
and left click

 If you want to start your drawing by connecting to a node on an open shape or you want to snap to the
same location as a node on a closed shape, press and hold the left mouse button and move towards
that node. The screen will be flashing until the mouse is directly on top of that node. Once the flashing
ceases, release the mouse button and plant the next node:

Existing shape Hold down left mouse When flashing beam Continue drawing
button and move towards becomes steady, left click remaining lines
node to which you wish to
align

5.10.2 Controlling Position, Size, and Angles While Drawing

 On the Properties & Function Bar, settings for the path just drawn appear as soon as the second node is
planted: Length of path

Type of path

X and Y Positions of first

node in the Sign Area Angle of path relative to Angle of path relative to
horizontal prior path

 Enter a new Length, Position, and/or Angle, if desired, for the line just drawn. As you enter a new value,
immediately press the Enter key before changing to a different field.

 You can also increase/decrease the Length setting by clicking on the + and – icons or by holding the
Shift key while clicking the arrow keys on your keyboard.

 Similarly, you can also increase/decrease the Angle setting by clicking on the + and – icons or by
holding the Ctrl key while clicking the arrow keys on your keyboard.

 After a second line is added, the Rel. Angle setting appears. With this setting you can change the angle
based on the prior line just drawn versus entering an Angle relative to horizontal. For example, the
second line needs to be at a right angle to the first line, so -90 is entered into the Rel. Angle field:

Enter new angle and press

Enter

Current Rel. Angle Angle is now 90o

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  As with the Angle setting, you can also make a change to Rel. Angle by clicking on the + and – icons
or holding the Alt key while clicking the arrow keys on your keyboard.

5.10.3 Adding Guidelines While Drawing

 To add a guideline that will be aligned with the current line you are about to create, hold the Alt key and left
click once. The guideline will then be created. To add the guideline and plant the node for the line, hold
both the Shift key and the Alt key when left clicking:

Alt key plus left click adds a guideline Alt key + Shift key + left click adds both a guideline
and plants the node

 To add a horizontal or vertical guideline at the current location of the cursor, press H or V, respectively:

H key adds a horizontal V key adds a vertical guideline at

guideline at location of cursor location of cursor

 Press G to add a new guideline that is parallel to the prior guideline created:

First guideline and node are added using Parallel guideline is added using G
Alt + Shift + left click

 Note that the reference guideline is the larger-dashed magenta line. To make the new parallel guideline
the reference guideline, press the PgUp key. You can then toggle between PgUp and PgDn to change
which guideline is the reference:

Parallel guideline has been added; prior PgUp key is pressed and new PgDn key is pressed and prior
guideline is the reference guideline becomes the reference guideline is again the reference

 Press Shift+G to add a new guideline that is perpendicular to the prior reference guideline created:

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 First guideline and node are added using Perpendicular guideline is added using
Alt+Shift+ left click Shift+G

 Press B to add a new guideline that is parallel to the last two parallel guidelines created and positioned
between them:

First guideline and node are added

Press G at new location for a Press B to add a third guideline
using Alt + Shift + left click
second parallel guideline to be centered between the two
added
 Note that pressing B will only work after immediately using G to create a parallel guideline to the
reference guideline.

 Press J to add a new guideline along a previously drawn line. This is convenient in the event you forgot to
add a guideline before left clicking to plant the node:

Oops… forgot to add a guideline Press J and guideline is added

 Press Shift+J to add a new perpendicular guideline to a previously drawn line, through the last node
planted:

Oops… forgot to add a guideline Press Shift+J and a perpendicular

guideline is added

5.10.4 Drawing Bézier Curves

 To draw a curve, use the same steps for creating a straight line however, instead of left clicking once,
double click. The cursor will move to the center of the line and you can begin dragging your mouse to form
a curve:

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 Left click once to begin the Double click and the cursor will Begin dragging your mouse
curve and move to where the move to the middle of the line to form a curve
curve will end

 Note that if you fail to double click, you can also use the shortcut C to convert from straight line to curve.

 As you drag the mouse, you’ll see that you have full control over this curve. Experiment with longer and
shorter versions, as well as rotating the line to bend the curve in a range of different ways:

Bézier handles

Freely drag the curve to create whatever you need or want

 Note the two extended lines on the curve. These are called Bézier handles and have control points on the
ends. As with straight line drawing, the Properties & Function Bar display settings which can be changed.
In the case of a curve the settings are tied to these Bézier handles:

Indicates a curve is Length and Angle of

drawn second Bézier handle

X and Y Positions of first Length and Angle of first

node in the Sign Area Bézier handle

 In the following example, the settings from the prior screenshot are indicated on the curve itself:

Length 2

Length 1

X and Y Positions
Angle 1 Angle 2

 Note that in Section 6.03.7 it will be further shown how to manipulate the Bézier handles while in Node
edit mode to reshape a curve.

 When you are satisfied with the curve, left click once and the cursor will return to the last node and you can
continue with creating another curve, a straight line, or end by pressing the Enter key:

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 Or… Or…

Press Enter key to end Add on another curve Add on a straight line
the curve

5.10.5 Drawing an Arc

 A third type of path option, an Arc, is also shown on the Properties & Function Bar:

Radius – distance from middle

of arc to Center
Indicates an arc is
drawn

X and Y Positions of the center

of the arc’s circle

 Because an arc is based on a circle, the X and Y Positions are the center of the circle from which the
arc is created and the Radius is the distance from that center to the middle of the arc:

X and Y Positions

Radius

 To draw an arc, plant the first node, then the second, as if drawing a line. Then press the shortcut A and the
arc will be created. Drag the arc to create the size desired:

Center Center Center

Or… Or…

Left click twice to form Press A and an arc will

a line form
Drag downward to Drag upward to create a
create a longer arc shorter arc

 Alternatively, enter new settings into the Properties & Function Bar. When satisfied with the arc, press
the Enter key to end or continue to draw more paths.

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5.10.6 Freehand Drawing (T2)

 Freehand drawing is activated by clicking on the Freehand tool icon or pressing the shortcut T2.
This tool is used to freely draw thin lines with your mouse or, better yet, a graphics tablet if happen to own
one.
 To draw, hold down the left mouse button and drag the mouse. Once the mouse is released, that path
becomes an individual open shape:

Begin dragging the Continue dragging to create When the mouse button is released,
mouse the desired shape the path is concluded

 To draw a closed shape, return the mouse to the starting point and the shape will snap closed:

Begin drawing the Continue drawing without Finish the shape by bringing the When the mouse button is released,
shape lifting the mouse mouse to the starting point the shape is filled

5.11 Manually Tracing an Imported Image

 Sometimes the quality of an image will fail to yield a good auto-trace. It could be that the image is too small
or too detailed. If the image is important to you, then manually tracing offers another option for conversion to
a vector cut line. The easiest way to manually trace a raster graphic is using the Drawing Tool presented in
Section 5.10.
 Use the instructions from Section 5.03.1 to import the bitmap to be traced. In this tutorial a dress pattern will
be used:

 Because the dress is a symmetrical pattern, only one side will be traced. Then a symmetrical copy of the
trace lines will be made and welded to the other half. This is a very handy method of “pleasing the eye”
when reproducing a difficult-to-trace image. The balance of the symmetry forgives imperfections in the
tracing.
 Before beginning the trace, visually note how many changes in curves and straight lines exist. This will help
you understand where to click as you work around the image. But don’t overthink it. Remember that the
trace lines can be easily edited later.

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 The tracing can begin at any location. Again, because only half of the image will be traced, it’s decided to
begin in the middle of the neckline and work around the left side of the pattern:

Trace will begin and end at the middle of the neckline, moving
counterclockwise around the dress.

Red arrows indicate where a

change in direction or curvature
occurs

 The process is as follows:

 Activate the Drawing Tool (shortcut T1).

 Use the scroll button on your mouse to zoom in close on the neckline. Left-click once in the middle of
the neckline (see green arrow below). Then, because the neckline is a curve, double click at the point
where the curve ends (at the red arrow). Then drag the curve down and left/right until the curve fits the
shape of the neckline:
2. Double click Drag line to center of
curve in the image
Curve formation
line appears
1. Click

 The next two parts are both straight lines, thus you only need to click and click at each point:

Click once here

Then click here

 The next part consists of two curves along the sleeve. Double click where the curve changes and form
the first curve. Then double click at the end of the other curve and form that curve:

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 Double click here, drag to form curve

Then double click here, drag to form curve

 Continue around the left side of the dress forming the necessary straight lines and curves to fit the
bitmap image. The last click will form a vertical straight line in the middle of the dress and, upon clicking
at the initial node, the shape will fill with color:

Left click on initial node Tracing of left side of dress fills with color

 If any additional editing is needed, it will be performed using the Node edit mode which will be covered in
Section 6.03.

 To complete the pattern:

 Hide the bitmap image by clicking the View bitmap icon . Go to outline mode by clicking the Show

fill icon :

 With the tracing selected in Object edit mode, use Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V to make a copy in place.
 Hold the Ctrl key and drag the middle left handle of the bounding box to the far right to mirror one of the
copies:

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 Hold Ctrl key and drag this
handle to the right One of the copies becomes
a mirror image

 Use the arrow keys to move the shapes to overlap as desired. Select both shapes and apply the Weld

objects together icon :

Original plus mirror copy Overlap the two shapes Apply Weld objects together

 The dress is now complete and ready to be resized and cut!

5.12 Send bitmap to Graphic Tracer

 SignCutDraw comes bundled with the software Graphic Tracer. This program has additional options for
tracing bitmap images, notably font identification and replacement. Once the vectorization is complete, the
image can be sent directly back to SignCut Draw to continue work by using the ClickLink function in Graphic
Tracer.

◊ For more help on using Graphic Tracer, check out their help videos.
○ Graphic Powers
○ Graphic Powers on Youtube
○ Graphic Powers on Vimeo

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 6. Editing

6.01 Size Filter

 The Size filter function will delete selected shapes which are equal to or below a size you enter.

 To access this function, go to Object edit mode and click on the Size filter icon on the far-right side of
the Properties & Functions Bar.
Size filter

 The Properties & Function Bar will now display the following:

Enter Size limit…

… or select a shape and click here Click Apply to delete shapes equal to
to define the Size limit or smaller than the Size limit

 There are two ways to set the Size limit:

 Enter a size into the Size limit field (or click the + and - icons)

 Click on any shape on the Design Board, then click the star icon below the Size limit field. The
larger of the Width or Height of that shape will be entered into the Size limit field.

 Once the Size limit is entered, select all of the shapes you want included in the filtering process and click
on Apply.
 As an example, after activating the Size filter function, one of the small circles is selected:

Small circle is
selected

 With the shape selected, the star icon is clicked and the Size limit changes:
Size limit updates to size of
selected circle

Click on star

 Select all of the circles and click on Apply. The smaller circles are all deleted:

Apply Size
filter

All of the circles are selected Smallest circles are deleted

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6.02 Split Object Tool (T3)

 The Split object tool (also called the Knife tool) can be used to either break a path or cut completely
through a shape.
 This tool is accessed on the Properties & Functions Bar when the Pen tools (T) is selected or by using
the shortcut T3:

Click here or use T3

6.02.1 Using Split Object to Break a Path

 To use the tool to break a path, left click on one side of the path and a line appears. Move the cursor to the
other side of the path and left click. The path will be broken at that location where the line crosses the path
and two new end nodes are now created:
Nodes can now be
Left click on one End nodes are moved
side of the path created

Move cursor to
other side of the
path

 After clicking on the other side, the shape will no longer be closed, thus it will have no fill color.
 The new end nodes can now be moved (or whatever else is needed). Details about node editing are
covered in Section 6.03.
 Note that a very similar function called Split Path is available under the Node edit tools and is covered
in Section 6.06.

6.02.2 Using Split Object to Bisect a Shape

 When cutting through a shape, left click once on the outside of the shape, move your cursor to another point
outside of the shape and click again. The result will be two closed shapes:

Show Fill can

be restored

Left click on one Move cursor to Left click and a cut line
side of the shape other side of the will appear. Show Fill In Object edit mode, shapes can
shape turns off. be moved apart

 Note that while cutting through the shape, holding the Ctrl key will keep the cut line perfectly horizontal
or vertical.
 Upon clicking a second time to apply the cut, Show Fill will be turned off so that the cut line will be
visible. However, you can immediately restore the fill color, if desired.

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  To move either shape, return to Object edit mode.
 Note that guidelines can be added before using this tool to better position the start and/or end points.

 The Split object tool can only be applied to one shape at a time. If you want to bisect multiple shapes with
a single cut line, select the shapes and apply Create group (Ctrl+G). Then go to the Split object tool and
bisect all.

versus

Shapes are grouped first:all shapes are bisected Shapes are not grouped:Only the first shape
crossed is bisected

6.03 Node Editing Basics

Section 5.10 covered creating straight lines and curves using the Drawing tool. The following subsections cover
how to edit these lines and curves using various functions that make up the Node edit tools in SignCut Draw.

6.03.1 Node Size Preference

 SignCut Draw offers three sizes for the displaying of nodes: Small, Normal, and Large. To change the
Node size, go to Settings>Settings, select the desired size, and click on OK:

Select desired Node size

Click on OK

6.03.2 Node Edit Tool (O)

 The Node edit tool (shortcut O) on the Tools Panel provides a rich assortment of functions for editing
vector images. When activated, the Properties & Functions Bar initially displays the following options:

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 Reduce nodes
Section 6.05.2
Round a corner
Add/Delete Nodes Convert node type Section 6.04.2
Section 6.03.4 Section 6.03.7

Node edit mode Snap angles menu

options (see below) Section 6.03.5
 Node edit mode options have three choices:
 Standard (shortcut O1): used for the basic node editing functions shown in the prior screenshot
Convert path options Split path Make corner Show original / Update
 Straighten (shortcut O2): used to convert
Section 6.03.6 Section the
6.06 angle of a path
Section (refer to(see
6.03.6 Section
below)6.08)
 Clone section (shortcut O3): used to make duplicates of existing paths (refer to Section 6.09)

 Show original and Update original shapes: When the Show original option is marked, the original path
will continue to be displayed in a pale gray color so that you can see the effects of any changes being made
as you edit nodes and paths:

 Show original is not marked and a reduction of nodes is applied:

It is not apparent if the
path has changed

 Show original is marked and a reduction in nodes in applied:

Enlarged to show
original gray path

Faint gray curves indicate

where the original path was
located

 The original gray paths will continue to be displayed as more changes are made to nodes and/or paths.
At any point, you can force the current path to become the new original gray path by clicking on the

Update original shapes icon .

 If desired, you can change the color of the paths being edited while in Node edit mode. This can be helpful
if you have traced a bitmap image and you need it displayed while editing. To do that, select the path(s),
hold the Ctrl key, and click on the desired color on the Color Palette.

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 Ctrl + click on bright blue on
the Color Palette

Original traced path is black in color, A blue path is now easier to

same as border around image see

 Since you may find yourself needing to move back and forth between Object edit mode and Node edit
mode, a handy shortcut is to double click the Design Board, anywhere outside of the Sign Area. This will
allow you to toggle between the two modes:

Double click outside the Sign Area to

toggle between Object edit and Node
edit modes.Red has been used in this
screen shot to indicate where you can
click

 Note that there needs to be a vector shape present. Otherwise the toggle will be between Object edit
mode and Shape tool mode.

6.03.3 Selecting Paths and Nodes

 In Standard Node edit mode (O1), to select a path, click on it at any location where a node is not present
(otherwise you’ll select the node).
 When you click on a straight line a black circle will appear at the location where you clicked:

The line was selected by

clicking here

 When you click on a curve, a black circle will appear where you clicked and the nodes on either end of
the curve will display Bézier handles, if those nodes are Bézier nodes (Note: details about node types
are covered in Section 6.03.7):

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 Bézier handles appear

The curve was selected by

clicking here

 If you wish to select a line or curve at the exact mid-point, click on the direction arrow and the black
circle will snap to that mid-point:

Small blue arrow indicates mid- Curve becomes selected at

point of curve. Click on that the mid-point
arrow…

 To select a single node, either:

 Left click on the node
 Drag your mouse to encompass the node

 To select the next node along a path, hold Ctrl and Shift and use the right or left arrow keys to move to the
next node:
Selection moves to Selection moves to
this node this node
Click on Ctrl + Shift + Ctrl + Shift +
this node right arrow right arrow

 Note that holding just Ctrl and using the right and left arrow keys will select the path between that node
and the next node. Thus, as you continue to click the arrow keys, the selection alternates between the
next node and the following path:
Selection moves to Selection moves to
this path this node
Click on Ctrl + right Ctrl + right
this node arrow arrow

 To select more than one node, use any of the following:

 Drag your mouse to encompass a selection of nodes
 Left click on a node, then hold the Shift key while clicking on more nodes to add to the selection. To
deselect a selected node, use a second left click.
 Left click on a node, then hold the Ctrl key and click on the last node along a path of nodes. All nodes
will be selected along that path.

