For New Cricut Users - What To Buy, What To Download, & How To Use It All -

For New Cricut Users - What To Buy, What To Download, & How To Use It All 

The cricut machine can be just as overwhelming as it is amazing. SO much you can do, it's hard to know where to even start. Often the easiest way to get started is simply to start.  Choose a project, and learn just what you need to know for that first project.  But I know that's hard - so I've made a list of resources that might help while you decide where to start.

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Tools & Accessories
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What else should I buy? Tools & Supplies that will help with your projects - 
You can get a LOT of supplies at the Dollar Tree!  

Apps & Websites to use with cricut - sites & software that will make a lot of this easier!

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Do I Need to Subscribe to Cricut Access?
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No.  You may choose to, but you do not need to! 
Paying For Cricut Access is like renting svgs.
And that's great, if that is what you want to do!  Personally, I prefer to outright buy the few designs I use, rather than rent hundreds I have no interest in.  

To use free svgs, in most cases, you will download them, UNZIP them, then upload the file that looks like a website or html file.

Here's a much clearer step by step on how to download and use free svgs in Design Space:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2019/01/how-to-download-install-svg-to-design.html

As with svgs, there are LOADS of free fonts available to use in cricut!  The process is a little bit different.  Unlike SVGS, Fonts are not uploaded to Design Space,  but they are installed on your device, then you find them under the "system" tab when you choose your font in Design Space.

Here's a  more detailed step by step for using fonts in Design Space:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/12/all-about-fonts-text-in-cricut-design.html

And here's a "Font Index" with links tons of free fonts by type & style, and more information on how to use them all:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2020/05/where-to-find-loads-of-free-fonts.html


Update: Design Space has added what they call "kerned fonts".  When you use system fonts, you can now filter them and see only "kerned" fonts - which means the fonts that Design Space has optimized to space properly.  You still will not see ligatures if a font has them.

  When font designers design a font, they write instructions into the font, telling software how to space them, and in the case of ligatures, when to do fancy things with certain letter combinations.  Design Space ignores all of those instructions.  Most users will tell you to ungroup your text and manually space the letters.  Please don't do that.  You will never space them the way the designer intended.

 Fontlab pad is a free utility that will space your text properly, and save it as an svg.  It's an extra step, yes, but it is still much faster than trying to properly space text yourself - and the results will be much better!  If a font has ligatures [these are different than glyphs] they will appear automatically in Fontlab pad.

Here's more information on how to use Fontlab Pad
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2018/01/using-fontlabpad-with-cricut-design.html

Here's a cheat sheet of Font terms, to explain the differences between ligatures, glyphs, etc.
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2020/12/cheat-sheet-font-terms.html

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Attach, Weld, & Flatten
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Group is for grouping items together to move around in Design Space.  The group command is NOT sent to the machine, and will have no effect on how the design cuts.

Attach keeps your design exactly the way you placed it. If you click make it and your design looks like a puzzle, go back and attach.  You can only attach ONE color at a time.  Attach all black, then select all red and attach, etc.  More about attach: 

Flatten is for print then cut.  If you do not flatten your text to a shape, cricut will cut out each letter of your print then cut project individually.  Find more about Flatten here:


There are now several options for Weld - all in a menu labeled "Combine".  Here's a look, with examples,  at what each of those options will do:


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"Operation" is where you tell cricut what you want it to do with a design.  Find the operation menu on the top left of the screen in Design Space.

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What are the different kinds of vinyl?
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HTV is the same as iron on - it's Heat Transfer Vinyl, and what you need if you are putting vinyl on fabric. 651 is permanent vinyl, and 631 is temporary vinyl (for things like wall decals)

For a more detailed list, along with the price guidelines I use when buying, and my favorite sites and brands:

Which Vinyl Do I Need & Where Should I Buy It?

