Would a Cricut work for my needs? What other options are there?
February 21, 2023 1:41 PM Subscribe
I have to apply a graphic to a wooden cylinder. This has not been easy so far and I need a better way to do it. I'm thinking a Cricut might work but I don't really know much about them, how they work, or what they can be used for. Maybe you can help?
As I said, I have to apply a solid black graphic to a two inch diameter wooden cylinder. Imagine putting the smily face on a big Lego head. In fact that's exactly what I need to do. I need to do this a few times now and probably many more times in the future.
So far I have been using laser printed waterslide decals. Not only are these a giant pain to apply (my last attempt took me six tries), I am not very happy with the results. I am doing all the right things, gloss-coating the wood, using decal fix, etc. It still doesn't look very good.
I have also attempted a toner transfer method using acetone. This didn't work at all. I don't think toner transfer using an iron would be very easy on a round thing.
I have thought about doing inlay, in fact if this were flat wood that's what I would do. The eyes would be easy enough but the smily face would be difficult to route out on a round object and it would be very easy to make an error, ruining the head, or best case having an obvious blemish.
Painting with a template would most likely bleed into the wood and making the template by hand would be difficult.
I have no access to CNC, laser cutters, or anything like that. I do not want to farm this out to anyone.
Which brings me to the idea of the Cricut.
It looks as if I can cut self-adhesive vinyl. So I have some questions:
How permanent is it? I would want it to stay on forever without peeling off. If someone were to work at removing it with a fingernail, that's fine. That's on them. But I would not want it to come off on its own over time.
How thin is it? Ideally I would like it to be as flat as possible, as if it's painted. I don't want the eyes and mouth to appear raised.
How do I apply it? With the waterslide decal the eyes and mouth are all one piece, separated by clear film. With the vinyl I assume they would come out as three separate pieces? I need to apply them accurately every time.
Is it compatible with wood and finish? I use an oil finish but I can use something different on the head if need be. I can finish before or after applying the decal.
Is this the sort of thing I could even use a Cricut for?
I'm looking at the very low end model, the Cricut Joy. I don't need anything bigger, I don't want to invest a lot of money, and I might find an occasional use for it in the future.
How easy is it to use? Am I going to throw my computer against the wall? I am on a mac if that matters. Can I even use a computer or do I have to use my phone?
If using the Cricut vinyl wouldn't be ideal, then can I use the Cricut to make a painting template and then easily remove it from the wood? Is this a better option?
If any experienced Cricut owners can sort of walk me through the process for doing this, that'd be great.
I am open to alternatives, though I can't really think of any that would be better than the Cricut, assuming it would work for my needs.
Thanks!
As I said, I have to apply a solid black graphic to a two inch diameter wooden cylinder. Imagine putting the smily face on a big Lego head. In fact that's exactly what I need to do. I need to do this a few times now and probably many more times in the future.
So far I have been using laser printed waterslide decals. Not only are these a giant pain to apply (my last attempt took me six tries), I am not very happy with the results. I am doing all the right things, gloss-coating the wood, using decal fix, etc. It still doesn't look very good.
I have also attempted a toner transfer method using acetone. This didn't work at all. I don't think toner transfer using an iron would be very easy on a round thing.
I have thought about doing inlay, in fact if this were flat wood that's what I would do. The eyes would be easy enough but the smily face would be difficult to route out on a round object and it would be very easy to make an error, ruining the head, or best case having an obvious blemish.
Painting with a template would most likely bleed into the wood and making the template by hand would be difficult.
I have no access to CNC, laser cutters, or anything like that. I do not want to farm this out to anyone.
Which brings me to the idea of the Cricut.
It looks as if I can cut self-adhesive vinyl. So I have some questions:
How permanent is it? I would want it to stay on forever without peeling off. If someone were to work at removing it with a fingernail, that's fine. That's on them. But I would not want it to come off on its own over time.
How thin is it? Ideally I would like it to be as flat as possible, as if it's painted. I don't want the eyes and mouth to appear raised.
How do I apply it? With the waterslide decal the eyes and mouth are all one piece, separated by clear film. With the vinyl I assume they would come out as three separate pieces? I need to apply them accurately every time.
Is it compatible with wood and finish? I use an oil finish but I can use something different on the head if need be. I can finish before or after applying the decal.