135
 o On a closed shape, if the wrong nodes get selected (in other words, you need the other in-between
nodes selected between the first and last node), continue holding the Ctrl key and click on the last
node a second time:
All 4 nodes These 6 nodes become
Click on a node…
become selected selected

Ctrl and
click again
… Ctrl + click on
a second node

o You can then release the Ctrl key. If you need to remove any selected nodes, hold the Shift key
and left click on each node to remove.

 Drag your mouse to encompass a selection of nodes. Then hold the Ctrl key while dragging the mouse
to encompass another selection of nodes to be added to the first selection. In a multi-selection of nodes,
the nodes will be darker than those not in the selection. Also, the first node selected becomes the
Reference Node and will be even slightly darker than other selected nodes:

Pale blue: not selected

Dark blue: Reference

node

Medium blue: selected

 More information regarding the Reference node will be presented in later sections.

 To deselect all selected nodes, either press Esc or click anywhere outside the shape.

6.03.4 Adding and Deleting Nodes

 In Standard Node edit mode (O1), to add a node to a path use any of the following:
 Double click at the desired location for the new node
 Hover the mouse cursor over the desired location and click + key on your keyboard
 Single click to add a black circle indicating where the node will be place. If satisfied with the location,

click the Add node icon .

 To delete one or more nodes on a path, use either of the following:

 Select the node(s) and press the Delete key on your keyboard

 Select the node(s) and click the Delete node icon .

136
 In either case, the selected node will then be deleted and the resulting path will be a Bézier curve. Note that
an adjacent node is then selected.

Deleted node

Deleted
node
applied Next node is selected and Bézier
Select the node to handles appear
be deleted

 You can again click on the Delete node icon to delete that next node. In doing so, this is the result:

 Alternatively, both nodes could have been selected by dragging the mouse to encompass both or by
holding the Ctrl key before selecting the second node. When doing this, the squares will become slightly
darker blue. However, when the Delete node icon is applied, the result may or may not result in a
curve. Depending on the type of nodes present, a straight line may result:

Apply Delete node

Drag mouse to select

both nodes Straight line results

o In a situation such as this, a curve can be restored. Refer to Section 6.03.7.

 Note: there are other ways to reduce the number of nodes in a design. Refer to Section 6.05.

6.03.5 Moving Paths and Nodes

 In Standard Node edit mode (O1), to move a path, click on it and then use either of the following:
 Drag it with your mouse
 Use the arrow keys on your keyboard

 If the path is a curve, it will curve outwards or inwards, depending on which way it’s being moved. The
nodes on either side will remain in place:

137
 Begin dragging the
path
Click on the path to select it Path curves away from original
location (indicate by gray curve)

 If the path is a straight line, it will move both the path and the two nodes with it:

Begin dragging the

path
Click on the path to select it Path and nodes move away from original
location (indicated by gray line)

 To move one or more nodes, select them and, just as with paths, either drag them with your mouse or use
the arrow keys on your keyboard.

 You can also reposition a node along a path without altering the shape of the path:

 Select the node you wish to move.

Move this node Select the node

 Hold the Shift key while pressing either the right or left arrow keys, as needed. Once the black circle
(indicating the new location for the node) is in place, release the Shift key:

Hold the Shift key and tap the

right arrow on your keyboard Node is relocated

 The Node snap angles setting can be used to move a node and have it positioned at an angle relative to
the node on another shape.
 For example, if you need to move a node so that it’s horizontally aligned with another node, then select
90o from the drop-down menu. Then drag the node until you see a blue dash line appear:

138
 Blue dashed line appears

Select angle
Begin dragging node

o Release the mouse button and the node is now horizontally aligned with the node on the other
shape.

 Other angles in the drop-down menu will, of course, snap at different positions:

45o angle 30o angle 15o angle

 Nodes can also be repositioned using a Dynamic Axis in a similar way as presented in Section 3.04.3:

 In this example, the red fold line needs to be aligned with the black cutline:

Red fold line needs to

straightened and moved up

 Hold the Shift key and drag a Dynamic Axis from the top ruler and align it with the cutline:

A horizontal Dynamic Axis is

added at this node along the
cut line

 In Node edit mode, the nodes on the fold line can now be dragged up and snapped to the Dynamic
Axis:
Left side Right side

…until it snaps to …until it snaps to

Dynamic Axis Node is Dynamic Axis
Node is dragged dragged up…
up…

139
  The red fold line is now perfectly aligned with the cutline:

 Note that just as with shapes, a node can be moved a specific distance from a reference point on the
Dynamic Axis as well:

Enter required Distance

Selected node Click on Apply

Reference point on the
Dynamic Axis

6.03.6 Converting Paths

 In Standard Node edit mode (O1), there are several functions available to convert paths from curves to
straight lines and vice-versa. You can also create corners. These three functions are available here:

Convert to line

Convert to curve Make corner

 Convert to line: Select any curve between two nodes and then click on the Convert to line icon . The
curve will immediately become a straight line between those two nodes:

Curve to be converted Select the curve Straight line

results

Apply
Convert
to line

 Another way to convert a path between any two nodes (not necessarily adjacent) is to select all of the
nodes along a curve and press Enter:

Click first node Hold Ctrl and click Straight line is created
last node Press Enter

 Convert to curve: Select any line between two nodes and then click on the Convert to curve icon .
The line will immediately become a curve, as indicated by the Bézier handles appearing on either side:

140
 Bézier handles
appear
Apply
Convert
Line to be converted Select the line to curve A curve results

 The Bézier handles can then be individually dragged to form the desired curve:

Bézier handles are

dragged Desired curve is formed

 Another way to convert a path into a curve is to select the first and last nodes along the line (or a curve)
and press Shift + Enter:

A new curve results

All of the nodes between
these two are selected Press Shift+Enter

 Make corner: Select any two nodes and then click on the Make corner icon . A corner will be created:

A corner replaces the

Select 2 nodes
curve

Apply Make corner

 Alternatively, the path between any two nodes can be clicked (anywhere along the path) and applying
Make corner will result in the same corner being created:

Click anywhere along the A corner replaces the

path between two nodes curve

Apply Make corner

 If the two nodes are along horizontal or vertical lines, then a 90 o corner will be created:

141
 Select all the nodes End node is along a
horizontal line A 90o corner
replaces the
curve

Apply Make corner

End node is along a
vertical line

6.03.7 Converting Nodes

 As mentioned already, in Standard Node edit mode (O1), nodes along a curved path have Bézier handles
which can be dragged to change the curvature of the path:
Bézier handles can be dragged to create whatever kind of curve you desire

 What hasn’t been previously mentioned is that there are three types of Bézier nodes:

 Cusp node: the Bézier handles can be moved completely independent of one another. Vastly different
curves can be created on either side of the node:

While dragging this handle…

… this handle remains stationary

 Smooth node: The Bézier handles will both move as one handle is being dragged, but can be different
lengths. Note that a straight line is maintained between the two handles creating smooth, transitioning
curves on either side of the node:

While dragging this handle…

… this handle moves to

maintain a straight line

 Symmetrical node: The Bézier handles will both move as one handle is being dragged, again a straight
line between them. Additionally, that line will be the same length on either side of the node. The results
is that the curves on either side of the node will be identical (symmetrical):

142
 While dragging this handle…

… this handle moves to maintain a

straight line of equal length

 These examples will help you determine which type of node is needed when adjusting curves in your
designs. To change any existing Bézier node along a curve, select it, and then click on the appropriate icon
to convert to that particular node:
Make node a cusp
Make node
symmetrical

Make node smooth

 Alternatively, you can double click a Bézier node to change it or press Enter after selecting it to cycle
through a sequence of Cusp, Smooth, and Symmetrical. Note each node type is colored differently to
assist in recognizing it:

Cusp node Smooth node Symmetrical node

 Straight line segments have corner nodes which are different from Bézier nodes. To convert a corner node
into any Bézier node, one or both paths need to be converted to a curve, as presented in Section 6.03.6. If
only one path is converted, then the node becomes a Cusp node and only has one handle:

The straight-line path

A series of connect straight Select this line and apply Convert
Only a single Bézier remains unchanged
line paths to curve. Bézier handles appear
handle appears on this
node

6.04 Round Off Corners

 When a design has very sharp points or interior corners, the quality of the cut can be compromised. The
Round off corners function can be used to lessen the sharpness of these points and corners to improve
the cut.
 This function is located on the Properties & Functions Bar in both Object edit mode and in Standard
Node edit mode with the following differences:

143
  The icon in Object edit mode is different from the icon in Node edit mode
 The function in Object edit mode is called Round off corners while it is called Round a corner in
Node edit mode.
 In Node edit mode, corners are individually selected and rounded whereas in Object edit mode, all
corners which fit the settings criteria are rounded.
 The settings for applying the function are different, as shown in the rest of this section.

6.04.1 Round Off Corners in Object Edit Mode

 The following design will be used to illustrate the settings for Round off corners:

 With the shape selected, click on the Round off corners icon and the following settings will appear on
the Properties & Function Bar. Additionally, all of the nodes making up the design will appear with red,
blue, or green circles surrounding them:

 The color of the circles around the corners indicate the following:
 Green circle: This corner will be rounded based on the current settings
 Red circle: This corner will not be rounded based on the current settings
 Blue circle: There are two nodes so close together that you need to zoom closer to see which one is red
and which one is green. In the above example, there are two blue circles. When zoomed in on either
one, you can then see that there are two nodes present and you can choose to delete one, if you wish:

 Yellow circle: After applying Round off corners, a yellow circle will replace the green circle indicating
there are now three nodes creating the rounded path:

 The Distance setting is how far from the corner the rounding will be applied:

144
 Distance = 0.5 Distance = 0.2 Distance = 0.05

 The Angle limit setting filters out corners that are not as sharp as others, excluding them from the rounding
effect. Thus, the smaller the Angle limit, the fewer corners that will be affected:

Angle limit = 60 11 corners will be Angle limit = 457 corners will be Angle limit = 30no corners will be
rounded rounded rounded

 When satisfied with the settings, click on the Apply icon.

6.04.2 Round a Corner in Node Edit Mode

 With the shape selected in Standard Node edit mode (O1), click on the Round a corner icon and the
following setting will appear on the Properties & Function Bar:

 The Corner radius setting is based on the desired roundness for the corner. The higher the setting, the
more the corner will be rounded.

 To use this function, set the desired Corner radius, select a node, then click on Apply:
4. Corner is now
rounded
1. Enter Corner 2. Select a node
radius

3. Click on Apply

 Repeat on other nodes, as needed.

145
6.05 Reduce Number of Nodes

 There are two main reasons why you might need to reduce the number of nodes in a project:
 Some cutters are, by design, not very fast at cutting and having lots of nodes will further slow down the
completion of a cut.
 Cutting small vector shapes in which there are clusters of nodes in tight locations can sometimes lead to
poor cutting.

 The Reduce number of nodes icon is located on the Properties & Functions Bar in both Object
edit mode and in Node edit mode. Note the difference:
 Object edit mode: The Reduce number of nodes function is applied to the entire selected shape
 Node edit mode: The Reduce number of nodes function can be applied to either the entire selected
shape or to whatever nodes are highlighted

6.05.1 Reduce Number of Nodes in Object Edit Mode

 As an example, the following raster image has been imported and vectorized:

 Select the shape, while in Object edit mode and click once on the Reduce number of nodes icon .
That’s it! The number of nodes has been reduced and you or may not notice a significant difference in the
tracing:

Original tracing After applying Reduce number of

nodes

 Continued clicking on the Reduce number of nodes icon will begin showing a distortion of the image:

a second time a third time a fourth time

146
 When using this function, pay close attention to tight corners, such as the inside of the crab’s claw, which
clearly shows the details are compromised with repeated application. Use the Undo function when needed,
to back up to a prior state.

6.05.2 Reduce Number of Nodes in Node Edit Mode

 Using the same example, go to Node edit mode, and click on the shape to display the nodes. Note that
only the outside path of the crab has the nodes displayed. Click once on the Reduce number of nodes

icon and some of the nodes will disappear:

Click once to display the nodes Apply Reduce number of nodes

 The result is the same as in Object edit mode, other than inside shapes (the eyes and opening between the
eyes and the body) are not included. Therefore, no reduction in nodes is applied to those shapes. They
would need to be separately selected, if needed. This can be very helpful in controlling where node
reduction occurs.

 Further, using any of the node selection methods from Section 6.03.3, you can further control which nodes
are automatically removed:

Apply Reduce
number of nodes
twice

Drag the mouse to select the Enlarged screenshot showing the Nodes are removed from that
nodes here selected nodes selection only

 You can also reduce nodes and smooth a path using the Make node smooth icon presented in
Section 6.03.7:

Apply Make node smooth

Select the nodes making up the path The in-between nodes are deleted and a
you want to smooth smoother curve is produced

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6.06 Split Path

 The Split path function allows you to break the path at one or more selected nodes or anywhere along the
path.

6.06.1 Splitting a Path at the Nodes

 To split a path at a single node, hold the Ctrl key and double click on the node:

Only one side shows nodes,

also indicating the path has
been split

Hold the Ctrl key and double click the The node turns green indicating there
node to be split are two nodes now

 Either or both nodes can now be manipulated (moved, deleted, etc.) as needed:

 Another method, which can be used to split more than one node at a time is also available. Select the

node(s) at the location where the path is to be split. Then click on the Split Path icon .
 The following door shape will be used as an example to show the steps. The goal is to change the left side
of the door from a solid cut line to a dashed cutline:

The left side of this paneled door will be

separated and made dashed so that the door
can be folded to open instead of being cut
out

 In Node edit mode, select the shape to display the nodes. Then select the nodes at the top and bottom
of the left side of the door:

Select these
two nodes

 Break that path by clicking on the Split path icon . One of the nodes will turn green indicating it
has been split. To verify that the other node was also split and to change the color of that path, go to
Object edit mode, click on the path to select it, and then choose a new color from the Color Palette:

148
 One of the split
nodes is now
green

In Object edit mode, Recolor the

select the path separated path

 The left side of the window can now be assigned to cut dashed (or can be assigned to a scoring tool)
once the project is sent to SignCut Pro 2.

6.06.2 Splitting a Path on the Path

 Click once on the path where you want the break to occur. Then click on the Split Path icon .
 The following butterfly shape will be used as an example to show the steps. The goal is to remove part of
the butterfly so that, when cut, the wings and head will still be attached to the material, similar to the door
example in the prior subsection.

Paths on the top and the bottom of At the top, the paths will be split at
the wings will be split nodes. On the bottom the paths will
be split along the paths

 Two guidelines are dragged from the left side ruler so that the breaks at the top and at the bottom will be
in vertical alignment:

Guidelines are added

on both sides

The guidelines pass through where

the nodes will be split

 In Node edit mode, the two nodes passing through the guidelines are selected and Split path is
applied:

These two nodes are selected and

Split Path is applied 149
  At the bottom of the wings, the left path is selected where the guideline crosses and Split path is
applied. Then the same is repeated on the other side:

Click here and apply Click here and apply

Split path Split path

 To verify the separation, you can click on any part of the butterfly and only the nodes that make up that
separated part will appear:

When the left wing is clicked, only

the nodes on that part appear

 To create fold lines for the wings:

o Go to Object edit mode and, on the View Options Bar, click on the View inactive objects icon

so that you’ll be able to continue seeing the butterfly after it’s made inactive.

o Click on Select/deselect all layers icon and the butterfly will become a faint gray outline.
o On the Color Palette, select a new color (red will be used in this case) and click on the Default

color icon to change the default to the new color:

Select a new color The Default color is

and click here changed

o Go to Pen tools mode , and add two vertical lines using the guidelines. The project is complete
and ready to be sent to SignCut Pro 2:

Add vertical fold

Project is complete
lines on each wing

6.07 Join Paths

 To connect any two end nodes, drag one on top of the other and they will automatically become a single
node and the two paths will be joined:
 For example, below are two disconnected lines:

150
  In Node edit mode, click on one of the lines and nodes will be displayed. As soon as you being to drag
the node over to the other line, its nodes will also appear:

Click on one of the lines and Begin dragging one of …the nodes on the
the nodes appear the end nodes… other line appear

 Once the node being dragged is on top of the end node on the other line, the two will become one node,
thus connecting the two lines:

Drag node to overlap the other Release the mouse Result: single node on a
end point node connected path

 Open curved paths are connected in the same manner:

 Select an end node and the end nodes on the other path will appear:

The nodes appear Begin dragging one of

Click on either of the the end nodes…
curves …the nodes on the
other curve appear

 Once the nodes are overlapped, release your mouse and the result will be a single node:

Drag node to overlap the Result: single node on

Release the mouse
other end point node a connected path

 At this point, the curve can be reshaped, as desired, by dragging a Bézier handle:

Drag a Bézier handle.. … to create the final curve

 The Weld function can also be used to close an open shape. Refer to Section 7.04.

