On the left-hand side of the screen, click and drag with the mouse to highlight the demo project
Right-click
Select “remove” from the drop-down menu
Choose the machine
From the blue menu bar at the top, click on “Machine”
Pull down the drop-down menu of machine options
Select “Carvey”
Set the bit size and type
On the upper right-hand side of the screen, click on “Bit”
Scroll down the options to select “1/8” Straight cut”
Set the material size and type
Next to the bit option, click on the material type and size
From the “Material Type” dropdown, select Birch Plywood
Set the material dimensions to 12” x 8” x 0.5”
3. Create the text, Option 1
Choose a font from Easel’s Fonts tool
From the toolbar on the left-hand side of the screen, click on the “T” icon.
Choose a font from the list
Type the name
Type the name. It will automatically override the word “Text” that appears when you select a font
If it does not replace the word “Text,” triple-click on the word to select it, and then type the name
OR, 3. Create the text, Option 2
In word processing software like Microsoft Word, type the name and select a font
In a Word document, type the name
Change the text size to make it easier to see
Double-click on the word to select it
Choose a font from the font menu
If desired, expand the font
With the text selected, bring up the Font dialog box
Under the “Advanced” tab, change “Spacing” from “Normal” to “Expanded”
Change the number of points the font is expanded by and check the preview until it looks good
Perform a screen capture and save it as a jpeg
(Note: Mac users will have different steps)
Make sure the text is NOT highlighted, and hit “Enter” a few times to get the cursor out of the way
Press the “PrtScr” button on your keyboard
Open Paint, or other image software
Paste in your screen capture
Crop it until it is just the text
Save it as a .jpeg file
In Easel, import that jpeg and perform an image trace
On the left-hand side toolbar, click on the lowest option to open the Import menu
From that menu, select “Image Trace”
Click the blue “Upload File” button
Click “Select Files to Upload”
Locate your file and open it
Click the blue “Upload” button
Click the green “Import” button
Combine the pieces of your image
Make sure all the letters are selected
Right-click on the name, and from the drop-down menu, select “Combine”
4. Adjust and check your text
Change its size
With the name selected, click and drag the boxes on the corners and/or sides of the selection-outline to change the size of the letters
10” long is generally a good final size
Make sure the name does not overlap the pink L-shape at the bottom left of the design area.
Check what it will look like
Once your text is the size you want, check the right-hand side of the screen to be sure it looks good, and that all detail comes through
Check it with the inlay app
From the left-hand toolbar, click on the Lego icon to open the Apps window
Click on “Inlay Generator”
Make sure the bit size is 0.125
Change the tolerance to 0.05
Hit the “Enter” key to update the preview
Check to see if any letters are connected to each other. If so, this font will not work. Try another one, or, if using Option 2 above, expand the font, take another screen capture, and try again.
Click the grey “X” in the upper right corner of the inlay generator window to close it. You do not want to import it at this time.
5. Create the puzzle board
Create a square
From the left-hand toolbar, click on the Shapes icon
From the options, click on the square
Change it to full-depth and outline
With the square selected, drag the slider on the “Cut” toolpane to the bottom, creating a full-depth cut
Below the slider, click on “Clear out a pocket” to bring up the list of options
Select “Cut outside shape path”
Adjust its final size and location
Drag the square up to the top half of the screen
Use the grey boxes at the corners and sides of the selection-outline to change the square into a rectangle the size you want your puzzle board to be
It helps to move your name up into the rectangle to check final size for both the name and the rectangle.
Adjust until everything looks good
Round its corners
With the rectangle selected, go to the “Shape” tab on the toolpane
Under “Corner radius” enter “0.25 in”
6. Turn your text into an inlay
Create the inlay and position the pieces
With the name selected, click on the “Apps” icon and choose the Inlay Generator as you did before.
Again, make sure bit size is 0.125, and change tolerance to 0.05
Check one last time to be sure no letters are connected, and click the green “Import” button
Delete your original text
Move the shaded version of the name into position inside the rectangle
Move the outline version of the name into the blank area below it
DO NOT change the size of either name once you have run the inlay app
Change the text cut depth
With the shaded version of the name selected, go to the “Cut” tab in the toolpane
Just below the slider, enter “0.1875” in the “Depth” window
7. Adjust the cutting tabs
Reposition the tabs on the rectangle
Click on the rectangle to select it
Drag the four yellow tabs until there are two on the top and two on the bottom, fairly close to the corners
Add and position tabs on the name
Click on the outlined name
At the bottom of the “Cut” tab in the toolpane is a window that says “Quantity.” Enter twice the number of letters in the name (so for a 5-letter name, enter “10”)
Drag the tabs around until each letter has two, one at the top, and one at the bottom
8. Finishing steps
If desired, add dowel holes
If you wish to include dowels, each letter needs a hole to glue the dowel into
From the Shapes menu on the left-hand toolbar, select the circle.
With the circle selected, go to the “Shape” tab on the toolpane
Under “Width” and “Height” enter the size of the dowel (so if using a ¼” dowel, enter “0.25” in both places)
Go to the “Cut” tab on the toolpane
Along the edge of the slider, click on “3/8” to set the hole to that depth
Drag the hole into position on one of the letters
Repeat for each letter
Check the time the job will take
In the lower right-hand corner, click on the “Simulate” button. This will calculate the time the Carvey will take to cut the project
Send us the link
If you are signed up for the project to be made by Idea Studio staff, you need to send us the link to your project
From the upper toolbar, click on “File,” then “Share”
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