Is this the sort of thing I could even use a Cricut for?
I'm looking at the very low end model, the Cricut Joy. I don't need anything bigger, I don't want to invest a lot of money, and I might find an occasional use for it in the future.
How easy is it to use? Am I going to throw my computer against the wall? I am on a mac if that matters. Can I even use a computer or do I have to use my phone?
If using the Cricut vinyl wouldn't be ideal, then can I use the Cricut to make a painting template and then easily remove it from the wood? Is this a better option?
If any experienced Cricut owners can sort of walk me through the process for doing this, that'd be great.
I am open to alternatives, though I can't really think of any that would be better than the Cricut, assuming it would work for my needs.
Thanks!
Best answer: I do think the Cricut will get you the right result, with the exception that the vinyl will still be raised. There are different "grades" of vinyl available (permanent, semi, perm, removeable) and the permanent stuff will stay. I don't think it's going to be much different from what you are doing now though. The only difference is that now you're using a printed vinyl, and the cricut will cut out of the color of vinyl
Once you cut the vinyl, you use transfer tape to apply the decal in one unit, just like you are doing now.
Honestly, the only thing I can think of that would give you a better result, are cutting stencil vinyl and then painting it on (I don't know if you can cut stencil vinyl with the cricut joy, but I know you can with the larger machines.) Or laser cutting if you had that option.
posted by pixiecrinkle at 2:03 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
Once you cut the vinyl, you use transfer tape to apply the decal in one unit, just like you are doing now.
Honestly, the only thing I can think of that would give you a better result, are cutting stencil vinyl and then painting it on (I don't know if you can cut stencil vinyl with the cricut joy, but I know you can with the larger machines.) Or laser cutting if you had that option.
posted by pixiecrinkle at 2:03 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
My wife has one. It was one of those purchases that she really anticipated, then the anticipation completely wore off after using it.
I will say that the labels she made for our kitchen oil squeeze bottles fell off on their own. The fact that they held oil didn't help, but vinyl on plastic was not a long-term success.
posted by hwyengr at 2:03 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
I will say that the labels she made for our kitchen oil squeeze bottles fell off on their own. The fact that they held oil didn't help, but vinyl on plastic was not a long-term success.
posted by hwyengr at 2:03 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
There are heat presses that are used to print from sublimation prints onto mugs, water bottles etc. Cricut make one. The only difficulty might be finding one that will do a 2" diameter. The result would be far better than sticking on vinyl.
posted by pipeski at 2:07 PM on February 21, 2023
posted by pipeski at 2:07 PM on February 21, 2023
Response by poster: Just a couple clarifications:
Slightly raised is fine. It is a sticker after all. The thinner the better.
I would be supplying my own graphic, I would have no use for Cricut's clipart. It's ok if I need internet but I do not want to have to subscribe to any paid service or anything like that.
posted by bondcliff at 2:10 PM on February 21, 2023
Slightly raised is fine. It is a sticker after all. The thinner the better.
I would be supplying my own graphic, I would have no use for Cricut's clipart. It's ok if I need internet but I do not want to have to subscribe to any paid service or anything like that.
posted by bondcliff at 2:10 PM on February 21, 2023
You can use the cricut without the paid service, but yes you will need an internet connection because Design Space (cricut's software) requires it. Phone or computer will work.
posted by pixiecrinkle at 2:14 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by pixiecrinkle at 2:14 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
No, you can use your own image for free, that’s fine, but of a pain in the ass to upload it to their site to then import and cut, again cloud based, but it’s fine if you aren’t doing much. I’m seeing refurbed cameo 3a on silhouettes site for like 150 dollars tho :D
Pipeski has a good point about sublimation print heaters, but where are we getting 2” from?
posted by Iteki at 2:17 PM on February 21, 2023
Pipeski has a good point about sublimation print heaters, but where are we getting 2” from?
posted by Iteki at 2:17 PM on February 21, 2023
Response by poster: but where are we getting 2” from?
