Are you wondering “what projects can you make with a Cricut?” What about whether there are free Cricut projects you can make? I have made a ton of Cricut projects and am sharing a few for inspiration today—including projects that you can make to sell! This post was sponsored by Cricut.
What Cricut projects can I make to sell? A beginner’s guide!
Hi all! If you have a Cricut machine, you know it’s easy to keep busy with all of the different projects the machines can help you make. But what if you’re a beginner? The machines can be overwhelming—but they really are for everyone!
So today I’m working with Cricut today to get back to basics. Because Cricut machines can be powerful tools to help you jumpstart a creative small business. And using them is not complicated! Especially with simple projects.
And even if you’re not looking to sell Cricut projects, you can also consider this to be a guide for what I consider to be the 5 easiest Cricut projects to make and keep for yourself 🙂
Cricut 101: Machines & materials
The machine I’ll be using for today’s post is the Cricut Explore 3. I’ve also owned or own a Joy (read more about the Cricut Joy specifically), an Explore Air 2, and a Maker. You can check out my run-down of all of the Cricut machines on my “Which Cricut Should I Buy? Updated for 2022” post.
I wanted to keep this post as basic as possible to cater to all Cricut skill levels. So you can do all of the projects I will outline on an Explore machine. You can use a more expensive Maker machine, of course. I’m just not spotlighting any projects that rely on materials you can only cut on a Maker.
The three main materials the projects use are adhesive vinyl, iron-on/heat-transfer vinyl, and Infusible Ink, which is a really cool line of transfer materials Cricut rolled out a few years ago. I will reference some additional tools as well—some required, some nice to have.
Design Space & things to keep in mind when making projects to sell
Whatever you choose to make, you can use Cricut’s free Design Space software to put your design together. The software itself is free, and you can upload personal designs and fonts to work with. But the easiest option is to choose from the Design Space image library. It contains hundreds of thousands of images and fonts.
Not all of these are free to use with your free Design Space download, though. With your free Design Space account, you get access to 1,000+ images and 15+ fonts. Everything else, you can either pay a one-time payment for or obtain via a Cricut Access membership.
Paying a few bucks for content is worth it if you are going to use it to make multiple items to sell. You’ll likely earn back your investment quickly. But if you are a heavy Design Space user, it’s probably smart to sign up for a Cricut Access membership.
A membership entitles you to 200,000+ images, 700+ fonts, 250+ ready-to-make projects, and discounts on licensed content (more on licensed content in a bit). It’s a monthly membership that you can pay monthly—or yearly for a discount.
Can I sell things I’ve made using Cricut designs?
The short answer is—much of the time, yes. If you are using an image from Cricut’s Design Space that has a green “a” next to it, that means it is part of Cricut’s Image Library Subscription. You’re good to go with this content.
Cricut has a published “Angel Policy” that governs this. If you want to sell things you’ve made using Cricut’s Design Space content, it’s very important that you read the entire Angel Policy on their website. It’s dense, but we want to stay legal 🙂
I will provide you with an overview of what the policy states here:
- You can sell up to 10,000 completed projects annually (i.e., cards, scrapbook pages, finished cakes), using cuts made with Cricut products.
- You can use all images and fonts that are part of the Cricut Image Library Subscription (content with the green Cricut “a” in Design Space). Images that are not part of a Cricut Image Library Subscription may be licensed content that is subject to Third Party Rights Restrictions.
- You cannot sell individual, unassembled cuts using Cricut products (i.e., mass producing individually-cut letters or shapes to re-sell) nor produce and sell items that incorporate licensed content.
- You cannot use licensed content. Cricut has a bunch of designs that they license from various companies. This includes but is not be limited to Disney, Sesame, Marvel, Hello Kitty, Warner Bros, Star Wars, and Nickelodeon designs.
- You should include a notice stating “Includes Copyright Material of Cricut” in a reasonable size and location on items you produce to sell—or on tags or labels for such items.
Below is an example of what the images in Design Space look like. See how the Elmo one doesn’t have the green Cricut “a”? You can’t use this one on projects to sell. But you can use all of the others in this shot.
5 projects Cricut beginners can make to sell
Now you know what you need to get started and what you can and cannot use in Cricut’s Design Space. So let’s talk about what you can make! There are so many things you can make, but I will be focusing on 5 products Cricut beginners can make to sell.
For the first four items, I will share past projects I’ve created. For the fifth project, I’ll share a simple tutorial for how to design in Design Space and make the project on a Cricut Explore 3!
1. Decals
The first Cricut project you can make and sell is probably the most common Cricut project—a decal. A decal is kind of like a sticker in that it is sticky, but it is more durable and generally is associated with something larger.
Or something that is a more complicated design that would be difficult to transfer without using the assistance of transfer tape. Ever wonder how decals with multiple letters and words transfer flawlessly? First you stick the decal pieces to transfer tape. And then you use the tape to transfer the decal to a surface.
