Tracy Lynn Crafts

DIY Crafting with TLC

Gifts

Bleach Splattering a T-Shirt: My Yard is My Gym

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I love doing bleach splattering! It is a fast and easy way to provide a fun and unique gift and you can learn how.

Last year I spent a lot of time in my yard doing landscaping and gardening. Several of my family members did the same thing. We joked that we don’t need a gym membership because we get all our exercise in our yards.

That’s what made me think of this design: My Yard is My Gym. And, to make this a quick and easy gift, I opted to do a bleach splattering T-shirt project.

One of the nice things about bleach splattering is you can do it on an old T-shirt first, if you want to do a practice run. It can be your own yard-work or gardening shirt! It’s just going to get dirty and grungy, why not have some fun with it!?



Vinyl as a Resist for the Bleach Splattering Technique

The bleach splattering or spray technique is fast and easy, and it is fun. You can do this technique with kids because the transformation – the bleaching of the fabric – happens within seconds.

Materials and Supplies

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means, if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • A 100% cotton shirt (or mostly cotton) – cotton is most susceptible to the bleaching action — Use a very dark color for the most striking results
  • The design from my Resource Library – .SVG for machine cutting
  • Transfer tape
  • Bleach – I recommend you use the plain ol’ regular bleach and not the zero-splash types. Technically, this could work with the spray cleaners like Clorox Clean-up (I have ruined clothes while cleaning with that stuff) but I prefer to just use straight-up bleach. Even the inexpensive store-brand will work.
  • Spray bottle, old tooth brushes, old paint brushes or anything else that can splatter a liquid – I used an old travel-size hairspray bottle that I cleaned out after I used it all and now use for bleach splattering projects. NOTE: I covered the outside of the spray bottle with duct tape and wrote “BLEACH” on the tape using a permanent marker. We don’t need any hair bleaching accidents.
  • A craft machine, such as the Cricut, for cutting the design
  • Vinyl – You don’t need fancy/expensive vinyl for this since you will throw it all away. You can use vinyl you pick up for free (you can read my post on how to get free vinyl for more information).
  • Protective gloves and eyewear – You can find gloves at your drug store and the eyewear is available at a hardware store. Most of the time we are pouring bleach into the laundry machine. This time you will be splatting or spraying it. Please protect yourself and those around you from accidents.



Getting Started

You should protect your work surface and yourself. I used an old shower curtain on my work surface and wore clothes that I did not care if they got bleach splatters on them. It is a good idea to protect the wall and floor around your work surface if there is a chance they could get splattered or sprayed with the bleach.

You should protect your hands because bleach is so harsh. I keep a package of latex gloves in my craft room for messy projects. One final thing you should consider protecting, especially if you are working with children or if you like to be flamboyant with splattering, is your eyes. Having a set of protective eyewear in your craft supplies is a good idea.

Cutting the Design

After you download this design from my Resource Library and upload it to your Cricut Design Space, there are a couple of things to consider.

  • You can resize it in Design Space to fit your project
  • You need to select all the objects and Attach them. The design is set up as individual elements for those people who want to do multiple colors of heat transfer for different parts of the design. For this bleach splattering T-shirt project, it all should be cut on one sheet of vinyl.

When the cutting is finished, you may find it easier to do weeding while the vinyl is still on the cutting mat. This is especially true if your vinyl wants to curl due to having been on a tight roll. I left mine on my cutting mat for this project.

Weeding the Vinyl

Cricut owners who have worked with vinyl and understand weeding can probably skip to the next section of the project.

I know there are some who are new to working with vinyl and I want to help get you through this step.

Weeding is the process of removing all the vinyl that is NOT a part of the project. For this project, the design is the project so we want to weed off everything that is NOT the design – all of the “background” of the design.

Weeding the vinyl from the gardening T-Shirt design

When the background has been removed, use your weeding tool, or something similar such as an X-Acto knife, to pick out the small pieces such as the insides of the letters.

Use your weeding tool to remove the smaller bits from the design



Apply the Transfer Tape

I am right-handed so my instructions are for right-handers. If you are left-handed, you can do this from the opposite direction. Use a piece of transfer tape that is a little larger than the design. Starting at the right side of the design, lay the transfer tape on the design and begin working toward the opposite side by pressing the transfer tape onto the vinyl. Use a burnishing or squeegee tool or something equivalent (such as the edge of a credit card), to secure the transfer tape to the vinyl. You want to make sure that vinyl comes off of the backing paper when it is time to apply it to the T-shirt.

Working right to left, apply the transfer tape to the vinyl.

You can consider adding some marks on the transfer tape to help you with aligning the design. This is completely optional.

For the My Yard is My Gym design, you can add some marks on the transfer tape to help with alignment

If you were working with the vinyl still on your cutting mat, remove it from the mat now.



Apply the Vinyl to the T-Shirt

Peel the carrier/backing paper away from the vinyl, making sure that all the pieces of the design stay on the transfer tape. If any pieces try to stay attached to the backing paper, use your weeding tool to help encourage it to release from the backing paper and attach to the transfer tape.

If most of your vinyl tries to stay attached to the backing paper, you did not squeegee it firmly enough. You can fold the backing paper back onto the vinyl and give it a little extra squeegee-ing. 🙂

Peel the backing paper from the vinyl - keeping the vinyl attached to the transfer tape

It is now time to adhere the vinyl to the shirt. If you used marks to help align the design, this is when those marks will help you center the design and make it level.

Use your squeegee tool to get the vinyl securely attached to the shirt.

You may need to squeegee the My Yard is My Gym design to the t-shirt

Remove Transfer Tape from the Vinyl

Slowly start peeling the transfer tape away from the T-shirt folding it back onto the T-shirt. The transfer tape is sticky. Lay your hand on the sticky part of the transfer tape and start pulling away from the T-shirt. As shown in the picture below, if you peel the transfer tape 180 degrees from shirt (parallel to the shirt), the vinyl will release better than if you peel the transfer tape 90 degrees from the shirt (perpendicular to the shirt).

There may be some parts of the design that are stubborn and do not want to release from the transfer tape. Fold the transfer tape back over that portion of the design and use your weeding tool to release the edge of the vinyl from the transfer tape, then continue.

Slowly pull the transfer tape away from the My Yard is My Gym vinyl design

When you get to the end of the transfer tape, the design should now be affixed to the shirt. If you think there are some loose edges, lay the backing paper over the vinyl and squeegee those loose edges.



Your vinyl is now attached to the T-shirt for the My Yard is My Gym gardener gift

Bleach Splattering or Spraying

Now comes the fun part. It’s time to do the bleach splattering or spraying.

Put on your protective gear – gloves and eyewear.

I stated earlier that I prefer to use bleach in a spray bottle. I have also used old toothbrushes for spritzing on the bleach and I have used a paint brush knocked against something else (a pencil, another paintbrush, a dowel, etc.).

You can now start to use the bleach spray on your gardening T-shirt

Concentrate the heaviest in the center of the design and work outward so there is less bleach applied as you extend beyond the design.

The nice thing about this technique is that you can do just a little at first, wait to see how it looks, and add more bleach later. You can’t undo an over-application of bleach so start out easy. There is no need to rush.

Within seconds, you will see the bleach start to affect the color of the shirt. This is fun to watch when we do this on purpose! Below is a photo of the bleach splattering after only one minute.

This shows the bleach splattering effect after one minute

This next photo shows the effect of the bleach splattering after three minutes.

This shows the bleach splattering effect after three minutes

The bleach is absorbed into the cotton fibers of the T-shirt but it just sits on top of the vinyl. I lay a piece of paper towel over the whole design to absorb the liquid to help it to dry faster.

Lay a paper towel on the vinyl to absorb the excess bleach on the vinyl so it will dry faster



The Big Reveal!

When the bleach has dried from the vinyl, you can remove the pieces of vinyl from the T-shirt.

Begin removing the vinyl from the bleach splattered T-shirt

After you remove all the vinyl from the shirt, you can wash and dry the shirt to remove all the bleach and be ready to give it to your favorite gardener.

Remove all the pieces of vinyl, then wash and dry the shirt to remove all the bleach.

Since I wanted to make gifts for a few of my family members, I decided to use more than one technique in creating these gifts for my favorite gardeners.

I used my Cricut to cut the design for multiple techniques:

  • Vinyl as a resist for a bleach-splatter technique on a T-shirt
  • Vinyl as a stencil
  • Heat transfer vinyl for a totebag
  • Infusible Ink for a rich-colorful T-shirt
You can make a gift for a gardener with this "My Yard is My Gym" design you can cut on your Cricut

You can get the patterns to this and all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite craft board on Pinterest!

Learn the bleach splattering technique to make a fun T-shirt using your Cricut for anyone who loves to work in their yard

Tulip Gift Card Envelope – Mother’s Day or Any Day

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Do you have a mom who is hard to shop for or lives too far away to spend a special day with her? My mom is a little of both, living over 1200 miles away and she has the things she wants. But, my mom is also a crafter! I am sure I got my crafting gene from her. I bought her a gift card for Mother’s Day so she can buy some craft supplies. During my 24 Days of Christmas Crafting, I made some gift card envelopes and decided to try another gift card envelope for this Mother’s Day gift card, this time inspired by tulips.

Tulips are the inspiration for this tuplip gift card envelope
Make a floral shaped tulip gift card envelope as a beautiful way to dress up a gift

Materials and Supplies for the Tulip Gift Card Envelope

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means, if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • Medium to heavy card stock in 2-3 colors – For my flower, I used yellow for the inner petals and red for the outer petals. The green card stock represents the leaves. You could use the same color for the inner and outer flower petals or two shades of the same color.
  • Tacky Glue – I prefer to use Aleen’s Tacky Glue for assembling my card stock projects. It only takes a few seconds for the glue to take hold and makes my card stock projects go faster.
  • Design from my Resource Library – Includes .SVG and .DXF for machine cutting and a .PDF for hand-cutting.
  • A craft machine, such as the Cricut, for cutting the pieces or, you can cut the pieces by hand with Scissors or an X-Acto knife
Materials and supplies to make a tulip gift card envelope

Cutting the Pieces By Hand

The design for this tulip gift card envelope is very simple, which means you can cut one or more by hand pretty quickly. Since they fit onto 8-1/2″ x 11″ card stock, you can print the design from the PDF in my resource library then cut with scissors or an X-Acto knife. The design also shows the score lines as dashed lines. When you print on card stock, it is usually best to use the manual feed on your printer, especially if your printer feeds paper in such a way as to curl paper or cannot grasp card stock from the paper tray.



Cutting the Pieces by Machine

To cut the envelope with your Cricut, upload the .SVG file to Design Space and change the score lines from cut to score as shown below. If the groupings are not the way you want them, change them in Design Space. Remember to select the score layers and cut layers for the pieces that go together and “attach” them so the scores are made relative to the cuts.

Upload the tulip gift card envelope file to Cricut Design Space

If your machine does not have a scoring tool, hide these layers and score them after you cut the pieces.

Start with all your pieces of card stock cut and the fold lines scored

Assembling the Tulip Gift Card Envelope Pieces

To assemble the pieces of the tulip gift card envelope, I will start from the inside and work toward the outside. But you can do these in any order.



Inner Petals Envelope

The inner-most piece of this gift card envelope represents a petal on the front and back of the flower. Plus, it can be a quick and easy project by itself. It will hold a gift card or credit card.

Fold along all three score lines.

Fold along all the score lines

Apply glue to both of the side tabs.

Apply glue to the folded tabs on either side

Fold the two halves together and hold for a few seconds as the glue begins to set.

Fold the two halves together

You could make several of these as card protectors or quick-and-easy gift card envelopes. It would be a great way to use up your card stock scraps, especially the pretty printed card stock. Tuck these into greeting cards or into other gifts.

Outer Petals Sections

For these outer petals of the tulip gift card envelope, each side of the petals as two vertical score lines. This is to give these petals some depth so the inner petals (the yellow “envelope” from the steps above) will fit easily. The score lines are very close together. Do your best to fold along both score lines on each section.

On one of these outer petals is a bottom tab with two score lines. Fold both of these to support the depth of these petals.

Add glue to the bottom tab, fold, then hold until the glue begins to set.

Add glue to the bottom tab on the one set of outer petals

Outer Leaves Section

This green piece represents some leaves for this tulip gift card envelope. It, too, has depth. The depth of this leaf section is a little deeper than the red outer petals.

Fold along both score lines on each side (between the leaves and the tabs) and the score line that separates the two halves.

Apply glue to the tabs, fold the two halves together then hold as the glue begins to set.

Add glue to the side walls of the leaves piece

It is easier to see the dimension for this section. The leaf-section is a little like a box that the petals-section slides into.

Fold up and hold until the glue sets



Putting the Tulip Gift Card Envelope Together

Start with the outer petals. Slide the side that does not have the glued bottom-tab into the side that has the glued bottom-tab.

Tuck the petals together

Slide the inner petals section, the envelope piece, into the outer petals.