6.08 Straighten Function (O2)

 The Straighten function (shortcut O2) allows you to quickly and easily straighten line paths to match up with
other line paths.
 When selected, the Properties & Functions Bar changes to display the following settings:

151
 Rotate

Select Show original / Update

Straighten Same as Section 6.03.2

Angle menu Distance selection Restore rotation

6.08.1 Aligning Nodes Along Straight Lines

 In the following tutorial, a sample of text has been auto-traced. Because the eye and brain are unforgiving
when it comes to text, it’s important to clean up a tracing such as this to make the text consistent:

 Since the bottom paths of the letters are out of alignment with one another, this will be fixed first. Select the
Straighten option and click on the text to display the nodes. A guideline has been added so that you can
better see the misalignment of several letters up close:

A guideline which is aligned with the “I” on the right side makes it easy see
that the “A” and “R” nodes are above those of the “I”

 Select all of the nodes along the bottom only, making sure no other nodes above that bottom line are
included in the selection. Next, select an Angle of 0 in the drop-down menu, and click on the Apply icon
just to the right of the Angle menu. Again, a guideline has been added and the same letters are shown in an
up-close screenshot, indicating the nodes are now aligned:

After selecting Click on Apply Bottommost nodes are now aligned along
bottommost nodes,
the guideline
select 0 for the Angle

 In a similar manner, the nodes along the top are selected and, with an Angle of 0, the Apply icon is clicked:

152
 Topmost nodes are now aligned along
Topmost nodes are selected the guideline
Click on Apply

 For vertical lines, the same method is also applied and an Angle of 0 is used for those, as well. For
example, on the letter “N”, all but one of the vertical lines need straightening. So, the nodes on one of the
vertical lines are selected and the Straighten function applied:

Click on Apply

Select the nodes along one of the The vertical line is now straight. The other
vertical paths vertical lines are straightened using the same
method

 Some of the diagonal lines also need adjustment. With this particular lettering, a 45 o angle will be tested,
which is in the Angle drop-down menu. If you select it first, then selecting the nodes is much easier as the
marquee-selection box will be at a 45” angle instead of the usual horizontal angle:
The marquee-selection box is
now also at 45 o
Change the Angle to 45o

 As with the vertical lines, the nodes along one of the diagonals will selected and the Straighten function
applied:

Click on Apply

Select the nodes along one of the Diagonal line is now straight. The other
diagonal paths diagonal is straightened using the same
method 153
 You’ll note, however, that the “N” didn’t end up appearing quite correct. The diagonal middle section is
thicker than the two version sections. So, instead of being restricted to using exactly 45 o, the angle can be
set based on selecting a line in the design and the entire design will rotate so that the selected path will be
temporarily horizontal:

 Hold the Alt key and double the path to be rotated horizontally. The entire design will rotate and the
angle of rotation appears at the very top of the screen:

Angle of rotation
Hold Alt key and double click Design is rotated and the diagonal line is appears at the top
diagonal line now ~horizontal

 Zoom in and proceed by selecting the nodes along the horizontal line to be straightened. Leave the
Angle setting at 0 and click on Apply:

Select these nodes With Angle set to 0, Line is now straight

click on Apply

 Repeat with any other lines in the design that are parallel to this one but also need to be straightened.
When done, click on the Restore image angle icon also at the top or click on the Restore rotation
icon:

To restore the design to the original

… or click here
rotation, either click here or…

 Alternatively, if you know the angle you need to use for a particular rotation, it can be entered directly
into the Angle field and the Rotate icon applied. For example, if you needed to rotate by 60 o:
Enter desired angle of Click on Rotate
60o
Design is
rotated 60o

 Again, when completed with the Straighten function, click on either of the Restore icons to return to the
original rotation.

 Yet another alternative involves selecting two nodes and having the angle of those two nodes automatically
calculated:
 Select the two nodes and click on the Measure angle & distance icon:

154
 Angle between Distance
the two nodes between the
Click here two nodes

The nodes on either side of the

diagonal are selected

 Click on the Rotate icon and the design will be rotated resulting in the path between those two nodes
now being ~ horizontal. The Angle field will again be blank:

Click on Rotate Design is rotated Angle is reset

 Marquee-select all of the nodes along that path and click on the Apply icon:

With Angle reset, click on Apply

Line is now straight

Select these nodes

 Repeat on any other paths that are parallel to this one. Then click on the Restore rotation icon to return
your design to the original orientation:

This line is also

straightened

Click on Restore
Design is rotated back
rotation
and “N” is complete

6.08.2 Using Distance to Reposition Nodes

 In the prior section, it was shown that when you select any two nodes and click on the Measure angle &
distance icon, the Distance between the two nodes is indicated. This field can be used to move a node to a
new location.
 In fold-up projects, such as the one shown here, you often know the exact distance along a fold line. In this
example, that distance should be 1 inch. First the line is straightened using the method presented in
Section 6.08.1. Then the two end nodes are selected and the Measure angle & distance is clicked. The
actual distance is then shown:

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 Select the two nodes Click this icon Line is already horizontal

This is the line to The line is 0.958” long

be extended

 Because the line needs to extend to the left versus to the right, the right-side node needs to be the
Reference node. Thus, drag the mouse from the right to the left so that the right-side node is encompassed
first. Enter the desired length of 1.0 into the Distance field and then click on Apply:

Select right node and Line is extended to the left and is

Change Distance now 1” in length
then left to 1.0

Click on Apply

6.09 Clone Section (O3)

 The Clone section tool (shortcut O3) allows you to copy segments of a path to replace other segments in a
design for the purpose of consistency.
 When selected, the Properties & Functions Bar changes to display the following:
Exit copying

Show original / Update

Select Clone section Same as Section 6.03.2

Apply

 The following example involves replacing the crab claw on the right side with a mirrored version of the one
on the left:

A mirrored clone of
this claw… … will replace this one

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 Select the section of a path to be cloned by clicking on a starting node and holding the Ctrl key while
clicking on an ending node. That path section will turn bright blue and will have 8 small handles and a
center x, resembling a selected shape in Object edit mode:

The selected path appears as

its own shape

Select starting node, hold Ctrl,

and select ending node

 To mirror the cloned path, hold the Ctrl key and drag the left side middle handle to the right. Then
release the mouse and a mirror image is created:

Hold Ctrl and

drag this handle
to the right Mirror image of
the clone

 The mirrored clone is moved over to the right side of the crab. It is aligned, resized a bit, and rotated
slightly. Note that the start and end of the clone are carefully placed along the current path for a
smoother transition:

Click in the middle

Align the clone
to switch to rotate
over the original
handles

 When satisfied with the appearance and position of the cloned path, click on the Apply icon and
the path at this location is replaced. Note that the clone still appears as a separate shape, allowing you
to use it to replace other paths, if needed.
Clone replaces original path

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  Once you are completed with cloning that path, click on the Exit copying icon . A new cloning
selection can be made, at this point, if needed. Otherwise, cloning is complete:

6.10 Haircross snap

 While haircross snap is active, you can more precisly draw your objects and snap to nodes or
guidelines. To use this, hold down the left mouse button when you start drawing.
 Haircross snap is active by default. It can be turned off in Settings→Settings→Editing.

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 7. Designing

7.01 Where Do I Start with Learning to Design?

 SignCut Draw offers some excellent easy-to-use designing tools to assist you in creating whatever you can
imagine. The best way to learn these tools is to focus on only one at a time and play with settings. You
aren’t going to break anything in the software by experimenting and you never know what you might
discover!

 Most of this chapter will present the functions which make up the Effects tool on the Tools Panel.
However, since some of these functions are useful in customizing text, they were also covered in Sections
4.06, 4.07, 4.08, 4.10, and 4.11. Refer to these sections for additional examples.

7.02 Measure Tool (P)

 The Measure tool (shortcut P) on the Tools Panel provides the necessary functions for measuring
lengths of existing objects, angles, and adding dimensions and comments. When activated, the Properties
& Functions Bar initially displays these options:

 Similar to other tools, the settings displayed to the right of these options change according to the option
selected. The main purpose of each option is as follows:
 Measure (P1): display the length, height, width and angle of any portion of a design and copy it to the
Windows clipboard (refer to Section 7.02.1)
 Ref. frame (P2): create small rectangles for aligning multi-color cuts, such as for vinyl piecing (refer to
Section 7.02.2)
 Dimensions (P3): add the measurements as display text (won’t be sent to cut) to any part of a design
(refer to Section 7.02.3)
 Comments (P4): add comments (won’t be sent to cut) to the design (refer to Section 7.02.4)

7.02.1 Measure (P1)

 When the Measure option is selected in the Measure tool, the Properties & Functions Bar displays these
settings:
Measurements

Exit Measure (note: this

Select Measure icon has a different
function, depending on the
option selected)

Click to copy Measurement

to clipboard

 If a shape is already selected before going to the Measure tool, the overall measurements of that selected
shape will appear in the various measurement fields:

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 Select the project and go to Blue line indicates reference for Overall measurements
Measure tool automatic measurements

 To take a new measurement, left click in any two locations:

Click once here…

Dimensions are updated

…then click here

 A few tips to remember when selecting the start and end locations:
 To snap to a node, hold the left mouse button down to display a flashing radial blue pattern. Continue to
hold the mouse button down and, upon reaching a node, the radial pattern will cease flashing and the
mouse button can then be released:

While holding left mouse button, Once the cursor is on top of a node, the
a flashing radial line pattern radial pattern stops flashing and mouse
appears can be released

 Repeat at the other location if you want to snap to a node at that spot:

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 While holding left mouse button, Once the cursor is on top of a node, the The blue reference line is
a flashing radial line pattern radial pattern stops flashing and mouse aligned with two nodes
appears can be released

 For perfectly horizontal or vertical reference lines, hold the Ctrl key before clicking the second location.

 If you need one of those measurements to apply to another shape, the check mark below that measurement
can be clicked and the measurement will be copied to your Windows Clipboard. At this point, you are
automatically returned to Object edit mode and you can then click on a different shape to resize by pasting
that copied measurement into the appropriate field for that shape:

Click on Apply

Click here to copy the Width Click here and apply Paste (Ctrl+V
or Edit>Paste)

 If you do not need to copy any measurements, you can return to Object edit mode by clicking on the Exit
measure icon:

Click here to return to Object edit mode

7.02.2 Ref. Frame (P2)

 As mentioned before, the Ref. Frame tool creates four small rectangles which will be cut and used for
alignment purposes in vinyl applications:

 When the Ref. frame option is selected in the Measure tool, the Properties & Functions Bar displays
these settings:
Height for onscreen text

Select Ref. frame Delete all

Number of decimals to display

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 In the example shown here, the Sign Size has been set to 8 feet x 3 feet to match an actual sign’s
dimensions on which the vinyl design will be applied:
Sign Size is set to The name will be cut
8’ x 3’ from red vinyl

The flourishes will be

cut from gold vinyl

 The design will be cut from two colors of vinyl, as shown. To create the Ref. frame:
 While still in Object edit mode, add a rectangle around the design. Note that Show fill has been turned
off so that the design can still be seen:

A blue rectangle is
added

 From the color palette, select a color not in use in the project. Black will be used in this example.
 Go to the Measure tool and select the Ref. frame option (or use the shortcut P2).
 Left click on one of the corners of the rectangle and then again on the diagonally opposite corner:

Click here…

… then click here

o Note that for better precision in selecting the corners, use the same method presented in Section
7.02.1 whereby if you hold down the mouse button while moving towards a corner, a radial pattern
of lines will cease flashing once the cursor is over the node at the corner of the rectangle.

 Upon releasing the mouse at the second corner, four reference frames (in the chosen color of black for
this example) are added along the sides of the rectangle and the distances from these reference frames
to the Sign Area borders appear:

Reference
frame

Distance from frame

to Sign Area border
Reference frame

 To change the text height or the number of decimal places, click the increase/decrease arrows in the
settings or enter new values:

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 Increase or decrease Text height and Decimal count as desired

Text is taller

Only one decimal place

is displayed

 If you wish to begin again, click on the Delete all icon and reselect the rectangle or other
reference as desired. Just note that you do not want the reference frames to cross the design at any
location.
 Click on the Object edit icon (or shortcut Q) and the design will now contain the reference frames:

 If you need to move any of the reference frames, return to Object edit mode and hold the Ctrl+Shift keys
while clicking on the frame to be moved. You can then use either the arrow keys on your keyboard or drag
the reference frame with your mouse. As with normal moving of shapes, if you hold the Ctrl key while
dragging, the movement will remain perfectly horizontal or vertical:

Ctrl+Shift + left click to

select ref frame
Use arrow keys or Ctrl+
drag to keep frame
horizontal or vertical

 Note: Upon returning to Object edit mode, the distances will probably no longer be visible. To again
display these distances, either:
 Return to the Measure mode, or
 Click on the View dimensions and comments icon on the View Options Bar:

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 Toggles View versus Hide

7.02.3 Dimensions (P3)

 When the Dimensions option is selected in the Measure tool, the Properties & Functions Bar displays
these settings:
Height for onscreen text Apply new Text height or
Decimal count
Select
Dimensions
Delete all
dimensions

Number of decimals to display

 There are a number of similarities between the Dimensions option and the Measure option presented in
Section 7.02.1:
 Any two locations can be clicked and the Length calculated
 For more precise selection at a node, press and hold the mouse until the radial pattern stops flashing
 For perfectly horizontal or vertical selection, hold the Ctrl key when selecting the second location

 Before starting, enter the Text height and Decimal count desired and press the Apply icon. Note that you
will be able to change it later, if needed.

 Select the two locations and then move the mouse to a third location where the dimension will be displayed.
Left click to place the dimension:

Move mouse downward to Left click and the dimension

Select two locations
desired location will be placed

 If a change in Text height and/or Decimal count is desired, make the changes and click on Apply.
 To take a new measurement, again left click in any two locations and then move and click in a third to place
the dimension:

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 Select two
locations

Move mouse to
the left

Left click and the

dimension will be
placed

 If a change in Text height and/or Decimal count is desired, make the changes and click on Apply.

 If you make a mistake, you can click on the Undo icon to delete the most recently created dimension

and then re-select the locations. If you want to start over completely, click on the Delete all icon .
 As with the Ref. frame tool, when you return to Object edit mode, the dimensions will no longer be
displayed. Either return to Measure mode or click the View dimensions and comments icon on the View
Options Bar.

7.02.4 Comments (P4)

 When the Comments option is selected in the Measure tool, the Properties & Functions Bar displays
these settings:
Height for onscreen text

Delete all comments

Select Comments

 Left click in the Sign Area where you want the Comment to begin. A Comment window will open. Enter
any text you wish to have added as a comment on the screen:

 Click on OK. The Comment window will close and the text will be added to the screen:

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 To change the size of the text, use the up/down arrows on the Text height setting or enter a new size and
click on Apply. Note that the size of the dimensions, if present, will also be changed.
 Additional comments can be added by again left clicking in the Sign Area where the comment is to be
added. Note that in the Comment window, you can enter carriage returns to break up the comment into
lines:

Apply a carriage return to

start a new line

Comment will appear

exactly as entered in the
Comment window

 If you make a mistake, you can click on the Undo icon to delete the most recently created comment

and then click to add a new one. If you want to start over completely, click on the Delete all icon .
 As with the Ref. frame tool, when you return to Object edit mode, the dimensions will no longer be
displayed. Either return to Measure mode or click the View dimensions and comments icon on the View
Options Bar.

