Welcome to LIBROS

LIBROS is New Mexico’s Book Arts Guild offering a variety of inspiration for both traditional and experimental artist’s books. We hold regular meetings on the 1st Saturday of the month, as well as annual and special exhibits. We welcome new members and guests – please see our Calendar page a list of upcoming meetings.

Next Meeting

Reminder: There is no meeting in July! Enjoy the summer break!

Saturday, August 2, 2014, 9am–noon

The Silhouette Cameo Electronic Cutting Machine

During our August meeting, Trish Meyer will demonstrate the Silhouette Cameo electronic cutting machine. The Cameo can cut a wide variety of materials – up to 12" x 12" – including paper, vinyl, cardstock, fabric, heat transfer material, and more.

If you are a book artist who likes to wield a scalpel to cut out intricate shapes or letters, or need to create complex pop-up pages or cards, then you will want to check out this technology – especially if you are doing a large edition!

There are two models available: The Cameo and the Portrait. Compare both models on the Silhouette website: http://www.silhouetteamerica.com/select-a-silhouette

The Silhouette Cameo hooks up to your computer (Mac or PC), and comes bundled with easy-to-use, friendly software called Silhouette Studio to draw your design. Designs need to be vector paths (not pixels); so shapes in a photograph need to be traced by their software. You can use any font in your computer, or even buy inexpensive designs from their online store (Silhouette Online Store).

The Silhouette YouTube Channel offers many videos to get you started.

The Starter Cameo package is $270 approx. on Amazon.com:
Silhouette Cameo Starter Bundle Kit

The company sells most of the unusual materials, such as vinyl, as well as spare blades (there are all also widely available on Amazon Prime).

If you prefer to use the more powerful Adobe Illustrator software, an optional exporter ($40) can be used to send files to the Cameo.

LIBROS Yahoo Group

If you’re a LIBROS member, don’t forget to join librosnmbag where you can keep up to date with fellow members. Karen Woolsey is the Moderator of the LIBROS Yahoo Group. To sign up so you can post messages, first open a Yahoo Groups account, then send Karen an email at: (her email is also on the Yahoo Groups home page near the logo).