Slide the inner envelope petals into the outer petals

After the inner petals section is seated into the bottom of the outer petals, slide the outer petals together.

Push the outer petals together

Continue until the outer petals encase the inner petals section.

Press the petals the rest of the way

Take the petals sections and slide it into the outer leaves piece.

Slide the petals into the leaves

Slide it all the way to the bottom of the leaves section.

Your tulip gift card envelope is complete and just needs a gift card before sharing with your special someone.

The tulip gift card envelope is now complete

You can get the patterns to this and all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY, holiday, and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Make a floral shaped tulip gift card envelope as a beautiful way to dress up a gift for Mother's Day or any holiday

Kentucky Derby Party Favors – Make on Your Cricut

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Learn to make Kentucky Derby Party Favors that you can cut on your Cricut (or by hand) and fill with treats!

For those of you who follow my blog, you know that I love making paper boxes. After I made a Kentucky Derby Hat for the Derby Watch-Party we are attending, I just had to make some party favors to take with us. These horseshoe-shaped paper boxes turned out to be so adorable made from floral card stock and adorned with silver glitter horseshoes!

Make these Kentucky Derby Party Favor boxes on your Cricut and take to your Derby Watch Party!

Materials and Supplies for the Kentucky Derby Party Favors

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means, if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • Cut files (or hand-cut pattern) in my Resource Library
  • 12″ x 12″ medium-to-heavy card stock for the main part of the box
  • Acetate or an accent color for the cutout – I used Cricut’s Foil Acetate
  • Glitter card stock or something equivalent for the horseshoe cutouts to adorn the face of the boxes
  • Tacky Glue – This is what I use for most of my card stock projects
  • Optional: Stickers or Washi tape to seal the boxes (useful for transporting the boxes to your party)
  • Ideally: a craft machine to cut your boxes, such as the Cricut.



How to Make the Kentucky Derby Party Favor Boxes

The design for the boxes has three pieces:

  • Main portion of the box: Needs to be cut from a piece of 12″ x 12″ medium to heavy card stock. The phrase Run for the Roses is a nickname for the Kentucky Derby. The card stock I used is covered with small flowers of various types and some are roses. You could use solid colored card stock and run a strip of rose washi tape around the walls – like the roses wreath for the Derby winner.
  • Insert: This piece gets glued to the inside of the boxes. I like using Cricut’s foil acetate so people can see what is inside the boxes. You can use anything for the inserts. This is a good opportunity to use up your scraps by adding inserts of complementary colors. You can also take advantage of periodic sales on the Cricut website to stock up on your favorite supplies, such as the foil acetate.
  • The Horseshoe: For my boxes, I had a sheet of silver Cricut glitter card stock left over from some previous projects. I love the fine glitter in these papers as compared to most glitter card stocks.



Cutting the Party Favor Boxes by Machine

I cut my boxes on my Cricut. You can do this on Cricut Air, Explore, and Maker. To do this, upload the .SVG file to Cricut Design Space or the design application for your craft machine. If you do not have a scoring tool for your machine then you will need to hide the layer that contains the score lines and manually score those lines after you cut the boxes. In Cricut Design Space, to hide the layer, click the eye on that layer.

When I made my boxes, I uploaded the .SVG file to Cricut Design Space and added it to my canvas. I hid the insert and the horseshoe layers so I could cut all my card stock boxes first.

To use your scoring tool, select the layer that has the score lines and change them from cut lines to score lines. In the screenshot below, I show you which part of the design contains the score lines. After changing the scoring layer from cut to score, remember to select the whole design (after hiding the insert and horseshoe layers) and click “Attach” so the scores happen where they are supposed to happen.

Convert the score lines before cutting your Kentucky Derby Party Favor Boxes

If you are using card stock that is different on each side, remember to place the design for the outside of the box against the mat.

The horseshoes and the inserts have nothing special to do to them. Unhide the insert layer and hide the box and score layers. After you select Make It you can choose how many you will cut. If you are using up scraps, this will vary. I made 9 boxes so I selected 9 and Design Space arranged all 9 of them for me onto a single sheet of the foil acetate. If you use Cricut’s foil acetate, remember to put the sheet onto your mat foil side down and remove the protective layer.

After the inserts were cut, I cut the horseshoes. Hide the insert layer and unhide the horseshoe layer. I was able to cut all 9 of my horseshoes from a single sheet of glitter card stock.

Cut out your Kentucky Derby Party Favor boxes

Cutting the Party Favor Boxes by Hand

If you do not have a craft machine, you can still make these boxes. The PDF file in my Resource Library has full-size patterns you can use for cutting and scoring by hand. You can print the pages directly to your card stock.



Assembling the Kentucky Derby Party Favor Boxes

The following are step-by-step instructions and pictures on how to put together the Kentucky Derby party favor boxes. I put them together “assembly line” style which saved lots time.

Step 1: Folding the Score Lines

Fold each score line toward the inside of the box.

Fold along all the score lines, folding toward the inside of the box.

Gentle Creases: The vertical scores along the long horizontal piece that makes up the walls of the box do not need crisp folds. The “teeth/tab” pieces also can be gentle creases.

Crisp Creases: The score lines where the front and back meet the box should be crisp creases.

This is how your Kentucky Derby Party Favor box will look after you complete folding of all the score lines

Again, I worked on my boxes like an assembly line. My boxes now have all the score lines folded and are ready for glue.

All the score lines for all of my boxes are now complete

Step 2: Glue the Walls to the Face of the Box

The Kentucky Derby party favor boxes have a “wall” section on either side of the horseshoe-shaped front and back sections.

Starting with the wall tabs on the front edge of the wall, dab some tacky glue on 4 to 5 of the teeth.

Dab some glue on the first set of tabs

Curve this section of the wall around and hold those glued tabs to the inside of the front of the box. Add glue to the remaining tabs on this side of the box and affix those tabs to the inside of the front of the box.

complete the gluing of the first side of the box to the front

You can see that I now have all my boxes with the wall attached to one side of the front of the box.

The first section is complete for all my boxes

Attach the other wall section to the front part of the boxes.

Glue the other side to the front of the box

Step 3: Glue the Insert

Apply a little bit of glue onto the interior side of the front portion of the box. It will not take too much glue to hold the insert in place.

Add glue for the insert of the Kentucky Derby Party Favor box

Set the insert into the box and press it into the glue.

Place the insert against the glue on the inside of the front section of the box

Step 4: Glue the Walls to the Back of the Box

To glue the wall tabs to the back section of the boxes, I do all of the tabs at once.

Make sure the tabs are all tipped up (outside) of the box, not pushed inside the box. If the tabs are pushed into the box, they will not meet up with the back of the box. Apply a dab of glue to each tab.

Add glue to all of the tabs for the back of the box

Lower the back of the box onto the tabs and line up the walls to the perimeter of the back of the box. Hold in place for a few seconds so the glue starts to set.

Fold the back of the box onto the tabs

Step 5: Glue the Horseshoe

I designed the horseshoe shape to fit perfectly to the box so you will not have any alignment issues. Add a little glue to the back of the horseshoe and affix it to the front of the box.

Glue the horseshoe to the face of the box

Shift it around until the outside edges of the horseshoe lines up with the outside edges of the box.

Align the edges of the horseshoe to the edges of the box

To close the box, tuck the narrow end through the slots.

Tuck the end tab into the slots to close the box

Complete!

Your Kentucky Derby Party Favor Box is now complete!

The Kentucky Derby Party Favor Box is now complete

If you made a whole set of them, your assembly line is also complete.

All your boxes are now complete

Time to fill them with treats and take them to your Kentucky Derby Watch Party.

Run for the Roses with these Kentucky Derby Party Favor treat boxes
Run for the Roses!
Time to fill your boxes with treats

You can get the patterns to this and all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Select From All My DIY Boxes

I enjoy making little handmade boxes for gifts and treats. You can try some from this list of all the DIY boxes I have made:

I hope you have fun making more of these adorable gift boxes!

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Learn to make Kentucky Derby Party Favors that you can cut on your Cricut (or by hand) and fill with treats!

Learn How You Can Make a Kentucky Derby Hat

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Whether attending in person or at a watch party with your friends, learn how you can make a Kentucky Derby Hat to be a part of Spring’s fashion spectacular! You can also make Kentucky Derby Party Favor boxes to fill with treats and share with your friends!

Learn how you can make a Kentucky Derby Hat to be a part of the fashion spectacular.

The Kentucky Derby takes place on the first Saturday of May and is one of the greatest spectacles, not just for the race, but for the people-watching. The fashion, mostly the hats, is one of the reasons people attend in person or have their own watch parties each year. Now, you can learn how to make your own Kentucky Derby Hat!

Materials and Supplies

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means, if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • Big hat – In the spring, these hats are quite popular in many stores. You can always find a nice selection of big floppy hats on Amazon. Or, you may have one stashed away in a closet that you have always meant to turn into a Derby hat (that’s me!).
  • Big flowers – This is your opportunity to peruse the floral department in your local craft store until you find the flowers that suit you. I found a bouquet of large white flowers for 50% off. You can even try searching Amazon for something specific such as large white silk tiger lily (or something similar) and see if it returns exactly what you want.
  • Accent Flowers – I decided I wanted my accent colors to be purple or blue. As I continued my wandering through the floral department, I found a bouquet (also 50% off) of purple flowers with blue accents. They were perfect! The same search technique can be used on Amazon to find something specific, such as blue silk pansies. Try lots of searches until you find the flowers that suit you – or go wild!
  • Wide Ribbons – I have several wide ribbons from previous craft projects but I did not have a 3″ wired organza ribbon for the main bow. I managed to find one in a dark purple that matched my accent flowers quite well.
  • Scissors
  • Hot Glue
  • Optional – Sewing clips to hold things together while you work (I love these clips!!!)
Materials and supplies to make your own Kentucky Derby party hat



Plan Your Kentucky Derby Hat

I use the word “plan” pretty loosely but I envisioned some basic concepts going in to my project. My Kentucky Derby Hat is not outrageous at all. Compared to many I have seen, my hat tends toward the conservative side. It could also work as a hat to a garden party someday.

Start by deciding if you are going to go wild or go mild. Then, do some online searching for Kentucky Derby Hats to see what people actually wear to the Derby. Some of those hats are crazy, some are elegantly outrageous, and others are beautifully subtle. Add the word “crazy” to your online search to see what some people will wear to the Kentucky Derby. These online searches will help you to define the spectrum of what you can wear.

Use this is an opportunity to spread your creative wings! You could attempt to replicate something you find online. But, why not “own it” and come up with your own design based on things that appeal to you? Again, this is an opportunity to add a little wild to your mild. 😉

My Own Plan

Personally, I’m “mild” when it comes to fashion. I also do not think of myself as a “hat person” — you know, those people who look great in hats. While I said my hat tends toward the conservative side, this is a bit on the wild side for me. I have to tell you, though, I LOVE how this turned out and I cannot wait to wear it to the Kentucky Derby watch-party we are attending!

For my own plan, I opted for a combination of ribbons and flowers, which resulted in the Materials and Supplies list shown above.

The hat is something I already owned. I bought it a couple of years ago off a sale rack somewhere, intending to make it into a Kentucky Derby hat… “someday.” There are so many options for the hat itself. The link I provided in the Materials and Supplies brings up a search on Amazon for big floppy hats that will get you started. Other places to find big floppy hats include (sorry if these are regional store chains) Target, Meijer, and Claire’s.

Colors

I have always been a brunette with medium tone Caucasian skin. The 2019 Kentucky Derby has me at a week shy of turning 58 and more gray hair than brunette now but jewel tones have always been my preference and played a part in my “plan” to look for something in the purple or sapphire range for my hat.

Pick a color scheme that appeals to you, for whatever reason that makes you happy. Own it! If you did the online searching I recommended earlier, you know that the sky is the limit!



Style

Some hats are just ribbons and bows. Others have a combination of flowers and bows. In some you will find feathers of varying types. On the far end of outrageous, you may find hats that have none of the above but are a style unto their own. Seriously, dual pink flamingos as a hat…?

For my style, I chose flowers and bows. I almost bought a bird when I was in the floral department to add as an accent piece but opted not to buy it. I was so close, though. 🙂

Decorating Your Kentucky Derby Hat

Once you have your pseudo-plan in place and your materials and supplies purchased, it is time to decorate your handmade Kentucky Derby Hat.

Center-Front

When working on the outside of the hat, it may not be obvious where the center-front of the hat is located. For many hats, it will not matter. For the style of hats for which it does matter, you will want to somehow mark the center-front of the hat.

For my own hat, the center-front did not matter but, to help you, I marked mine.

Turn the hat over so you are looking at the inside of the hat. Most hats will have a tag. When the center-front matters, the tag is positioned in the center-back of the hat.

Use a piece of tape that will not leave any residue on the hat. Blue painter’s tape works well for this. Place a piece of this tape at the brim of the hat, opposite to the tag. Then, fold that tape over the brim so you can see it from the top of the hat.