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Do I Need To Buy A Heat Press?
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No.  You may chose to buy one, and you will hear a lot about how you have to "use all of your body weight" to use an iron (false) and that vinyl will "not hold up as well" without a heat press (also false).  Another option is an Easy Press, which is basically an iron made by cricut, with a chart for temps and times. 
 But a plain old regular iron will work just fine too.
A Project To Start With 
Using Vinyl For the First Time 
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Using your Cricut To Cut A Vinyl Decal For The Very First Time:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2019/11/cricut-for-newbies-lesson-2-vinyl-on.html


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Looking for more?  I have an index of my cricut related posts sorted by theme here:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2019/02/an-index-of-cricut-resources-how-tos.html
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Find Even More On Facebook - 
The facebook page for my crafting posts
https://www.facebook.com/fieldsofheathercrafts

And a facebook group, where you can share your projects and ask questions:


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Cricut Cheat Sheets & Printables

A few of the various cheat sheets I have made and used over the years, for crafting with Cricut:

My Cheat Sheet of My Favorite Fonts
is updated regularly.  I include links to download each of them, and all of these are free, most are from Dafont: http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/12/my-favorite-fonts-cheat-sheet.html

Fonts With Tails Cheat Sheet
This cheat sheet is for fonts with "easy glyphs".  Fun fonts like I love glitter, where you can quickly access the pretty tails and swirls without needing a full character map (as is needed for Samantha).  I update this post regularly, and have links to download all of the FREE fonts here as well.  http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/09/fonts-with-tails.html


Writing Fonts Cheat Sheet

Most fonts will write as an outline in cricut, but I have a long list of FREE fonts that will collapse on themselves and work great as writing fonts.  I'm constantly adding to this, so be sure to actually go to the link and check out the full sample sheet, and all the links for downloading them can be found there too.

Alternative Pens For Cricut
I keep testing new ones, so please check the link.  I have samples of how various pens work in Cricut - with no modifications. These do not require removing anything, or using pencil grips - these all just slip right into the machine the same as if they were the official Cricut Markers.  But some of them write so much nicer than the cricut markers - and they are all cheaper! http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/12/alternative-markers-for-cricut.html


In Addition to writing, cricut can draw.  These are some great fonts for sketching words with cricut: http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/12/writing-with-fun-fonts-in-cricut.html


Font Terms & What They Mean
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2020/12/cheat-sheet-font-terms.html


list of free fonts & Resources for monograms and split monograms
http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/11/free-monograms-split-monograms-for.html
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This is more of a "Create Your Own" Cheat Sheet.  :-)  A Vinyl tracker, to track prices on the vinyl brands you purchase and try.

Projects At A Glance
A printable to help track the projects you are currently working on

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Design Space Basics
I need to update this one - the menu for line types looks a little different since all of the updates, although the basic idea is still the same...




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Print Then Cut with Cricut

Print & Cut Little Blue Truck Designs, made with cricut, on wal-mart shirts using Avery Transfer Paper
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Elephant Birth Stats - A Cricut Step By Step Tutorial

How To Make A Birth Stat Elephant With Cricut
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How To Use New Fonts In Phonto On Android

There are lots of apps to add fonts to android devices, but I really didn't want to add fonts to my android system.  I have a zillion fonts on my phone already.  What I wanted was to be able to use fonts like I love Glitter in Phonto.  

Cliff Notes - Just add them to the fonts folder in the Phonto App. 

 Phonto has a "how to" for installing fonts on android, but it did not work for me.  This is what worked:

My fonts are all backed up in dropbox. That makes this simple - but you could also send the font to your phone through email, and save to your downloads folder.  

 I just opened dropbox, went to the font, clicked on it, chose export/save to device, and saved to my downloads folder.





Then I went to my downloads folder (Use "My Files" - in your app drawer. ) 
LONG click on the font.  If you just open it, you may get a message saying you do not have an app to pen this file.  You want to select the font, which you do by holding down on it, not just tapping it.  A check mark should appear on the left.

 Now choose "move"


 Internal Storage/Phonto/Fonts
Your Phonto file might be in a different location, that is where mine was.  

 Add the font to the font folder.

Now open Phonto, and when you add text, choose font, and select "my fonts".  You will see the fonts you put in that folder.


