My First Design! (It's little, but it makes me smile)

I’ve been stalking the forum ever since I placed my order, but this is my first post! Received my GF Basic today and I’m so excited! Made the Gift of Good Measure obviously. I then took to the forums to find a free design to try something else and made the cute, simple Art/Book stand shared by @Janerlea!

I was really itching to create something all my own but I have no design experience. I downloaded Adobe Illustrator, watched a couple of tutorials, and made a teensy wall sign featuring my most common expression of endearment for my boyfriend besides “I love you”.

The two holes in the “Y’s” will be used to hang it on the wall with a bit of string. It came out VERY dainty. It’s under 2 inches tall including the apostrophe, and less than 4 inches wide. Peeling the paper off was very stressful, I was certain I was going to break it!

I know I have a lot more to learn, but designing and creating something of my own with zero experience just a few hours after unboxing is incredibly gratifying!

EDIT THE FOLLOWING MORNING:

Put a couple of finishing touches and decided to add the photo.

It was made on draftboard, and I decided to just color it a solid color using a Crayola Brush Marker. The string is just some waxed thread I had laying around from my early attempts at leather working (which were not impressive and one of the main reasons I wanted a GF!).

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I’ll tell you the same thing I’ve told anyone who has asked me about my skills as a designer: It’s taken me a long time to get to somewhere where the designs are now starting to come a little more natural to me, and it wasn’t until very recently that I recognized that I might be okay at what I’m doing. I’ve made bracelets and necklaces by hand, beanies and other crafts, turned melted crayons into art, made designs for vinyl cutting, and now I’m making things with my laser. My drive was to put my time and effort into something that people would like, and if the majority of people didn’t want it? Who cares. I’ve always targeted small groups, especially those closest to me, and when I finished making them something that they would not have otherwise had without me, it means all the world to me.

There’s a big difference between a machine somewhere mass producing something, and a person putting their heart into a project. Keep learning, and take it as slow as you need. A favorite quote of mine is, “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.” Keep up the good work and don’t let anything discourage you, I mean, you have a tool that cost a lot of money, so you’d better use it :grin:

Oh, and I don’t know how long you’ve been a member of the forum, but welcome! If you have a question, odds are that someone here has already asked, so utilize the search function at the top of the page. Instead of browsing social media in your spare time, you should come here and check out all the projects shared, a lot have nice walkthroughs or even the tutorial section that’s been put together is extremely helpful! I still reference it when I forget how to do something :sweat_smile:

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Welcome to the Glowforge community! You’ve really hit the ground running on Day 1; can’t wait to see what you do next!

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Nice first project, and Welcome!!

I say that to my wife almost every day. :heart_eyes:

Keep posting your projects!

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Congratulations, and your first print looks great! :grinning:

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Welcome. You have started off well. I can see the very thin connections of the apostrophe and heart over the i could be very challenging.

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Nice start and great sign! It’s your first, but will always be your favorite.

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Welcome and great start! Before you know it you will master one skill after another and be making complex items. Take it one step at the time.

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Kudos to you for diving in with your own designs! That phrase is something my husband and I use, too. :slight_smile:

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Welcome, and enjoy the adventure! :sunglasses:

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Welcome to our fun group! I’m quite impressed about how quickly you picked up on using AI to create this little gem. I know you’re going to have a crazy amount of fun making stuff. Be sure to continue posting and sharing.

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What an awesome and fun first project! I’m glad you had fun right out of the box!

Really nice start–and indeed brave with the fragile design!

For getting off the masking–I’ve discovered wooden clothes pins work well–the wood used for the clothes pins is firm enough to scrape, but it’s soft enough it doesn’t scratch, even clear acrylic. But loads of other methods have been mentioned on various threads… And I like to wash off the soot, usually with a soft toothbrush (I rarely put the item itself under the tap for anything more than a quick rinse unless I have tested to confirm it’s not affected), or a damp cloth, pending the design & material. The water helps soften the adhesive, making the masking easier to remove, too. The plywood can tolerate a quick rinse (few seconds), but be sure to dry quickly, as if the wood gets too wet, it can ruin the piece.

What a wonderful first project! I see a lot more smiles in your future. :slight_smile:

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