Mark the center-front of your Kentucky Derby hat

Decorate Left or Decorate Right?

Mostly, this is personal preference. Do you want the decorations on the right side of the hat or the left side of the hat?

Does it matter? Realistically, no. Practically, it may.

Do you have a “good side” that you prefer for photos? If yes, you will want your decorations on the opposite of your good side. If the decorations on your hat will add significant weight to your hat, that side of the hat may sit lower on your head and hide that side of your head more than the other.

Again this is personal preference. I don’t think I have a side that is better/worse than the other. So, arbitrarily, I picked to decorate the right side of my hat.



Making The Big Bow

The biggest part of my hat is the big purple bow, made from the purple organza wired ribbon. I made this bow in the same way that I made the bow on my Loopy Burlap Wreath… except bigger. This is a Kentucky Derby hat — go BIG!!

Make the Loops

Cut four pieces 30″ long each of the 3″-wide wired organza ribbon and one piece that is 4-6 inches long.

Cut the ribbons to make the big bow for your Kentucky Derby hat

Take the shorter piece that is around 4 to 6 inches in length and remove the wires.

Remove the wire from the center of the bow

Fold this into thirds and clip to hold together. This will be the center piece of the bow that ties all the loops together.

Take each of the 30-inch pieces and find the center. Bring the two ends together so they overlap the center by at least half an inch and clip them together (or you can glue them).

Form each of the loops of the bow

Your bow sections are now ready to assemble. See how handy these clips are?!

The bow sections are now ready to assemble

Gather the Loops

Stack the four sections on top of each other and clip them all together. This is where the sewing clips come in handy. They are like having some extra fingers to help hold things together while working.

Stack the bow sections and clip them all together

Pinch the stack of loops in the middle.

Pinch the stack of bow sections in the middle

Lay the center tie across the front of the pinch, wrap one end of it around the back and glue it in the back of the stacked-and-pinched set of loops.

Wrap the bow center around the pinch

Wrap the other end around and glue it in place.

Glue the bow center at the back of the bow

Cut off any excess from the center tie.

Trim excess from the bow center

Poof the Bow

Be sure the hot glue has cooled so your bow does not pull apart. Turn the bow over and start fanning out the loops so they are no longer stacked on top of each other. Un-flatten the loops and poof them out.

Separate and poof the bow sections

Assemble the Pieces to Your Hat

Making the bow was the most time-consuming part of my hat. But, now that it is done, it is time to assemble the pieces to my Kentucky Derby Hat! Let the fun begin!

The Hat Band

For the band around my Kentucky Derby Hat, I used a medium-wide light-green satin ribbon. To me, this represents the “stem” of the flowers on the hat and I love the little added color to the purple. Use a little hot glue to attach the band to your Kentucky Derby hat.

Apply a medium-wide band of ribbon around the base of your Kentucky Derby hat

Attach the Big Bow to Your Kentucky Derby Hat

Since the bow is the biggest element, it needs go on before the flowers. Glue the bow on the side you chose for your decorations. Mine is on the right side of my hat. It is positioned so that the center of the bow is at the top of the ribbon. I used just enough hot glue to secure the bow to the ribbon band and the hat.

Attach the big bow to your hat

Adding the Large Flowers

The number of flowers you add will depend on how big your flowers are. These types of flowers are constructed from parts and often glued together. I did not want any actual stem included with my flowers so I needed to remove the flowers from their stems. To do this, hold the entire flower in one hand, pinching the base of the flower in your fingers. In the other hand, hold the stem, pinching close to the base of the flower. Twist and pull apart. If the flowers are glued, this should easily separate the flower from the stem.

Separate the flower heads from their stems

Much of the placement of the flowers is personal preference. Decide where you want the flowers and attach with hot glue at the base of the flower. If you have a flower that will not stay in place with hot glue only added at the base, try adding a spot of hot glue on the back of a petal (near the base of the petal) and press that against the hat to help hold the flower in place.

Add your largest flowers after the big bow

Adding Accent Flowers

My accent flowers are the purple and blue flowers and they are assembled in small bunches on soft plastic stems that have no wires. I was able to snip these off as I added them to the hat. Run a bead of hot glue along the stem and tuck the accent flowers around the larger flowers.

Separate the small flowers from the large stems

Accent Ribbons

Finally, I added accent ribbons in two colors. I used a light frosty blue wired ribbon and some of the green satin I used as the band around the hat. I cut these into 10-inch lengths, folded in half, pinched the ends and glued in various places by tucking them behind the flowers.

Add accent ribbons to the Kentucky Derby hat

The light green satin ribbons add a little pop of color and represent leaves in the same way the band represents the stem.

I added some green accent ribbons for a little extra color

Once everything is added, you can spend a few minutes poofing the wired ribbons that may have gotten misshapen while gluing the flowers and accent ribbons.

Decorating your Kentucky Derby hat is now finished

Kentucky Derby Hat is Complete!

You now know how to make a Kentucky Derby hat and will be ready if you are fortunate enough to attend the spectacle in person or if you will be going to a watch party. Grab a mint julep and cheer for your favorite horse!

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Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Whether you attend in person who attend a watch party, you can learn to make a Kentucky Derby Hat and be a part of the Greatest Spectacle on Earth!

Gift for the New Mom and Dad

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Learn how you can make this unique wall plaque gift for the new mom and dad that can be cherished forever.

You can cut this poem on your Cricut and present the shadowbox as a gift for the new mom and dad

There are days that it can feel like they will never grow up and get out of your hair but, all too often, we forget how quickly the time flies. My three kids are now grown and out on their own. I have very special memories of taking the time to just be with them, whether it was quietly rocking, giggling, doing kid-crafts, or anything that lets them know they are loved.

You can make this wall plaque for the new mom and dad using your Cricut. It shares a snippet of a poem that reminds parents to take the time to be with their child.

The full poem is titled Song for a Fifth Child, written by by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton in 1958. You can read the story of the poem here. For this project, I used the final stanza of the poem, cut it from vinyl on my Cricut and applied it to the glass in a shadow box. This shadow box project includes a photo of a mother and child, though you can use a personal photo.



Materials and Supplies

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means, if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • 8″ x 8″ shadow box
  • Rubbing alcohol & paper towel
  • Vinyl – The color of vinyl you choose will depend on the photo you use in the shadow box. If the photo is dark, you will want a light color vinyl. If the photo is lighter, you will want a darker color of vinyl. I used a matte black vinyl. Vinyl loves to adhere to glass so any type of vinyl will work.
  • Weeding tool – I prefer to use an X-Acto knife
  • Transfer tape (yes, that giant roll that looks like masking tape in the picture below is my transfer tape)
  • Vinyl squeegee (a credit card will do in a pinch)
  • A craft machine to cut the vinyl, such as the Cricut
  • Design file from my Resource Library
  • Photo for the shadow box – I have included a mother and child photo in my Resource Library. You have my permission to use this photo for personal use in your personal project/gift (it is a picture of me with my first child). This can be a permanent part of the gift or a place-holder until a more personal photo of the parent and child can be placed in the frame. Note: you will want a subtle photo in the background. If the photo is clear and crisp, it will be difficult to read the letters of the poem over the photo.
Materials and supplies for the Gift for the New Mom and Dad project

An IMPORTANT Note About the Size of the Project

Cutting letters this small is simple enough for your Cricut but weeding it takes patience and a little experience with weeding. It took me around 45 minutes to weed it (though, that included taking photos along the way). I do not want to discourage you from trying this project but if you have never worked with vinyl, I suggest trying a simpler project first (I have links to all my vinyl projects at the end of this post). If you have some experience with vinyl but you think these letters are a bit small for you yet, buy a larger shadow box and scale up the cut file in Design Space to the size of the glass for your shadow box. Just make sure it is square so you do not distort the letters.

Cutting the Poem

The design file included in this gift for the new mom and dad is the section of the poem that reminds us all that these precious gifts grow up so fast and we should remember to take the time to just be with them.

This is the part of the poem that you will cut on your craft machine:

Oh, cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
But children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust, go to sleep.
I’m rocking my baby. Babies don’t keep.

These words are laid out to fit onto the glass of an 8″ x 8″ shadow box. You can scale up the design in Design Space (or the application for your craft machine) to fit onto any square dimension.

The cut files include both .SVG and .DXF files. After downloading from my resource library, unzip the file to extract the file you need.

When you upload the file to Cricut Design Space, or the application for your craft machine, there is nothing to do to the file except cut it. You will notice that there are squares in each corner of the design. These are the registration marks to help you line up the design to the corners of the glass. I will show you how to use these later in this post.

When you upload the file to Design Space, you do not need to do anything except cut it

If you are new to cutting small items in vinyl, you may want to cut a test piece first and practice weeding something so small. You can cut test pieces from scraps of vinyl or vinyl you pick up for free (you can read my post on how to get free vinyl for more information).

When the cutting is finished, you may find it easier to do weeding while the vinyl is still on the cutting mat. This is especially true if your vinyl wants to curl due to having been on a tight roll. I left mine on my cutting mat for this project.

Weeding the Vinyl

For those who have already worked with vinyl, you can probably take it from here and skip to the next section of the project. But, I know there are many people who are new to working with vinyl and I want to help make this easy for you since this will make such a nice gift for new parents.

What is “Weeding”?

Weeding is the process of removing all the vinyl that is NOT a part of the project. For this project, the letters ARE the project so we want to weed off everything that is NOT the letters. Also, this project uses registration marks. These are the squares in the corners of the design. Do not weed those off because we will use those later.

An alternate way of doing this project (and easier to weed) would be to etch the poem into the glass. If we were going to etch the letters into the glass, we would weed off the letters and leave everything else so the etching compound would etch where the letters used to be. I have a post where I used vinyl I cut on my Cricut and etched into glass. You can read that post to see how to use vinyl as a stencil for etching glass. An etching project would be best for a shadow box photo that is dark (darker than the photo included with the project files in my Resource Library).

When you are weeding everything except the letters, like we are doing with this project, it is often easier to weed from right to left because most letters have openings face the right, such as the letters “c” and “e.” Pulling up the vinyl with your left hand and pulling it from the right and toward the left results in fewer opportunities for tearing the vinyl or pulling up a letter.

It is still a careful process and you should move slowly through the weeding. With lettering this small, you will need to watch for the punctuation marks and the dots over the letter “i.” You will also need to remove the centers of letters such as the “hole” in the letter “O” or other closed-shaped letters.

As I stated earlier, this took me about 45 minutes to weed. Take your time. Some projects are not “I need it NOW!” projects. Just take your time.



Weeding Tools

Weeding tools can be something that have the name of your craft machine stamped on it, or it can be something like an X-Acto knife, which is what I use. I know some people who use dental tools as weeding tools. Use whatever works for you. You want to be comfortable with your tools so you have a happy experience.

The purpose of weeding tools is to help you pick up the edge of the vinyl so you can grab hold of the vinyl to be weeded off. If you are weeding very small things, a set of tweezers can be handy to help grab those small pieces of vinyl. I like to use an X-Acto knife because I can easily cut through vinyl that did not get cut all the way through by the cutting blade on my machine or to cut off excess vinyl as I am weeding so I don’t end up with a handful of vinyl while trying to work. Everyone is different and you will eventually develop your own techniques.

Weeding THIS project

I laid out the text of the poem into four sections. To make weeding easier, I used my X-Acto knife to cut through the vinyl (JUST the vinyl – not the carrier paper) between those four sections of the poem. That way I only had to weed one section at a time.

Start in the upper right corner. This is true whether you are right or left-handed. This is because weeding letters works best when weeding right to left. Make sure that registration mark is left on the carrier paper.

Start weeding the vinyl by releasing the unused vinyl from the top right corner

Continue to slowly and carefully pull back the vinyl, making sure the letters stay on the carrier paper. You may need to use your weeding tool to hold a piece of vinyl on the carrier paper as you weed off the outer vinyl.

Continue to weed the vinyl, leaving the letters on the carrier paper

After you finish this first section, go back and remove all the “centers” of all the letters.

Remember to weed the centers out of the interior portions of all the letters

Patiently continue through the entire project. If you need to take a break, it is okay to walk away, rest your eyes, rest your hands, rest your nerves or whatever. As I said, weeding small things needs some patience. Do not rush. Take your time so you do not have to start over. When complete, it should look like this.

The completed weeding of this gift for the new mom should look like this

Apply the Transfer Tape

Again, if you are already familiar with working with vinyl, you likely already know how to use transfer tape and can skip to the next section.

What is Transfer Tape?

There are a few types of transfer tape. Some are clear, some have a grid printed on them, some look more like masking tape, and there are varying tackiness of the adhesive in the transfer tape. Some people even use other common products as transfer tape.

The purpose of the transfer tape is to get the vinyl off the carrier paper (the paper that was attached to the vinyl when you first acquired it) and transfer that vinyl to your project.

