Cricut Lingo 101: A beginners guide to the terms you need to know.
Starting your Cricut journey is so exciting - but if you've ever jumped into a crafting Facebook group or watched a YouTube tutorial and felt completely lost by the lingo, you're not alone! We've out together this handy glossary to help you decode the most common Cricut terms so you can craft with confidence.
The Machine & Software
Cricut Design Space - The free app where you create upload, and prepare your designs before sending them to your Cricut machine to cut. You do not need the below subscription to operate your machine.
Cricut Access - A subscription service that gives you access to thousands of ready-made images, fonts, and project templates inside Design Space. This is not a necessary purchase, there are others available.
Canvas - The working area inside design space where you build and arrange your designs before cutting.
Calibration - The process of fine-tuning your machine so your cuts and prints line up perfectly.
Cutting & Materials
HTV (Heat Transfer Vinyl) - A special vinyl that's applied to fabric using heat. Perfect for personalising t-shirts, tote bags, jumpers & more!
Adhesive Vinyl - A self-stick vinyl used on hard surfaces like mugs, glass, timber signs and walls.
Stencil Vinyl - A low tack vinyl used as a mask for painting or etching onto surfaces like glass and wood. It can also be used for airbrushing onto fabric.
Infusible Ink - Cricut's own sublimation heat transfer system where the ink actually bonds for a smooth seamless finish. This product can only be used with specialised blank products.
Mat - The sticky cutting mat that holds your material in place while your machine cuts. The different coloured mats have different levels of grip for different materials.
Weeding - The process of removing the excess vinyl from around your cut design. A weeding tool makes this so much easier. There are many available - see our tools blog post for more information. (coming soon)
Bleed - A small amount of extra design area added around the edges to account for any slight movement during cutting or printing.
Vinyl & Application terms
Transfer Tape - A clear/frosted tape used to pick up adhesive vinyl designs and transfer them onto your surface without losing their placement. We have more information in our post - What is transfer tape?
Mirror/Mirroring - Flipping your design horizontally before cutting HTV, this is essential, so your design reads correctly once it's pressed onto fabric.
Cold Peel vs Hot Peel - Refers to when you remove the carrier sheet from your HTV. Cold peel means waiting until it cools down; hot peel means removing it straight away while still warm. Always remember to check your vinyl's instructions as different brands have different guidelines.
Carrier Sheet - The clear or coloured backing on HTV that holds your design together during cutting and application.
Design Terms
SVG (Scalable Vector Graphic) - The most popular file format for Cricut designs. SVG files can be scaled to any size without losing quality.
Weld - A Design Space function that joins overlapping shapes or letters into one single cut line. Great for cursive fonts.
Slice - A tool that cuts one shape out of another, creating a new design from the overlap.
Offset - Adding a border or shodow layer around your design for a layered effect.
We hope this helps you feel more at home in the Cricut community! Bookmark this page for next time you come across a term that has you scratching your head. Happy Crafting! 🎉
Sarah
Vibrant Vinyl Co