What's in the Box?

The Silhouette Cameo® comes with the items shown in the following list. Check that all the items have been included before you proceed to use the machine. If you are missing any items listed below, please contact [email protected].

Remove Packaging from the Machine

There are strips of tape, cardboard, and foam to hold the moving parts of the Cameo in place during shipment to prevent any damage to the machine. Take the Silhouette Cameo® from the box and remove the strips of tape that are holding the lid and any machine pieces in place. Remove the three tabs that are holding the clear plastic covers in place on the front of the machine; you’ll remove the two pieces on the side panels and the piece along the top of the machine. Next, lift the lid slightly and slide it back. Remove the tape, cardboard insert, and any foam pieces you see here.

Register Your Machine

Go to SilhouetteAmerica.com/setup to go through all the proper steps to set up your machine. The first thing to do is create a Silhouette account, if necessary, and register your machine. Completing this step is what will allow you to access your 100 free designs in your Silhouette Library. 

1. If you have an account,  input your login credentials and click "Sign In"
2. If you don't have a Silhouette account, click the “Sign Up FREE” link. Fill in your information. When you’re finished, click the “Create Account” button. 
3. Next, you’ll enter your address. After submitting that information, you’ll see a screen, which you’ll use to register your machine. You’ll enter the serial number of your machine. You can find that information on a sticker on the back of your machine on the right-hand side. You’ll also enter the purchase date and where you purchased it from. 
   
4. The next section provides you with your warranty information, if applicable. After you’ve gone through this registration process, you can continue with your machine setup.
   

Download and Install Silhouette Studio

Go to step 2 on www.SilhouetteAmerica.com/setup to download the latest version of Silhouette Studio®. Click on your operating system (Mac or Windows) and follow the prompts on your computer to finish the installation. The software is necessary to run your Cameo 4 cutting machine, so don’t forget this step!

Claim Your Free 1-Month Basic Subscription

Once you register your Silhouette machine, you’re eligible to receive a free 1-month subscription to the Silhouette Design Store. 

 With a subscription, you’ll get a certain number of credits every month to purchase designs. The number of credits you get depends on the subscription tier you have. The subscription you’ll be starting out with is the Basic tier, which means you get $25 of credits for the month. 

 To claim your free 1-month subscription, start by going to the Silhouette Design Store. You can do this by opening a web browser and going to SilhouetteDesignStore.com or clicking on the STORE button in Silhouette Studio® (found in the upper right-hand corner of the software). Sign in to your Silhouette account in the Design Store. This is the same account information you used when you registered your machine. To sign in to your account, click Sign In located in the upper right-hand corner. Input your email address and password and click Sign In. 

Upon your first visit to the Design Store after registering your Silhouette machine, you should be automatically redirected to the Trial Subscription redemption page at SilhouetteDesignStore.com/trial-subscription. When you’ve filled out your information, go to the next step to Review and Confirm your subscription. Note: If you already have an active Design Store subscription, a credit equivalent to the Trail Subscription amount will be added to your available account balance

Access the 100 Free Designs in Your Library

After you register your Cameo 4, you will be able to access the 100 free exclusive designs that come with your machine. To view your free designs, go to the Library tab in Silhouette Studio®. The software will prompt you to sign in to your Silhouette account if you haven’t already done so. Next, go to the folders on the left-hand side. Click “Free with Machine” and then “Silhouette Cameo® 4.” 

NOTE: If the special free content for the Silhouette Cameo® 4 does not appear, please exit the software and confirm your registration of the Silhouette Cameo® 4. You may then reopen the software to locate the content. If continued concerns are met, please contact [email protected] 

 NOTE: While you do need to be connected to the internet for initial setup, all content in the Silhouette Library can be accessed and used offline. The Silhouette Library experience, including content and library structure, is synced between all devices you sign in to.

Connect the Cameo 4

Connect the Silhouette Cameo® to the power supply. Start by connecting the cable and the adapter and plugging the cable into the Cameo machine. Plug the power cord into a wall outlet. 

Next, connect your machine to your computer using the USB cable. Then press the circular power button to power on your machine. 

If you haven’t already done so, open Silhouette Studio®. Go to the Send tab (located in the upper right-hand corner of the software) to open the Send panel. Verify that your machine is connected and displays a “Ready” status.

You may need to click on the machine icon and select your machine for it to connect properly.