I use a transfer tape that is used by professional sign makers in sign shops. It looks a bit like masking tape. I have a 12″ by 100-foot roll that I bought for next-to-nothing from a sign shop because I have established a relationship with them. If you want to learn more about making friends with a sign shop, read this post I wrote on how to get free vinyl.



Apply the Transfer Tape

You will need a piece of transfer tape that is a little larger than your vinyl project. I am right-handed. If you are left-handed, you will reverse sides for this step. Starting at the right side of the vinyl sheet, secure the edge of the transfer tape along that side of the vinyl.

Attach the right edge of the transfer tape

Begin working toward the opposite side by pressing the transfer tape onto the vinyl. Use a burnishing or squeegee tool or something equivalent (such as the edge of a credit card), to secure the transfer tape to the vinyl.

Start to squeegee the transfer tape onto the vinyl

Continue all the way across the whole project until all the vinyl is covered with the transfer tape. Once all the transfer tape is down, stroke your squeegee tool across the surface to make sure the transfer tape has a good bond with the vinyl. Use a dragging motion, as opposed to a pushing motion, for this.

Do not lift the vinyl off the carrier paper yet. If you have been working up til now with the project still on your cutting mat, you can now remove the whole project from your mat – separating the carrier paper from the mat.

You can now remove the project from your cutting mat

Prepare the Glass Surface

Vinyl adheres nicely to a smooth surface like glass. The surface also needs to be clean.

Whether the frame you are using is old or new, you should still clean the glass. Old ones may have dust and oils from the air or skin oils from fingers touching the glass. New ones straight from the factory can have dust and oils from the factory air.

Thoroughly wash the glass. Wash with a soapy water that will cut through grease (you can use a product such as Dawn). Do not use an ammonia-based product such as Windex. This leaves a residue that may cause the vinyl to not stick as well.

If doing this kind of project is new for you, roll up a couple of pieces of painters tape to hold your glass to your work surface so that it does not shift around while you are working. You can alternately tape all four sides to your work surface.

You should then wipe the surface of the glass with rubbing alcohol to cut through any remaining residue. Let the alcohol dry completely.

Try to work in an environment that does not have a lot of dust flying around (including pet hair). You do not want that to get stuck between your glass and the vinyl.

Using Registration Marks for Alignment

Not everyone can “eyeball” perfect alignment. I know I certainly cannot. That is where registration marks are helpful. This project has a square in each corner. Those squares are positioned so that they will fit right into each corner of the 8″ x 8″ piece of glass.

Trim the Registration Corners

What I am demonstrating here is only one of several methods for using registration marks to help you with aligning your vinyl.

Using a pair of scissors, trim the carrier paper and transfer tape to the outer edges of the registration marks and then a notch in to the right side. I have a picture here to show you what I mean.

Trim to the outside edges of the registration marks

Expose Registration Marks

Peel back the carrier paper from the two registration marks on the right side of the vinyl and cut off the carrier paper on that side. The only vinyl now exposed should be the two registration marks in the corners on the right side of your project.

Cut away the carrier paper to expose the two registration marks on the right

Hover your vinyl over the glass. We are not mechanical machines so we cannot lower this perfectly. Get the left side down first since that side still has the carrier paper on it. Make sure the left side registration marks are lined up to the corners of the glass.

Lower the right side down. As you lower the right side down, keep an eye on all four corners to keep that alignment of the registration marks to all four corners. Once that vinyl touches the glass it will want to stick.

Attach the Corners to the Glass

When you have all four registration marks set correctly into the corners, use your fingers to press those two right side registration marks so they adhere to the glass.

Apply the Rest of the Vinyl

Lay a piece of tape along the right side, in that notch that you cut earlier. This tape will be a hinge.

Apply tape to create a hinge

Fold back the vinyl along that hinge then peel back about half of the carrier paper.

Peel back half of the carrier paper

Hold the project in your left hand and your squeegee in your right hand. Use the squeegee to start pressing the vinyl onto the glass – working right to left. Push into the curve of the transfer paper. You do not need to push hard but you should work evenly across the surface. This sort of like when you lay a pie crust into a pie pan. You start at one side of your pie pan and lower the pie crust dough from one side to the other, lightly pressing it into the pan.

Start to squeegee the vinyl to the glass

When you get to that half way point, you can remove the rest of the carrier paper and hold just the transfer tape as you continue in the same manner until you have all the vinyl letters against the glass. There is no need to worry about getting the left registration marks against the glass. We will pull those off later.

Use your squeegee in a dragging motion, work the squeegee across the surface of the transfer tape to get the adhesive of the vinyl secured to the glass. Press firmly as you do this.

Squeegee the vinyl firmly to the glass

Remove Transfer Tape

Starting in one of the corners, start to peel back the transfer tape. If vinyl starts coming off with the transfer tape, lay the tape back down and go over the transfer tape again with the squeegee but with firmer pressure.

Do not pull straight up. Pull the transfer tape back, keeping it close to the surface of the project as you pull.

Start to peel back the transfer tape from the vinyl

Continue across the surface of the project. This is where having the glass secured to the work surface is handy. This way I can use both hands to pull evenly on the transfer tape instead of using one hand to hold the glass.

Continue to remove the transfer tape from the vinyl

When the transfer tape is completely removed, peel off the registration marks.

Remove the registration marks from the glass

Carefully lift the glass off the tape that was securing the glass to your work surface.

Lift the glass off the tape

Assemble the Shadow Box

This is probably the easiest part of this project. Gather up all the components for your shadow box.

Gather together the components of the shadow box frame

Lay the glass in first, vinyl side down, then add the rest of the parts and secure the back of the frame.

Assemble the components of this lovely gift for the new mom and dad

The gift for the new mom and dad is now complete!

The gift for the new mom and dad is now complete

You can get the patterns to all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY, gifts, and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

You can cut this poem from vinyl on your Cricut, apply to the glass of a shadowbox, and present as a gift for the new mom and dad

Other Posts About Cutting Vinyl

If you are new to cutting vinyl or just want to try some new projects, then you can click these links to try some of the things I have blogged about that use vinyl somewhere in the project such as using vinyl for a stencil or an etching mask.

Easter Bunny Box – Adorable Paper Boxes!

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Learn to make these Easter bunny boxes you can cut on your Cricut then fill with jelly beans or other delicious treats for a cute and fun way to bring a smile to someone this holiday season!

Complete set of Easter bunny boxes

I just couldn’t resist making another paper box this time of year. The springtime woven basket in my last post was a lot of fun to make and got me in the mood to make another paper box. This Easter bunny box is styled after my Heart Box and my Shamrock Box, which means that the opening to the box is a door in the wall of the box instead of lifting off a lid.

I try to design all my boxes so you can cut them by hand or by using a craft machine. Of course, using a craft machine like the Cricut helps when you want to cut several of them.

Materials and Supplies for the Easter Bunny Box

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • 1 sheet (8-1/2″ x 11″ or larger) medium to heavy card stock
  • 1 small sheet (3.75″ x 4.5″ or larger) for the insert – this is a good use for your scraps. This is the behind the bunny’s face. You can use papers, card stock, foils, lace, acetate, etc.
  • Design files from my Resource Library
  • A craft machine for cutting the files, such as the Cricut, or you can cut the pattern by hand
  • Glue – For my card stock projects, I usually use Tacky glue
  • Treats for filling your Easter bunny boxes
Materials and supplies for the Easter bunny box



Making the Easter Bunny Box

The design files in my resource library contain both the .SVG for the Cricut users and the .SVG and .DXF for those with other craft machines. I also include a PDF for people who want to cut their Easter bunny box by hand.

Cutting by Hand

If cutting by hand, run your card stock through your printer on manual feed. This will save you the step of transferring the design to your card stock. For medium to heavy card stock, your printer may not be able to auto-feed the paper from your paper tray. This is why using the manual feed option is best. This design will fit on 8-1/2″ x 12″ paper. If your card stock is 12″ x 12″ then cut it to fit into your printer.

Cutting by Machine

Download the ZIP file and unzip it. There are files in both .SVG and .DXF formats for the Easter bunny box and a separate file for the insert.

Upload the .SVG to Cricut Design Space (or the appropriate file type for your brand of craft machine and application).

If you do not have a scoring tool, hide that layer then manually score those lines after cutting. In Cricut Design Space, to hide the layer, select the layer then click the eye on that layer.

If you have a scoring tool, select the layer that has the score lines then change them from cut lines to score lines. In the screenshot below, I show you which part of the design contains the score lines for the Easter bunny box. After changing the scoring layer from cut to score, remember to select the whole design and click “Attach” so the scores happen where they are supposed to happen.

Remember to change the score lines and to attach the layers before cutting

I cut enough to make four Easter bunny boxes in these lovely pastels.

Four sets of Easter Bunny Box cutouts



How to Assemble the Easter Bunny Box

Time to get hopping! I will walk you through how to assemble your Easter bunny box. There are several pictures with step-by-step instructions. You will start with these five pieces: The top, the bottom, the insert and two wall sections.

Start with all the cut out pieces

Step 1: Add the Insert

Add some glue to the back side of the cutout that has the bunny face then attach the insert. Set it aside.

Glue the insert to the back side of the bunny face section

Step 2: Folding the Score Lines

There are score lines for all the tabs of the wall sections and some score lines at places along the wall sections. You can use the pictures below to let you see where you have to fold against the score lines instead of into the score lines.

Fold along all the score lines

The score lines that are at the end that does not have any edge tabs (the left side of the left piece as shown in the picture below) should not get creased. Give them a slight fold. They are just there to give a gentle curve when closing the “door” of the wall of the box.

Fold along all the score lines

Step 3: Glue the Walls to the Bottom of the Box

Start with the wall section that has the two slots. Add a dab of glue to the first three tabs at the end opposite where those slots are.

Add glue to the first three tabs of the wall section

Lay these glued tabs against the bunny ear. Line up the crease of the end-tab to the point between the two bunny ears and curve the paper around to follow the shape of the bunny ear. Hold long enough to let the glue begin to take hold. This takes up to a minute. Because I am making four of these, I set this aside and did the same thing to the other three bunny boxes – assembly-line style.

Line up the Easter bunny box wall to the edge of the ear and hold in place until the glue starts to hold

When the glue has set long enough that it won’t shift around when you’re working on the next section, add a dab of glue to the next three tabs that go over the point of the bunny ear.

Add glue to the next few tabs that go around the bunny ear

Again, line these tabs up against the edge of the bunny box base and hold. Add glue to a few more tabs and line up the next score line to the point where the ear meets the Easter bunny face section. Hold while the glue sets.

Hold this section of the Easter bunny box wall against the top until the glue starts to take hold

Add glue to the last set of tabs on this side of the Easter bunny box and affix to the base.

Add glue to the last few tabs on the wall of the Easter bunny box

Using the other wall section, start at the bunny ears again. Add a dab of glue to the first three tabs plus the wall tab on the other wall section that will attach the two wall sections together. Hold these in place for a minute.

Glue and hold the other wall section to the base of the Easter bunny box

Again, if you are making these assembly-line style, you will not have any “down-time” while waiting for glue to set. By the time you get to the last Easter bunny box in the group of boxes you are making, the glue on the first box will be set up enough to continue working.

Work around the rest of the bunny shape until you have all the tabs glued to the bottom section of the Easter bunny box.



Step 4: Attach the Top of the Box

Attaching the top of the Easter bunny box is faster than the previous steps. Tip all the tabs up so they are pointing a bit upward instead of pushed inside the box. At this point, you can add glue to all the tabs at once.

Lay the top portion of the box against the wall tabs and align the wall sections to the edges of the bunny box top/face section.

Attach the Easter bunny box top to the wall sections

Hold in place until the glue takes hold.

Align the top and hold until the glue sets

Step 5: Fill the Easter Bunny Box with Treats

The only thing left to do is fill your Easter bunny boxes with treats then wait for the smiles.

Fill the completed Easter bunny box with treats

If the “door” to your Easter bunny box wants to slip open, you can use a sticker or some washi tape to help seal it. For the boxes I need to transport, I seal the doors closed with washi tape so they don’t accidentally open up.

Completed Easter bunny box filled with jelly beans

You can get the patterns to all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Learn how to make these folded and glued paper boxes in the shape of an Easter bunny for a decorative way to hand out treats

Select From All My DIY Boxes

I enjoy making little handmade boxes for gifts and treats. You can try some from this list of all the DIY boxes I have made:

I hope you have fun making more of these adorable gift boxes!

Springtime Paper Basket – Woven from Card Stock

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Now that spring is here, learn how you can make this springtime paper basket to show off your seasonal decor or holiday treats.

The finished springtime paper baskets can be filled with spring flowers or Easter treats

Cute paper boxes (like my heart boxes or the other boxes listed later in this post) are a creative way to share small treats and gifts with others. I have enjoyed designing and making boxes and decided to do something a little different this time. A spring gift box seemed appropriate for this time of year so I made a springtime paper basket that I wove. This will be cute filled with small flowers or make it an Easter basket by adding Easter grass and Easter candies.