 Another quick way to do this is to hook your phone to your computer with a usb cable, and drag all the fonts you want in phonto to that folder.
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Facebook Page - For Tips, Tricks, & Free SVGS
 https://www.facebook.com/fieldsofheathercrafts/

Facebook Group- For Questions, Support, Sharing Projects, 
and LOADS More Free SVGS in themed posts with links in the comments
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1121399284857845
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Knock Out Name Tile - A Cricut Project

A Knock Out Name Tile 
These are so much easier to make now that cricut has added the offset feature in Design Space!

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The Who, What, When, Where, and How of Cloud Storage




WHO has the best free cloud storage?

 My favorites are: Dropbox, Google Drive, Box, & Google Photos.
  I personally find one drive and the amazon cloud annoying - but they are also good options

 All of these offer programs for on your computer, your phone, and web based access.  All of them offer free storage, and all of them make sharing your files, or keeping them private, easy.

 WHAT to store in Cloud Storage
No storage is fool proof.  I keep an external hard drive, and various cloud storage, and I try to keep things backed up both places.  Both can fail - external hard drives can go back, clouds can go out of business (Copy was a favorite of mine that no longer exists.. but I had plenty of time to get my files out before they closed)

 Genealogy - folders for each family surname, with subfolders for family members, containg documents and photos and everything related to genealogy research!

 Documents - The Christmas card list, pets vet records, the kids high school transcripts  The family recipes, files for cookbooks I compiled, copies of insurance cards, household inventory, copies of important documents - like insurance policies and diplomas.  God forbid the house ever burns down, but if it does, all of our important documents would still be accessible.  I created a folder for each of the children and scanned in newspaper articles, and awards, for each of them. 
Crafts - Cricut svg files & fonts.  Patterns.  Photos of your completed projects.  I keep all of my favorite fonts in a folder in dropbox so that when I get a new device, I can transfer them quickly.  

 Digital Media - less and less common.  We used to need a place to back up our mp3 files, now we all use spotify.  A place to back up ebooks, but many have gone to Overdrive (borrow ebooks for free from your library!) and or kindle.  

 Photos!  

 WHERE To Store Your Cloud Files:

 Dropbox - 2gb free
   I probably joined dropbox when they first started, which may explain why I have 30gb of free storage.  There are lots of ways to get more free storage - one as simple as completing their getting started guide.  

 For those of you looking to back up svgs for cricut, just for reference, the 2,000 svg files (unzipped - I unzip them and delete all of the extras that come in most zip files) I have stored take up roughly 200mb.  2gb will hold  a LOT of svgs.

 Dropbox is my go to favorite for moving files from my phone to my laptop, and vice versa.  I have the app on my phone, and the program on my laptop.  Although I can access the files from any web browser, the apps make it quicker for me.  I created a folder named "Transfer" and when I there is something I know I will want on the other device, I send it there.  Once every week or so I try to make sure that folder is cleaned out and the files are where I wanted them.

 Google Drive - 15gb free
Google Drive offers an impressive 15gb for free.  I tend to think of google drive as document storage, but I know others use it for svg storage quite effectively.  

 I've never loved the web format of this storage, it just always looks cluttered.  But the new desktop download works just like the basic windows folder system, and will automatically sync and back up whichever folders you assign to do so.

 When the kids were homeschooled, this was my favorite.  The kids could save their assignments to google drive, and when I edited them, it would show where I made edits.  If we were working on the same document at the same time, we could each see what the other was doing in real time - really a great feature for collaborative documents!

 Box.com - 10gb free
When Box first started, they were giving away 50gb free to entice everyone to sign up.
Box drive as a downloadable program is in beta - I've never used it, I simply open a browser.  It's great for collaboration, with easy access to writing notes and adding comments to files.

 Google Photos - Unlimited, mostly
"Google Photo gives you unlimited storage space if you are willing to limit photo resolution to 16 megapixels and video resolution to 1080p. You do have the option to store at higher resolutions, but the storage counts against your Google Drive quota"

 This is the best way to back up all of those photos on your cell phone! 

 HOW To Back Up Your Files In Cloud Storage

 First decide what you are backing up, and where you are backing it up to.  Then organize it a bit if needed - sort those svg files into folders by theme, gather all of your documents in a folder and name them appropriately, and create your free storage account.