The cylinder I need to apply it to is approximately 2" in diameter.
posted by bondcliff at 2:22 PM on February 21, 2023
The cylinder I need to apply it to is approximately 2" in diameter.
posted by bondcliff at 2:22 PM on February 21, 2023
Pipeski psychic! Oh btw, you can get clear transfer paper that will likely make it much easier to place. Me mail me if you want me to show how my stenciled stuff came out.
posted by Iteki at 2:33 PM on February 21, 2023
posted by Iteki at 2:33 PM on February 21, 2023
Best answer: I know you don't want to farm it out but honestly I would consider creating the design and uploading it to a site like stickermule to print. You designed it, you're still going to have to stick it on, but you get to skip the whole process of buying the Cricut, learning their software, redesigning your decal with their software and making sure you have the right vinyl for the job. Also, I have never used one, but talk to cortex before you buy. IIRC he had a whole twitter thread on his epic battle with the Cricut and I don't think he won in the end.
posted by mygothlaundry at 3:15 PM on February 21, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by mygothlaundry at 3:15 PM on February 21, 2023 [4 favorites]
This is only semi-related, but Cricut likes being proprietary and at one point tried to make a subscription mandatory, and still can if they wanted to (that's why the software requires an internet connection). I would personally look at competitor products first if you don't want to figure out how to jailbreak hardware you own at some point.
posted by Aleyn at 4:07 PM on February 21, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by Aleyn at 4:07 PM on February 21, 2023 [4 favorites]
As for a real answer to the question, is this something you could potentially stencil on? Wouldn't need anything but paper and paint for that (and maybe a temporary glue if you wanted to keep the stencil securely in place).
posted by Aleyn at 4:09 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by Aleyn at 4:09 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
I might combine the stencil with the gloss coat and spray paint. If the stencil is applied tightly, the edges should be nice and sharp, and the gloss coat should prevent bleeding through the wood.
posted by Horkus at 4:32 PM on February 21, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by Horkus at 4:32 PM on February 21, 2023 [3 favorites]
Best answer: I run an escape room. For whatever reason, our players seem to abuse our set and props less than other escape rooms, but even still, stuff gets a ton of wear and tear. We use cricut vinyl stickers for a few things that players can touch.
The 0.2" tall letters on the handle of an acrylic prop that gets lots of use does need a fair amount of maintenance - mostly restickering individual letters. But OTOH we have some other fine detail stuff in places that are totally within reach but don't get as much handling (e.g., a painted wooden panel of switches with cricut labels next to them), and that has held up fantastically over 1500+ games. In general, larger stuff stays on better, and sharp corners are the points that start peeling first. The fact that the ends of the mouth are rounded will help you out. If your minifig face is the variant that has eyebrows, those would probably be your weakest point.
If by an oil finish you mean a drying oil like tung oil or something, you'd probably want give it enough time to fully cure before trying to sticker it. Paint through a stencil would definitely hold up to handling better, and when it does start to wear out it will do so much more gracefully. IMO it depends on how much you expect people to handle it. And note that you don't really need a cricut to do that - it can make stencils just great, but you can also probably make a single stencil with a laser printer and an x-acto knife.
As people above said, transferring a bunch of smaller stickers using transfer tape makes it a breeze to keep the relative positions of stuff the same as how you cut it (normally you cut the design, then weed out the negative space, and then put transfer tape on top, peel the tape and design off the backing, and put it on your destination, and rub it with a bone folder or whatever to stick it to it real good.
The software is mildly annoying but "fine" - totally useable.
posted by aubilenon at 4:32 PM on February 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
The 0.2" tall letters on the handle of an acrylic prop that gets lots of use does need a fair amount of maintenance - mostly restickering individual letters. But OTOH we have some other fine detail stuff in places that are totally within reach but don't get as much handling (e.g., a painted wooden panel of switches with cricut labels next to them), and that has held up fantastically over 1500+ games. In general, larger stuff stays on better, and sharp corners are the points that start peeling first. The fact that the ends of the mouth are rounded will help you out. If your minifig face is the variant that has eyebrows, those would probably be your weakest point.
If by an oil finish you mean a drying oil like tung oil or something, you'd probably want give it enough time to fully cure before trying to sticker it. Paint through a stencil would definitely hold up to handling better, and when it does start to wear out it will do so much more gracefully. IMO it depends on how much you expect people to handle it. And note that you don't really need a cricut to do that - it can make stencils just great, but you can also probably make a single stencil with a laser printer and an x-acto knife.
