I did it! My first SVG's!

You may remember me saying in a prior post that one of my goals was to make my own digital elements (SVG's).  Another one of them was to learn Inkscape.  This week I made great strides toward both!!!  Yeah Me!!


By the way, SVG stands for Scalable Vector Graphic.  It is an object that, no matter how big or small you size it, doesn't pixilate and wind up looking distorted.  SVG's are used for all sorts of things - clip art, scrapbooking, web design, etc.  
Inkscape is a FREE open source SVG graphics editor program. http://inkscape.org/   It is the bomb.


So, after about a year of thinking about it, I actually took the time to sit down with Inkscape (on my new computer - woohoo!) and try to make my own SVG!  Fear of failure had kept me from taking that first step for way too long.  Well - check this out!:

My first SVG - his and hers owls.  I think they came out very cute.  I made them in Inkscape, after MUCH trial, error, and Googling 'how to' tips constantly.  The good news is that I figured it out and learned a whole lot in the mean time!
I sought out advice from Sue Espinoza from http://creationsbypapasue.blogspot.com/.  You may already know, Sue is a wizard with Inkscape and does terrific video tutorials.  She is also a contributing member of the Inkscape Design Forum; also a wealth of knowledge and insight on how to learn this incredible program.  http://www.inkscapecuttingdesign.com/index.php
Sue commented that my initial designs were good, but lacked personality.  Hhhmmm.  How to give an owl personality?
She also sent me a link that took me to the web search images of other owls people had done.  I have to say - my mind contemplated quitting, right then and there.  The creativity and sheer genius of the artists out there is simply staggering.  After viewing these images, I wound up turning my computer off for the night.  It really gave me something to think about - why am I knocking myself out to make these silly owls when there are images out there that far exceed anything I could hope to do.  The answer just kept coming back to me:  because that is what I want to do.  Simple as that.
After mulling over the whole 'personality' thing, I decided that these owls should have clothing - of course they should!  Dapper Dan and Sweet Sandra  (I just made those names up) gradually emerged.  Voila!


I have a now-extinct copy of Sure Cuts A Lot2, which is a program that allows you to cut non-Cricut Cartridge images on your Cricut.  Cutting my owls out on my Cricut was as easy as bringing the .svg file into SCAL2, scattering the different images (beak, body, dress, necklace, etc) over the cutting mat so they would cut out individually, and pressing CUT.  With that press of a button, I made a big dent in a couple of my most exciting goals.
What about you?  Is there something you have been thinking about (hopefully not for a year, like me), but have been putting off due to fear of failure?  What is it?  And what is your plan to make it happen?  Tell us about it.