 Then go to the services website, download the program.  On your phone, download the app.  Figure out if you need to upload your files, or just sync the folders.  

 Each program is a little different, but all of them are really good at walking you through the steps, and they all have tutorials if you need them.

 Think of it as moving things to a flash drive, except the flash drive is the cloud. 

 Then, back everything up on a flash drive (or external hard drive, or even dvds) too, to cover as many bases as you can.  


WHEN to Back Up Your Files On Cloud Storage
Frequently.  Set a time each week, or each month, to update and back up your files.  Once a year plan to spend some time cleaning up your cloud storage.  Years ago we used to have filing cabinets that needed cleaned out and organized every once in awhile, think of your cloud storage as a filing cabinet.  

 For me, this is somewhat easy. I am on wifi once a week (we have limited wifi at the farm).  So the night before, I try to sort out the photos on my camera roll (I do not need to back up all 37 photos I took  of our llama yesterday afternoon - I can pick the best 4), add new songs to my spotify playlist, make a note of books I want to add to my phone to read, etc.  Then when I am on wifi the next day, I have a folder on my phone labeled "when on wifi".  I open each of those apps, and back up and upload as necessary.

 Each week I try to clean out the downloads folder on my laptop - moving all of the genealogy, photos, and svg downloads to the appropriate folders and storage, before it all gets too out of control.  How often will truly depend on your own habits, and on how many files and folders you accumulate in a week.
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Candy Filled Valentine Doilies - Writing With Cricut


Cliff Notes:

This is one of those projects I made simply because I wanted to see how it works.  The doilies were cheap to practice on, and this did work quite well.


I used the Montepetrum font, and the triceratops came from a google search.
(Here are more than 100 free fonts that work as writing fonts in cricut)

In design space, at the top of the screen, look for where it says "operation" and change it  to "draw", then choose "pen".

The hard part is placing the text properly on the mat.  I used the grids on the mat and a measuring tape.  I wanted the center of the writing to be in the center of the heart, so the center of the design needs to be at the 3 inch line on the mat.

After you click "make it", you can move your design around on the mat, placing it where you want it


The only other option I could think of is to create a heart the same size as the paper doily, group the text, and then sit and watch carefully, hitting pause on the machine as soon as the writing is complete, before it cuts.  But If the doily is not placed exactly, this still could be off, so I don't know that that method would be much better.  

If you are working from an ipad, there's an option for "snapmat" that does this for you.  It's not an option on computers, nor on android devices, as far as I can tell.

The new guide feature will not help with this.

I was hopeful that the new "Guide" option in Design space would help with this - but it does not.  You can change any item into a "guide", in the operations menu.  But it is only for design purposes, even if you attach your design to the guide, it does not transfer the guide to the mat when you make it, the text was still automatically placed at the top corner of the mat.


I used the Leisure Arts Marker - these were my favorites!  Although I love the Precise V5 for a finer point.  (Alternative  Markera for criciut - Comparison here)



To finish these, I used bakers twice to sew two paper doilies together.  Start at the top.  Leave a LONG tail of thread to tie a bow when done.  When About an inch or so remains unsewn, fill with candy, then finish sewing and tie in a bow.


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 Where to find free svgs for Valentines Day:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2019/01/free-cut-files-for-valentines-day.html

 More Cricut Tutorials & Step By Steps:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2018/10/heathers-cricut-tutorials-step-by-steps.html

 FREE fonts that work as writing fonts in cricut:
https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2017/11/6-single-line-fonts-that-will-write.html

 Find Me On Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/fieldsofheathercrafts

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How To Transfer A Vinyl Design With "Transfer Tape"


Before & After - A Thrift Store Basket Redone With A Vinyl Design

 Quick Tips:
  • My favorite transfer tape is Contact Paper From The Dollar Tree.  The same piece of transfer tape can be used over and over - many times.
  • Which Vinyl To Buy, & Where To Buy It 
  • Cricut Transfer tape is super strong, and works great for glitter vinyl, but is generally miserable to use for most regular projects. (and it's so much more expensive...I rarely recommend cricut materials.)
  • Peel at an angle

