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I have had my Cricut Explore Air II for about 9 months now, and I haven't even begun to scratch the surface on all the fun things I can do with it. So Far, I have cut out some cute cards and die cuts from paper, and a few vinyl wall decals. But what all could I be doing?
First thing to note: Cricut Explore machines are not food safe, and cannot cut fondant or similar materials.
PAPER
The first thing I did with my Cricut Explore, was cut Paper. You can cut all kinds of paper... Standard, Cardstock, Vellum and Poster Board. This makes creating very easy. You can cut paper for cards, pendants, signs, school projects, planner pages, home décor... almost any project you can think of that uses paper.
VINYL
You can easily cut Vinyl - Standard, Premium, Dry Erase, and Chalkboard. Much like paper, you can create a never-ending supply of projects using vinyl, such as wall art, decals for windows, doors, mugs, lunchboxes, etc. Plus it comes in so many great colors. There are even three shades of Holographic vinyl too.
One other thing you can use vinyl for is cutting out stencils to use for etching. I have made a few items by cutting out the words or design in vinyl and using the negative portion of the vinyl images to place on my item as a stencil. Then I use the etching cream to etch the design on my item. We made some really cute beer steins for the High School Band Oktoberfest fundraiser. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of any of the steins before they were gone.
IRON-ON (HEAT TRANSFER VINYL)
One of my new favorite things to use my Cricut Explore for is cutting out Iron-on's for sweatshirts. You can create and design your own logo's and images to use on cloths or bags. I even put my intial on my new Cricut Bags (so I don't lose them when I'm at events with other crafters.) Using the Cricut Heat Transfer Vinyl (HTV) is so simple and the finished product looks amazing.
The HTV comes in a rainbow of colors. It also comes in foil and glitter too!
CRAFT MATERIALS
You can also use Craft Materials, such as Washi Tape, Craft Foam, and Glitter Paper. This adds amazing detail and depth to all your crafting projects. Upcycled Materials such as Chipboard, Cereal Boxes and even Aluminum Cans. How many cute uses can you come up with for these items? Cricut makes Washi Sheets so you can cut out whatever shape or size you want, not just strips anymore. Plus a ton of cute colors. My mind is spinning now.....
PLASTIC AND THICK MATERIALS
Explore can cut Plastic such as Stencils, Window Acetate and Silicone. It can even handle Thick Materials such as Leather, Balsa Wood, Magnet Materials. I haven't tried this yet, but sounds promising.
FABRIC
You can use your Explore to cut Fabrics - Felt, Denim, Polyester, Burlap, Canvas. The possibilities here are endless. If you're a multimedia crafter, you definitely need a Cricut Explore! Check them out HERE!
Cricut has a wonderful resourse page loaded with information to help you know how to cut all these things with your machine. You can find out everything from mat type to pressure or blade settings HERE.
I started a Facebook Group called CRICUT EXPLORE FOR NEWBIES. It is a closed group designed for members to be able to share projects and ideas, but also ask questions and get feedback from fellow crafters who are still new to Cricut Explore without feeling intimidated or overwhelmed. If you think this is something you could benefit from, or you might have ideas/tips or tricks to share, please join us.
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