Materials and Supplies

(This post contains affiliate links to one or more of the items I used in this project – which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission. There is no added cost to you!)

  • Sheets of 12″ x 12″ Card Stock (2 sheets per basket)
  • Design from my free Resource Library
  • A craft machine, such as the Cricut
  • Glue – I use Tacky glue for most of my card stock projects
  • Scissors
  • Scoring tool if your machine does not score materials

Cutting the Basket Design

The cut files in my Resource Library contain two files for the springtime paper basket. Those two files are available in both .SVG and .DXF formats. The PDF, also in my Resource Library, shows the actual size of the cut pieces in case you need to resize them in your application or cut them by hand.

Main Basket Cut File – 1 of 2

The first of the two files is the main basket piece. This piece is the base and vertical reeds of the basket. There are two layers in the file. One layer is the score line between the base and the vertical reeds. Remember to change that layer from cut to score, then select both layers and attach them before making it. If your machine does not score, hide the score layer and score it by hand after cutting.

Remember to convert cut lines to score lines where appropriate then attach before making

Basket Pieces Cut File – 2 of 2

The second file contains the horizontal reeds used for weaving in and out of the vertical reeds of the basket. It also has the pieces for making a braided handle and a finish piece along the top of the basket edge. This file has three layers: draw, score, and cut. The draw layer (remember to convert from cut to draw) just draws numbers on the pieces of the braided handle to help you identify them as you are laying them out to follow along in my instructions. There are several score lines in these pieces. Again, if your machine does not score, hide that layer and score the lines after cutting. If it does score, convert that layer from cut to score. Select all three layers and attach them before making it.

In the picture below, looking from left to right:

  • Half of the horizontal weaving pieces
  • The other half of the horizontal weaving pieces
  • Labeled 1, 2, and 3 are the pieces for the braided handle
  • The far right piece goes around the top edge of the basket and has slots for inserting the handle
Remember to switch the cut lines to draw and score where appropriate then attach before making

Colors for Your Springtime Paper Basket

In all of my test cuts, I cut both files from the same color of card stock and they were certainly cute enough. For my final cut, I wanted to show you how you can use two different colors to make a more interesting basket. By making several baskets and cutting them from all sorts of colors, you can come up with some amazing color combinations in your own baskets!

When you remove the pieces from your cutting mat, it will be important to keep the weavers (the sets of 4 on the left) in the same order they were on the mat. If you are doing two colors like I am here, lay these out similar to this on a separate surface.

Cutting two complete sets from two different colors will give you colorful springtime paper baskets

Before You Assemble the Springtime Paper Basket

If you have ever made actual reed baskets, this will be very familiar to you, except there is no soaking in water and the pieces are short. 😃

To make shaping the basket easier, I added score lines for the horizontal weaving pieces. There are two sets of four and each set has a different set of score lines. Below is the line-drawing of the score lines.

These two sets are the horizontal weavers with two different sets of score lines

Every other row that you weave, you will use a different horizontal weaving piece from the two different scoring patterns. I call them the short tab and long tab weavers, just so I have a way to explain this to you as we walk through this together. Looking at the picture above, the four weavers on top are the short tab weavers because the tab on the right is short. The weavers in the next group are the long tab weavers because the tab on the right are longer than the other set.



On the work surface where you will weave your basket, bring over the base of the basket and the horizontal weaving pieces. When you bring over the horizontal weavers, set a short tab weaver closest to you, then a long tab weaver. Repeat until you have 8 weavers. For my project, I am weaving every other row a different color and I am starting with the color that is the same as the base. When I am done setting up, I will have four of the short tab weavers from the green set and four long tab weavers from the yellow set. And, these weavers alternate (short and long — green and yellow) as they are set on the table in front of me.

This is how things look just before I get started.

Start by laying out all the basket pieces in front of you. I chose to use two different colors for my springtime paper baskets.

Start With the Base of the Basket

Start your springtime paper basket with the base piece and fold each of the “vertical” pieces along the score line that runs around the perimeter of the base.

Fold up the vertical pieces of the springtime paper basket

Weaving the First Row

As with many projects, getting it started is one of the hardest steps. After we get the first two rows in, this will get a lot faster and easier because those first two rows will help hold the structure in place for the rest of the assembly process. This is true when making reed baskets, too.

Starting the First Row

The first weaver I have laid out, the one that is closest to my left hand, is a green short-tab weaver. Fold along all the score lines for this first weaver.

Fold the score lines on the short tab weaver

Add a dab of glue to the short tab then tuck it in behind the vertical piece that is on the left-hand side of any corner of the basket. At each corner, the vertical piece that to the left of the corner is flush to the corner. The vertical piece that is to the right of the corner is off-set from the corner.

Glue the short tab behind a corner vertical piece

Position this first row weaver so that it is pushed all the way down to the base of the basket and the corner of the tab (the score fold) is along the edge of that left-side vertical piece.

It will be best if you can be as precise as you can in this initial placement since it is glued in place.

Be precise in this first positioning of the short tab weaver

Hold in place until the glue has set enough that you can set it down. If you are making multiple baskets, this is when you can go start on the next basket. You want that first dab of glue to set well before moving on. Give it around five minutes.

When you come back to it, the glue will be set well enough that it will not pop out of place as you weave around the vertical pieces.

Continuing Along the First Row

Many people will familiar with weaving, even if it was just something you did in elementary school with cardboard and string but some people have never woven anything. Weaving is under, over, under, over, repeat until done.

The short tab is “under” or behind a vertical piece. It next needs to go “over” or in front of the next vertical piece. You continue moving under and over . Here is a picture of the first side of the first row of weaving.

Weave the paper over and under the vertical pieces

Completing the First Row

Continue around the corner and weave all four sides. When you get back to the corner where you started, add a dab of glue to the end tab.

When you get to the end of this first row of weaving, add a dab of glue to the end tab

Tuck this end tab behind where you started and hold in place so the glue begins to set. Get that fold firmly into the corner so you can keep the shape of the basket very square.

Press the ending corner tab into the starting corner of the basket

The bottom row is now complete and we can move to the second row of the basket.

The first row of weaving is now complete

Weaving the Second Row

For the second row, grab the next weaver, which will be a long-tab weaver. For me, this one is a yellow weaver. Fold along all the score lines.

For the second row, start with a long tab weaver

Starting the Second Row

Add a dab of glue to the last 1/8″ of the long tab and tuck it behind the vertical piece that is the second one to the left of the corner and lay it over the vertical piece that is just to the left of the corner. Make sure you push it close to the first row and that the fold lines up with the corner. Let this set while you start the second row of another basket.

Glue the long tab behind the vertical that is two from the corner on the left

Continuing the Second Row

When the glue has set, continue the weaving around the basket. The over and under should be opposite from the first row.

Weave the second row of paper over and under the vertical pieces

When you get to the end of this row, there is no tab at the end. Add a dab of glue to the end and tuck it in behind where you started and hold in place. The end should go right into the corner.

Finishing the Second Row

Now that the first two rows are in, you can snug up the horizontal rows so the first row is against the base all the way around the basket and the second row is right up against the first row. You may need to adjust the vertical pieces to make sure they continue to be straight.

The first two rows of weaving on the springtime paper basket are now complete

Additional Rows (3 through 8)

Repeat what you did for the first two rows until you get all the way to the eighth row. I found that it worked best for me if I continued to start each of my rows in the same corner. When you get to the end, there will be extra length of the vertical pieces left over. This is intentional because it gives you something to hold on to as you are adjusting the weavers.

The weaving portion for the springtime paper baskets is now complete

Using a pair of scissors, carefully trim off the left over vertical pieces. Handle carefully so the top row does not try to pop off. Set aside.

Trim the leftover pieces off the vertical strips



Braiding the Basket Handle

The pieces for the braided handle are the ones with the numbers marked on the top.

These three pieces are for the braided handle

Braiding paper will include folding the paper into or against the score lines. Since I cannot score both sides of the paper with my machine, the score lines just act as a guide.

Do not pre-fold the score lines. It is easier to work with the paper strips straight and have those score lines help direct the paper how to fold.

To help you get started with the handle, grab a sheet of paper so you have a 90-degree corner in which to work.

Setting up the Braid

Start by placing strip number one along the left side of the page and positioned so that the top of the strip is in the upper left corner of the paper.

Place strip 1 along the left edge of a sheet of paper

Tape strip number one to your work surface but do not cover the score line that is just under the number 1. Now pick up strip number two.

Grab strip number 2

Turn strip number two over so the number is facing the paper. Position it perpendicular to strip number one. Just under the printed “1” is a score line. Align strip number two to this score line and make sure it is equally distant from the top edge of the paper.

Turn strip number 2 over and place it perpendicular to strip number 1 and align to the score line

Tape strip number two to your work surface. Lay strip number three against strip number two and tape it in place. You may want to add a little more tape to hold these starting ends in place.

Place strip number three next to strip number 2

Starting to Braid the Handle

With these starting ends secured, take strip number two and fold it down so that it lines up against strip number one along the left side of the paper. There is a score line that will help guide the fold.

Fold strip number 2 down so that is is lined up against strip number 1

Take strip number one, the one that is against the left side of the paper, and fold it up so that it lies against strip number three (which is parallel to the top of the paper guide).

Fold strip number 1 up so that it lies against strip number 3

The third fold is to take strip number three (which is parallel to the top of the paper guide) and bring it down so that it lies against strip number two, (which is now parallel to the left side of the page).

Fold strip number 3 so that is lines up against strip number 2

This is the beginning of your braided handle.

The first three folds are complete

Continue to braid by taking the outer-most strip where there are two strips together, and fold it to lie against the strip that is perpendicular to it.

Continue to braid the handle of the springtime woven basket

Finishing the Braid

When you get to the end, add a drop of glue under the last-folded end and on top of the smaller end that sticks out. Fold that smaller end over.

Glue the ends of the paper braid

Cut off the leftover strip from the bottom of the paper braid.

Cut off the last piece

Remove the tape from the starting end of the braid. Add a spot of glue behind the starting end of strip 3 and strip 2 to attach them to strip 1.

Glue under the tabs at the starting end of the paper braid

Add a dab of glue to the starting end of strip 1 and fold this over strip 2.

Then glue the starting portion of strip 1 over strip 2

Your paper braided handle for your springtime woven basket is complete.

Attach Top and Handle

The last piece from the cut pieces is the top edge finish piece. This piece will go over the loose weavers in your basket and provide slits into which you will place the ends of your braided handle.

This last piece is the top edge finish piece

Apply a bead of glue along the side that does not have any cuts.

Apply glue to the short side of the top finish piece

Lay this piece against the top edge of the basket. The corners have a double-score so they will wrap around the outside of the basket. There is also a double score where this piece folds over the top of the basket. There is no need to try to actually fold both of those score lines. They are so close together that it’s just there to give that fold a little extra depth.

Attach to the top of the woven paper basket

I’m going to switch to my other basket because the green shows up better in photos than the yellow.

The basket is now ready for the handle

Apply some glue to the back side of one of the flaps that has a slit in it.

Apply glue to one of the flaps with the slit

Insert one end of the handle into the slit from the outside to the inside. Only insert it about half an inch. This is so that the end will not stick out. Apply a little bit of glue to the end of the handle.

Fold this flap toward the inside of the basket. Adjust the handle to make sure it is not sticking out from under the flap and is inserted enough to be secure. Hold until the glue sets.

Insert one end of the handle into the slit and glue the flap to the inside of the basket

Repeat for the other end of the handle in the same manner. In the picture below, you can see you have to stretch around to get the handle to insert the correct way and still get to it to add some glue to it.

TIP: You can use these adorable and useful sewing clips to help hold things in place as you continue to work. I use these quite a bit when I work on my paper projects.

Insert the other end of the handle in the same manner

Apply glue to each of the other two flaps.

Add glue to the final two flaps

Fold the final two flaps to the inside of the basket and hold them in place until the glue is set.

Springtime Paper Basket is Finished!

You now have a completed springtime paper basket. Or, if you followed along and did what I did, you now have two… maybe more!

I selected some flowers for one of my baskets.

Woven Paper Springtime Basket

For my other basket, I added some Easter treats.

Woven Paper Easter Basket

You can get the pattern to this and all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Learn how to weave with paper to make these cute Springtime or Easter paper baskets

Select From All My DIY Boxes

I enjoy making little handmade boxes for gifts and treats. You can try some from this list of all the DIY boxes I have made:

I hope you have fun making more of these adorable gift boxes!

Shamrock Boxes You can Make – Free Cut Files

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Surprise the little leprechauns in your life with these adorable Shamrock and Clover paper boxes that you can fill with treats!

You can learn to make these adorable paper shamrock boxes with three and four leaf clover designs

Do you like making paper boxes for your small gift-giving? I love making small paper boxes and this week I made shamrock boxes because St. Patrick’s Day is coming up soon. These shamrock boxes will be perfect for some magically delicious gifts for my friends! I made paper treasure boxes for gifts in January for 12th Night and I made paper heart boxes in February for Valentine’s Day. The free cut files for my shamrock boxes are available in my resource library.