7.03 Weeding Line Tool (T4)

 The Weeding line tool can be used to freely add weeding lines of any length and at any angle to a project.
Note that SignCut Pro 2 has a weeding function, as well (refer to Chapter 7 in the SignCut Pro 2 user
manual). Therefore, it’s not essential for you to use the Weeding Line Tool in SignCut Draw. Choose
whichever one you prefer.
 This tool is accessed on the Properties & Functions Bar when the Pen tools (T) mode is selected or by
using the shortcut T4:
Click here or use T4

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 To use the Weeding line tool, left click twice anywhere on the Sign Area and the weeding line will be
added between the locations of those two clicks. Note that the weeding line will not pass through any interior
paths within a shape:

Click on each side of the shape Green weed line is added but avoids passing
through the letters

 For a perfectly horizontal or vertical weed line, hold the Ctrl key:

Hold the Ctrl key while clicking Green weed line is horizontal

 The weed line is only applied to one color at a time. Thus, if the line passes through shapes of different
colors, only those shapes with the same color as the first shape crossed will have the weed line:

Click on each side of the 3 shapes Green weed line only avoids the red shapes
because it initially passed through a red shape

7.04 Weld Tool (M)

 The purpose of the Weld tool is to remove the overlap between two or more intersecting shapes:

3 intersecting shapes After welding a single shape

remains

 To apply the Weld tool, select the shapes and use one of the following:

 Click on the Weld objects together icon on the Properties & Functions Bar, while in Object edit
mode
 Go to Edit>Weld
 Use the shortcut M

 If the shapes are not the same color, then the shape that is on the bottom of the other shapes will control
the final color of the weld:

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 The red circle is on the The welded shape is red
bottom

 Other examples of using the Weld tool to remove overlap are covered in Sections 4.04 and 4.05.
 Besides removing overlap, the Weld function can also be used to close an open shape with a straight line:

Apply the Weld function

Select an open shape A straight line is added to
close the shape

7.05 Rotated Duplicates

 Many items arise from arranging copies of a shape into a circular pattern. For example:

Flower Wreath Sun Seal Snowflake Gear

 The process in SignCut Draw for designing such shapes is relatively easy. In this first example, a flower will
be designed:
 Begin with a petal shape and click until the rotate handles appear:

Click on the shape Rotate handles appear

 Drag the center handle (Point of Rotation) down until it is below the petal. Note that the lower you drag
this handle, the more spread out the petals will be. An example of this will be shown later.

Drag the center

downwards

Point of Rotation is now

located here

 Decide how many petals you want for the flower, such as 8. The angle of rotation is calculated as:

Angle of rotation = 360 / # of copies

= 360 / 8
= 45

 With the petal selected, enter that angle into the Angle field on the Properties & Functions Bar, mark
the Reference option and click on the Duplicate icon:

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 Mark this option

Enter 45 Click on A duplicate of the petal

Duplicate is placed at 45o

 Press the short cut key Ctrl+R (or use Edit>Repeat) repeatedly to fill up the circular arrangement of the
repeats:

… a total of 8 petals
Press Ctrl+R until… are created

 Select all and press M (or click the Weld icon):

Select all of Press M

Overlap is removed
the petals

 If the center part is to be removed, press Ctrl+K (or click on the Break Apart icon) and the inner shape
can be deleted or replaced with a different shape:

Apply Ctrl+K and then Inner shape deleted the flower

delete the inner shape added to the center of
A large circle is

 As was mentioned earlier, the Point of Rotation could have been placed in a different location and the
resulting design would have changed. Here are a few examples:

versus versus

Left in the
center Moved far below the left
Moved down and to

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7.06 Effects Tools (A)

 The Effects tools (shortcut A) on the Tools Panel provide a range of designing functions. Some of
them have already been covered either completely or in part in other sections and those sections will be
referenced.
 When Effects is activated, the Properties & Functions Bar initially displays these nine options:

 Similar to other tools, the settings displayed to the right of these options change according to the option
(tool) selected. The main purpose of each follows, along with where the details are covered:
 Contour (A1): create outlines, in-lines, and island fills on selected shapes (Section 7.07)
 Punch (A2): die cut one shape from another (Section 7.08)
 Intersect (A3): create a new shape based on the overlap between one or more shapes (Section 7.09)
 Shadow (A4): create a 3-dimensional cast shadow on selected shapes (Section 4.10)
 Bending (A5): distort a selected shape to fit inside another shape (Section 4.11)
 Fill (A6): fill or outline a selected shape with duplicates of another shape (Section 7.10)
 Dash (A7): convert solid lines into dashed (perforated) lines (Section 7.11)
 Hatch (A8): fill shapes with a line or cross line pattern (Section 7.12)
 Rhinestone (A9): create a rhinestone template (circle pattern) on selected shapes (Section 7.13)

7.07 Contour (A1)

 The Contour tool creates outlines, in-lines, or island fills on vector shapes. Typical applications for this tool
are:
 Creating an outline to cut from a different color of material
 Creating an outline to cut around a printed clipart image
 Creating an inline to allow for some error when cutting out a printed image
 Thickening a design that is too thin for successful cutting (often used with very thin script fonts)
 Creating an engraving fill pattern

 When the Contour option is selected in the Effects tools, the Properties & Functions Bar displays these
settings:
Other options
Select Contour Select type of contour

Click on Apply

Enter Contour sizes

 Up to three contours can be created at one time. However, they need to be selected in order. For example,
you cannot have Contour 2 selected without having Contour 1 selected. Similarly, in order to mark
Contour 3, both Contour 1 and Contour 2 must first be selected.

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 Beneath each Contour number is a check box which cycles through various options. Below the option is a
numeric field for setting the size of the contour.
 Contour 1 options:
o Outside- an outset will be created:

o Inside- an inset will be created:

o Outer only- an outset will be created but interior shapes will be ignored:

versus

Outer only – the inside of the A is ignored Outside – the inside of the A is included

o Fill / Overlap- an island fill is created, which can be useful in engraving applications:

 Contour 2 and Contour 3 options are Outside, Inside and None.

 Other options to the right of the Contour options are as follows:

 % - Creates a contour sized according to a percent of the original size versus an entered thickness. For
example, if a 100 mm circle has a 50% contour applied, then it becomes 200 mm in size:

Mark % option

Contour size around the shape is

Initial shape
Enter % size Click on Apply 50% of the original shape size
(green circle represents original)

171
  Line Width: is used when you want a contour of the object to become the shape itself:

versus

Initial shape Line width option Line width option

marked not marked

 Keep original: should be checked if you wish to retain the original shape. Note that a random color will
be assigned to the new contour when Keep original is marked. For example:

versus

Initial shape Keep original Keep original

option marked option not marked

o An example of using the Keep original option was first covered in Section 4.06 where two contours
of different colors were created to mat an original shape. It is also useful when wanting an outline on
lettering for printing. Leaving Keep original unmarked is useful when thickening a font that might
be difficult to cut without tearing the material.

 Separate inner was also first covered in Section 4.06 and will only briefly be shown here again.
Whether applied or not applied, no difference will initially be visible. However, when Separate inner is
applied, the contour is made up of two shapes instead of just a single shape:

Note inner circle

versus

Initial shape Contour created Separate inner option marked: Separate inner option not
the inner circle of the contour is marked: the contour is just
its own shape one shape

7.08 Punch (A2)

 The Punch tool cuts out one or more vector shapes from one or more vector shapes beneath.
 When the Punch option is selected in the Effects tools, the Properties & Functions Bar displays these
settings:
Punch options

Select Punch

 There are three options / modes in which to use the Punch tool:
 Normal Punch – the exact shape on top is punched out of the shape below (refer to Section 7.08.1)

172
  Overlap Punch – a smaller (inset) contour of the shape on top is punch out of the shape below (refer to
Section 7.08.2)
 Gap Punch - a larger (outset) contour of the shape on top is punch out of the shape below (refer to
Section 7.08.3)

7.08.1 Normal Punch

 To envision the Normal Punch tool, think of a cookie cutter or a metal die cut. Essentially, you are using a
shape on top to cut a hole from a shape below it.

 There are four ways to apply the Normal Punch:

 Go to Edit>Punch
 Use the shortcut Ctrl+M
 Click on the Punch through bottom objects icon available on the Properties & Functions Bar when
in Object Edit mode:

Punch through bottom objects

 Select Punch in the Effects mode (A2), mark the Normal option, and click on Apply:

Select Normal

Select Punch
Click on Apply

Distance for Overlap or

Gap

 In the following example, a heart is on top of a circle. When both are selected and the Normal Punch option
is applied, it appears there’s been no change. However, upon dragging the heart away, you can see a heart-
shaped hole now appears in the circle:

Apply Punch
Select the heart and It appears nothing has Heart-shape hole has
the circle changed been punched

 If more shapes are present, applying Punch on all of them results in any shape on top being cut out of
whatever shape is beneath it:

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 Apply Punch

Select all of the shapes Dragging the shapes apart indicated that any shape which had
another shape above it is cut by that shape

 Refer back to Section 4.07 for an example of using the Punch tool to stencil letters.

7.08.2 Overlap Punch

 When the Overlap Punch is applied, the shape beneath will be cut from a contoured inline of the shape
above it. That inline is based on the Distance setting you enter.
 In the following example, a 1” circle will be cut from a square using a Distance setting of 0.25” The result is
a 0.5” circle is cut out:

Apply
Select Overlap and enter a Punch
Distance of 0.25”
1” circle is on top of The circle cut from the square is
a square only 0.5” in size

 One application for the Overlap Punch is in the designing of aperture greeting cards where you typically
want the opening on the front of the card to be a bit smaller than a shape appearing through the opening.

7.08.3 Gap Punch

 When the Gap Punch is applied, the shape beneath will be cut from a contoured outline of the shape above
it. That outline is based on the Distance setting you enter. This is basically the opposite of the Overlap
Punch option.
 In the following example, a 1” circle will be cut from a square using a Distance setting of 0.25” The result is
a 0.75” circle is cut out

Apply
Select Gap and enter a Distance Punch
of 0.25”
1” circle is on top The circle cut from the square is
of a square 0.75” in size

 Refer back to Section 4.08 for an example of using the Punch tool (in combination with the Intersect tool)
to perform a Knockout Text application.

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7.09 Intersect (A3)

 The Intersect tool is essentially the opposite of the Weld tool covered in Section 7.04. Instead of removing
the overlap between intersecting shapes, it captures the intersection, making it a separate shape.
 There are three ways to apply Intersect:
 Go to Edit>Intersect
 Use the shortcut Ctrl+Shift+M
 Select Intersect in the Effects mode (A3) and click on Apply:

Click on Apply
Select Intersect

 To use the Intersect tool, select at least two overlapping shapes and click on Apply. The intersection of
those shapes will then become new shape and you can drag it away from the original shapes:

a
Apply
Intersect
Select the overlapping The intersection is The intersection of the shapes can
shapes created be dragged away

 If Intersection is applied to multiple shapes, any parts that are overlapping with any of the others become
part of the resulting selection:

a
Apply
Intersect
Select the overlapping The intersection is The intersection of the shapes can
shapes selected be dragged away

 If the shapes are different colors, the resulting color of the intersection shape will be based on whichever
object was on top:

a
Apply
Intersect
The intersection
The red circle is on top is red
of the others

 Refer back to Section 4.08 for an example of using the Intersect tool (in combination with the Punch tool)
to perform a Knockout Text application.

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7.10 Fill (A6)

 The Fill tool will fill or outline vector shapes with another smaller shape of your choice. It’s a powerful
designing function with lots of applications both for printing and for cutting.
 When the Fill tool is selected in the Effects mode, the Properties & Functions Bar displays four options:
Fill options

Select Fill

 The four Fill options offer the following capabilities and are covered in separate subsections as their settings
and additional options are quite different:

Regular:Section Random:Section Packed:Section Edge:Section

7.10.1 7.10.2 7.10.3 7.10.4

 Each option offers many more variations than those just shown. More examples will be presented in the
following subsections.

7.10.1 Regular Fill

 Regular Fill creates a linear fill pattern within a shape. When the Regular option is selected the Properties
& Functions Bar displays these settings:
Select Regular Select fill object

Select Fill Regular Fill Click on Apply

settings

 To apply a Regular Fill, select the smaller shape, enter the settings you desire, click on the Select fill
object icon, click on the larger shape, and then click on Apply:

3. Click on Select fill

object

a a a

2. Enter settings
1. Select the small 4. Select the large 5. Click on Apply
shape shape

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 Three settings offer customization of the results:
 Edge creates a margin inside the larger shape. The larger the setting, the larger the margin. Thus, an
Edge setting of 0 will allow the smaller shapes to touch the outside border:

versus versus

Edge: 0.1” Edge: 0.25” Edge: 0

 Scale allows you to resize the smaller object without having to return to Object edit mode. For
example, you may find that you want more shapes in the fill. Lowering the Scale to, say, 50 will make
the shapes half the size of the original. Conversely, a Scale of 200 will double the size:

versus versus

Scale: 100 Scale: 50 Scale: 200

 Spacing sets the distance between the shapes. Thus, a lower Spacing will increase the number of
shapes that will fit whereas increasing the Spacing will allow fewer:

versus versus

Spacing: 0.05” Spacing: 0.02” Spacing: 0.10”

 Note that any vector shapes can be used. When either the fill shape or the shape to be filled consists of
more than one shape, group them first using one of the Group options presented in Section 3.14.1.

 Here are some other examples to provide inspiration:

7.10.2 Random Fill

 Random Fill provides, well, just that – a random scattering of a selected smaller shape inside a larger
shape. When the Regular option is selected the Properties & Functions Bar displays these settings:

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 Other options
Select Random
Select fill object

Select Fill Random Fill Click on Apply

settings

 To apply a Random Fill, select the smaller shape, enter the settings and other options you desire, click on
the Select fill object icon, click on the larger shape, and then click on Apply:

3. Click on Select fill

object

a a a

2. Enter settings and select

1. Select the small options 4. Select the large 5. Click on Apply
shape shape

 Four settings offer customization of the results:

 Edge is the same setting as with Regular Fill. It controls how far the shapes can be from the outside
border of the larger shape:

versus versus

Edge: 0.15” Edge: 25” Edge: 0”

 Count allows you to specify how many total shapes you want used in the fill:

versus versus

Count: 5 Count: 20 Count: 30

o Note that based on other settings, such as the size of the shape, size of the Edge, and other
options yet to be covered, the Count may be restricted to however many shapes will fit.

 Scale Range allows you to include larger or smaller random resizing of the smaller shape. When set to
100, all shapes will be the same size as the original. If the Scale Range is set to 50, then the shapes
can vary between the original size and half that size. Similarly, if the Scale Range is set to 200, then the
shapes can vary between the original size and double that size:

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 versus versus

Scale Range: 100 Scale Range: 50 Scale Range: 200

 Angle Range allows the shapes to be randomly rotated up to the size of the angle entered. Because a
star shape is somewhat symmetrical as it is rotated, the letter “A” will be used instead to illustrate the
differences:

versus versus

Angle Range: 0 Angle Range: 45 Angle Range: 90

 Three Random Fill options further customize the results:

 Clip allows shapes to extend beyond the Edge setting but to be clipped (cut off):

versus

Clip not selected- all Clip selected- shapes near the

shapes are complete border are cut off

 Overlap allows shapes to overlap, thus eliminating the Count restriction:

versus versus

Count: 25 Count: 50 Count: 50

Count: 25
Overlap: not selected Overlap: selected Overlap: not selected Overlap: selected

 Before covering the Optimize option, note that you can fill with more than one shape without grouping
them first. This involves a very specific step-by-step process outlined as follows. Note that a smaller red
star will be used as the second shape:

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 1 Select first shape (blue star).

