Updated on October 18, 2024
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Cricut. All opinions are 100% mine.
How to Use the New Cricut Joy. Learn about the newest Cricut machine and how to make three simple projects – a card, vinyl sign, and iron-on shirt.
I recently received the new Joy from Cricut, and I have to say it is so fun! The small, compact size, along with the ability to cut without a mat makes it so easy to use – anywhere! I was able to whip up three easy little projects in no time at all.
Thank you to Cricut for sponsoring this post, providing me with a machine, and some of the materials for this post.
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All About Cricut Joy
The Cricut Joy makes crafting simple and easy. You can easily complete a project with one color material in under 15 minutes. And with its small size, it makes it portable to craft wherever you are.
Even if you already have one of the larger Cricut machines, this portable machine is a great addition for fast, easy crafts on the go.
Small Size
It is Cricut’s smallest cutting machine ever. You can fit it in a cubby or on the counter, making it perfect for people without a lot of space or a dedicated craft room. The materials you use with it are also smaller and you don’t need a mat, so you can dedicate even less space for crafting.
You can purchase a carrying tote that makes it easy to take your Joy with you to any room in your house, a friend’s house, or even a craft night.
Mats Optional
One of the coolest new features is that you can use the Cricut Joy Smart materials without a cutting mat! You only need a couple of supplies to complete a project from start to finish.
Today, I am going to share three simple projects you can make in just minutes using your new Joy machine.
Cricut Joy Card
How many times have you been ready to go to a birthday party or last-minute event and realized you needed a card? If you keep a stack of the insert cards on hand, you can have a handmade card ready to give in just minutes.
One of my favorite features is the new Card Mat. You don’t need glue or any extra materials. All you need is the Card Mat and a package of Insert Cards. There are tons of pre-designed card designs in Cricut Design Space to choose from.
Supplies:
- Cricut Joy
- Card Mat
- Insert Cards, Romantic Sampler
I created a card using a pre-designed image that says “Thinking of You”.
Cricut Design Space File: Thinking of You Card
Related: How to Use Images in Cricut Design Space
Open the file and click Make It.
On the mat preview page, you can select from four different options for how you will cut the materials – Without Mat (for Cricut Smart materials only), On Mat, on Card Mat (for pre-folded cards), or Multiple Ways (for use with multiple layered designs).
Once you have chosen the On Card Mat option, click Done. Then, choose the material size. My cards are 4.25″ x 5.5″ so I chose that from the drop-down menu. Click Continue.
Choose the material from the options at the top. For this card, you will choose Insert Card – Cardstock.
Load the pre-folded card on the Card Mat. The backside of the card will slide under the top plastic layer. Then, press the top of the card onto the sticky mat.
Load the Card Mat into the Joy machine. The Joy senses when materials are being fed into the rollers and will automatically load the materials and/or mat without having to press any buttons.
Click Go on the Design Space screen.
When the design is cut out, the screen will prompt you to Unload the mat.
To assemble the card, slide an insert into the four corners slits in the card behind the design on the front.
Iron-on Shirt
At the beginning of this year, I started doing yoga. I love it so much, even though I am a beginner and still struggle with a lot of the poses. I created an adorable yoga shirt I can wear when I work out.
Supplies:
- Cricut Joy
- Smart Iron-on Holographic, Dahlia
- EasyPress 2
- Protective Sheet
- T-Shirt
I started by creating a design to say YOGA on my shirt with a lotus flower in place of the letter O. Open the design space file and fit it to your own t-shirt size. I used the template for a women’s v-neck shirt, size large, for my design.
Related: How to Use Templates in Cricut Design Space
Cricut Design Space File: Yoga T-Shirt
Click Make It. On the mat preview page, you will be asked whether you are cutting Without Mat (for smart materials) or With Mat. Click Without Mat and then Done.
Select Mirror for the image. At the top, you will see the length of the material you need to cut the design. Then, click Continue.
Choose the material from the menu. I used Smart Iron-on Holographic. Load the iron-on into the machine (without a mat) with the shiny side down.
After the machine has cut out the design, weed the excess iron-on. A weeding tool can be helpful to remove the small parts of the design from the backing.
Use the interactive heat guide to determine which settings you need for the EasyPress 2. I used Smart Holographic Iron-on and a Polyester shirt.
Follow the instructions for transferring the design to the shirt.
For my materials, I did a cold peel, which means let the design completely cool before peeling off the liner. It is also recommended to use the protective sheet with polyester.
This shirt turned out so cute! The holographic iron-on is hard to photograph but looks amazing in person. It changes from pink to blue to purple, depending on the angle and the light.
Vinyl Sign
The Cricut Joy can cut up to 4.5″ wide and 20 feet long!
I’ll admit when I first saw that it only cuts up to 4.5″ wide I was worried I wouldn’t be able to create larger scale items like large wooden signs. I knew I could cut the length I needed but would I be able to make a cute sign bigger than 4.5″ tall? The answer is yes!
Supplies:
- Cricut Joy
- Smart Vinyl Permanent, Beachside Sampler
- Transfer Tape
I found a blank wooden sign at Walmart. Smart vinyl comes in sampler packs that include five different colors. The Beachside pack had colors that would be a great fit for my craft room.
Helpful Tip: Since you can cut up to 20 feet using smart vinyl, the sky is the limit for how long your sign can be. If you are doing multiple layers, just be sure that no individual part of your design is wider than 4.5″.
Open the craft room sign file in Cricut Design Space. My sign is 10″ x 12″. If you are creating a different size sign, click customize, and adjust the size of the design. Click Make It.
Cricut Design Space File: Craft Room Sign
Again, you will be asked how you plan to cut the materials – Without Mat (for Cricut Smart materials only), On Mat, on Card Mat (for pre-folded cards), or multiple ways. Select Without Mat to use with the Smart Vinyl.
The mat preview page shows exactly the length of vinyl you need for each layer, so double check you have enough before you cut. The sampler packs come in 12″ lengths for each color. You can also get 20′ rolls of Smart Vinyl for larger projects.
Click Continue. Choose Smart Vinyl – Permanent from the materials list. Then, load and cut each color of vinyl for the project.
Weed the excess vinyl and apply to the board using transfer tape.
This sign is a cute addition to my craft room. And it took less than 15 minutes to make!
I am excited to play more with this machine and share even more projects with you. My label making heart can’t wait to try out the writable vinyl so I can label all the things! If you have any questions about the new Cricut Joy, please feel free to leave them in the comments, or learn more at Cricut.com.
Ready to buy? You can purchase Cricut Joy online or in-stores.
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You may also like:
- Cricut Design Space Basics
- Cricut Maker vs. Explore Air 2
- Cricut Gift Guide for the Beginner Crafter
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