The shamrock boxes can be cut by hand or on a craft machine like the Cricut. No matter which method you use, the shamrock boxes are easy to assemble.



Materials and Supplies for the Shamrock Boxes

(This post contains affiliate links to some of the items I used in this project. It just means that you will help to support my blog if you make a purchase after clicking the links. There is no added cost to you! Thank you!)

  • Sheets of card stock
  • Glue (I use Tacky glue with many of my card stock projects)
  • Treats or gifts to fill the boxes
  • Designs (available in my free Resource Library)
  • Cutting tools
These are the supplies you will need to make the paper shamrock boxes

How to Make a Shamrock Box

There are two different designs for the shamrock boxes. One is a 4-leaf clover and one is a 3-leaf clover. My resource library contains .SVG, .DXF, and .PDF files for both designs.

In addition to the two files for the actual shamrock boxes, there are also two more corresponding files for the box-top insert and a matching clover shape (for optional embellishments to the shamrock boxes). These will look nice cut from contrasting or complementary colors. These box top inserts are a good way to use your scraps!



Cutting the Shamrock Boxes by Hand

Use the designs in the PDF in my resource library and print directly onto your card stock using the manual feed (to keep your card stock from curling too much in the printer). Cut on the solid lines and score on the dashed lines.

If your printer will print onto longer paper (most do by using the manual paper feed) then you can take a 12″ x 12″ sheet of card stock and cut it down to 8-1/2″ x 12″ and tell the printer that you are using a custom size sheet. The PDF is already set to a 8-1/2″ x 12″ paper size.



Cutting the Shamrock Boxes by Machine

Download the ZIP file and unzip it. There are files in both .SVG and .DXF for both boxes plus the inserts and extra clover embellishments (optional).

Upload the .SVG to Cricut Design Space (or the appropriate file type for your brand of craft machine and application).

  • If you do not have a scoring tool, you will need to hide the scoring layer then manually score those lines after you cut the shamrock boxes. In Cricut Design Space, to hide the layer, select the layer then click the eye on that layer
  • If you do not want the clover cut out, hide that layer.

If you have a scoring tool, select the layer that has the score lines then change them from cut lines to score lines. In the screenshot below, I show you which part of the design contains the score lines for the shamrock boxes. After changing the scoring layer from cut to score, remember to select the whole design and click “Attach” so the scores happen where they are supposed to happen.

Remember to change to score lines from cut to score then select all and attach.

How to Assemble the Shamrock Boxes

Now we get to the fun part! I will walk you through how to put together your shamrock boxes with step-by-step instructions and pictures.

Step 1: Add the Box-Top Insert

The design files include a shape you can cut to glue to the inside of the top of the shamrock boxes. For the 3-leaf clover it is a hexagon and for the 4-leaf clover it is an octagon. This insert shape is just slightly smaller than the actual box shape so it fits nicely.

The insert is placed under the cut-out for some added decoration. Optional insert materials include:

  • Contrasting color card stock or paper
  • Vellum
  • Tissue paper
  • Light-weight fabric (such as quilting cotton)
  • Acetate
  • Foil
  • Lace or tulle

Apply a little bit of glue along the outside edge of the interior side of the cut design portion of the shamrock box. Affix the insert to the glue and let it set for a few seconds.

Glue the insert to the inside of the top of the shamrock box

Step 2: Folding the Score Lines

Fold along each of the score lines – folding each toward the inside of the shamrock box. If you did not use your craft machine to score the fold lines for you, you can look at the PDF to know where to manually make score lines (all the dashed lines) then fold along these.

Fold each of the score lines of the shamrock box toward the inside of the box

Your creases do not need to be “sharp.” You do not need to crease them with a hard tool. I used a medium weight card stock (65-pound) for my shamrock boxes. If you used much heavier card stock (in the 100-pound range) you may need a firmer crease.

Step 3: Glue the Bottom of the Shamrock Box to the Walls

The pattern for the shamrock boxes is made up of the box top, the box bottom, and the walls all connected as a single piece. The walls are the long rectangular section between the top and bottom of the box.

One end of the wall has a flat end with a couple of slots and the other end has a curved tab for inserting into the slots (for closing the “door” of the box).

The wall sections have tabs for gluing to the top and bottom of the shamrock box. Attach the bottom of the box to the walls by applying glue to all of the wall tabs EXCEPT the tabs that are on the “door” section. The door section is made of of both the section with the slots and the section with the curved tab.

Curve the wall around, holding the tabs in place until the glue begins to set. It is easiest to work with one or two sections as a time. You can see in this picture that I started with just two wall sections.

Glue the bottom of the shamrock box to the box walls

Step 4: Glue the Top of the Shamrock Box to the Walls

Again, only apply glue to the tabs that are not part of the door of the box. If you close the door by inserting the curved tab into the slots then the box will be structurally more secure and you can do all of the top tabs at the same time.

Apply glue to the top tabs of the shamrock box

Then fold the top of the box onto the tabs and hold as the glue sets.

Fold the top of the shamrock box onto the glued tabs and hold.

After a few seconds, you can open the door and reach in with a finger to push the tabs into the top of the box to help secure them better.

Open the door of the shamrock box and press the tabs into the top of the box

Step 5: Optional Embellishments for the Shamrock Boxes

While the shamrock boxes are technically complete at this time and ready to be filled, you can take this opportunity to embellish the boxes even more, if you like.

  • Glue on some gold beads or sequins
  • Curve the leaves of another clover and add it on top of the cutout
  • Attach other cutout shapes that you have saved from other projects
  • Add washi tape around the walls
  • Be creative!
You can now embellish your shamrock boxes

Step 6: Fill the Shamrock Boxes with Treats

The last step is to fill your shamrock boxes with treats or small gifts. I filled mine with candies that were wrapped in shiny gold wrappings.

Time to fill your shamrock boxes with shiny gold treats

Select From All My DIY Boxes

I enjoy making little handmade boxes for gifts and treats. You can try some from this list of all the DIY boxes I have made:

I hope you have fun making more of these adorable gift boxes!

You can get the pattern to this and all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Learn to make these quick and easy paper shamrock boxes that you can cut on your Cricut, other craft machine, or by hand | #cricut #shamrock_boxes #clover_boxes #cricut_maker #cricut_explore #cricut_air #paper_boxes

Vinyl for Cricut: Free (or Almost Free)

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Learn how you can get vinyl for Cricut projects for FREE or nearly free!

Now that you own a craft machine such as a Cricut (or are considering buying one) and are falling in love with all the things you can do just with vinyl, how do you acquire vinyl for Cricut projects without breaking your crafting budget?

Plus, where do you get the more unusual vinyl and other adhesive films more affordably?

And, finally, I give you information about the types of vinyls that are available including the pros and cons of each.

Learn how you can get vinyl for Cricut projects for FREE or nearly free!

If you are a regular reader of my blog then you know that I own a Cricut. Specifically, I own a Cricut Maker because I want to make ALL THE THINGS with all the materials. But, if you are interested in only things that can be cut from vinyl on any of the Cricut machines or other branded craft machines, and want to learn how to acquire affordable vinyl, this blog post is for you!

My Secret to Free or Nearly Free Vinyl for Cricut Crafts

I love Cricut. I love their materials. The fans of other craft machines love their branded materials, as well. But, let’s face it, the craft-machine-branded materials are a little pricey. For the one-off projects, the price point isn’t so bad. And when you find them on sale or clearance, if you are like me, you dip a little deeper into the crafting budget to buy what you find on those sales tables because you know you will use it… someday.

Unfortunately, you do not always have the luxury of a sale and sometimes you need vinyl in volume. Sometimes you want something expendable for a test cut instead of the possible ruin of an expensive product. Maybe you want to use a cheap piece of vinyl for a single-use stencil.

I do buy Cricut-branded products the first time I try something new but, for long term or high-volume projects, I look for something more affordable.

When it comes to vinyl for Cricut projects, I rarely buy vinyl at the craft stores unless I need something specific or need it NOW.

Seriously, you can save money, lots of money, on vinyl for Cricut crafts.



How Does She Do It?

How can YOU make your cut vinyl Cricut crafting projects without spending a lot of money on the vinyl for Cricut crafts?

Make a New Friend

It is really that simple. I will walk you through the 5 Ws + H of how to make this work for you.

What are the 5 Ws + H?

  • Where can I get FREE or nearly free vinyl for Cricut?
  • Why should I do this?
  • When should I do this?
  • Who should I talk to?
  • What can I expect?
  • How do I do this?



Where can I get FREE or nearly free vinyl for Cricut

Go to your local sign shop. Wait! Don’t close this yet. Later in this post I will tell you all the steps to making this happen.

The people who work in sign shops work with vinyl every business day and their scraps are often bigger than the 12″ x 12″ size of your cutting mat. These scraps often end up in landfills. :: GASP! ::

Sign shops are often found in “strip-malls” or small commercial parks. You are likely to have the best response from an independently owned sign shop but you may also find a good relationship with your local large-chain franchise.

The common national retail chain franchises are listed below. Each of these websites has a store locator to help you find one in your area.

To find a local independent sign shop, go to Google and search for sign shop near me then allow Google to know your location. Visit their websites. If it looks like they are making very large signs or billboards that you might find on the tops of buildings, these are NOT the businesses you want. Avoid the ones that show you pictures of their extensive warehouse. You want the independent shops that are making signs for the local businesses. They make smaller signs, banners, and especially, vehicle graphics. These are the shops that are using the vinyls you want on a day-to-day basis.

I wish I had a wall of vinyl for Cricut like this!

Why should I do this?

The primary reason you are reading this blog post is because you want to save money on vinyl for Cricut crafts and projects.

There are some other reasons you should make friends with a sign shop:

  • They have access to so many possible types of adhesive films including Mylar and translucent films plus substrates (things to put vinyl on).
  • You are helping to keep some vinyl scraps out of landfills.
  • You may be able to acquire (buy) large volumes of vinyl and transfer tape through them.
  • They may be able to put you on to new tools and techniques as you develop your relationship with them.



When should I do this?

Once you have found a few local sign shops, you need to make a plan to go visit them — in person.

Yes, this is hard for those of us who are introverts (I am in the introvert camp). You need to weigh the benefits of this new potential relationship against your comfort level (and your budget). For you extroverts out there, this is yet another cool friend to drop into your back pocket.

Date and Time to Visit

The best time to visit these businesses is Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings. Fridays are usually bad because of their customers (other business owners) who have realized a need at the last-minute, including signs they need in their stores for the weekend. Mondays are usually bad because of the last-minute jobs that came into their shops on a Friday that they need to get out on Monday.

Not every shop is the same and I cannot speak for every sign shop out there. Some sign shops have a morning production meeting to go over the day’s workload, some have their meetings once per week. Some have no meetings at all. No matter when (or if) they have production meetings, they will talk with whoever walks in. Your best bet is a mid-morning time-slot. In other words, shoot for around 10:00-11:00 am to walk in their front door.



Who should I talk to?

The person you want to talk with is either the owner or general manager. In the smaller shops, the owner is probably the general manager. He or she probably also does sales, design, and some production work. It is possible that the owner may be out at an installation location or on a sales call. If this is the case, ask if you can come back tomorrow morning (or another morning you know you can get there).

Do not call ahead. Show up. Yes, you are cold-calling on them. Don’t panic. We have more to discuss about HOW to do this later.

What can I expect?

Vinyl

For the most part, if (or when) you establish this relationship, you can expect vinyl scraps. A piece of vinyl that is 12″ x 18″ or smaller is considered scrap to most sign shops. Seriously! It often gets tossed onto a shelf or into a bin for “someday” that they might need something small. Those piles eventually get so large they just throw them out and start over. They THROW THEM AWAY! I know you are cringing right now!

Scraps!

The day I visited to take these pictures, this was their pile of scraps of vinyl and pretty typical.

Look at all those vinyl Cricut crafts just waiting to happen!

Free or nearly free vinyl for Cricut crafts can come from the scrap bins of your local sign shop

You are not likely to find a wide selection of colors in their scrap bin. Mostly, they work in primary colors. For example, it is possible that they worked on a huge job all week and all their scraps are white that week. But, they will have scraps of all sorts of vinyls and other adhesive films over the course of time.

Today’s Vinyl Haul for Cricut Projects

Today, this is what they gave me.

  • Orange (in two shades)
  • Gun metal gray
  • Navy (Oracal 970)
  • Translucent Blue (can’t wait to do something “stained glass” with this!)
  • Teal
  • Red (3M ControlTac)
  • Dark Red
  • Prussian Blue
Example of free vinyl for Cricut crafting from a sign shop

I mentioned the brand and model where it was indicated on the back of the carrier paper. As you can see from the list, many of them are unidentified. I will tell you later how to identify these when I explain more about types of vinyl.