2 Click on Select fill object icon.

3 Select next shape (red star).

4 Holding the Shift key, again click on Select fill object icon (note the + sign indicating a
second shape is being added)

5 Click on large shape (yellow circle)

6 Click on Apply and the circle fills with both the blue and the red stars:

o With the Optimize option unchecked, the same number of red and blue stars are used. With the
Optimize option checked, more red stars than blue are used to fill more space because they are the
smaller of the two shapes:

versus

Optimize: not Optimize:

selected selected

 Note that if the initial shapes (red and blue stars) had been grouped, then the relative distance
between the two shapes would have been retained for all repeats, thus reducing the
randomness in the appearance:

If initial shapes were grouped instead

of being added separately

 The Random fill feature can be used in many ways. For example, a starry night was created using a
single star, set to perform a Random fill, adjusting the Scale setting and Angle Range:

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7.10.3 Packed Fill

 Packed Fill places as many of the smaller shape(s) as possible into the larger shape, automatically
reducing the size, as needed. When the Packed option is selected the Properties & Functions Bar
displays these settings:

Select Packed Select fill object

Select Fill Packed Fill Click on Apply

settings

 To apply a Packed Fill, select the smaller shape, enter the settings you desire, click on the Select fill
object icon, click on the larger shape. and then click on Apply:

3. Click on Select fill

object

a a a

2. Enter settings 5. Click on Apply

1. Select the small 4. Select the large
shape shape

 Four settings offer customization of the results:

 Edge is the same setting as with Regular Fill and Random Fill. It controls how far the shapes can be
from the outside border of the larger shape:

versus versus

Edge: 0” Edge: 0.2” Edge: 0.4”

 Scale is a similar setting as with Regular Fill. It allows you to resize the original smaller shape without
having to return to Object edit mode. For example, you may find that you want more shapes in the fill,
thus lowering the Scale to, say, 50 will make the original shape half the size and all of the smaller
shapes also half the size. Conversely, a Scale of 200 will double the sizes:

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 versus versus

Scale: 100 Scale: 50 Scale: 200

 Spacing is the same setting as with Regular Fill. It sets the distance between the shapes:

versus versus

Spacing: 0.10” Spacing: 0.02” Spacing: 0.20”

 Angle Range is a similar setting as with Random Fill. It allows some of the shapes to be rotated
clockwise or counterclockwise at the angle selected. There are four choices in the drop-down menu: 0 o,
30 o, 45 o, and 90 o:

versus versus

Angle Range: 0o Angle Range: 45o Angle Range: 90o

 More than one shape can be used for the fill. The same method presented in Section 7.10.2 is again used:
 Select first small shape
 Click on Select fill object
 Select second small shape
 Hold Shift and click on Select fill object
 Select object to be filled
 Click on Apply:

 Here are a few more examples to inspire you. The possibilities are endless!

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7.10.4 Edge Fill

 Edge Fill equally spaces shapes along the border of a larger shape. When the Edge option is selected the
Properties & Functions Bar displays these settings:
Select fill object

Add, remove, corner

Select Fill Select Edge Edge Fill Click on Apply

settings and
options

 To apply an Edge Fill, select the smaller shape, enter the settings you desire, click on the Select fill object
icon, click on the larger shape, and then click on Apply:

3. Click on Select fill

object

a a a

1. Select the small 2. Enter settings and 4. Select the large 5. Click on Apply
shape select options shape

 The two distance settings, Min dist. and Max dist., allow you to control the spacing of the shapes along the
path.

versus versus

Min dist.: 0.2”” Min dist.: 0.1”” Min dist.: 0.5””

Max dist.: 0.5” Max dist.: 0.5” Max dist.: 0.5”

versus versus

Min dist.: 0.2”” Min dist.: 0.2”” Min dist.: 0.2””

Max dist.: 0.2” Max dist.: 0.5” Max dist.: 1.0”

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 There are two options available:
 Rotate will rotate the smaller shape so that it stays tangential to the path. To better illustrate this, the
letter “A” will be used:

versus

Rotate: not selected Rotate: selected

o You’ll note that the middle of the “A” was aligned along the edge of the circle. If you prefer the
bottom of the smaller shape (or the top or some other part) to be aligned along the edge instead,
then, before applying the Edge Fill, click the second shape again to bring up the rotation handles
and drag the Point of rotation:

Click again to
change to rotate
handles
Letter “A” is Drag the Point of rotation to
Point of rotation is now at
selected a new location
the bottom of the “A”

o When Edge Fill is now applied, the bottoms of the “A’s” align with the edge of the circle:

versus

Point of rotation at Point of rotation at

bottom of letter “A” middle of letter “A”

 Flip will vertically invert the smaller shape. Note that Rotate must be selected before Flip can then also
be selected:

versus

Flip: not selected Flip: selected

 Edge Fill will also prioritize nodes in order to provide symmetry when placing repeats. For example, when
this circle is used to outline a star, the circles are positioned precisely where one would desire them to be:

versus

Edge Fill evenly fills An undesirable result using

edge placing circles a similar function in another
prioritized locations program
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 On the far-right side of the Properties & Functions Bar are three additional icons which allow you to make
changes to the results of the Edge Fill:
Add

Remove

Corner

 Add: Click on this icon and then click anywhere along the border of the larger shape to add another fill
shape in that location.
 Remove: Click on this icon and then click on any of the fill shapes to delete it.
 Corner: Click on this icon and then click on any shape to force fill shape to remain at that location.

 As with the Regular Fill option, if you wish to apply two or more small shapes in an Edge Fill operation,
group them first:

a
Apply Edge Fill (with
Rotate checked)

Apply Ctrl+G to the three “ABC”s are arranged at the corners

letters to group and along the border of the green
square

 Edge Fill is very useful in many designing applications.

 For example, to add a scalloped edge to a shape, create a small circle and fill the edge of the desired
shape, such as an oval. You will need to experiment with the Distance setting until you achieve the
desired appearance:

o Remove the original circle, select all. and apply the Weld function:

 Edge Fill also doesn’t need to be used on a closed shape. For example, shapes can be aligned along a
spiral and then welded, such as this:

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7.11 Dash (A7)

 The Dash tool allows you to change a shape (or only parts of a shape) to a perforated cut (aka pouncing),
such as:

 When the Dash tool is selected in the Effects tools, the Properties & Functions Bar displays four options:

Select Dash

Dash options

 None: no dash settings are applied and the shape retains a solid cut line
 Default: a default setting of tiny cuts, closely space together, is applied. Here is a closeup view of a
portion of a shape with Default Dash applied:

 Advanced: offers customization of the dash length (blade down) and spacing between dashes (blade
up). Refer to Section 7.11.1.
 Decal cutting: allows you to specify an actual number of dashes to cut, as well as restricting the
perforated cut to the top, middle, or bottom of the shape. Refer to Section 7.11.2.

7.11.1 Advanced Dash

 When the Advanced option is selected, the Properties & Functions Bar displays these settings:

Select Dash Advanced Dash

settings Dual cut option

Select
Advanced Click on Apply
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 To apply an Advanced Dash, select the shape, enter the settings you desire, and click on Apply.
 The two Advanced Dash settings can be changed as follows:
 Bridge width: This is also called Dash Spacing and is the distance between the perforated cuts when
the blade is in the up position. Increasing this setting spaces out the dashed cuts:

versus versus

Bridge width: 0.1” Bridge width: 0.2” Bridge width: 0.3”

 Down length: This is also called Dash Length and is the size of each dashed cut. Increasing this
setting makes each perforated cut longer:

versus versus

Dash length: 0.1” Dash length: 0.2” Dash length: 0.3”

 The Dual cut option will create a duplicate of the original un-dashed shape after it is sent to SignCut Pro 2
for cutting. It will not be visible or selectable in SignCut Draw.
 One application for the Dual cut would be cutting the same shape at two different depths. For example,
with vinyl stickers, you might want to perform a solid cut only on the upper vinyl layer but a perforated
cut all the way through the backing sheet.

 Note that SignCut Pro 2 has a Pounce option which also can be used to set perforated cutting on specific
shapes. However, it does not have the ability to “preserve corners” in the same way that SignCut Draw can:

versus

In SignCut Draw, all 4 In SignCut Pro 2, the corners

corners are cut the same might not be even

7.11.2 Decal Cutting

 There are three ways to access Decal cutting:

 Go to Arrange>Decal cutting
 Use the shortcut F12
 Select Dash in the Effects mode (A7) and mark the Decal cutting option

 When the Decal cutting option is selected, the Properties & Functions Bar displays these settings:

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 Select Dash Decal cutting Dual cut option
settings

Sections to include
in dash
creation

Select Decal
Click on Apply
cutting

 To apply Decal cutting, select the shape, enter the settings and options you desire, and click on Apply.
 The two Decal cutting settings can be changed as follows:
 Bridges: allows you to specify exactly how many dashed cuts to arrange around the shape:

versus versus

Bridges: 20 Bridges: 16 Bridges 12

o Note that with a shape like a square or rectangle, you will get an approximation to the number
because it’s always going to prioritize symmetry and equal spacing. A circle, on the other hand, will
be able to use the exact number specified. In this example, Bridges was set to 10 for each shape:

versus versus

# of bridges created: # of bridges created: # of bridges created:

8 8 10

 Bridge width: This is identical to the same setting in the Advanced option. Increasing this setting
spaces out the dashed cuts:

versus versus

Bridge width: 0.1” Bridge width: 0.2” Bridge width: 0.3”

 There are two options available:

 Dual cut option, as with Advanced Dash covered in Section 7.11.1, will create a duplicate of the
original un-dashed shape after it is sent to SignCut Pro 2 for cutting. It will not be visible or selectable in
SignCut Draw.
 Sections: offers the ability to apply the dashes to only parts of a selected shape. Uncheck the
section(s) you want left solid. Here are some examples:

188
 a a

Uncheck Top Uncheck Top and

Middle
Bottom 2/3 is dashed Only bottom 1/3 is
dashed

7.12 Hatch (A8)

 The Hatch tool will fill vector shapes with straight lines according to the angle and spacing you enter. This is
commonly used with an engraving tool or when filling in shapes with a pen, glue pen, marker or the Foil
Quill. Here are two examples but note that a larger-than-normal spacing is entered so as to clearly show
the difference between a single line setting versus a cross hatch setting:

 When the Hatch option is selected in the Effects tools, the Properties & Functions Bar displays these
settings:
Select Hatch Angle settings for lines Other options

Click on
Spacing for lines Overlap setting Apply

 Angle 1: Select an angle from a drop-down menu of 12 choices. When used alone, a single line pattern
is created at the angle chosen:

Angle 1: 0o Angle 1: 45o Angle 1: 90o Angle 1: 135o

 Angle 2: For a cross-hatch pattern, select an angle from the Angle 2 drop-down menu. Here are a few
examples from the many combinations that would be available:

Angle 1: 0o Angle 1: 45o Angle 1: 30o Angle 1: 60o

Angle 2: 90o Angle 2: 135o Angle 2: 60o Angle 2: 0o

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  Radius 1 and Radius 2: Enter a desired spacing between the lines. If the goal is to completely fill a
shape (i.e. color it in), then determining the width of the tool performing the fill is needed. For a felt-tip
marker this can be fairly easy since the line width is broad and easy to measure. But for other tools, you
may need to experiment to find the correct value. As mentioned earlier, a very wide spacing was
selected to better illustrate the effects of settings. If a typical scratch engraving tool were going to be
used to engrave on, say, a charm, then the pattern fill would be must denser:

versus

Radius 1: 0.05” Radius 1: 0.004”

Radius 2: 0.05” Radius 2: 0.004”

 Overlap: Even if you know the exact width of the tool tip, entering an Overlap setting can compensate
for some inaccuracies that occur during the engraving process. Some cutters will occasionally have a
slight amount of slippage which can result in gaps in the line pattern. Entering a small Overlap setting
will provide insurance against that happening.

 The Contours option is typically selected when a tool with a thick diameter will be used. As will be shown,
for example, an inner contour based on the tool’s diameter will ensure that the final result will be the same
size as the original shape.

 As you check the Contours box, it will cycle through the following:
 Unchecked: No contours are created
 Contours: Both an inner and an outer contour are added to the pattern. The size of the contours will be
based on the size entered for Radius 1:

versus

Contours is Contours is selected

unchecked

 Inline: Only an inner contour is created, again based on the size entered for Radius 1:

versus versus

Contours is Contours is selected Inline is selected

unchecked

o Note that when Contours is selected, the overall dimensions will be slightly larger based on the
new outline. When Inline is selected, the overall dimensions will be slightly smaller based on the
original shape being replaced by the inline shape.

 The Connect option will connect the end of one line to the start of the adjacent line. The advantages in
enabling this setting are:
 Provides a faster process since the tool isn’t lifting at the end of each line and then having to drop back
down at the start of the next.

190
  It will possibly reduce some of the wear on a tool tip as it will be dropping to hit the surface far less
frequently.
 With some applications, such as a metal engraver on a soft metal surface, it can reduce pitting on the
material. With a marker coloring a shape it can reduce excess ink spots.

 When the Connect option is applied and the original shape is hidden, you can then see the path that the
tool will take in order to fill the heart:

7.13 Rhinestone (A9)

 SignCut Draw’s Rhinestone feature provides both outlining and infilling of shapes with the size of circles
needed for your rhinestones and the desired spacing. When the Rhinestone tool is selected in the Effects
mode, the Properties & Functions Bar displays the following:
Click on Apply
Rhinestone settings

Add, delete,
position

Select Rhinestone
Outline and infill
Click here to
options menu
change Units

 The options drop-down menu offers some excellent choices in the types of designs possible. Both a circle
and a square are used to help distinguish the difference you will see for certain patterns:

 Edge – outlines the selected shapes only:

Refer to Section 7.13.2

 Contoured – also called an “island fill”, this option typically works better with rounded shapes versus
square shapes:

Refer to Section 7.13.3

 Matrix – creates a fill of horizontal rows:

191
 Refer to Section 7.13.4

 Hor. Shift - similar to the Matrix option but the rows are staggered:

Refer to Section 7.13.5

 Vert. Shift – also similar to the Matrix option but the columns are staggered:

Refer to Section 7.13.5

 The following sections present not only the instructions for the options and settings on the Properties &
Functions Bar, but also additional information related to rhinestone designing and often not presented to
those new to the craft. It is highly recommended that Section 7.13.1 be read before designing and cutting
your first pattern.

7.13.1 Guidelines for Rhinestone Pattern Design

 Here are some guidelines to follow when designing a rhinestone pattern:

 The shape needs to be sized for your project before applying the rhinestone circles .
o If you wait until afterwards and then realize that you want your overall design to be, for example,
twice as large, then resizing will make both the circles twice as large (and too big for your stones)
and the spacing between the circles twice as large, too!

 In general, it’s easier to work in mm when designing rhinestone patterns .

o However, if you prefer to size your design while in inches, go ahead and do that. It is easy to switch
to mm by clicking on the Units icon on the Properties & Functions Bar (refer back to the first
screenshot in Section 7.13).

 The circle size entered will need to be ~ 0.3 mm – 0.5 mm larger than the stone size you purchase .
o Thus, if you purchased SS10 stones and select SS10 in the drop-down menu, you’ll want to
increase the size shown. This larger size will allow the SS10 stones to more easily brush into the
holes, saving a lot of time and tedium.

 When selecting a font to use, be leery of “fancy fonts.”

o You want the lettering to be readable after it is converted to circles. When in doubt, have someone
who doesn’t know the words you’ve used attempt to read the rhinestone design on your monitor or
from a printout of the design. If they cannot easily decipher the words, then try a more basic font.

192
  If you plan to do a lot of rhinestone applications, create and cut a template with small patterns (~ 15 –
20 circles) in different sizes so that you can test brush your rhinestones to find out the optimum size to
use when designing.
o A difference of just 0.1 or 0.2 mm can affect how easily the stones will brush into a pattern right side
up.
o If the size is too small, the stones will tend to not fall in. If the size is too large, then the ones that
land right side up will tend to get flipped over by the brush.
o Note that stones can vary slightly in size from one manufacturer to the next and also from one color
to the next. Further, the size of the cut holes can vary slightly from one template material to the next,
as well as from one cutter brand to the next.

7.13.2 Rhinestone Outline - Edge

 In this example, the initials from a high school will be outlined. As mentioned previously, the first step is to
size the width and height of the design. Make sure there is enough space between the letters so that the
circles will not overlap. Also, you may want to resize the lettering vertically, leaving the width the same. This
will better fill a T-shirt, allow more circles to be applied, and will improve the readability of the design:

Design is 7” side but a Design is still 7” wide but

only 4” tall is now 5.5” tall

 After resizing the design, go to the Rhinestone option in the Effects tools (shortcut A9). Select Edge:

Select Edge Edge settings

Editing options

Select Rhinestone Option to avoid Click on Apply

overlap

 From the Size drop-down menu, select the stone size you will be using. The diameter of the circle will then
appear next to Size:

Circle Size appears

here
Select stone size

 IMPORTANT: As mentioned in Section 7.13.1, the actual size of the circle should be ~ 0.4 mm larger
than the nominal size of the stone itself. Otherwise, the stones will not easily brush into the holes of the
template. Thus, increase the circle size accordingly:

Nominal stone size Corrected stone size

193
 The next step is to enter the spacing desired between the stones. This is accomplished using these two
settings:
 Min dist: is the minimum distance to be used between the start of one circle and the start of the next.
Thus, add the desired spacing between circles to the size of the circles. In this example, Min dist. = 3.3
mm + 0.5 mm spacing = 3.8 mm.
 Max dist: is the maximum distance to be used between the start of one circle and the start of the next.
To calculate, decide how much more spacing would be acceptable to you. In this example, 0.2 mm is
chosen thus the Max dist. = 3.8 + 0.2 = 4.0 mm.

