Would you pay for this on etsy or attempt to make your own?

I think you could do that on your own. Try cutting the letters out of card stock first so you can play with the sizing and fonts.

If I had a cameo or other machine, I would first buy all the supplies to make that, then buy it anyhow because I can't get my act together enough to do the darn thing myself. So save money and buy the decals!

I have a Silhouette, I have vinyl, and I'd still buy it. It's not worth the time and effort to make things perfect (and in my experience there's always at least one mistake that happens (either the cut snags or you format it wrong, etc.)

That would be super simple to make. Vinyl comes in tons of colors - you will want Oracal 631 vinyl. That is the kind you can apply to walls and remove later. Do not buy vinyl at Hobby Lobby or other craft stores unless you are sure it says Oracal 631 on the back. The off brands DO NOT CUT WELL - don't buy them. Even for "practice"

The $20 price you see is for a 13"x24" size.

The one on the wall is probably the 39"x72" size - and that is $85.

So the photo/price is a bit misleading. I would say if you could get the size shown on the wall for $20 it would be a heck of a deal - but it is not as it appears.

You can cut vinyl right off a roll with your Silhouette. So you can cut 11.5" wide and up to 10 feet long. It can be a bit tricky cutting off the roll, if it is a long project. First - feed your uncut vinyl all the way through your machine to the length you are going to cut to make sure you have it in perfectly straight. If not, it will feed off the rollers and you will have a mess. If it feeds right, then back it out to the start point before you cut.. You also need to move the right side white roller in one click so it sits right on the edge of the vinyl.. Select NO MAT in the software and select "Load Media" on the machine.

It might be easier for you to cut on the mat if you are very new to it all. You can still buy roll vinyl (which is cheaper than sheets) and cut it to 12x12 blocks.

I would recommend doing a small project first, just to get you familiar with vinyl. Maybe a monogram or letter cut small and applied to a glass vase or pencil jar. This will help you understand how everything works.

I buy my vinyl and transfer tape from Expressions Vinyl. They are great! Just get the right kind for your project. Oracal 631! Oracal 651 is permanent and will damage your walls when you try to remove it.

Vinyl does not adhere well to freshly painted walls or walls painted with low VOC paints.

Check out the "how to" videos tabs at Expressions also. They are older, and maybe a few are done on a Cricut - but you get the idea on how to cut, weed and apply vinyl. Once you do it - you will be hooked! I promise! Lol - It is addictive and SO fun~!

www.expressionsvinyl.com/



You will want to do a "kiss cut" - you only cut the top layer of vinyl - not the backing paper. Use the standard setting in the Silhouette software - "Vinyl, Silhouette Brand" (even though you are using Oracal). Set your blade to 2. If you have cut a lot of cardstock - it might be time to get a new blade also. I keep a blue blade just for vinyl. Blue blades are "fabric" blades - bu they are exactly the same. Just colored differently so you can keep track of them.

When you have your vinyl cut - you "weed" it. That is taking off the excess vinyl - the part that is not going on the wall. You leave your letters on the backing paper. Now you take transfer tape - I like the clear from Expressions Vinyl - and apply that over the top of your letters and burnish. Now take the letters and burnish to the wall and remove the clear transfer paper. Transfer paper/tape is a must. You cannot apply the vinyl without it.

** you might read that you can use contact paper for vinyl and/or transfer tape.  I would not recommend it.  It may damage your walls.  Buying the "real stuff" is worth it, and not that much more $$.  The "real" transfer tape is the best.  It will save you lots of frustration.

I have an expression and I know I could do it myself but it's always been easier to just buy the vinyl phrases on Etsy. I've bought 3 so far. I keep telling myself i'll try it on my expression but I'm too intimidated. i'll probably kick myself when I find out how easy it is. another reason I don't want to make it myself is that I don't want to love doing it so much that my house is covered in vinyl phrases.

I would absolutely make it myself. Cutting vinyl is one of the easiest things you can cut on your machine. The key is to make sure you're not cutting too deep so the blade goes into the backing paper. If you do that, it makes it a lot harder to apply the vinyl on the wall because it won't release from the paper. Not fun! Do some smaller test cuts first to get your settings down pat before you start cutting your real project.

For $85, I'd make it myself. I really like it and think you should play around with your cameo!!

I have little patience for doing things like that. When I want to decorate I just want it done and done now and not have to fuss with stuff. So I would buy it. It would also probably be cheaper or about the same price to just buy it as buy all the vinyl and supplies to do it yourself.

Not at all. Vinyl is pretty cheap when bought online. The only other thing needed would be transfer tape. I bought so many yards of that, over six years ago, for $10, that I still have over 2/3left.

The $20 one is 13"x24" - not very big - and nothing at all like what is pictured. A piece of vinyl that size to cut would be about $2, plus transfer tape. In all you would have around $4 in it, for supplies.

The size pictured looks to be the 39"x72", and it is $85. It could easily be cut off a 5 yard roll of vinyl with plenty to spare. A 5 yard roll is $13.99 or less.

So if already had the machine - it would be WAY cheaper to cut it yourself - and it is fun to do