A Beginners Guide to Paper Cutting with Your Cricut or Other Machine

Studies have shown that doing crafts is one of the best things you can do for your mental health. We find crafting to be quite relaxing and we can do it for hours on end. Paper cutting is just one of those areas of crafting that you can get involved in for the sake of your mental health.

We love other crafts too but today, we want to share with you how you too can get involved with paper cutting, especially since we have been having so much fun after upgrading to a Cricut Maker from our handy Cricut Explore Air2.

How does one get involved with paper cutting

Do you remember as a child when you used to fold a bit of paper into two and draw and colour a picture on it for your mom or dad or sibling’s birthday? You were actually indulging in paper cutting. Did you enjoy it? Did you use to cut out a cat or other pet to add to the card? That’s paper cutting.

If like us, you then got into using stencils or dyes to cut out your bits of paper for card making, you have upgraded, so congratulations.

This is time-consuming though, and hard on the hands. Also, the quality and quantity you can produce using those methods could do with improving, don’t you think?

How you can improve your paper cutting game

What you can do is to move along with the technology and actually get yourself a cutting machine such as a Cricut or Silhouette Cameo. Those crafters who have these machines concur that it has been a game-changer for them. You can use this with your phone, tablet, or laptop.

By sending a digital message through your device, and loading your cutting machine with the chosen paper, your designs can be cut out of paper and your craft projects look much more professional.

Since the lockdown, many have been getting in on the paper cutting game and a lot of people have even started a small business selling cards, shadow boxes, wall hangings, and photo memorabilia for birthdays and other special occasions.

How to get nice templates to use for paper cutting

There are several online sites from which you can legally source paper cut templates One of the most common ones, known for their excellent range of files, and their customer service is Design Bundles. The site is easy to navigate and you just need to use the search box at the top to search for the paper cut templates you are looking for.

Here is an example: I searched for paper flower templates and this is what the site looked like:

There are many so choose from and as you can see, the prices are good too.

Who use paper cutting files

Papercutting files are used by the everyday person who wants to design projects that look professional. They are also used by people who also sell their craftwork. Using files like those from Design Bundles gives you legal rights to sell the products that you then produce.

Where can you get paper cutting files from?

The legitimate way to get paper files is to purchase them from sites such as Design Bundles. It is for people who love design elements and also those who love to save money. It puts designs into bundles for you and always offer them at ridiculously low prices. And there’s almost always a sale going on there.

Sadly though, when the sale is over, it’s over. There are many ‘expired’ bundles on the site so you really do need to get what you want when you see it available.

What results you can expect

When you purchase a paper cutting bundle from Design Bundles, do not expect to get a physical product. It doesn’t work like that. What you actually get is the file bundle in an email to the address you provided.

You need to then download and save the files (I suggest that you give them realistic file names so that you can find them easier when you are ready for them.)

Having the files on your phone or tablet or computer, allows you to then upload them to Design space (the design program if you are using a Cricut machine) or Sihouette studio if you are using a Silhouette Cameo or to the design software for the cutting machine you have.

From there, you can design all the paper cutting ideas you have in mind.

Here are some of my paper cutting projects

The twirly orange paper on my cutting mat is the flower I cut out using the small rose file from Design Bundles. I then twirl the flower from the end (the middle of the flower) towards the inner curl. Can you see the circle in the middle of the flower? That is the base and all I need to do is to add a spot of glue there and add the rounded, twirled bundle to form a rose. I think it’s beautiful.

Can you imagine the amount of work you would have to do if you had to cut out all 40 pieces needed to complete a shadow box?

Let me know what you think not just of my design, but of also what the thought is saying. Use the comment box below.

I think it speaks to one’s creativity and also to what we are experiencing today as human beings.

You can always use the files to create your own piece.

Here’s another possibility using paper cut files on Design Bundles if you search for BLACK HEAD SILHOUETTES or BALLERINA SILHOUETTES.

The head is made of paper and then I have gone ahead and added a piece of tulle fabric for the dress and a few rolled fabric flowers for emphasis. What do you think?

The possibilities are endless with paper cutting crafts. I am sure you can spring some surprises using paper and some SVG files.

Tell us in the comments what you think. Feel free to share some of your designs with us or share them with us on Pinterest.