Min dist. or Max dist. Enter Min. dist.

Enter Max dist.

o Note: there is a third Distance setting below the Size setting and it is grayed out. This is used with
other design options and will be covered in Section 7.13.4.

 With the Min and Max dist. settings entered, click on Apply and the design’s edge will fill with gray circles.
Selecting only the gray color will allow you to better see the results. Observe how there are circles located at
the corners that make up the lettering. These will be referred to as corner circles:

Corner circles are placed

wherever the path changes
directions

 There are other options available:

 Inside only: This only applies with fill options, thus remains grayed out when using Edge.
 Collision detect: This option will automatically remove any overlapping circles which can occur when
there are sharp corners in the design, such as star. Using our prior settings, the Rhinestone Edge
function is applied to a five-pointed star:

o At first, everything looks fine. However, upon zooming much closer, you can see two circles which
intersect near each star’s corner:

194
 Circles overlap

o If Collision detect is checked, any overlapping of circles is automatically prevented by omitting

extra circles. However, the pattern will then show gaps and probably won’t be to your satisfaction:

Check Collision detect A circle has been omitted

New settings applied

 One solution in this case is to increase the Max dist. setting so that the circles will be further
separated, allowing two stones to be located near each star’s point. In this example, a Max dist.
of 8.0 was required:

Max dist. increased

New settings applied No more overlap and
even spacing

 On the far-right side of the Properties & Functions Bar are three additional icons which allow you to
make changes to the results of the Edge Fill (and the other outline and infill options):
Add

Remove

Corner

 Add: Click on this icon and then click anywhere along the border of the larger shape to add another
circle in that location. The circles will automatically redistribute between the nearest two corner circles.
 Remove: Click on this icon and then click on any of the circles to delete it. Again, the circles will
automatically redistribute between the nearest two corner circles. This can be used instead of increasing
Max dist. when circles intersect.
 Corner: Click on this icon and then click on any circle to make it a corner circle at that location. It will
then be forced to stay at that position even when Add or Remove is applied.

7.13.3 Rhinestone Fill - Contoured

 As shown in Section 7.13, there are several pattern options for filling shapes with circles. The Contoured
option fills the shape as if following inner contour paths. In the following example a flower pattern will be
filled with circles:

195
 As presented in the prior section, resize the design before applying the Rhinestone effect and switch to
mm, if needed. Then go to the Rhinestone option in the Effects tools (shortcut A9) and select Contoured:

Select Contoured
Contoured settings

Editing options

Corner option does

not apply
Select Rhinestone Other options Click on Apply

 Compared to the Edge option, the only changes you’ll observe in the Contoured Properties & Function
Bar will be that Inside only can now be selected and the Corner option is grayed out. Otherwise all of the
other settings are essentially the same.
 Select the Size to be used for the circles, again making sure it’s larger than the actual rhinestone diameter.
Enter values for Min dist. and Max dist. Click on Collision detect, if desired (typically it’s a very good idea
to use this). Then click on Apply and the shape will fill with circles:

 Note that if the Inside only option is marked, then there will be no circles along the outer edge of the
shape:

versus

Inside only NOT Inside only selected

selected

 Some editing will be done to improve the appearance. This is a normal practice in rhinestone designing. In
order to edit a design either,
 Use the Editing options on the Properties & Function Bar (presented at the end of Section 7.13.2)
 Return to Object edit mode and apply Ungroup so that individual circles can be moved or deleted as
needed.

196
7.13.4 Rhinestone Fill – Matrix

 The next Rhinestone design option create rows of circles versus the island type pattern shown in the prior
section. As with the other options, size your design first for the application.

 The Matrix option will be covered using the same letter design from Section 7.13.2:

 With the shape selected, go to the Rhinestone option in the Effects tools (shortcut A9) and select Matrix:
Select Matrix Matrix These are
settings grayed out

Editing options are

grayed out

Select Rhinestone Other options Click on Apply

 Compared to the Contoured option, there are several changes you’ll observe in the Contoured Properties
& Function Bar:
 The Distance setting replaces the combined Min dist. and Max dist. settings (which are now grayed
out)
 The Editing option icons are no longer available

 Select the Size to be used for the circles, again making sure it’s larger than the actual rhinestone diameter.
Click on Collision detect and/or Inside only, as desired. The Distance setting is different from the prior Min dist. /
Max dist. settings:
Distance

Enter Distance (desired spacing)

 Distance is now the spacing between circles.

 After clicking on Apply, the design is filled with the Matrix pattern:

197
7.13.5 Rhinestone Fill –Horizontal Shift and Vertical Shift

 The remaining two Rhinestone design options create staggered rows of circles. As with the other options,
size your design first for the application.
Vertical Shift:
 The Horizontal Shift and Vertical Shift options differ in this way: Columns are staggered

Horizonal Shift:
Rows are staggered versus

 With the shape selected, go to the Rhinestone option in the Effects tools (shortcut A9) and select one of
the Shift options:
Select a Shift Shift These are
option settings grayed out

Editing options are

grayed out

Select Rhinestone Other options Click on Apply

 Select the Size to be used for the circles, again making sure it’s larger than the actual rhinestone diameter.
Click on Collision detect and/or Inside only, as desired. The Distance setting is different from the prior Min dist. /
Max dist. setting and from the Distance setting used in the Matrix option:

 Distance is measured from the middle of one circle to the start of the next circle. Thus, you can
calculate it as the radius of the circle (or half of its size) plus the desired spacing between the circles. In
this example, the Distance = (3.3 / 2) + 0.5 = 2.15 mm:

Distance

Enter Distance

 After clicking on Apply, the design is filled with the Matrix pattern:

 If the Vertical Shift pattern had been selected instead, then the result would be this:

198
7.13.6 Adding an Outline to a Rhinestone Design

 In Section 7.13.3, the Inside only setting was presented. This would be used in the situation where you
want the fill color and/or size of the rhinestones to be different from those used in an exterior outline.
However, because the Fill options allow circles to extend all the way to the original shape’s borders, you
cannot simply use the Edge option to create the outline and the Contoured (or Matrix option) to fill the
shape. This would result in overlapping of the outline circles with some of the fill circles.

 Instead, you need to create either a contoured outline of the original shape to use with the Edge fill or a
contoured inline to use with the Fill option of your choice. Either will work but since, in general, you know
the final overall size you want for the design, it is more logical to create an inline for the fill.

 In this example, a heart shape will be converted into a rhinestone design with an outer edge of 10SS crystal
rhinestones and an inner fill of 6SS red rhinestones:

 To calculate an appropriate inline contour size:

 Contour size = radius (or diameter / 2) of outer circles + radius (diameter / 2) of inner circles + desired
spacing between circles

Path of outer original shape Inner contour path to be added

 In this example, the diameter of the outer 10SS circles needs to be 3.3 mm and the diameter of the 6SS
circles needs to be 2.4 mm. A spacing of 0.5 mm is targeted. Thus, the Contour size = (3.3 / 2) + (2.4 /
2) + 0.5 = 3.35 mm.
 Select the heart shape and create an inner contour using the process presented in Section 7.07:
Select Contour Select Inside Select Keep original

Enter Contour size Click on Apply

 Select the color for the inner contour and activate the Rhinestone tool. Enter appropriate settings:

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 Select Fill pattern
Enter settings

Select Rhinestone Typically mark Click on Apply

this option

 Return to Object edit mode, select the new fill pattern of circles and assign to a new color:

 Select the color for the original heart shape and activate the Rhinestone tool. Enter appropriate settings for
outlining the heart in circles:
Select Edge Enter settings

Select Rhinestone Typically mark Click on Apply

this option

 Return to Object edit mode and select only the two colors for the rhinestone circles. Perform any necessary
editing to obtain final pattern for cutting:

7.13.7 Using Purchased Rhinestone Fonts and Designs

 If you are planning to do a lot of rhinestone applications, one of the best investments you can make is
buying files instead of trying to make your own. While the disadvantage is that you will be somewhat limited
in the sizing of the final design, the time-saving advantage from not needing to edit designs can make it well
worth the cost.
 This section will explain how to properly size a purchased font. The same technique would be used with a
design. You can find beautiful rhinestone designs and fonts at the following two web sites:
 Synergy 17

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  The Rhinestone World

 The first step with a rhinestone font is to install it the same way you would install any TTF font on your
computer. Then open SCAL and the font should appear in your font menu.
 Enter text using the same method with any font. This was presented in Section 4.01. In this tutorial, the
phrase “Irish at Heart” will be typed out in a rhinestone font called Dreamer:

 Remember that it’s pointless to resize the design. The goal is to scale it so that the circles will be the correct
size for the rhinestones you plan to use. Since rhinestone designing typically uses mm for measurement,
change the units to mm. Later you can switch back to inches, if needed, to know how large the final design
will be at the size of rhinestones you’ll be using:

 To find out what size these circles are, select the text in Object edit mode and apply Convert to curves
(refer back to Section 4.03, if needed). Then select just one circle and check the size on the Properties &
Functions Bar:
Select any single
circle

Note the size

 The circle size in this case is 1.8 mm but let’s say the size needs to be 3.3 mm in order for the template
holes to work with the SS10 rhinestones purchased. The Scale factor is always calculated as:

Size Needed divided by Current Size

 Thus, in this case, the Scale = 3.3 divided by 1.8 = 1.83

 Select the entire design and note either the Width or the Height. Multiply either one by the Scale factor. In
this case, the design is 25 mm in height, so the new size will be 25 x 1.83 = 45.75:

Enter new Mark this Click on

Current height Width updates,
height option Apply
proportionately

 The text is resized. Select a circle from the design and verify that its size now matches what you need for
your particular rhinestones (within several hundredths of a mm).
 If you normally work in inches, switch back to inches to check the final size of your design to make sure it
will fit onto your shirt or other medium. In this case, the phrase is now over 12” in width and will not fit onto
the shirt in this arrangement. However, the words can be arranged in a different manner and the design will
work:

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 The other alternative would have been to use size SS8 or size SS6 stones instead.
 Resizing patterns involves a similar process:
 Import the purchased file
 Instead of using Convert to curves, apply Break apart (Ctrl+K)
 Select one of the circles and note its size.
 Calculate the needed Scale factor (Size Needed divided by Current Size)
 Select the entire design and multiple the Scale factor by either the Width or the Height of the design.
 Resize the design using the new Width or the new Height.

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 8. Output

8.01 Material Tab

 Below the Sign Area in SignCut Draw is the Design Board Bar with two tabs:

Material tab

Design tab

 Throughout most of this manual, the Des. (or Design) tab has been used. The purpose of the Mat. (or
Material) tab is covered in this section.

 When you click on the Matl. tab, the project from the Sign Area appears above a new green dashed
Material Area which represents the material from which you will be cutting:

Shapes from the Sign Area

Material Area

 The Properties & Function Bar also changes when the Matl. tab is selected. The following screenshot
indicates where various settings and options are covered:
Add surrounding frame(s)
Section 8.02.2
Overlap for split projects Nesting settings/options
Section 8.01.2 Section 8.01.3
Indicates
Matl. mode

Height of Material Merge overlapping

AreaSection 8.01.1 Apply for Height and Split at material border surrounding frames Section
Overlap changes Section 8.01.2 8.02.2

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8.01.1 Placing and Arranging Shapes onto the Material Tab

 In this example, the following shapes will be cut from a single sheet of 12” x 12” cardstock:

 Before moving any shapes into the Material Area, change the Height to match the width of the material
from which you’ll be cutting the design. In this example the shapes will be cut from 12” wide cardstock, thus
that would be the value you would enter. The Height of the green Material Area will update accordingly:

Change to 12”

Height of green Material

Area is now 12”

 Drag one or more shapes into the Material Area or select all of them and drag at one time. At this point,
you can begin arranging the shapes where you want them to be cut:

Shapes are re-

arranged onto the
material, as
desired

 When you then click on the Move image to Signcut icon (on the Tools Panel), the shapes will be sent
in that new layout pattern to SignCut Pro 2.

 If you are only planning to cut the shapes of one color, select that color at the bottom section of the Filter
Colors and Objects Panel. Only those shapes will be present for you to arrange:

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 Only the red
shapes appear
Select the red box

Arrange shapes in
Material Area

 More about selecting by color on the Material tab will be covered in Section 8.01.3.
 If you want shapes from more than one opened project to collectively be placed on the Mat. tab, go to the
Mat. tab on Project A, hold the Shift key and click on the Mat. tab again. For example, here are the shapes
in Project B and in Project C:

Project B Project C

 With the Mat. tab selected on Project A’s tab, hold the Shift key and click on the Mat. tab again. Those
shapes from Projects B and C now appear above the Material Area:

Shapes from Project B and Project

C are added to Project A’s Mat. tab

Hold Shift and click on Mat.

tab for Project A

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  If you wish to remove the shapes from these other projects, click on the Mat. tab twice.

8.01.2 Split Graphics at Material Border

 For some projects, the design to be cut may be wider than the width of the material you plan to use. On the
Material tab, you can split the design using the function Split Graphics at Material Border.
 In this example, a tree design that is approximately 45” x 45” needs to be cut so that it can be cut on a cutter
with a maximum limit of 24” cutting:

 Click on the Mat. tab and enter 23” into the Height field.
 IMPORTANT: Since the design will be cut from 24” wide vinyl, it’s necessary to leave a little bit of a
margin on both sides of the vinyl so that the origin can be set slightly inside the edge and the blade will
not cut off on either side of the vinyl. The absolute minimum to use would be ½” but in this case, we’ll
allow a full 1”:

Click on Apply

Enter Height Enter Overlap

 The Overlap setting is how much of the design to cut from both pieces so that an overlap will be
present. This not only provides a bit of room for error when applying the vinyl but, more importantly,
vinyl shrinks. The shrinkage varies based on the brand and type of vinyl and can be as much as 1/8”.
So, the Overlap will be set to 0.12”.

 Drag the design into the Material Area and click on the Split at material border icon:

Click here

Design is split here

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  You can now drag the upper portion away from the lower to verify it’s been split. At this point, recolor
one of the two pieces so that it can be cut separately once the design is sent to SignCut Pro 2:

Top section is dragged away… … and colored red

 Zooming in on the design shows registration marks have been created on both sides and will be cut from
both sections, making alignment during application much easier:

Alignment reg marks on left Alignment reg marks on right

8.01.3 Nesting

 The Nesting option on the Material tab can be used to automatically rearrange shapes to take up less
space on the material.

 For the first example, the following shapes will all be cut from the same 12” x 12” sheet of cardstock:

 To provide some error allowance on either side of the shapes, the Height is set to 11.5” and the selection of
shapes are dragged into the Material Area. There are several settings to make which apply to Nesting:

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 3. Enter spacing 5. Mark this option to only
between shapes allow 90o rotation

1. Enter width of 6. Click Auto nest to apply

2. Click on 4. Use if spacing
material to be cut nesting function
Apply groups
with allowance

 Nest. dist: This is the desired spacing between the shapes. If left at 0, the shapes are allowed to touch
which can cause a problem depending on the material you’re cutting or the accuracy of the cutter.
 Cut off dist: This is the size of a group plus the desired spacing between each group of shapes. If you
are in a production mode of cutting repeats and need those repeats kept together and separate from the
next group, then use this function. It will be covered later in this section.
 Straight: With this option unmarked, the shapes can be rotated in order to fit together more efficiently. If
marked, the shapes can only be rotated by 90o.
 In this first example, the settings are used as shown and the shapes are nested for a more efficient use of
the cardstock. Note that the shapes need to be selected before clicking on the Auto nest icon:

Before nesting After applying Auto nest

 If you want to nest and cut the shapes by color to economize your material, then select one color at a time
from the bottom section of the Filter Colors and Objects Panel. Only the shapes of the selected color will
be present for you to nest. In this example, there are many shapes spread out in this manner:

 On the Mat. tab, all of the shapes are moved to the Material Area. The color red is selected and only
those shapes appear. Click on the Auto nest icon and the red shapes are moved to the left and nested:

 Without moving anything, the next color, green, is selected and the Auto nest icon clicked:

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  The same process is then used for the orange triangles and the blue stars:

 At this point, if you then turn on all colors, the 4 nested color layers are stacked, but when sent to cut,
you’ll be able to cut by color.

