Gypsy Get Real Challenge

On the Gypsy ChitChat forum of the Cricut message board, we have weekly challenges. These challenges are great because part of the challenge is to use a specific feature of the gypsy. So we are learning and creating!! This challenge is to use the Real Dial button on the Main Menu page. It is a box with the letter "a" and an up & down arrow in it.

Real dial is a weird concept to grasp at first. When you select a size for your shapes or letters, not everything will cut at that exact size. For example, if you select 2" height for the word Love using the Gypsy Font, only the "L" is actually 2" tall. The "o v e" are less than 1" tall.

Another example of this is when you are working with paper dolls or a Disney character. You select your size (let's say 3 inches) and that size will be the shadow of the character. All of the other pieces will be cut at 3 inches as well, but they will be the correct size to fit the 3 inch character. You don't want 3 inch eyeballs for a 3 inch Mickey Mouse!!

Every now and then, we do want a specific size of a letter or piece of a character or layered item. We sometimes use pieces to make cards or designs by welding them with other pieces. In this case, by selecting the Real Dial Size button the letter or shape you select will be that exact size. If you want a 7" lower case "e" you can get one much quicker by using the Real Dial button.

For some fonts, the shadow feature is not an option, so this is a way to make a shadow. I selected Don Juan because it does not have a shadow option. I put my name on the mat and sized it to 2.0 ht with the Real Dial button on (yellow). I grouped and copied my name onto the mat. I ungrouped and moved the letter L over my first letter L. I then unlinked the chain so I could adjust the height and width separately until I found a good shadow. I repeated this with the remaining letters.




Then I took the star and made a total of 5 stars, each one a bit bigger than the one before it.



I arranged them on my mat to cut out by color and cut.

This was "Real" educational and a bit frustrating to get just the right size on the shadow layers. Depending on the shape or letter, you could only go so much taller or wider to keep things proportionate! It is very much a trial and error process.