Print then Cut with Cricut Explore – Fill a Shape with a Pattern or Texture + Free SVG, DXF & Burlap Digital Paper
Print then Cut with Cricut Explore – Fill a Shape with a Pattern or Texture + Free SVG, DXF & Burlap Digital Paper
This week I purchased a new printer, I’ve been wanting a new printer for a while now so I could test out the Print then Cut feature of the Cricut Explore. My old printer wasn’t up to the task (sometimes the cheaper versions are miles better.) So, in this post I’m going to show you how to fill a shape with a pattern and then Print it on your printer and Cut it with your Explore. I’ve also included a Freebie which is available to download at the bottom of this post.
Ensure you calibrate your printer before using your printer with the Cricut Design Space Software for the first time.
Check out this PDF from Cricut on how to Calibrate for Print then cut: https://help.cricut.com/sites/default/files/pdfs/15calibrationforprintthencut.pdf
Lets get started……
Open Cricut Design Space and Start a New Project as usual.
1: This first part I’m going to show you how to open a pattern/texture that you may have designed yourself in other software or purchased from Etsy or a designer’s website. (You can skip this part if you are going to be using a pattern from the Cricut store or that you have uploaded previously)
Now, to open the pattern or Texture, click on ‘Upload Images’ and select the ‘Upload Pattern’ Option.
Click Browse and Navigate to where you have saved the pattern you are wanting to use. Double click and the below screen will appear. (I am using my Burlap Brights Pink Digital Paper)
The options on the right allow you to choose certain options, making it easier for you to find your pattern the next time you want to use it. I’ve kept the name the same and chose the theme; Misc and Styles; Textures and the Colours; pink. Once you are happy with your options, click save at the bottom right of the screen.
2; Insert your shape in to the canvas, for the purpose of this tutorial I am using the Star Shape from the ‘Insert Shapes’ option. You can use any shape you want as the concept is the same, although I would advise using a solid shape rather than something that is too intricate as you may not get enough detail…although that’s entirely your choice.
On the Layers panel click on the ‘scissors’ icon next to the shape, in the new dialogue box that pops up, click on print, and then select patterns as shown below.
Your pattern should show up as the first pattern saved, however if it doesn’t, click on the ‘filter’ option at the bottom of the Patterns dialogue box and choose ‘My Patterns’. Click on your pattern and the green tick will appear to say that’s in use.
Don’t close the dialogue box just yet, my shape has been filled in with my chosen texture. However, as you can see from the image below, there are two white lines, all that needs to be done is to Scale the pattern so there are no white lines.
So, in the patterns dialogue box, click on the Edit option, move the scale slider to the right until the lines disappears, and until you are happy with the size of the pattern in your shape.
The lines have gone, and it’s looking much better, don’t you think?
3; Now you are ready to Print then Cut, click on Go, in the preview window you will see there is a blurred line around the edges of your shape, this is called a bleed and is completely normal. The bleed is there so there are no white edges when your shape is cut. Another point to add, as of 11/08/2016 the print then cut area is only 8.5×11.
Click on ‘Go’ at the bottom right of the cut preview screen.
The cut settings window will appear, before sending to print, make sure you dial is set to whichever medium you are printing and cutting with. Also don’t forget to load your printer as well (I may have done that…once or twice whilst putting this tutorial together)
The one thing I love about the Cricut Design Space Software is it tells you exactly what to do from this point, once the shape has printed, load your print on to your cutting mat and send it to cut on your Cricut Explore.
After printing, before cutting:
During Cutting:
After cutting:
So there you go, a quick and easy tutorial on filling in a shape with a pattern or a texture. Want to have a go at creating your own Faux Burlap Textured Shapes?….Then keep scrolling for the freebie link……
This freebie is a little different to my usual freebies, Included in the freebie download is an SVG/DXF files of a plain tag, I have also included my Pink Burlap Digital Paper (from my Burlap Brights Digital Paper Collection) I design all my files in Adobe Illustrator where I then convert too SVG and DXF files. In my tutorials I like to show you how you can create similar Designs within the Cricut Design Space software. Files are for personal use only.
Create the below effect with your freebie by following the steps above:
Love the Burlap Digital Paper Featured in this Post? Why not check out the other colours in the pack at my SVG store.
Thank you so much for reading, I really hope this post has inspired you to experiment with the Print Then Cut feature in your Cricut Design Space Software. If you want to stay up to date with my tutorials and freebies then please feel free to follow me on: Pinterest,Facebook or Instagram.
Happy Crafting
Vicky xx