 The next example will explain how to use the Cut off dist. setting. The same shapes are used but have
been grouped into the same 12 shapes for each group. These will be nested with a specific distance
between each group:

Entire project to be nested and cut This is a single group

 Before going to the Material tab, select one of the groups and note the width dimension:

Width is 4.773”

 On the Material tab, the Cut off dist. setting will be the width of the group plus the desired spacing. In this
case, the width is 4.773” and the spacing will be set to 1”, thus enter 5.773”. Also, for this particular
application, the Straight option needs to be marked;
Cut off dist.
Straight option
Cut off dist. is set is marked
to 5.773”

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 When Auto nest is applied, the groups are kept together and separated by 1”:

 There are two additional icons on the Mat. tab’s Properties & Functions Bar: Add surrounding frame(s)
and Merge overlapping surrounding frames. Because these are typically applied to modules, they will
both be covered in Section 8.02.2.

8.02 Modules

 Modules is another term for tiles in which large projects need to be split into rectangular pieces because of
a cutter’s limit on cutting width or even, at times, length. Unlike most tiling functions, however, Modules
allows you to arrange the tiles to more economically utilize the material.

8.02.1 Creating Modules

 To activate the Modules function, go to Sign setup and select the Modules option (or use the shortcut
W2). The Properties & Functions Bar will display the following:

Edge settings
Module sizing

Select Modules Option to Show or Hide

Sign Area Module rows/columns sign border and module
dimensions (optional) lines

 In this example, the 45” x 45” tree from Section 8.01.2 will again be used:

 Sign Size: While this setting appears on the Properties & Functions Bar, it is not directly editable. If a
change is required, click on the Size option above Modules and enter a new Sign Size for the project.
Refer to Section 1.03, if needed. The Sign size can also be altered using the number of modules
entered as will be shown later in this subsection.
 Create sign modules: The settings on the left are the width and height of the modules. In this project,
it is decided to make the modules 14” wide and 20” long. Thus, those numbers are entered:

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 Module width

Click on Apply

Module height

o Click on Apply and the project will be divided into modules according to the settings entered. Note
that the lower modules and the leftmost modules are all 14” x 20”. The remaining modules are sized
according to the “remaining” sizing needed to fill the 48” x 48” Sign Area. Also note that each
module is assigned a row/column location in the Sign Area.

The modules in this row

are 6” inch high (48” –
(3 x 14”)

Each module
shows a
row/column
location
The modules in these 3
rows are each 14” high

The modules in these 2

columns are 20” long The modules in this
column are 8” inch wide
(48” – (2 x 20”)

o Alternatively, the number of modules wanted in each row and column can be entered and the size
of each module will be the same as the size you entered:
Enter # of Modules
(number of rows)

Click on Apply

Enter # of Modules
(number of columns)

o Click on Apply and the project will be divided into modules according to the number and size
entered. However, in this situation the Size size (while remaining greyed out) is automatically
updated to match the overall Module Size x the # of Modules:

New Sign Area

dimensions

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 Design is split into 4 rows
and 3 columns with all
modules equal in size

 The Edge setting adds extra room around the outside of the Sign Area for alignment registration marks
to be added, if needed. For example, set it to 0.5” and 1.0” and the results are:

Enter Edge A new purple

settings dashed border
appears

Click on Apply

 Disabling the Show sign option allows you to hide the Sign Area and the individual Module borders
when returning to Object edit mode:

Show sign marked versus Show sign not

marked

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8.02.2 Arranging Modules on the Material Tab

 To arrange modules for cutting, click on the Matl. tab twice. Note that this must be done while still in the
Modules tool mode. The design will appear and you will see cut lines according to the modules created:

Horizontal and vertical cut lines appear

where the modules were created

Material area

 As was presented in Section 8.01.1, enter the material Height with some allowance. In this example,
the modules will be cut from 18” wide vinyl, so 17” will be entered.
 An icon called Add surrounding frame(s) is especially useful when arranging modules for cutting.
Before moving any of the modules into the Material Area, click on this icon and double line frames will
appear around the modules:

Height is set to 17” Click here to add a frame around each

module’s shapes

 Instead of being rectangular, these frames follow a path around the actual shapes inside the modules:

When zoomed in, the double lines

can be seen for the frames
Modules with Add surrounding
frames activated

 Drag each module into the Material Area and rotate, if needed, to economize the material:

This small module’s shape fits This module overlaps two other
inside another module models

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 o You’ll note that one of the modules was placed inside the far-left module because it was so small.
You’ll also note that another module overlaps the modules on either side of it. If left this way,
obviously there would be undesirable cut lines inside the shape. However, another setting on the
far right of the Properties & Functions Bar can be used to remove the overlapping frames from the
modules. Before clicking, select the modules that need to be welded. Then apply:

Merge overlapping
surrounding frames

Before merging After merging

o The project is now ready to send to SignCut Pro 2.

8.03 Registration Marks

 The term “registration marks” is used in two different ways:

 In contour cutting applications where a project is printed and then sent to the cutter to have a perfectly
aligned cut made around the image. Registration marks are used for the cutter to know precisely where
to make the cuts on the printout.
 In projects where shapes from one cut need to be aligned with shapes from another cut. For example:
o In vinyl applications consisting of several different colors of vinyl, adding alignment registration
marks assists in making sure the vinyl layers are properly aligned based on the original design.
o In projects that are larger than the maximum dimensions that the cutter can cut. In Section 8.01.2, it
was shown how these alignment registration marks will automatically be added when a project is
split on the Mat. tab.

8.03.1 Registration Mark Options in Sign Setup

 On the Tools panel, click on the Sign setup tool (or use shortcut W3). The Properties & Functions
Bar will display the following:
Delete all reg
Option to automatically
Reg mark Size or marks
place in corners
Distance

Type of marks
Select Reg. marks Reg mark Thickness Click on Apply
menu
(when applicable)

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  Type: In the drop-down menu, select the Type of registration marks to use based on application or
cutter brand.
 Size (or Distance): Depending on the Type selection, the Size setting may change to Distance:
o Size specifies the length and width of each registration mark
o Distance will replace Size when the cutter brand can support intermediate registration marks.
 For example, in a letter sized project a Distance of 11 is entered. Four reg marks appear at the
corners of the margin boundaries because the Sign Area is set to Letter. But if the Distance is
set to 5, then intermediate registration marks are added:

Distance is ~ Sign Area size and Distance is set to ~half of Sign Area
four marks are place in the corners size and intermediate registration marks
of the margin border are added

 Thickness: Some registration mark options allow the thickness to be changed. For example, if the
Washer option is chosen in the Type menu and the Size is kept the same but only Thickness is
changed:

Size: 0.4” Size: 0.4” Size: 0.4”

Thickness: 0.05” Thickness: 0.10” Thickness: 0.15”

 Auto corner reg. marks: automatically places four registration marks in the corners of the Sign Area
margin boundaries. To keep this option always marked, go to Settings>Settings and, on the General
tab, mark the following option as a default:

Mark this option to set Auto corner

reg. marks on by default

o Note that this option will also automatically generate registration marks whenever a bitmap image
has been imported into SignCut Draw.

 After entering the settings, click on Apply and the reg marks appear as red lined objects with no fill color.
Note that when printed the reg marks will appear with a solid black fill.

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 A few other things to note:
 With some of the mark types, such as CARD, marks can be added by clicking anywhere in the Sign
Area.
 To delete marks, click on the Delete all marks icon and all marks will be deleted. The Undo
button can be used to delete the most recently added marks.
 Registration marks will always be visible while in Sign setup mode. To hide them after leaving Sign
setup, click on the View registration marks icon on the View Bar:

Toggles View versus Hide

8.03.2 Registration Marks in Contour Cutting Applications

 Section 5.09 presented the instructions for the Create CARD registration marks option available in
Bitmap tools. This is used when the printing of a contour cut project will occur in another program but
SignCut will be used for the cutting.
 If the printing will be performed in SignCut Draw, then the addition of registration marks is set up using the
Sign setup tool presented in the last section. From the Type menu, select the brand of cutter or marks to
use. Note that if you own a cutter with automatic identification of registration marks (i.e. equipped with an
optic eye or a camera) you will most likely need to select the cutter brand from the list. If your cutter uses a
manual process for setting registration mark locations, then you can select a shape instead.

Or select an
Select cutter brand appropriate shape

 Enter other settings based on descriptions covered in the prior Section 8.03.1. After clicking on Apply, your
project should have registration marks in place and will be ready for printing. This is covered in Section 8.04.

Registration marks Registration marks

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8.03.3 Alignment Registration Marks

 As mentioned in Section 8.03, alignment registration marks can automatically be created when splitting
large designs on the Mat. tab. Refer back to Section 8.01.2 for instructions.
 When cutting multiple colors of a material, such as vinyl, in which the layers need to be properly aligned in
the final application, alignment registration marks can be added and will be cut with each color. Note that
this can also be done in SignCut Pro 2 and is presented in Chapter 5 of its user manual.
 The following sign will be used to illustrate how alignment marks are added. Because it’s not larger than the
cutting width of the cutter, it isn’t necessary to use Modules. But it is designed to be cut from two colors of
vinyl:

 Click on the Sign setup tool (or use shortcut W3). Select one of the alignment registration mark
options from the Type menu. Enter the Size and Thickness desired:

Enter Size for marks

Select Reg.
marks

Enter Thickness for Click on Apply

Select a Type (shape)
marks

 After clicking on Apply, four alignment registration marks will appear between the margins of the Sign
Area:

Registration marks
Registration marks

 However, the placement of the registration marks inside the border will result in a lot of wasted vinyl.
Thus, to reset the size of the Sign Area to match the dimensions of the project, return to Object edit

mode (Q), hold the Shift key and click the Y/X icon . Then re-add the registration marks:

217
 Sign Area is now sized based on the The alignment registration marks are
project dimensions now closer to the design

 When the project is sent to SignCut Pro 2, the registration marks will appear and cut with each color that
is selected.

8.04 Printing
 To open the Print window, either go to File>Print or click on the Print icon on the upper Toolbar. The
following window opens:

Select the Print size based on the

Select the Orientation which
printout material and Size Area
matches the Size Area

Options for what to

include on the printout

 Select the Print size of the printout sheet from the drop-down menu. In general, Landscape will be the
selected option based on the orientation of the Sign Area. For example, in this Letter sized project, the 11”
side is left-to-right at the top. Thus, selecting Landscape will result in the printout being orientated the
same:

 IMPORTANT: Before printing, check your printer properties window to make sure the Orientation
matches, as well as verifying the printout dimensions and any other specifications you need.

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8.05 Send Project to SignCut Pro 2

 Once a project is ready to cut, the Move image to SignCut icon on the Tools Panel can be clicked (or
use the shortcut S) to automatically open SignCut Pro 2 and paste in the project.
 Under Settings>Settings, on the General tab, is an option called Export sign frame. When it is marked,
the project transferred to SignCut Pro 2 will include an outer rectangle matching the Sign size you’ve set in
SignCut Draw. If the option is not marked then only the shapes themselves will be sent:

Mark this option to have a

Sign size rectangle added in
SignCut Pro 2

 Because SignCut Pro 2 supports cutting by color, make sure your project utilizes the same color for any
shapes that will be cut together.
 Additionally:
 If any filters have been applied (as are covered in Sections 3.09 and 3.13), those filtered shapes will not
be transferred to SignCut Pro 2.
 If any shapes are selected, then only those shapes will be transferred.
 Registration marks added in SignCut Draw will be transferred and recognized as registration marks.

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 Appendix A Shortcut and Icons

Ctrl+R Repeat last action (1.06.3) m:Edit>Repeat

Ctrl+W Update screen (1.08) m: View>Update window

Apply settings (used throughout SignCut i: Properties & Functions

Draw)

Alt+F4 Exit SignCut Draw (2.06) m:File>Exit

Zooming and Panning Tools

Roll mouse wheel Zoom in and out (1.05)

Shift+F2 Zoom to selected (1.05) i:Toolbar

Shift+F4 Zoom to entire sign (1.05) i:Toolbar

F2 Zoom to frame (1.05) i:Toolbar

F3 Zoom out (1.05) i:Toolbar

Shift+F3 Zoom in one magnification level at a time

(1.05)

F4 Zoom in on active color shapes (1.05)

F4 Zoom in on active color shapes (1.05)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Zooming and Panning Tools (cont.)

Spacebar Zoom to 100% (or 200%) or custom (1.05)

Shift+Spacebar Replace 100% (or 200%) with current

magnificaton level (1.05)
Replace 100% (or 200%) with current
Ctrl+Spacebar magnificaton level AND with current shape
(1.05)

Z or Right click on screen Set center of the screen based on current

location of the cursor (1.05)

Filter Colors & Objects Panel

Show/hide bitmap (3.13)(5.03.2) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (upper)

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 Shift+F4 Zoom to entire sign (1.05) i:Toolbar

F2 Zoom to frame (1.05) i:Toolbar

F3 Zoom out (1.05) i:Toolbar

Shift+F3 Zoom in one magnification level at a time

(1.05)

F4 Zoom in on active color shapes (1.05)

F4 Zoom in on active color shapes (1.05)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Zooming and Panning Tools (cont.)

Spacebar Zoom to 100% (or 200%) or custom (1.05)

Shift+Spacebar Replace 100% (or 200%) with current

magnificaton level (1.05)
Replace 100% (or 200%) with current
Ctrl+Spacebar magnificaton level AND with current shape
(1.05)

Z or Right click on screen Set center of the screen based on current

location of the cursor (1.05)

Filter Colors & Objects Panel

Show/hide bitmap (3.13)(5.03.2) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (upper)

Filter selected clones (3.13) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (upper)

Filter selected objects (3.13) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (upper)

Filter objects with no fill (3.13) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (upper)

Click any colored box to show only the shapes i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (lower)
with that color (3.09.3)

Shift+click icon Toggles shapes of that color to be i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (lower)
active/inactive (3.09.3)

Select a shape, right click on icon Selected shape will become this color (3.09.3) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (lower)

C Scroll through each color of shapes (3.09.3)

Shift+C Show/hide all objects (3.09.3) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (lower)

Select a shape, Shift+click icon Only shapes of that color are active (3.09.3) i:Filter Colors & Objects Panel (lower)

Color Palette Tools

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 N Select next shape (3.02)

Shift+N Select previous shape (3.02)

Ctrl+A Select all shapes (3.02) m:Edit>Select All

Ctrl+I Select identical shapes (3.02) m:Edit>Select Identical

Delete key Delete selected shape(s) (3.03)

Hold Delete and click on one Deletes all selected shapes after releasing
shape at a time Delete key (3.03)

Ctrl + drag a shape Maintain horizontal or vertical movement

(3.04)

PgUp (or PgDn) Increase (or decrease) Nudge size for arrow
movement of shapes (3.04)
1 (or 0, 2 -9) on upper row of Set Nudge size between 0 mm and 500 mm
keyboard (3.04)

Alt + right arrow key Moves a rotated shape along the angle of
rotation (3.04)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Copying and Duplicating

Ctrl+C Copy selection to clipboard (3.10.2) m:Edit>Copy

i:Toolbar

Ctrl+X Cut selection to clipboard (3.10.1) m:Edit>Cut

i:Toolbar

Ctrl+V Paste selection from clipboard (3.10.3) m:Edit>Paste

i:Toolbar

Ctrl+D Duplicates selection (3.11.3) m:Settings>Settings>Editing tab - enter

distances for duplicates
Enter new Position and click Creates a duplicate of selection in new i: Properties & Functions
Duplicate icon Position (3.11.2)
Enter new Position, press Shift Creates a clone of selection in new Position i: Properties & Functions
and click Duplicate icon (3.11.2)
Hold Left and Right mouse Creates a duplicate (3.11.1)
buttons and drag a selection

Ctrl + Hold Left and Right mouse Creates a duplicate and maintains horizontal
buttons and drag a selection or vertical alignment (3.11.1)

Ctrl + right click drag a middle Creates a mirrored duplicate touching original
handle to the opposite side (3.08.2)

