Last week, I perfected the cutting technique on my Cricut machine by creating a floral design from cardstock paper. See the picture below for reference.
Uncertain about what to create this week, I turned to Cricut Design Space for inspiration. The platform offers a selection of free templates. However, it also encourages signing up for Cricut Access, which grants access to over 750,000 images. Initially reluctant, my inexperience with Cricut made me feel restricted. Consequently, I opted for the 30-day free trial of Cricut Access. Once the trial ends, I have the option to cancel or subscribe annually for $129.99. As I explored the vast image library on Cricut Access, a particular design caught my eye—a decal for a plant pot! (See photo below)
I clicked the ‘create’ button at the bottom of the template, and it uploaded the image into the Cricut design space. Then, I needed to determine the size required for the pot I intended to use. Lacking a physical measuring tool, I resorted to the measuring app located in the utilities section of my iPhone, which was included with the phone at purchase. Below are the photos of me digitally capturing the measurements of my plant pot.
After taking measurements, I returned to the design space and adjusted the dimensions to 9cm by 10cm. Then, I had to sift through the samples of vinyl included with my Cricut machine to determine the most suitable one for my project. I’ve also come across numerous mentions of “mirroring” a project, but I’m uncertain if it’s necessary in this case. I’ll need to resolve this before beginning. Upon consulting Copilot, I located a set of step-by-step instructions.
“Creating a decal for a plant pot using a Cricut machine is a fun and creative project! Here’s a simplified guide to help you get started:
- Design Your Decal:
- Use Cricut Design Space to create or upload your design1.
- Customize the design with text, images, and colors to fit your plant pot’s dimensions.
- Prepare Your Materials:
- Choose the right type of vinyl for your decal. For plant pots, permanent vinyl is a good choice as it’s water-resistant2.
- Gather your Cricut machine, vinyl, weeding tools, and transfer tape.
- Cutting the Design:
- Load your vinyl onto the cutting mat and into the Cricut machine.
- Set the material type to vinyl in Cricut Design Space and start the cutting process3.
- Weeding:
- Applying Transfer Tape:
- Apply transfer tape over your design. Use a scraper tool to ensure it adheres well3.
- Transferring the Decal:
- Carefully peel the transfer tape, lifting your design from the backing paper.
- Position the decal on your plant pot and press it down firmly.
- Slowly remove the transfer tape, leaving the decal on the pot.
- Finishing Touches:
- Smooth out any bubbles and ensure the edges are well adhered.
And voilà! You’ve created a custom decal for your plant pot.”
I also came across this YouTube video that walks you through each step if you are more of a visual learner like myself, you will find this helpful. Although the project I have chosen is a bit different than the one in the video, it is still the same steps that I will need to follow.
In this project, I had the opportunity to work with vinyl, including weeding, applying transfer tape, and using a scraper tool to eliminate air bubbles. The process was relatively straightforward, although I neglected to adjust my machine’s settings to ‘vinyl’ as instructed in step 3. Instead, I cut with the ‘cardstock’ setting, which resulted in a deeper cut and complicated the transfer. Despite this, I managed to apply the vinyl to the tape without restarting. An unforeseen challenge was the non-flat surface of my plant pot, which made applying the vinyl quote to the ridges tricky. Overall, this project has been quite the educational experience. I’ve also produced a picture video of my project using Capcut, the tech tool I reviewed for the EDTC 300 blog post.
Pictured below is the final result of my work.