Cutting out a Design with your cricut machine essentially makes a sticker.  Once you make that sticker, you want to move it to your project - but you do not want to peel off each piece and place it as if you had bought a sheet of stickers..  that would not only be time consuming, but it would be much more difficult to line up properly.  To transfer your design, use transfer tape. 
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Making Key Fobs with Cricut

Making Key Fobs With Cricut
You could cut these from faux leather as well.  Cricut could cut either for you - but honestly, it's so much faster and less mess to just use a rotary cutter, or even scissors.
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Free Templates & Tutorials For Making Paper Flowers

Where To Find Free Templates & Tutorials For Making Paper Flowers 
It's much faster and easier to cut the large petals by hand - but cricut is great for making the centers, the leaves, and even the templates for cutting the larger petals.
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Using FontLab Pad with Cricut Design Space

https://www.new.fontlab.com/fontlab-pad/
(you just need the free download)

In 2022, Design Space added what they call "kerned fonts".  This does not mean that the app reads font kerning - but it means that spacing issues with system fonts  are fixed, for the most part.  Occasionally you'll still have a font that does not display the way the designer intended.

And if a font has ligatures, Design Space will not be able to read them.
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Quick Tip - You Can View Thumbnails Of SVG Files


How to View SVGS as Thumbnails on the Windows Operating System

The Cliff Notes Version - Use the svg viewer extension found here:
https://code.google.com/archive/p/svg-explorer-extension/downloads
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 I was running Windows 10 when I originally wrote this post, so my screenshots are based on that operating system, with chrome as my default browser.    I run windows 11 now, and this extension still works well for me.  

This has been driving me nuts since I first started working with my cricut machine earlier this fall.  My laptop displayed the thumbnails of svg files as Chrome icons (Chrome is my default web browser) and to see the file, I had to open it.  I really wanted to be able to browse through my collection of downloaded svgs, without opening each one.

A few google searches finally took me to an SVG viewer extension. 

Recently I purchased a new laptop, and this time I had to use the 3rd one down. If you are having issues, look for one that is not signed. 
The signed versions are now blocked on Windows 10.


NEW VERSIONS OF THE CODE ABOVE
Github has new versions of the code. 
Please note that I have not used these yet myself, as the one above worked fine.
https://github.com/tibold/svg-explorer-extension/releases

Scroll down, or search for "assets", and the download links will be there.
the .sig refers to it being a signed version.  A signed version will no longer work on Windows 10, so the top version in this list is the one I would start with.


If you don't know if you are running 32bit or 64 bit, go to Control Panel (in your start menu, choose windows system, control panel will be in there) and click on System & Security:
Next choose "View The Amount Of Ram & Processor Speed"

And your answer will be under system - see system type?  Mine says 64 bit operating system, x64 based processor.
So I go to https://code.google.com/archive/p/svg-explorer-extension/downloads and download the 64 bit option.  This will download as an exe file.  Click on it to run it, follow the prompts.

 And Voila - 


For my downloads folder, this was immediate - I didn't have to do anything else, once it was installed, I saw previews!  For my Dropbox folder (I back up all of my svg files and fonts in dropbox - sorted in folders by theme.  That way when I do something stupid like break my laptop, I still have access to everything on my new laptop... ) I had to restart my computer.

You may need to change your view settings - at the top left of the screen - to "icons" if you are  currently viewing in detail or list.


Make Sure Your View It Set To Allow Thumbnail View

If that did not work, make SURE that your views are not set to "always show icons never thumbnails"

 Open any folder, choose view on the top left, then choose options on the right.
A box will pop up, choose view in that box, then make sure the box is NOT checked beside "always show icons never thumbnails"


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The 51 states  SVG collection is free here - https://caluyadesign.com/free-51-states-svg/
I used it as an example simply because it was the first folder in my files.  :-)
All of my favorite places to find free svg files can be found here:


For more quick tip cards like this one, go here:

===========================

Facebook Page - For Tips, Tricks, & Free SVGS
 https://www.facebook.com/fieldsofheathercrafts/

Facebook Group- For Questions, Support, Sharing Projects, 
and LOADS More Free SVGS in themed posts with links in the comments
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1121399284857845
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