Shift + drag center of a shape. Creates a mirrored duplicate same distance

Release and press Enter on opposite side of where mouse was
released (3.08.2)

Shift + Hold Left and Right mouse Creates a clone of selection (3.11.1)
buttons and drag a selection

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 Ctrl+A Select all shapes (3.02) m:Edit>Select All

Ctrl+I Select identical shapes (3.02) m:Edit>Select Identical

Delete key Delete selected shape(s) (3.03)

Hold Delete and click on one Deletes all selected shapes after releasing
shape at a time Delete key (3.03)

Ctrl + drag a shape Maintain horizontal or vertical movement

(3.04)

PgUp (or PgDn) Increase (or decrease) Nudge size for arrow
movement of shapes (3.04)
1 (or 0, 2 -9) on upper row of Set Nudge size between 0 mm and 500 mm
keyboard (3.04)

Alt + right arrow key Moves a rotated shape along the angle of
rotation (3.04)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Copying and Duplicating

Ctrl+C Copy selection to clipboard (3.10.2) m:Edit>Copy

i:Toolbar

Ctrl+X Cut selection to clipboard (3.10.1) m:Edit>Cut

i:Toolbar

Ctrl+V Paste selection from clipboard (3.10.3) m:Edit>Paste

i:Toolbar

Ctrl+D Duplicates selection (3.11.3) m:Settings>Settings>Editing tab - enter

distances for duplicates
Enter new Position and click Creates a duplicate of selection in new i: Properties & Functions
Duplicate icon Position (3.11.2)
Enter new Position, press Shift Creates a clone of selection in new Position i: Properties & Functions
and click Duplicate icon (3.11.2)
Hold Left and Right mouse Creates a duplicate (3.11.1)
buttons and drag a selection

Ctrl + Hold Left and Right mouse Creates a duplicate and maintains horizontal
buttons and drag a selection or vertical alignment (3.11.1)

Ctrl + right click drag a middle Creates a mirrored duplicate touching original
handle to the opposite side (3.08.2)

Shift + drag center of a shape. Creates a mirrored duplicate same distance

Release and press Enter on opposite side of where mouse was
released (3.08.2)

Shift + Hold Left and Right mouse Creates a clone of selection (3.11.1)
buttons and drag a selection

Shift + click on a project tab Create a copy of selection and place into that i: Project Bar
Project (3.11.5)

223
 Shift + drag mouse from icon Create an angled dynamic axis (3.04.3) i: Left and right side of upper ruler
Double click along horizontal (or Add guidelines along sides (or top and bottom)
vertical) ruler of selection (3.19.3)
Double click icon Add guidelines all around selection (3.19.3) i: Left of upper ruler
Shift + double click left (or top) Add guideline along left side (or top) of
ruler selection (3.19.3)
Shift + double click icon Add guidelines along left and top of selection i: Left of upper ruler
(3.19.3)

Ctrl+ double click left (or top) ruler Add guideline along right side (or bottom) of
selection (3.19.3)
Ctrl + double click icon Add guidelines along right and bottom of i: Left of upper ruler
selection (3.19.3)
Shift + Ctrl + double click left (or Add vertical (or horizontal) guideline through
top) ruler center of selection (3.19.3)
Shift + Ctrl + double click icon Add vertical and horizontal guidelines thorugh i: Left of upper ruler
the center of the selection (3.19.3)
Hide/show guidelines (3.19.4) i: View Options Bar

Single click icon Delete most recent guideline or dynamic axis i: Right side of upper ruler
(3.19.2)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Guidelines and Dynamic Axes (cont) (also refer to Guidelines & placement (E) section)

Single click icon Delete most recent guideline or dynamic axis i: Right side of upper ruler
(3.19.2)
Ctrl + click icon Deletes each icon in reverse order of creation i: Right side of upper ruler
(3.19.2)
Double click icon Deletes all guidelines (3.19.2) i: Right side of upper ruler

Object edit (Q)

Q Enable Object edit tool i: Tools Panel

" Duplicate selection using new settings (3.11.2) i: Properties & Functions

Click icon or Ctrl+Tab Horizontally mirror a selected shape (3.08.1) i: Properties & Functions

Click icon or Shift+Ctrl+Tab Vertically mirror a selected shape (3.08.1) i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl + drag a middle handle to the Mirror a shape (3.08.1)

opposite side

Shift+PgUp Bring selected shape to top (3.16) m:Arrange>Order>Move to top

i: Properties & Functions

Shift+PgDn Send selected shape to the bottom (3.16) m:Arrange>Order>Move to back

i: Properties & Functions

224
 Shift + Ctrl + double click icon Add vertical and horizontal guidelines thorugh i: Left of upper ruler
the center of the selection (3.19.3)
Hide/show guidelines (3.19.4) i: View Options Bar

Single click icon Delete most recent guideline or dynamic axis i: Right side of upper ruler
(3.19.2)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Guidelines and Dynamic Axes (cont) (also refer to Guidelines & placement (E) section)

Ctrl + click icon Deletes each icon in reverse order of creation i: Right side of upper ruler
(3.19.2)
Double click icon Deletes all guidelines (3.19.2) i: Right side of upper ruler

Object edit (Q)

Q Enable Object edit tool i: Tools Panel

" Duplicate selection using new settings (3.11.2) i: Properties & Functions

Click icon or Ctrl+Tab Horizontally mirror a selected shape (3.08.1) i: Properties & Functions

Click icon or Shift+Ctrl+Tab Vertically mirror a selected shape (3.08.1) i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl + drag a middle handle to the Mirror a shape (3.08.1)

opposite side

Shift+PgUp Bring selected shape to top (3.16) m:Arrange>Order>Move to top

i: Properties & Functions

Shift+PgDn Send selected shape to the bottom (3.16) m:Arrange>Order>Move to back

i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+PgUp Bring selected shape up one step (3.16) m:Arrange>Order>Move 1 step forward
i: Properties & Functions

m:Arrange>Order>Move 1 step
Ctrl+PgDn Send selected shape down one step (3.16) backward
i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+G Group selected shapes (3.14.1) m:Arrange>Group

i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+U Ungroup selected shapes (3.14.2) m:Arrange>Ungroup

i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+L Combine selected shapes into a single shape m:Arrange>Combine

(3.15.1) i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+K Break apart a combined selection into m:Arrange>Break Apart

individual shapes (3.15.2) i: Properties & Functions

M Weld selected shapes to remove overlap m:Edit>Weld

(4.04-4.05)(7.04) i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+M Punch - die cut one shape from another (7.07) m: Edit>Punch
i: Properties & Functions

Q Round off corners (6.04.1) i: Properties & Functions

225
 " Reduce number of nodes (6.05.1) i: Properties & Functions

Ctrl+Q Convert text to curves (icon only appears m:Arrange>Convert to curves

when a text shape is selected) (4.03) i: Properties & Functions

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Sign Setup (W)

W Enable Sign setup tool (1.03) i: Tools Panel

W1 Size and margins setup for Sign Area (1.03)

Shift + click icon Create Sign size based on bounding box i: Properties & Functions (when in
around project shapes (1.03) Object edit mode)

W1 Open a saved template (1.03) i: Properties & Functions

" Save current settings as a template (1.03) i: Properties & Functions

W2 Modules setup for splitting a design (8.02)

W3 Reg marks setup - type and dimensions (8.03)

Guidelines & placement (E)

E Enable Guidelines & placement tools (3.19.2) i: Tools Panel

E1 Guidelines - specify settings for guidelines

(3.19.2)

" Add a new guideline using settings (3.19.2) i: Properties & Functions

Select guideline + click icon Delete selected icon (3.19.2) i: Properties & Functions

E1 Delete all guidelines (3.19.2) i: Properties & Functions

E2 Align - align a selection of shapes (3.17)

" Set a reference object (3.17.3) i: Properties & Functions

E3 Distribute - equally space a selection of

shapes (3.18)

Text (R)

R Enable Text tool (4.01) i: Tools Panel

" Left / Center / Right align text (4.02) i: Properties & Functions

226
 G Add a guideline parallel to the last guideline i: Properties & Functions
(5.10.3)

Shift+G Add a guideline perpendicular to the last i: Properties & Functions

guideline (5.10.3)

B Add a guideline that is parallet to and midway i: Properties & Functions

between last two parallel guidelines (5.10.3)

J Add a guideline along last line drawn (5.10.3) i: Properties & Functions

Shift + J Add a guideline perpendicular to the last

drawn line, passing through last node (5.10.3) i: Properties & Functions

PgUp (or PgDn) Make new guideline the reference guideline i: Properties & Functions
(or revert to prior guideline) (5.10.3)
Double click at second node or Line will convert to a Bézier curve (5.10.4) i: Properties & Functions
press C after creating line

Press A after creating line Line will convert to an arc (5.10.5) i: Properties & Functions

T2 Freehand tool - freely draw anything (5.10.6) i: Properties & Functions

T3 Split object tool - break a path or cut through a i: Properties & Functions
shape (6.02.1)(6.02.2)

Ctrl+click Cut will be horizontal or vertical (6.02.2) i: Properties & Functions

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Pen Tools (T) (cont.)

T4 Weeding line tool - add weeding lines to a i: Properties & Functions

project (7.03)

Ctrl+click Weed line will be horizontal or vertical (7.03) i: Properties & Functions

Shape Tool (Y)

Y Enable Shape tool (3.01) i: Tools Panel

Y1 Rectangle and Square (hold Ctrl for square) i: Properties & Functions
(3.01.1)

Y2 Ellipse and Circle (hold Ctrl for circle) (3.01.2) i: Properties & Functions

Y3 Polygon (3.01.3) i: Properties & Functions

Y4 Rounded Corner Rectangle (hold Ctrl for i: Properties & Functions

rounded corner square) (3.01.4)

227
 Y6 Scalloped Corner Rectangle (hold Ctrl for i: Properties & Functions
scalloped corner square) (3.01.6)

Y7 Star (3.01.7) i: Properties & Functions

Y8 Arrow (3.01.8) i: Properties & Functions

Y9 QR Code (3.01.9) i: Properties & Functions

Y and then hold Shift while QR Code will be placed in lower left margin i: Properties & Functions
clicking QR Code icon area without slash lines (3.01.9)

Clipart (U)

U Open Clipart window (2.03) i: Tools Panel

" Delete clipart file (2.03) i: Right side of Clipart window

" Open favorite folder (2.03) i: Right side of Clipart window

" Save current folder as favorite folder (2.03) i: Right side of Clipart window

" Open a clipart folder (2.03) i: Right side of Clipart window

" Close Clipart window (2.03) i: Right side of Clipart window

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Bitmap (I)

I Enable Bitmap tool (5.03) i: Tools Panel

" Import bitmap file (5.03.1) i: Properties & Functions

" Hide bitmap (5.03.2) i: Properties & Functions

" Invert bitmap (5.03.2) i: Properties & Functions

" Crop bitmap (5.03.2) i: Properties & Functions

" Create line raster from bitmap (5.05) i: Properties & Functions

228
 Click on Create vectors from Vectorize all of the colors (5.06.3 i: Vectorize window
bitmap icon
Click on Create vectors from Vectorize the selected color (5.06.3) i: Vectorize window
bitmap icon

I Bitmap Size Frame (5.07) i: Properties & Functions

" Create outline on bitmap (5.08) i: Properties & Functions

" Create CARD Registration marks (5.09) i: Properties & Functions

Node edit (O)

O Enable Node edit tool (6.03) i: Tools Panel

When Show original is enabled, click icon to

" update original to current status (6.03.2 and i: Properties & Functions
applies in all Node edit options)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Node edit (O) (cont.)

O1 Standard (6.03 - 6.07)

Ctrl+Shift + arrow key after Selects the next node on the same path
selecting a node (6.03.3)

Ctrl+ arrow key after selecting a Selects the path after the node, then continue
node to alternate between node and next path
(6.03.3)

Shift + click on node Add additional nodes to a selection (click

again to deselect) (6.03.3)
Ctrl + click on first node and last First, last and in-between nodes on that path
node along a path are selected (6.03.3)
Select nodes + Ctrl + drag mouse Adds more nodes to the selection (6.03.3)
to select more nodes

Esc Deselect all selected nodes (6.03.3)

Double click on a path or hover Adds a node at that location on the path
over path and press + key (6.03.4)
Left click once on a path and click Adds a node at that location on the path i: Properties & Functions
icon (6.03.4)
Select one or more nodes and Deletes node(s) (6.03.4)
press Delete key
Select one or more nodes and Deletes node(s) (6.03.4) i: Properties & Functions
click icon
Click on a path and drag with Moves the path (6.03.5)
mouse or use arrow keys

229
 Click on Create vectors from Vectorize all of the colors (5.06.3 i: Vectorize window
bitmap icon
Click on Create vectors from Vectorize the selected color (5.06.3) i: Vectorize window
bitmap icon

I Bitmap Size Frame (5.07) i: Properties & Functions

" Create outline on bitmap (5.08) i: Properties & Functions

" Create CARD Registration marks (5.09) i: Properties & Functions

Node edit (O)

O Enable Node edit tool (6.03) i: Tools Panel

When Show original is enabled, click icon to

" update original to current status (6.03.2 and i: Properties & Functions
applies in all Node edit options)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Node edit (O) (cont.)

O1 Standard (6.03 - 6.07)

Ctrl+Shift + arrow key after Selects the next node on the same path
selecting a node (6.03.3)

Ctrl+ arrow key after selecting a Selects the path after the node, then continue
node to alternate between node and next path
(6.03.3)

Shift + click on node Add additional nodes to a selection (click

again to deselect) (6.03.3)
Ctrl + click on first node and last First, last and in-between nodes on that path
node along a path are selected (6.03.3)
Select nodes + Ctrl + drag mouse Adds more nodes to the selection (6.03.3)
to select more nodes

Esc Deselect all selected nodes (6.03.3)

Double click on a path or hover Adds a node at that location on the path
over path and press + key (6.03.4)
Left click once on a path and click Adds a node at that location on the path i: Properties & Functions
icon (6.03.4)
Select one or more nodes and Deletes node(s) (6.03.4)
press Delete key
Select one or more nodes and Deletes node(s) (6.03.4) i: Properties & Functions
click icon
Click on a path and drag with Moves the path (6.03.5)
mouse or use arrow keys

230
 O3 Clone section (6.09) i: Properties & Functions

Select path(s) to be cloned, drag Clone will replace path at new location (6.09) i: Properties & Functions
to a new location, and click icon

Exit copying the current path (6.09)

Measure (P)

P Enable Measure tool (7.02) i: Tools Panel

P1 Measure (7.02.1)

" Copy measurement to clipboard (7.02.1) i: Properties & Functions

" Exit Measure and go to Object edit mode i: Properties & Functions
(7.02.1)

P2 Ref. Frame (7.02.2)

P3 Dimensions (7.02.3)

P4 Comments (7.03.4)

Shortcut Icon Description & UM Section Menu (m:) Icon (i:) Location
Effects (A)

A Enable Effects tool (7.06) i: Tools Panel

A1 Contour - create outlines, in-lines, and island

fills (7.07) (4.06)
m: Edit>Punch
A2 or Ctrl+M Punch - die cut one shape from another (7.08) i: Properties & Functions (when in
Object edit mode)

A3 or Ctrl+Shift+M Intersect - create a new shape based on the m: Edit>Intersect

overlap between one or more shapes (7.09)

231
 A6 Fill - fill or outline a shape with duplicates of
another shape (7.10)

" Make selection the Fill object to use in filling a i: Properties & Functions
larger shape (7.10.1 - 7.10.4)

" Add a fill shape (7.10.4) i: Properties & Functions

" Remove a fill shape (7.10.4) i: Properties & Functions

" Make fill shape a corner (7.10.4) i: Properties & Functions

A7 Dash - convert solid lines into dashed

(perforated) lines (7.11)

F12 Dash - Decal cutting option (7.11.2) m: Arrange>Decal cutting

A8 Hatch - fill shapes with a line or cross line

pattern (7.12)

A9 Rhinestone - create a rhinestone template

(circle pattern) (7.13)

" Add a rhinestone (7.13.2 - 7.13.3) i: Properties & Functions

" Delete a rhinestone (7.13.2 - 7.13.3) i: Properties & Functions

" Make a corner rhinestone (7.13.2) i: Properties & Functions

Move image to SignCut (S)

S Move image to SignCut Pro (2.04)(8.05) i:Tools Panel

232