Variety of Vinyl

The sign shop will have a LOT of vinyl. This is the WALL of vinyls and other adhesive films they had in their stock today. The machine in the foreground of the picture is their vinyl cutting machine.

This is a wall of vinyl and other adhesive films at a small sign shop. Just imagine what you could do with all that vinyl for Cricut crafts!

Do not go into this expecting this to be free. Free is great and I am fortunate to have developed this relationship that I get scraps for free. Nearly free is also great. If you get scraps for free, be generous with your gratitude and appreciation. NEVER be picky unless you are specifically invited to do so.

Of note, I found it interesting that, for this particular wall of vinyl, they use shelf brackets to store their rolls of vinyl. You can consider something similar for storing your rolls for vinyl for Cricut crafts.

Storing rolls of craft vinyl using shelf brackets. You might consider something similar for storing your vinyl for Cricut crafts and projects.

Transfer Paper

In almost all of my pictures where I am working with vinyl in my Cricut crafts, you will see me using a transfer paper that looks more like masking tape. It is not clear. Sign shops order this stuff in 100 yard rolls. I acquired my 12″ x 100 yard roll from a sign shop for almost nothing. I doubt I will have to buy transfer paper any time in the foreseeable future. This is a picture of the transfer papers a sign shop uses:

Vinyl for Cricut can also mean obtaining transfer paper at a discount

Substrates

Anything you put vinyl on is your substrate. A sign shop will have access to so many flat substrates (flat because they’re used for signs) and will often end up with scraps of those, too. The common ones are Coroplast (corrugated plastic) and PVC board. But, you may also find they have aluminum sheets in various thicknesses and aluminum composite panels (plastic sandwiched between aluminum) — both of which are great for outdoor use. In the next section I show some examples of substrates you may find they have in their scrap bin.

You can use these for small signs that you can put into frames or make them a component of some other project. If they offer you scraps of substrates, then there is no reason to turn those down. You are a crafter! You can turn that into anything!

Coroplast

Coroplast is a corrugated plastic. It is very inexpensive but it will break down faster than other materials (will withstand being out in the weather for about 1 to 3 years). Very often you will see this used for political signs, large community yard sale signs, etc. It comes in several thicknesses and colors. The most common color is white and likely to be the color your local sign shop has readily available. They may have some scraps of another color left over from a custom job. This is easily cut with a knife or scissors.

Coroplast is a substrate onto which you can apply your vinyl for Cricut projects. Good for short-term outdoor projects.

PVC

PVC (PolyvinylChloride) is a very durable plastic. It is one of the world’s most widely produced synthetic material. If you want to make a craft project with something that will stand up well to weather, PVC will work well for several years but not indefinitely. A sign shop will have PVC in some pretty standard colors and a few different thicknesses. The common thicknesses are 3mm, 6mm, and 10mm. You can cut PVC with a knife (it is too thick for your Cricut).

Common colors of PVC to be used as a substrate onto which you can apply your vinyl for Cricut projects

The picture below shows several colors in the 3mm thickness that is commonly kept in sign shops.

Common colors of PVC to be used as a substrate onto which you can apply your vinyl for Cricut projects. This standard thickness is 3mm.

Aluminum Sheets

Aluminum sheets are available as finished and unfinished. In the picture below, the pink/peach color is actually white coated aluminum protected by a pink/peach protective film. The green has a green baked-on colored coating (and protected by a clear protective film until ready to use). The blue and white that you see is the protective film over a white-coated aluminum sheet. And, the last sheet is a raw aluminum sheet. If you are given aluminum scraps, you will need to have a way to cut them before you can use them for your vinyl Cricut crafts.

Some sign shops may have aluminum substrate materials in their scrap bin onto which you can apply your vinyl for Cricut crafts

Aluminum Composite Panels

Aluminum composite panels are a plastic panel sandwiched by two sheets of thin aluminum. This is a popular material with sign shops because of its durability and weather resistance. It will last longer than you. They buy these in 4′ x 8′ sheets and in pre-cut panels such as these.

Pre-cut aluminum composite sheets almost make great long-lasting substrates onto which you can apply your vinyl for Cricut crafts

You can see from this picture how it is a piece of plastic that is sandwiched between two thin sheets of aluminum. Again, you will need a way to cut aluminum before you can use scraps of these for your vinyl Cricut crafts.

Close up of an aluminum composite sheet that you might use in a Cricut craft with vinyl

It comes in several colors. Mostly, they will have white but may have other colors if they had some special jobs come in.

Colors of aluminum composite materials that you can use for Cricut crafts

While We are Here…

I thought you would find it interesting to see a professional vinyl cutting machine. Look familiar?

A professional vinyl cutting machine looks very much like your Cricut cutting machine

It looks a LOT like my Cricut but significantly wider. I’m a little envious of their tools. Can you imagine being able to cut vinyl for your Cricut crafts on something this wide!?

Vinyl cutting machine at a sign shop - wider than a Cricut but the same principle

This is what else you may expect to see in a local sign shop. This is my local shop’s wall of tools. I really do have tool-envy!

Sign shop wall of tools. Use this as inspiration for your craft room organization.

Specialty Materials

The sign shops will have customers who come in wanting something specific. It may be a specific color that is not kept in stock, it may be a paticular type of vinyl that is not normally kept in their stock, or it could be some other type of adhesive film that was used for a special order.

These materials do not often end up in their scrap bin but they do tend to sit on the shelves taking up space. As you develop your relationship with your local sign shop, this is something about which you can inquire (later). You might approach the subject by asking if they have any aging materials on which you could make an offer. Some vinyls have a “short” shelf-life (1-2 years).

Large Orders

Depending on how much of a relationship you develop with the sign shop, you may be able to order some bulk materials from them in the future. This is a conversation you can have with them well after you have an ongoing relationship. For example: your cousin asked you to make decals for the back of all the rented folding chairs for her daughter’s wedding and knows you have a craft machine. But she wants it to be a specific color and you will need a LOT of vinyl. Explain this to the shop owner and ask if they have a recommendation. Give them the opportunity to be the expert for you and the opportunity to be generous with you.



How do I do this?

Now we will get into the details about how you are going to make this new friend so you can get vinyl for Cricut crafts for free (or nearly free).

Introduction

When you walk in the door, you will likely find yourself in some sort of lobby with a counter. Have a polite and friendly smile on your face then walk up to the counter and ask if you can speak with the owner.

If you have business cards, leave them at home. You want to present yourself as a hobbyist, not a business owner.

When the owner comes out to greet you – or if it was the owner at the counter – offer your hand and tell them your name. No limp-fish handshakes but don’t try to out-squeeze the owner either. Remember, you are trying to make a new friend!

But what do I say?

This is an example of how you can start this introduction, “Hi, my name is [your first name]. I am an amateur crafter and I sometimes work with vinyl on my Cricut [or other home craft machine brand].”

Your friendly demeanor should elicit a polite response from the owner asking how he or she can help you.

How to Ask

The owner is likely busy so you want to get to the point pretty quickly.

Ask like this, “Do you have a build-up of vinyl scraps or substrate scraps you’d like to get rid of that I could cart away for you?”

Note: If you are a teacher, you can ask in terms of a donation for use by your classroom students.



How to Sweeten the Deal

Who doesn’t like a treat? Especially mid-morning when lunch time is still an hour or more away. Walk in with a plate of cookies (or box of doughnuts) and present them after introducing yourself. “I brought these cookies to thank you for taking time to talk with me.”

At this point, the owner will either turn you down (hopefully politely) or will consider what you have asked. If you are turned down, then thank the owner politely, shake hands again, and make sure they know they can keep the cookies as your thank you for talking with you. Then, try again at another shop.

If the owner invites further discussion, you may well be on your way to having a new friend!

Negotiating

There is no standard way this is going to go.

The owner may ask if you’re looking for something specific. Don’t be specific. Explain that you love experimenting with different materials. You’re a crafter, right? If you ask for something specific, that is all you will get (if you get it at all). You have to make this easy for the sign shop owner.

The owner may go to a different room and come back with a handful of scraps or a whole box full of scraps. The owner may ask what you will offer for what he is presenting to you or he may just hand them to you without asking for anything. Hopefully you get the latter.

If the owner presents you with scraps and asks if these will do, then this is your opportunity to ask the owner what you can offer in return for these scraps. You want this exchange because it gives the owner the opportunity to be generous and just give them to you, especially if you are doing him a favor by taking them off his hands (and he likes cookies).

What if I have to make an offer?

This is the scary part, right?

If the owner asks you what you will offer then you need to be able to quickly eyeball the square-footage of the pile and offer a price that makes all this worthwhile to both of you. Think about the vinyl you can buy at the craft stores. At full retail craft store pricing, you pay around $1.25 to $2.00 per square foot. What price will make this worthwhile to you? Is it half that price, a third, a quarter? That’s going to be up to you. Keep in mind, the owner probably paid somewhere between $0.40 and $0.60 per square foot for their most-used vinyl.

Something else to consider, the vinyl in that scrap bin came off of projects they did for other customers. Those customers had to pay for all the vinyl in their project, including the scrap, because a shop has no guarantee they will ever use that scrap. Throwing out those scraps (or giving them away) is no financial loss to the shop owner. This is why you are likely to get them for free.

If they are amenable to you taking scraps off their hands at this introductory visit, then you can ask, “Do you have scraps that build-up enough that I could drop by every week or two to cart them away for you? I can leave a bin for you to make it more convenient.”



YOUR Responsibilities

Assuming you have met with success, it is YOUR responsibility to keep up your end of the deal. If the deal you come up with is for you to do a pickup every week, be there every week. The minute this becomes inconvenient to the sign shop, they will not be interested in helping you.

I cannot stress strongly enough that this has to be no trouble for the shop. YOU have to make this easy for them.

If it seemed like the sweet treats were well-received, take another batch with you every so often. You want them to smile when you walk in the door.

Congratulations!

I hope you are able to get out there then establish this relationship with your local sign shop.



A Few Words About Vinyls

Sign shops have some standard vinyls they work with on a daily basis and they are of, primarily, two types, based on two manufacturing processes. Since you are going to receive scraps, you may not know exactly what you received. This section is going to teach you how to determine what kind of vinyl you have in this collection of scraps. I have a chart of these in my resource library that you can download and keep handy along with several tips on working with vinyl.

Calendered Vinyl

Most of the vinyl you are buying at the craft stores is calendered vinyl. Cricut’s standard vinyl is a calendered vinyl. Many crafters talk on the various social media about Oracal 651, 641, and 631. These are calendered vinyls of varying thicknesses.

Calendered vinyl starts with a mixture of ingredients (often plastic pellets) that are then extruded (through heated rollers) to force/press the ingredients into the plastic films.

Best used for:

  • Flat surfaces
  • Simple curved surfaces
  • Can be used on a variety of types of surfaces

Pros:

  • More scratch-resistant
  • Less expensive
  • Excellent for flat surfaces
  • Can be made in heavier/thicker sheets (3-6 mil) making them easier to handle
  • Wide range of colors and gloss levels
  • For some small projects you can get away with not using a transfer tape (such as the “locks” in my paper treasure chests)

Cons:

  • Less dimensionally stable (wants to return to its original pre-extruded shape)
  • Does not conform to shapes as well as cast vinyl
  • Not well suited to tightly curved surfaces
  • Tends to shrink when exposed to heat
  • Becomes brittle, cracks over time, especially in conditions with temperature changes
  • Durability falls in the 1 to 5 years depending on the quality, usage, and environmental exposure
  • Fewer metallic colors than cast vinyls

Cast Vinyl

In the sign-making industry, this is the premium vinyl. Cricut’s Premium Vinyl is a cast vinyl. The vinyl that crafters talk about in terms of the Oracal brand, Oracal 751 and 951, are cast vinyls.

Cast vinyl starts as a liquid, poured onto a surface then baked. This makes a “relaxed” vinyl which can be made into thinner, and more flexible, sheets.

Best Used For:

  • Complex curved surfaces
  • Exterior/weather-affected applications
  • Vehicle wraps

Pros:

  • High durability – usually 5 to 12 years
  • Dimensionally stable – Least amount of shrinkage of all the vinyls (it doesn’t have a state to try to return back to like calendered vinyls)
  • Retains color better than other vinyls, which is good for outdoor use
  • Flexible – Can be made very thin, which allows it to cover complex curves
  • Available in many metallic options

Cons:

  • Some may find the thinner material (1-2 mil) more difficult to work with (must use transfer paper)
  • Fewer gloss level options

How to Tell the Difference between Calendered and Cast Vinyl

Since you will receive scraps, you may not know what you are receiving. Some vinyl manufacturers print their product information on the carrier paper. Oracal tends to do this. 3M sometimes does this. But, there are a few manufacturers of vinyl and there is an easy test to determine the type. I even have a short video that shows you how to determine the type of vinyl.

If you separate a corner of the vinyl from its carrier paper, press your thumbnail into the vinyl as you pull on it, calendered vinyl will snap/break and cast vinyl will stretch and deform before breaking. Here is a little video of me performing this test on a few pieces of vinyl. At the end, I show you the difference between metallic in calendered and cast.