As people above said, transferring a bunch of smaller stickers using transfer tape makes it a breeze to keep the relative positions of stuff the same as how you cut it (normally you cut the design, then weed out the negative space, and then put transfer tape on top, peel the tape and design off the backing, and put it on your destination, and rub it with a bone folder or whatever to stick it to it real good.
The software is mildly annoying but "fine" - totally useable.
posted by aubilenon at 4:32 PM on February 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Bondcliff, drive down to my house some day next week: I have a mile-long roll of transfer tape and a Cricut that I love, and a bunch of black Orcal 651 adhesive vinyl. I also have an account with stupid Design Space and a laptop that l ready works on.
You can use vinyl as a mask and paint through the openings, or use it as the positive image. Either way should work, though vinyl would stick better to sealed wood.
Weeding is a pain, especially if you need multiple copies of a thing. (I did four beer glasses for my brother this past Christmas that took an hour each!!)
Come on down, it'll be awesome.
posted by wenestvedt at 5:25 PM on February 21, 2023 [4 favorites]
You can use vinyl as a mask and paint through the openings, or use it as the positive image. Either way should work, though vinyl would stick better to sealed wood.
Weeding is a pain, especially if you need multiple copies of a thing. (I did four beer glasses for my brother this past Christmas that took an hour each!!)
Come on down, it'll be awesome.
posted by wenestvedt at 5:25 PM on February 21, 2023 [4 favorites]
No need to actually buy one. A lot of graphics shops have much larger versions and can do a cut for you and let you apply it yourself at a cost, of course.
Given the area you need to cover is that THAT big, maybe you can just manually cut the design once, and test application manually? Once you got the test mule down, then make your design on computer and to go a shop, have them replicate the pattern and cut like 10-20 pieces for you.
posted by kschang at 9:09 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
Given the area you need to cover is that THAT big, maybe you can just manually cut the design once, and test application manually? Once you got the test mule down, then make your design on computer and to go a shop, have them replicate the pattern and cut like 10-20 pieces for you.
posted by kschang at 9:09 PM on February 21, 2023 [1 favorite]
You could cut a stencil with the Cricut, then use a Scorch Marker or wood burning paste to make the design and then "burn" it into the wood with a heat gun. That should be longer lasting and less dimensional than painting it.
posted by bink at 9:31 PM on February 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by bink at 9:31 PM on February 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Cortex definitely makes vinyl stickers with his Cricut for some of his glass stuff. Ask him!
I think a stencil - to fix the relative position of all the face components- is going to give the best result. Whether you paint or wood burn or both. (I also think both a burned outline and painted fill would look really crisp).
posted by janell at 9:45 PM on February 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
I think a stencil - to fix the relative position of all the face components- is going to give the best result. Whether you paint or wood burn or both. (I also think both a burned outline and painted fill would look really crisp).
posted by janell at 9:45 PM on February 21, 2023 [2 favorites]
I have a bunch of electronic cutters (including a Cricut), but for your purposes, I would vote against it.
This is based on a few things including the following:
- Does your graphic have multiple colors? You need a piece of vinyl for every color. More pieces = more layers = thicker
- Is the wooden cylinder sealed? Raw wood is porous and I'm not sure that even the good vinyl likes to stick to unfinished wood.
- Cricut software can be tricky to learn. I think that's why lots of people give it up. I use Adobe Illustrator, so I'm OK with the Cricut software and I can import my own designs. It may not be worth the effort for just one design.
If I were in your place, I would explore sublimation printing or getting a custom waterproof stickers. A stencil would work too, but if you've only got the one design, I'd get custom stencils made. Another possibility would be screenprinting.
posted by jraz at 5:53 AM on February 22, 2023
This is based on a few things including the following:
- Does your graphic have multiple colors? You need a piece of vinyl for every color. More pieces = more layers = thicker
- Is the wooden cylinder sealed? Raw wood is porous and I'm not sure that even the good vinyl likes to stick to unfinished wood.
- Cricut software can be tricky to learn. I think that's why lots of people give it up. I use Adobe Illustrator, so I'm OK with the Cricut software and I can import my own designs. It may not be worth the effort for just one design.
