I am still learning when it comes to using my Cricut machine, but there is one method that I have learned that I definitely want to share with you! For years I have been using PicMonkey to edit all of my photos, and I have recently found out that you can upload the image files from PicMonkey directly into Cricut Design Space and create a cut file! It is super easy, quick, and inexpensive, which has made it so much easier for me to create beautif
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How to Create a Cut File Using PicMonkey:
Create an image for Cricut on PicMonkey
When you go to picmonkey.com (you will have to sign up), click on “Create New.” From there, you will see the following screen:
Click on blank canvas, and select a canvas that is an appropriate size for your design. When you click on “Make it” or a template, it will then prompt you to name your design and pick which folder you would like to have your file saved to in your Hub (that’s where PicMonkey saves all of your images for you so you can go back and edit them later).
Once you are in the editor, you have a lot of different options to create beautiful graphics. The screen for the editor will look like this:
I would highly recommend you take some time to play around with the different features of PicMonkey. There are so many different things you can do that you can spend all day working with it! For creating graphics to use in Cricut Design Space, I typically focus on the text and graphics menus.
Within the text menu, you will be able to add text using any of the fonts installed on your computer or any of the fonts available through PicMonkey (there are a lot!). If you are creating a cut image, just be careful about fonts that may not create solid letters. For example, some of the brush stroke fonts have gaps throughout them which makes the cut file look a little sloppy.
In the graphics menu, there are tons of different shapes and designs you can add to your image that can easily be converted to a cut image. There is a search feature if you are looking for a particular image, or you can just look through the different categories. In this sample image below, I used one of the wreaths that they had available.
Once you are happy with your image, click on Export to save a copy of the file to your computer. This will allow you to download a flattened copy in several different file formats. I download my files as .png which works for Cricut Design Space.
Upload your image file into Cricut Design Space
Launch Cricut Design Space and click on New Project. Then, to upload your image, click on Upload from the side menu and click on Upload Image.
You can either drag and drop your image into the box or browse to find the image you downloaded. Once you have selected your image file, you want to choose the option for Moderately Complex. When you continue, you will then need to select the areas that you would like remove. Make sure you click on the background and all of the spaces between letters and gaps in images.
Once you have selected all of the areas you want to erase, click Continue. You will now have the option to save the image as a Print then Cut image or a Cut image. I always save mine as Cut images because I typically use my designs to create vinyl decals or stencils.
Your image will now show up in your uploaded images and you can insert it into Design Space just like any other image file. Make it the size that you want it to be and cut away!
Project Ideas
If you are looking for a way to use what you learned, here are some great DIY projects that you can find on my blog using this awesome process!
First up is an easy classroom sign you can make with just paint sticks and some embellishments! You can find the free tutorial here.
Here is another fun tutorial for making an entryway sign to remind visitors to remove their shoes!
Plus, here is a tutorial with inspiration to make a wooden sign to display your photos.
I hope this tutorial helps you better understand how to create images in PicMonkey to use in Cricut Design Space. If you have any additional tips or feedback, I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
Happy crafting!
~ Candace 🙂