Cricut Tips & Tricks: A Beginner’s Guide

Ever since I unwrapped my Cricut Explore Air 2 on Christmas (thank hubby!), I’ve been one happy little crafter.

It’s been fun figuring out the tips and tricks that make using this wonderful little machine so much easier and, now that I’ve got a few projects under my belt, I want to pass my Cricut Tips & Tricks!

I’ve heard several comments from people saying they were intimidated by using one and I have to admit, I was a little surprised by all the moving parts involved.

However, I also love a good challenge and sometimes tend to jump into things without proper preparation.

That was the case here.

I read a few blogs with useful tips, but I didn’t utilize all of them. Mostly because I was so anxious to get started.

I did snag a set of Cricut tools and a vinyl sample pack, but if I had done a little more research I might have picked up a few other things as well.

While I’ve been thrilled with the results of my projects, my execution could have been better.

Mod Podge

This was a tip I read from Making Manzanita that I used from the get-go. One of the biggest struggles I hear people talk about when it comes to painting stencils is the paint seeping out. This is what keeps stenciled images or words from having really clean, crisp lines. As it turns out, there’s a really easy fix for that, and you probably already have it in your craft supplies…Mod Podge! (Or other craft glue.)

Because I had this on hand I used it with my very first painted sign project and it works! It’s also so simple to do, you just paint a thin coat of Mod Podge over the stencil, let it dry, and then paint the stencil. The Mod Podge creates a seal around the edge of the stencil that keeps any paint from seeping under the edge. I used this for a sign I created for our mantle and my front porch Welcome sign.

Transfer Tape

So, this is one of those where I should have listened…but I didn’t. I read about using transfer tape to help transfer stencil material from the cutting mat to the surface you’re painting. However, I read this tip after I had already picked up my vinyl for my first project and I didn’t want to put off my project until I made another craft store run. (What can I say, I’m impatient.) I figured I didn’t actually need the transfer tape anyway.

Well, I wasn’t completely wrong. I was able to do the project without transfer tape…but it would have taken me a quarter of the time if I had used it. Laying the vinyl straight after it had been cut was so time-consuming. Sections of it kept getting skewed, or stuck, or curled. Had I used transfer tape, this part would have been a breeze.

Here’s another tip I read but haven’t tried yet: use clear contact paper (also known as shelf liner) in place of transfer tape. For about the same price as a roll of transfer tape, you can buy a larger roll of contact paper (and I’m always a fan of anything that saves money).

Cutting Mats: Size Matters

Out of the box, Cricut’s come with a standard grip 12 x 12 cutting mat. And while this works great for smaller projects using cardstock or vinyl, there are other mats better suited to jobs involving heavier material or bigger designs. Case in point: my front porch Welcome sign. I wanted to wait for Cricut materials to go on sale before purchasing another mat (Hobby Lobby discounts Cricut materials and accessories every few weeks) but I didn’t want to wait to do this project. (Again, me= impatient).

So I just used the small mat I had and created individual stencils for each letter. This didn’t affect the outcome of the project (which I love) but it did take more time to get all the letters perfectly lined up. And, honestly, I didn’t line them up perfectly (thankfully, they’re only a tiny bit off and it’s hard to tell). Using a larger mat would have made it easier to create a stencil with the letters aligned.

So Does Grip Strength

The mats also come with different grip strengths. The standard grip is great for a lot of materials including vinyl, cardstock, and iron-on material. However, when I used it for a project with HTV (heat transfer vinyl), I struggled. The liner side of my HTV did not want to stick to the mat. Of course, the cut mats can lose their grip over time and need to be made sticky again. But I had only used my mat a handful of times. A mat with a stronger grip may have worked better.

But, there is a hack. If the material you need to cut is not sticking well, you can use small pieces of painter’s or masking tape to keep it in place. Just make sure it will lay smooth and not bunch up under the wheels or interfere with where the knife blade will cut.

The Right Tools Make a Difference

I didn’t take the timer to purchase a lot of supplies before I jumped into making projects, but I did pick up a toolset. And I am glad I did. The kit I bought comes with a scrapper, a weeding tool, scissors, tweezers, and a spatula. I’ve used them all for pretty much every project.

The weeding tool and spatula are definitely the handiest as they are great for removing excess material or peeling a stencil off a painted surface. Some pieces that are tiny or very narrow (such as the inside of letters) don’t always come up as easy and risk smudging your work. The wedding tool and spatula really help encourage those pieces to come up.

Having a scraper is also a really good idea for removing any stray pieces of material left behind on the cutting mat. If you try to get those bits off using your fingernail or something similar, it could scratch the mat (which not only takes off the adhesive material but also makes the surface uneven for cutting).

Weld & Attach

There are a lot of functions inside the Cricut Design Space, but there are two that are really important to utilize, “weld” and “attach”.

Now, when you upload an image into Design Space or create one within the application, Cricut is going to separate any elements that are not connected. Meaning, if you have a design that contains the word “home” and the letters are not connected (if the letters are print versus cursive for instance), Cricut will see 4 elements instead of 1. Once you go to make your project, Cricut may change the layout of the elements around in order to make the best use of the cutting mats space. The result may not be what you want.

By using the “weld” or “attach” tools, you’re essentially telling Circuit that you want them to stay in the dame layout and in the same placement on the mat.

There are some key differences between these tools to note. “Attach” groups the items together but it can be undone in the event you need to edit a design before cutting. “Weld” is a permanent attachment and can’t be undone.

Where to Find SVG Files

Most of the images and text I use in my projects I create myself with Adobe Illustrator. But sometimes if an image I want to use is to complex or time-consuming, I’ll find an SVG file online. You can find just about any type, size, or customized SVG on Etsy for a few dollars.

I also recommend signing up on Creative Market and The Hungry JPEG. These sites are marketplaces for online SVG graphics, fonts, templates, and pretty much everything else you might need for designing. And while they do sell these products, they also have weekly “freebies” that members can download for free.

You can also use a simple Google search. For example, if you wanted to find an SVG file for an image of a tiara, you can type “tiara SVG” into Google’s image search. However, and this is super important, I advise refining the search through the advanced search feature for images that are free for use. Stealing someone’s hard work isn’t nice.

Where to Buy Materials

Now, of course, you can find vinyl and HTV at any craft store or even Wal-Mart. Hobby Lobby even runs sales on these materials every few weeks (which, of course, is when I recommend stocking up on any supplies or accessories you may need). But a single roll at big box stores (especially if it’s Cricut’s brand) will run around $8 for adhesive vinyl or $12 if it’s a specialty vinyl like glitter.

A quick web search will show you dozens of online sources for buying these materials. Check out happycrafters.com, expressionsvinyl.com, or even Amazon. Plus, these online retailers have huge selections so it’s easy to find just about any color, pattern, or effect. And, instead of buying one big roll of pink glitter HTV when you only need a little bit for a project, online retailers sell material in different sizes.

While I hope all of these tips are helpful, here’s my biggest takeaway: Just get started! Get some cheap material to play with and try a few of the free projects in Design Space. Once you get started, you’ll discover it’s not as intimidating as it looks.