Other Posts About Cutting Vinyl

If you are new to cutting vinyl or just want to try some new projects, then you can click these links to try some of the things I have blogged about that use vinyl somewhere in the project such as using vinyl for a stencil or an etching mask.

You can get my free Vinyl Tips and Guide by signing up for my weekly newsletter. It includes three pages of tips for working with vinyl and a one-page chart that you can keep handy that explains the types of vinyls, their properties, suggested uses, etc.

By signing up for my mailing list, you also get free access all the project files (including the .SVG files) for all my blog posts in my Resource Library.

Remember to pin this to your favorite Cricut crafting board on Pinterest so you can remember how to get vinyl for your Cricut.

Learn how you can get vinyl for Cricut projects for FREE or nearly free! | #diy #cricut #vinyl #silhouette #vinyl_for_cricut #cricut_explore #cricut_maker #cricut_projects #cheap_vinyl
Learn how you can get vinyl for Cricut projects for FREE or nearly free! | #diy #cricut #vinyl #silhouette #vinylforcricut #cricutexplore #cricutmaker #cricutprojects #cheap #freevinyl
Save money on your crafting budget by getting vinyl for free by taking scraps from sign shops
You can get free vinyl for your Cricut crafting needs by asking for scraps from a sign shop. Learn the steps to take and the words to use!
Are you tired of wasting money on test cuts? Learn how you can get vinyl for Cricut projects for FREE or nearly free!
Learn how YOU can easily save money on your crafting budget by getting vinyl for free by getting scraps from sign shops

Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnet

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Learn how you can help your family members know whether the dishes in the dishwasher are clean or dirty with a clean and dirty dishwasher magnet.

Let family members know whether the dishes are clean or dirty in the dishwasher with a decorative magnet

Does your kitchen need a clean and dirty dishwasher magnet? Do you have someone in your household who doesn’t look in the dishwasher to know if the contents are clean or dirty? They leave their dirty dishes on the counter or in the sink, just assuming the dishwasher is full of clean dishes or they sometimes put their dirty dishes into the dishwasher full of clean dishes. Maybe there is someone in your home who would help with loading and unloading but they cannot tell if the dishes are clean or dirty so, they just don’t bother.

I have lived with these people and needed a solution.

We solved the issue with a clean and dirty dishwasher magnet to make it clear to everyone, including kids, spouse, and house-guests, the exact condition of the contents of the dishwasher. It even helped to change some of our habits!

You can make this by hand or cut it on your craft machine, such as the Cricut. I was able to use vinyl that I got for free, too!



Materials and Supplies to Make the Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnet

(This post contains affiliate links to some of the items I used in this project. It just means that you will help to support my blog if you make a purchase after clicking the links. There is no added cost to you!)

Materials for the clean and dirty dishwasher magnet

Note: If you want to learn how to acquire vinyl for free, you can read my post about how to talk to a sign shop to acquire their vinyl scraps. They throw away scraps that are larger than your cutting mat.



Make the Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnet by Hand

Before we even get started, before you buy the magnetic sheets, test your dishwasher to see if it will accept a magnet. While most dishwashers, like most appliances, can hold a magnet, some do not. Just do a quick check first.

The printable magnetic sheets in this project can be used in an inkjet printer. You can then print the design from the PDF in my resource library directly onto the magnet sheets. The PDF has the outlines for the design, then you can paint the parts of the design the colors you prefer. The magnetic sheets are easy to cut with an X-Acto knife or a pair of scissors.



Make the Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnet with a Craft Machine

I did all my work for my magnet with my Cricut. Use the fine point blade to cut the magnetic sheets. The magnet sheets are 8-1/2″ x 11″ (so they can go through a printer). The back side is the magnet material and the front side is a printable surface that is bonded to the magnet. They do print nicely but I wanted to use up some of my vinyl left over from a previous project.

I laid this out in two ways in the design file and both of these are in the files in my resource library.

  • 4-up: Designed for 4 magnets per sheet (one for you, three for friends)
  • 1-up: Designed for a single magnet

These steps are to make four magnets from a single sheet: one for me then the rest will be given as gifts to those who said, “That magnet on your dishwasher is brilliant!”

About the Cut Design

When I sat down to design the clean and dirty dishwasher magnet, mostly I wanted something functional, something I needed. But, since I have this blog and part of what I do is teach you how to do things, I also wanted to be able to demonstrate some techniques for you to help you learn how to work with vinyl.



Options for The Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnet

These are some options to do instead of a layer of uncut vinyl. If you do any of these then skip Step 2.

  • You can pre-print the magnet with a colorful design and apply the cut vinyl over the printing.
  • You can pre-paint the magnet sheet on the printable side. For example: Use a couple of different colors of spray paint for some creative coloring.
  • Brush on the leftover paint from painting your kitchen walls to make something to match your kitchen.

Step 1: Cut the Top Vinyl Layer

In my design, the uncut layer becomes the background for one side of the magnet and the letters of the other side of the magnet. And, by making 4 magnets, I also got to switch which was which. What this means is that it did not matter which color was the cut layer. I chose the gold color as the cut layer and the matte black as the uncut layer.

Place the vinyl on your mat then load up the design and cut. There is nothing special you need to do with the file.

Remove the vinyl from the mat then weed off the 8-1/2″ x 11″ outside piece.

Weed off the outside of the vinyl

After weeding the outside vinyl that reveals the 8-1/2″ x 11″ section, you can then weed the rest of this vinyl layer. You can weed as I did so that you have two different color combinations or weed them all the same.

Do the rest of the weeding for the clean and dirty dishwasher magnets

Apply the transfer tape. Do not pull the carrier paper off the vinyl until you are ready to apply this layer in Step 3. You can now remove this from your mat.

Apply transfer tape to the cut vinyl layer of the clean and dirty dishwasher magnet



Step 1: Apply the Uncut Vinyl

This design for the clean and dirty dishwasher magnet uses two layers of vinyl. The first layer is not cut in the craft machine. You need to cut this sheet to 8-1/2″ x 11″ because it will completely cover the magnetic sheet.

Cut the base layer of vinyl to 8-1/2" x 11"

I will use the hinge method to apply this layer of vinyl to the magnetic sheet.

Lay the magnetic sheet on your cutting mat with the magnet side down.

Make sure the black magnetic side is down

Align the magnet sheet so the top and left side of the sheet is perfectly lined up to the top and left sides of your mat. Note: the picture below shows the top of my mat on the left side of the picture.

Place the magnet sheet on the cutting mat

With the vinyl still on its carrier paper, lay it on the magnet and line it up so the top and left side of the sheet is perfectly lined up to the magnet sheet.

Line up the first layer of vinyl to the magnet

Place a strip of tape along one side. In the picture below, the tape is along the top edge of the mat but the top of the mat is in the left side of the picture. This is best for those working left-handed. If you are right-handed, rotate the mat so the taped edge is on your right side.

Tape one edge of the vinyl in place

Pull the vinyl and its carrier paper away from the magnet.

Lift the vinyl and its carrier paper away from the magnet

Continue to pull back all the way to the tape “hinge.”

Fold back the vinyl until you get to the taped edge

Again, if you are right-handed, rotate your mat so the tape-hinge in on your right. I’m giving some love to my left-handed friends in these pictures.

Begin to pull the carrier paper away from the vinyl.

Pull carrier paper away from vinyl

This is how it will look for the right-handed folks (and how you’ll see me work in the video).

For the right-handed view of pulling the vinyl from the carrier paper

Yes, there is a short video! This is a video of getting the vinyl down on the surface of the magnet.

If you have debris on your cutting mat then it may translate to looking like bubbles under your vinyl because it is pushing up on the magnet. There may also be imperfections in the printable layer of the magnet that will make your vinyl look like it is not completely pressed onto the magnet. Pulling the tape off the vinyl may cause a bubble or two.

Bubbles can often be pressed out. The imperfections of the magnetic sheet are there and you can’t get rid of them. Maybe your cut layer of vinyl will mask them.



Step 3: Apply the Cut Vinyl Layer

Start with the magnet that you still have affixed to your cutting mat (that is now covered with vinyl or that you painted) and your cut vinyl that should already have the transfer tape applied from Step 1.

Get your cut vinyl layer

There are straight edges in this layer of cut vinyl that you can use to align this layer to the vinyl-covered magnet. If you have the more opaque style of transfer tape as I have, then you may want to trim some of it away to help you with aligning this layer.

Align to the edge of the magnet and tape the edge

In the picture above, I trimmed around the word “dirty” so I could see that corner of my work surface and I trimmed along the entire side (hidden under the tape in the above picture) to help me align this layer.

And here is a picture for the left handed crafters reading this.

Left-handed view of the vinyl hinge method readiness

Instead of trying to talk you through applying the vinyl, I made a short video.

To be honest, I almost re-recorded this video. The cut on this vinyl was a little deep and it cut into the carrier paper enough that I had to “baby it” as I separated the vinyl from the carrier paper. I hate it when that happens but it sometimes does. It was a bit of a pain but I’ve dealt with this sort of thing before.

Perhaps it’s a good thing that you get to see that it’s not perfect every time. Even people who work with vinyl every day as part of their regular 9-to-5 job encounter this. So, I decided maybe it’s better that you see that it happens and you just have to be patient with it. I got through it but I won’t make you sit through it in real time. I sped up this video for you plus it has happy music in the background for your enjoyment.

After the vinyl is applied and burnished down then you can remove the transfer paper. Do not pull the transfer paper straight up. Instead, pull at an angle. You can see in the above video that I drag it along the surface of the project. You will now have all your layers stacked then ready to cut the magnets.

The clean and dirty dishwasher magnets are ready to be cut



Step 4: Cutting the Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnets

To cut the magnets, upload the cut file that has the four rounded corner rectangles then click Make it in Cricut Design Space.

Design Space will automatically put the edge of the cut file in the upper left corner of your cutting mat. This is the corner where you have aligned everything else and the cut vinyl layer has enough border to deal with the quarter-inch space where the Cricut won’t cut.

Note: Materials Setting

If your Cricut has a dial for the materials setting then change it to Custom. From the materials selection screen, type in magnet to narrow the selection then select printable magnetic sheet. The name of this material can (and has) change over time in Design Space — just look for a magnetic material that uses the fine point blade and a single cut until you know your own materials. In other words, err on the side of under-cutting vs. over-cutting. This setting uses the fine point blade. The Avery brand of printable magnet plus the two layers of vinyl took four passes. Your specific materials may vary.

Start by loading the project into your machine then start the cutting. When it finishes, do NOT eject the mat. Leave it there in your Cricut then lift a corner of the magnet to see if it cut all the way through. If not, press the button with the Cricut logo (not the flashing double-arrow).

Repeat until the magnet is cut all the way through. Again, on my machine, it took four passes. When it has cut through then you can eject it from the machine and weed the outside of the magnet off of the mat.

When you make this, you can leave a note in the comments of this post with the brand of magnetic sheets you used and what settings worked for you. Then others can benefit from everyone’s experiences.

Weed the outside of the magnet then remove the completed magnets



Step 5: Time to Use Your NEW Clean and Dirty Dishwasher Magnet

Remove your magnets from your cutting mat.

Your clean and dirty dishwasher magnet is ready to use. This is a picture of my new magnet on our dishwasher.

Your clean and dirty dishwasher magnet is ready to use

This is way we use the clean and dirty dishwasher magnet in my house…

Position 1: Dishwasher is Running

When the dishwasher is running, it is too quiet. We often do not even remember that it is running. Seriously, it’s that quiet! So, whoever starts the dishwasher puts the magnet with the clean side up above the dishwasher handle. Anyone who reaches for the handle can’t miss the magnet and should see that they should not open the dishwasher.

Clean and dirty dishwasher magnet position when the dishwasher is running

Position 2: Dishwasher is Clean

Once the dishwasher is done running, whoever pops open the dishwasher to let moisture escape so the dishes can complete their drying, that person moves the magnet to the right side of the dishwasher with the word clean on top. We also let the magnet hang off the edge by a small amount, just because it is easier to grab.

Clean and dirty dishwasher magnet position when the dishwasher is clean

Position 3: Dishwasher is Dirty

Whoever empties the dishwasher moves the magnet to the left side of the dishwasher and flips the magnet over so the word dirty is on top.

Clean and dirty dishwasher magnet position when the dishwasher is dirty

You can get the patternsto this and all my DIY and craft projects in my Resource Library by signing up for my weekly newsletter.

Remember to pin this to your favorite DIY and/or crafting board on Pinterest!

Help your family know if the dishwasher is clean or dirty with a clean and dirty dishwasher magnet | #diy #craft #cricut #clean_dirty_dishwasher_magnet #dishwasher_magnet

Other Posts About Cutting Vinyl

If you are new to cutting vinyl or just want to try some new projects, then you can click these links to try some of the things I have blogged about that use vinyl somewhere in the project such as using vinyl for a stencil or an etching mask.

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