How to Cut Vinyl on Cricut? (Full Guide)

Have you bought a new Cricut cutting machine? Then you might not be familiar with the cutting process yet. Most users start crafting with vinyl, and you may want to do the same. As a beginner, you might feel a little anxious before cutting vinyl. When I began crafting, I also used vinyl first, and I was skeptical about ruining it.

Luckily, I got help from my friend. Here, I will guide you on how to cut vinyl properly so your first project turns out well. By the way, what are you planning to create? Are you planning to create a customized T-shirt, a school project, or a birthday gift? In this guide, I’ll share the basic steps so you can start easily. You’ll be able to create your favorite project by the end of this guide. If your project includes fabric, ensure that you have a Cricut Heat Press. Otherwise, a regular iron can also be used.

Step 1: Create a Design in Cricut Design Space

To start, you must have a design on the canvas. Open Design Space and click the option to create a new design. Now select an image using the left panel. You’ll see plenty of pre-made projects in the Cricut library. Choose from there, or upload an SVG file that you might have created yourself.

Once your design is ready, hit the Make It button. After that, you’ll see your design on the Prepare screen. If you feel that your design isn’t as expected, go back to your canvas and make adjustments. For instance, when I create my designs, sometimes I forget to attach different parts. So you might also miss something that you can fix. Once everything is set, click the Continue button in the bottom-right corner of the screen.

Step 2: Load Vinyl on Your Cricut Mat

Now, take your vinyl and unpack it. If you don’t know much about vinyl, let me give you a brief overview. Overall, we have two types of vinyl: iron-on (heat transfer) and adhesive. Adhesive vinyl comes in two categories: permanent and removable, depending on your needs.

If you want to design a mug, crockery, or anything that doesn’t include fabric, use adhesive vinyl. Use iron-on vinyl for fabrics, tote bags, and hats. However, mugs can also be customized with heat transfer using Cricut Mug Press. But here we are focusing on the simplest projects. So, we won’t discuss all the complicated projects.

The blue light-grip mat works best for vinyl, while the green mat can also hold vinyl properly. Align the vinyl edges with the cutting mat’s grid lines. Finally, press the Load button. The mat with the vinyl will now move into the machine.

Step 3: Select the Material Settings

To cut vinyl correctly, select the correct vinyl type in Design Space. After clicking Make It, select the correct cut settings for your vinyl. The Design Space will give you prompts to set the base material. If you can’t find your vinyl type in the list, click “Browse All Materials” to see the full list.

Note: On Cricut Explore Air 2 or older Cricut models, you can choose the correct material directly from the Smart Set dial.

Also, check whether the machine has the correct blades installed. Finally, hit the Go button to start cutting.

Step 4: Weed the Excess Vinyl

Once cutting is finished, press the Load button again to unload the mat. Your design is now cut into the vinyl sheet. Now, remove the extra vinyl from the unwanted spaces in the design to make your final design look cleaner and more polished.

You can remove larger pieces with your hands and use the Cricut weeding tool for small pieces. That’s how you remove the extra vinyl from your design.

Step 5: Apply the Vinyl Onto Your Surface

This is the final part where you’ll apply the design to your blank surface. However, make sure you clean the surface where you will apply the design. For instance, I’m applying my design to a glass mug. So I can wipe it with a clean cloth or tissue. Or if the surface is greasy, I can use rubbing alcohol, too.

Take Cricut transfer tape and cut it slightly bigger than your vinyl design. Afterward, peel the backing paper of the transfer tape and apply it to your vinyl design. Use a scraper tool to flatten the design to avoid air bubbles during transfer. Then, place the transfer tape with the vinyl onto your surface and press it firmly.

However, if the vinyl doesn’t stick properly to the transfer tape, burnish it again. Now gently peel off the transfer tape, leaving the vinyl design on the surface.