It is more durable because it is often made of some sort of vinyl. You can easily cut vinyl on any Cricut machine, making the possibilities for decals endless.
You’ll generally see decals on the back of cars and sometimes in windows, on bikes, as decor on walls, and anywhere else you want sometimes to stick for the long haul. Sometimes decals can be synonymous with stickers, but stickers are generally not as permanent, are smaller, are single images, and are sometimes printed.
(Note that Cricut’s Angel Policy does not permit you to produce and sell individual stickers or sheets of stickers using Cricut images. However, it does allow you to sell stickers if they are part of a completed project.)
Here is an example of a decal I made with Cricut Joy’s Smart Vinyl. I cut my daughter’s name out of vinyl and transferred it to her little chair. This has remained now for several years, so it has a lot of durability! (See this project and more in my What Can You Make With Cricut Joy? post.)
I also chose the decal route to decorate my daughter’s room in our old house. Using vinyl decals is a super easy way to decorate a room when you can’t or don’t want to use paint.
2. Tote Bags
Tote bags are also a great choice to make and sell using a Cricut machine. You can buy tote bags in bulk online and use iron-on designs, or you can buy Infusible Ink blanks and make gorgeous Infusible Ink designs.
If you are using Infusible Ink, make sure you are using a compatible blank product. You can read more about how to make an Infusible Ink tote bag for more, including details about how Infusible Ink works. Below are examples of tote bags I’ve made!
If you search “tote bag” in the Design Space “projects” area, you’ll find a TON of different ready-to-make projects, too. No designed required, and plenty are permissible for use with tote bags you’re selling.
3. T-shirts, sweatshirts, and other apparel
T-shirts, sweatshirts, and other apparel are also a very popular item to make and sell with a Cricut machine. I have a whole post on the best Cricut machine to use to make t-shirts.
You can customize pretty much any piece of clothing using iron-on/heat-transfer vinyl. I do recommend investing in an EasyPress for t-shirts—it really does help ensure smooth, even, and blemish-free transfers.
I especially recommend using an EasyPress if you are making an Infusible Ink design using Cricut blanks. Below are a few examples of gorgeous Infusible Ink shirts I’ve made. You can see that the color transfer is simply gorgeous!
4. Mugs
When it comes to making mugs to sell, you have a few different options. You can use permanent adhesive vinyl to cut a design and adhere it to basically any mug. Or you can use a Cricut mug blank, Infusible Ink sheets, and a Cricut Mug Press to permanently infuse a design!
I have done both. It really just depends on what type of design I’m going for and if I want to use a specific mug. Below you’ll see a few examples. (See my full mug press tutorial for more on using it and to see more mugs!)
If you search “mug” in Design Space, you’ll find a ton of ready-to-make projects that only cost a few bucks or are free with a Cricut Access membership.
5. Tumblers
Tumblers are extremely popular, versatile, and practical. I am drinking out of a tumbler as I write this post! So they obviously make for a great Cricut project that you can sell. You can buy tumbler blanks at basically any craft store, or you can buy them in bulk online to cut down costs.
With tumblers, you’re constrained to using adhesive or iron-on vinyl. I personally don’t have experience using iron-on vinyl with tumbler designs, but there are plenty of tutorials online. Permanent adhesive vinyl is probably the easiest choice.
How to use adhesive vinyl on a tumbler
I have linked to tutorials for all of the suggested projects throughout this post. But I don’t have any tutorials for customizing tumblers! So I’m going to walk you through how to put together a project in Design Space, cut it in vinyl on a Cricut machine, and adhere to a tumbler. Let’s get to it.
Step 1: Choose a design
Remember to look for images and fonts in Design Space that have the green Cricut “a.” This means that they are part of the Cricut Image Library, and you can use them on products you are planning to sell. Size appropriately based on your tumbler’s shape and size.
Step 2: Cut the design into permanent vinyl
Next you’ll send your design to your Cricut machine and cut it into permanent adhesive vinyl. You do NOT need to mirror adhesive vinyl designs. Weed the negative space out of the cut design using a weeding tool until you’re left with only the parts of the design you want on your tumbler.
Step 3: Clean the tumbler
Even if your tumbler is brand new, I recommend wiping it down with rubbing alcohol and letting it dry completely. This will remove anything that could potentially interfere with the vinyl adhesion.
Step 4: Transfer the design
Next, spread transfer tape over the design and remove the vinyl from its paper backing. Gently wrap the vinyl design onto your tumbler, pressing down as you go and smoothing it out to avoid bubbles. Once the design is completely adhered, gently peel away the transfer tape.
And that’s it! Definitely check out my Free Printable Tumbler Care Cards to use for your tumbler projects, too. There aren’t too many special care instructions, but you definitely want to remind people not to put them in the dishwasher or use super hot water!
And that’s it! If you’re new to Cricut and wondering what projects you can make to sell, I hope you found this post useful. There is a ton of inspiration out there, and Cricut makes the possibilities truly endless! Happy making.
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