Navigate Silhouette Studio

Now that you’ve downloaded Silhouette Studio®, it’s time to learn how to use it. To open Silhouette Studio®, locate the Silhouette Studio® icon on the desktop or in the Start Menu on your PC or in the Applications folder on your Mac. Double-click the icon to run the application. Once Silhouette Studio® has loaded, you will notice a blank 12-inch-by-12-inch design area on your screen as well as tools that surround that area. In this manual, you will learn the basics of how to use the software. If you would like to learn more, you can access the Silhouette Studio® software manual. You can find the manual on SilhouetteAmerica.com/setup under Step 6 or on www.Silhouette101.com.

Work Area Overview

1. Document Tools—Tools you need to adjust your document or select objects on your document
2. Quick-access Toolbar—These tools that come up are specific to the task you are doing to help make adjustments easier. 
3. Drawing Tools—The drawing tools are what you’ll use to make shapes and add text to the design area. 
4. Library Split Screen—This button allows you to create a library/design space split screen. 
5. Document Tabs—These tabs are what you’ll use to switch between documents you have open. 
6. Holding Area (Gray)—The holding area can be used to hold designs if you’re rearranging your design space. Designs left in this area will not be cut or printed. 
7. Active Cut Area—Here you’ll create and place your designs. Anything left in this area can be cut or printed. 
8. Navigation Tabs—These tabs will take you to certain places in the software. 
9. Silhouette Studio® Tools—The Silhouette Studio® tools have different functions you can use to adjust your designs. 
10. Panels—Here is where the panels for the Silhouette Studio® tools pop up to give you more options. 
11. Preferences and Themes—These options allow you to adjust your preferences and settings for Silhouette Studio®.
    

Navigation Tabs

There are four tabs along the top right-hand side:

Design

This design area is your workspace to create projects. This area houses the toolbars, the white design page, and the gray holding area. When you are in the Library, the Silhouette Design Store, or the Send menu, click the Design tab to return to your design page.

Store

When you are connected to the internet, the Store tab opens a browser window and takes you to the Silhouette Design Store, where you can browse and purchase designs. 

Library

You can access your stored designs from the Library tab. Sort and organize your designs any way you would like by adding folders and subfolders. Designs can be stored on your computer or in the Silhouette Library.

Send

The Send tab allows you to adjust the cut settings for your designs and send them to your Silhouette. This menu works similar to a Send to Print menu in other programs.

Design Area

The Design area is the first area you’ll see when you open Silhouette Studio®, and it is the area you’ll likely spend most of the time in, so it’s important to learn how to use it to create your designs. 

Panels

Each Silhouette Studio® Tool icon opens its own panel. Panels open on the right side of the design space, next to the Silhouette Tools icons. The panel that opens by default is the Page Setup panel, which allows you to make adjustments to the design space, such as the machine, the page size, and the material (or media) size you want to work with. 

You can open panels one at a time, or use multiple panels at once. To use multiple panels, click and drag the name bar to move it to a new location, and then click another icon to open the next panel. You can have as many panels open as you want, and you can move them anywhere in your design screen.

Collapsing Panels

Panels can be collapsed by clicking the arrow on the left-hand side of the panel. Collapse, move and rearrange the panels to set up your screen exactly as you like. When you close panels, the ones underneath will jump up to fill their place.

Sticky Panels

Panels are sticky, meaning they snap to the top of the design area or to each other. But panels don’t need to stick to each other. You can move groups of panels or individual panels anywhere on your screen. Depending on your project, you might want lots of panels open to make adjustments using a wide variety of tools, or you might only want a single panel open at a time.

Panels Housing Multiple Icons

Some panels are single icon panels, such as PixScan™ or Offset. Other panels consist of a group of related icons. These icons are available within the panel via separate tabs. For example, the Transform panel includes the Align, Scale, Rotate, Move, and, if you have the Designer Edition, Shear icons.

You can customize the panel mode in the Preferences panel. Under Defaults, you can choose how you want your panels to open.

• Single Panel Mode: Only one panel can be open at a time. If you have a panel open and you click another icon, that new panel will open in place of the panel that was previously open. 
• Flexible Panel Mode: Default. Similar to Single Panel Mode, Flexible will replace a panel in the default location but will not replace a panel you have moved. 
• Multiple Panel Mode: All new panels will open, no matter how many panels are already open.

Drawing Tools

The toolbar along the left side of the software houses the tools needed to create and alter basic shapes and text. 

Simple Shapes

Lines

To draw a line, choose the Line Tool on the left-hand toolbar. Either click and drag with the mouse to draw a line, or click once to start the line and click a second time to end. 

• Hold SHIFT while creating a line to make a perfectly vertical, horizontal, or 45° line.

Rectangles/Squares