GM Crafty Vinyl, Mat Free Cutting On The Cricut Joy With Free Family Heart Cut files For All Machines.

Hello!

Welcome to another tutorial blog!  This week we are bringing you a tutorial to use with our new Crafty Vinyl –Exclusive to us.  This has been exclusively created for you to use without your cutting mat on your Silhouette and Cricut machines. Although it can also be used on your machine’s cutting mat should you wish.  Please test cut and reduce the settings accordingly, as per the individual instructions for creating a custom setting for your machine.

This cutting file design, can be used in a variety of ways, including using it with HTV to create a canvas, picture frame, tote bag, or cutting it out of self adhesive to create a window display too. Cut it out of Self Adhesive or HTV Vinyl or use it with our A4 card available in a huge variety of styles if you click here.

This design can of course be used for adults, kids, and you can use it for almost anything that you wish to personalise with a family theme!

As always you are free to use our files to make, create, and even make items to sell, all we ask is you don’t pass the files on.  instead, if you wish to share them, please ask your friend or acquaintance, to download them from our website themselves from within this blog. No reselling or passing on, of any part of the cut file is permitted, and no using the cut files to create other files to sell or pass on is allowed, but please do enjoy them, and we hope your makes earn you a little with them too.

We would love to see what you make!  Have you found our  You Tube channel yet? The video showing this and all of our other tutorials are  available on there, as well as exclusive demos, inspiration and more!  Join us on Facebook , Instagram or Tiktok or  send us an email to [email protected] we would love to hear from you!


What you’ll need:

• Cricut Joy, or Cricut Maker 3, or Explore 3  . Available here
• Or Silhouette Cameo 4. or Portrait Available here 
• GM Crafty Vinyl Available  here 
• Squeegee.  Available here
• Weeding tweezers . Available here
• App tape Available here – Best to use high tack
• Scissors and glass block with lights and ribbon, or note book etc from your own stash.
• Rubbing alcohol and lint free cloth should you wish here
• Cut files, are free below! Including Silhouette Cricut and Brother instructions to follow at the end.

Family Heart Cut Files click here to download

Instructions;

1. Before you start you will need to download the cut files for your chosen machine, link above. Unzip the file to use it by right clicking it in your downloads.

2. Upload each PNG into the design space. Click “Upload Image”  on the left-hand Design Panel, and navigate to the  files you want to open. Select ‘Insert image’ and select image type ‘simple’ when prompted. Next you’ll be asked to delete any space that does not get cut, you can skip this part by pressing ‘continue’. When asked if they’re print-then-cut images or just cut images, select cut images. Click save. When it has been uploaded, Insert the images onto the canvas and resize to suit your project.

Because I am using the Joy and 2 different rolls of our crafty vinyl, I have coloured the 2 layers differently, which means I can take them through to the cut at the same time to cut independently. See Below.

I centre the designs using the Centre alignment tool as shown below, then recolour each one differently, so I can cut the different Vinyl for each layer, which means I don’t have to keep returning to the design page, then click make it to move on to the next screen. On the next screen, If using the Cricut Joy, Explore 3 or Maker 3 then you will need to choose to cut without the mat.

3. When on the next screen below, check the design area is as you expect- it will also tell you in the left hand column the material size required for the cut.  Click continue in the bottom right on the next screen. In the next window make sure your settings are all set to the successful settings from your test cut and ensure your machine is linked before proceeding to cut. Cut settings: (**please test cut) Apply the settings needed for your chosen Vinyl, we made it with our GM Crafty Vinyl, without the mat, on the cut setting- Smart Vinyl- Permanent  with Default pressure. More pressure pushed the vinyl too hard into the backing.  If you are using a mat or a different machine, please adjust your settings and remember to test cut a small shape first.

**A reminder that these settings, including the blade setting, are specific to the materials and machine we’re using, adjustments may be necessary if using different materials and machine**

We always recommend before proceeding, you test cut your materials when first using so if you have not recently used this product in your machine. Please test cut for your chosen machine found on our Application guide, and also Blog.  Load the Vinyl chosen individually for each layer.

4. Take your roll of chosen Crafty Vinyl and load it into the Joy, addressing it to the front of the machine once you have the settings as per the above screen, the Joy will automatically load it for you, and proceed to checking the length of material will suit the design you have ready to cut. It will then need you to click GO on the design software, once it has scanned the length, and will cut the design, once cut the machine flashed and waits for you to click the unload button on the screen once completed. See below. Repeat for both colours.

5. Once you have repeated step 4 for both rolls of vinyl, you will need to cut the unused vinyl from the sheet to save waste, remember if you wish to use any left over on your mat, you will need to adjust your settings. Switch on your LED weeding pad, and proceed to remove any excess vinyl, leaving the design only behind on the carrier sheet. Remember the backing sheet once the vinyl has been removed is fully recyclable and can go into your household recycle bin.

6. Once all 4 lines have been weeded, it is time to use the App tape ready to transfer it. Because this is a very heavy thick type vinyl, you will need to use our High tack App Tape. We have tried the clear gridded as shown below, but this takes more patience to get a good transfer.

  Once weeded. Take your transfer tape and lay it with the sticky side facing up on the table. Place the design onto the sticky side face down, then trim the application tape from the roll to fit. Take your squeegee and rub the back of the vinyl hard to transfer it onto the application tape. Due to the small nature of the design, we take the unusual step at this point of turning it around so the design is shown to you, and rub around the design to burnish it onto the front of the app tape, once there is no gap between the design and tape, turn it over and very firmly rub the back again to finish transferring. Lift the backing paper that had the vinyl attached to it, back upon itself ready to apply.

7. Unlike most vinyl, you will need to work hard to get this to transfer as the design is so small, and the vinyl has rigidity, if you struggle to transfer, re rub hard on the back, and gently roll back the backing as shown below, using your finger or thumb to ease it off gradually as you roll the backing sheet away- a little patience and repetition will get this transferred.

9. At this point we would advise you to use rubbing alcohol to degrease and prepare the surface, if you are using a Glass block, or hard surface. Make sure it has dried before applying. We did not do this to our Family album as it was a paper cover. After waiting for the block to completely air dry, add the lights and tie a ribbon around as shown below.

10. Once you are happy to proceed with application, place the first layer on the Block or Book, or chosen surface, and use your squeegee to smooth the vinyl on applying pressure as you go to activate the adhesive. Roll the app tape back on it’s self to aid removing it, re rub any areas that lift with it- due to the small details of the cuts, it may take a couple of times to get a smooth removal of the app tape leaving your design behind.

Don’t forget your finished design can be matched by using any material cut using a cutting file, card, self adhesive vinyl or even HTV. We’d love to see your makes on our social media pages! Or email them in!

Silhouette

Instructions:

Before you start, you need to download the cut file,  Upload the cut file into Silhouette Studio and resize as necessary,  (when resizing bring all  layers into the design software and select all  at once to get the correct offset layers and save the adjusted file, so you can cut layers individually at that correct scale you have chosen) Remember to test cut if necessary and cut settings are found here along with test cut guidelines for every machine.

Brother Scan and Cut

To import these files into the Brother Canvas Workspace:

After downloading, please log in as usual to your design space account, open a new project mat, then left click on the SVG  icon in the top left bar in canvas, this will then allow you to import your files. Once you left click this icon, a pop up box appears with you to choose where to import file  from, choose to import the file from your downloads list or where you have chosen to save when unzipped.

Reminder – Test cut! Cut settings are found here