How To Make Your Own Images To Cut With Cricut

This is one in a series of posts answering some of the most frequently asked questions about the Cricut machine.  See all the other posts in the series HERE. If you still have questions feel free to reach out via email and I will get back to you.

How easy is it to upload my own images with the Cricut? 

It is pretty easy. There is another post detailing exactly how to do that, but I also wanted to share HOW to make your own images to cut with cricut.

First of all, I am using the term ‘your own images’ a little loosely.  If you purchased or downloaded a file from another site, you can upload this image into Cricut Design Space. For the sake of keeping it simple, we are calling these third party designs or custom designs ‘your own’.  To upload your design you first have to find or make your own designs.  There are many great places to find free or inexpensive files.  

Files You Can Upload

The most basic files you can upload include .jpg, .gif, .png, or .bmp files. You can also upload a .svg file.  These files can be very basic, just one layer, or can be imported (as a .svg file) to keep all of the separate layers intact – meaning one layer to cut, another to score, and maybe another to draw.  This may sound very frightening, but you don’t NEED to know all of this right now.  Just know that it is possible and if you are purchasing a file, the work is all done for you and should come with its own set of instructions.

How To Make Your Own Images To Cut With Cricut

There are different ways that you can get or make your own images to import and cut using Cricut Design Space.  Here are some examples:

• make your own quote.  Use Adobe Illustrator, Pic Monkey, or Canva to create your design and save as an image. See an example of text saved as an image on this No Sew Fabric Banner.
• Sketch, hand letter, or design something on paper.  Scan in the image or take a picture with your phone and save it to your computer.
• Use someone else’s design.  You can purchase images on etsy (search ‘cut files’ or ‘svg’). 
• Free SVG Files – a great site I recommend is Lovesvg. There are so many great designs that are free and include a commercial license (if you are making products to sell you will need it).
• Facebook Groups – there are some large groups for Cricut users and people share projects and files there.  Lots of people in the group will point you in the right direction for a specific image or able to design you something custom for a small fee.
• Blogs – There are so many great files available for free.  Search google and pinterest.

Sites that offer SVG files:

• SVG Cuts 
  Craft Bundles – also has a weekly free file
  Lia Griffith – She is the queen of paper flowers. She offers unlimited file downloads with her membership options.

Once you have your image / graphic / word designed and saved to your computer you are ready to upload the image to Cricut Design Space!  Read here to learn how to upload your own images into Design Space.