If I were in your place, I would explore sublimation printing or getting a custom waterproof stickers. A stencil would work too, but if you've only got the one design, I'd get custom stencils made. Another possibility would be screenprinting.
posted by jraz at 5:53 AM on February 22, 2023
Response by poster: Great answers all!
wenestvedt, thank you for the offer! I may yet take you up on that.
In a rare case of "I know you said you didn't want to do X, but I think you should do X" being the correct answer, I sent for a single sticker from Stickermule to see how that works out. I was able to fit six smily faces on a single 4x4 sticker to keep costs down.
I also had a friend/former MeFite offer to do some test runs on her Cricut. She dropped a few samples in the mail for me this morning.
I may still look into the Cricut. I can see other uses for it down the road, but I do try to avoid bringing new technology into my life, especially when it comes to woodworking, a hobby I enjoy in part because it doesn't involve computers.
I'm not *too* worried about software, since all I need to do is import an image I already have.
The Joy is only $130 and I have more than that in Amazon points, so if I buy it I can consider it sort of "free."
Screen printing is an interesting idea, but I'm not sure how it would work on a cylinder. Each head is slightly different because they're turned on a lathe so even if I made a custom curved screen it may not fit exactly every time.
I hadn't even thought about wood burning. I will have to look into that.
I may use the discards of whatever stickers I get to see how it works as a paint template.
Thank, everybody! These are all great answers and very helpful.
posted by bondcliff at 7:08 AM on February 22, 2023 [1 favorite]
wenestvedt, thank you for the offer! I may yet take you up on that.
In a rare case of "I know you said you didn't want to do X, but I think you should do X" being the correct answer, I sent for a single sticker from Stickermule to see how that works out. I was able to fit six smily faces on a single 4x4 sticker to keep costs down.
I also had a friend/former MeFite offer to do some test runs on her Cricut. She dropped a few samples in the mail for me this morning.
I may still look into the Cricut. I can see other uses for it down the road, but I do try to avoid bringing new technology into my life, especially when it comes to woodworking, a hobby I enjoy in part because it doesn't involve computers.
I'm not *too* worried about software, since all I need to do is import an image I already have.
The Joy is only $130 and I have more than that in Amazon points, so if I buy it I can consider it sort of "free."
Screen printing is an interesting idea, but I'm not sure how it would work on a cylinder. Each head is slightly different because they're turned on a lathe so even if I made a custom curved screen it may not fit exactly every time.
I hadn't even thought about wood burning. I will have to look into that.
I may use the discards of whatever stickers I get to see how it works as a paint template.
Thank, everybody! These are all great answers and very helpful.
posted by bondcliff at 7:08 AM on February 22, 2023 [1 favorite]
For goodness sake, don't buy one of these machines: the company seems very user-hostile and the software suuuucks. Definitely use a friend's, or see if your local public library has one, or something.
And for future reference, I paid someone on Etsy to convert a complicated bitmap to an SVG -- and whatever automated tool they used worked much better than I could have done. Totally worth the $16 or whatever I paid.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:28 AM on February 22, 2023 [3 favorites]
And for future reference, I paid someone on Etsy to convert a complicated bitmap to an SVG -- and whatever automated tool they used worked much better than I could have done. Totally worth the $16 or whatever I paid.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:28 AM on February 22, 2023 [3 favorites]
Response by poster: Thanks, everyone.
A friend sent me a bunch of Cricut samples using my graphic, so I have a bunch of faces for now. The stickers are thin enough and look much better than the waterslide decals I had used previously.
I also have a single transfer sticker coming from Stickermule, which I suspect will be the exact same thing as the Cricut stickers. That should also work.
There may still be a Cricut in my future, as it would allow me to do custom faces and other things, but I'll hold off for now.
posted by bondcliff at 7:17 AM on February 27, 2023
A friend sent me a bunch of Cricut samples using my graphic, so I have a bunch of faces for now. The stickers are thin enough and look much better than the waterslide decals I had used previously.
I also have a single transfer sticker coming from Stickermule, which I suspect will be the exact same thing as the Cricut stickers. That should also work.
There may still be a Cricut in my future, as it would allow me to do custom faces and other things, but I'll hold off for now.
posted by bondcliff at 7:17 AM on February 27, 2023
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posted by Iteki at 2:02 PM on February 21, 2023