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HOW TO USE IRON ON VINYL OR HTV ON PAPER

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How to use iron-on vinyl or HTV with a Cricut machine for paper crafts.

When I found out HTV (a.k.a. Iron-On Vinyl) could be used on PAPER, I was over the moon! Cutting smaller or more intricate pieces with my Cricut Maker from card stock can sometimes be a lesson in futility, despite having a clean, sticky mat, a brand new blade, and all the right settings. Enter Heat Transfer Vinyl. I bought some to use with my Cricut to make cute Tees for my grand-littles and loved how easy it was to work with, so I wanted to try it out on paper for myself.

I’m stoked to share that it is fun, easy and WOW! So far, I’ve only tried holographic and glitter HTVs—specifically Cricut Iron-On brand. Because I had it on hand. I made a few mistakes, and learned some tips I share in the video tutorial below. But, for your future reference, keep the following in mind:

  • Anything you plan to cut from Iron-on Vinyl/HTV needs to be “mirrored” in Design Space; you’re cutting through the vinyl from the BACK side and if you don’t mirror, words and such will not read correctly when you flip it over.

  • Select the proper settings, or as close as you can get, in Design Space to the material you’re using; I was cutting through Holographic Iron-On Vinyl for my Lava Lamp Shaker and mistakenly chose just “iron-on” vinyl. It didn’t “kiss cut” properly and I wasn’t able to properly weed the design and had to try again. We all make mistakes and sometimes waste supplies when we are learning something for the first time; it’s OK. Even pros occasionally forget.

  • Always place iron-on/HTV type materials FACE down onto the cutting mat; I think of it as “pretty” side down, ugly side lookin’ up at ya’.

  • If the vinyl is curling up on the mat or the mat doesn’t have enough stick-um to hold it down in place (critical), blue painter’s tape will really help! Apply some along all the outer edges to anchor the vinyl into place. It’s important the material does not shift/move during the cutting process.

  • When working with GLITTER HTV a weeding box will be your best friend! I go over this in the video and you’ll understand when you watch why it’s a great thing! After cutting, you can place the vinyl onto a light table/pad to better see where the cut lines are when weeding; alternatively, if you don’t have a light table/pad, you can tape it to a window where the natural light will help you see those cut lines better. You can also reference the original design visually to help guide you what parts need to be weeded and which should be left on the carrier sheet.

  • Whatever brand of iron-on vinyl/HTV you are using, read the manufacturer’s recommended heat settings, length of time for pressing and whether or not it’s a warm, cool or cold peel (to remove the carrier sheet). Every product line is different and all that info will vary from one to the next (including the various types of HTV made by each company).

  • If using a household iron, avoid steam by making sure you’ve emptied the water chamber completely before using. Also avoid the steam vents; they can leave an unwanted impression in some vinyl products.

Enjoy the video—I hope you find it helpful! Still shots of the projects I used HTV on are below the video. I didn’t film using the Glitter HTV, but the process is exactly the same—just remember to select “Glitter Iron-On Vinyl” in your materials setting, instead of Holographic; it makes a difference. 😉

Learn how you can incorporate iron-on vinyl/HTV with your paper craft projects using a Cricut.

 
 
 
 

I seriously had a ton of fun using this stuff—I had been on a quest for no-shed glitter card stock because most that I own, shed glitter like crazy, which makes me NUTS! Love the look, hate the mess. So, when I saw someone using HTV, I literally started monkey-clapping!

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

Disclosure: I include affiliate links to the products used in my posts and make a small commission when you purchase via those links, at no extra dimes to you. 🙂 Your support is appreciated more than I can say!

SUPPLIES MENTIONED:

Tools & supplies I use regularly in my Cricut Crafting:

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LAST MINUTE HOLIDAY GIFT

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This is a very late share, but a share nonetheless; the holidays were crazy busy!

I shared this pic on my Instagram prior to Christmas because I was soooooo excited about how they turned out! My granddaughters are 7 years apart, age-wise. It’s becoming harder and harder to find matching pajamas or sister outfits as the oldest one gets older—ones I actually like, I mean. This year, I finally cried Uncle and decided to buy some matching “plain” pajamas and use my Cricut Maker to get what I wanted. Nana’s gotta do what Nana’s gotta do, am I right?!

Over the years, I have invested in various digital die cutting machines—still own the ones that haven’t died on me (RIP Eclips). Primarily, I got them to test my paper craft metal die designs prior to sending the designs off for production. Beyond that, for whatever reason, I didn’t really feel compelled to use them for much of anything else. When a friend raved about her Cricut Maker, I sat on the fence. C’mon, did I really, really need another such machine? Could it really be that much better than what I already had???

During all the holiday sales going on last year, I decided to “dip” my toe into the waters . . . I was pleasantly surprised at how much quieter it was in comparison to all my previous machines. It cut.like.buttah. Thoroughly impressed by the results, I plunged even deeper . . .

I LOVE playing with it! Honestly, I didn’t anticipate the extent to which I’d enjoy working with it or that I’d want to explore making NON-CARD (gasp!) things, LOL!

It was immensely gratifying to be able to customize/personalize these otherwise plain pajamas for the grandweebles! Note to self: Must get more flocked HTV. Meantime, I’m thinking about making some Valentine’s Day Mugs for them, because they love hot cocoa (Yes, I did get a Cricut Mug Press. And Infusible Ink. When I go deep, I go deep, LOL!) #notkidding #noregrets

Do you have/use a digital cutter? What do you like making with yours? I’ve heard some folks got one and a year later still haven’t taken it out of the box! GAAAAAH!!! (insert horrified look)

MATERIALS/SUPPLIES (I am not currently an affiliate for any of the companies/manufacturers listed below):

  • 100% Cotton Striped Kids Pajamas from Target online

  • Siser Stripflock Pro Red HTV (Heat Transfer Vinyl)

  • Cricut Maker

  • Cricut Easy Press 2

ANNOUNCEMENT

Also, I wanted to give you a heads’ up that I am going to be transitioning to a new email platform; currently my blog’s RSS feed goes out via MailChimp to those of you that signed up. But, how those emails look has always bugged me (like really, really bugged me!), so I’m moving over to FloDesk.

If you’d like to continue receiving updates/news, other yadda yadda via my email list, please sign up! There’s a new form along the bottom right of my site’s home page you can fill out.

If you’re not interested, no worries; I just didn’t want those who are accustomed to receiving that RSS feed via email to miss out when I finish the transition.

Thanks muchly!