30+ Easy Cricut Projects – Simple Ideas for Beginners

30+ Easy Cricut Projects – Simple Ideas for Beginners main article image
Posted on July 14, 2021 by Desiree McClung
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You’ve got a new Cricut machine. Its been sitting on the floor in the box for weeks, awaiting the moment that you will unbox your new toy and starting crafting. You’ve scoured social media and viewed dozens of examples of what you could create with the Cricut Maker or Explore machine, but where do you start? Great news! You have made it to the right place. We have compiled over 30 easy projects with tutorials for beginners to help you (yes, you!) get started with little to no experience.
One thing that I highly recommend for the new crafter is to take advantage of over 60,000 quality fonts available from Creative Fabrica. Many of the fonts are exclusive to Creative Fabrica, and many of them have special glyphs and characters to make your projects really stand out. The right font can make or break a design. Don’t be left scrambling to find the perfect font. My favorite thing about fonts from Creative Fabrica is that they have tons of FREE fonts that you can download and use in your design. here are even daily freebies that Creative Fabrica has that you can subscribe to via email. You will receive an email where you can download a font, image, and craft for 100% free also! How generous is that? This is my favorite way to try great fonts at no cost! They even save into a “my downloads” tab on your Creative Fabrica account so that you can access them in the future (or if you need to download them on another device!). I also have mentioned this in previous articles, but I love, love, love Wordmark. It will compile most of the available fonts downloaded to your computer and when you type in a word or phrase, it will show what that word looks like in the fonts you have. It is such a timesaver for me and I highly recommend that you check it out to see if it would work as well for your needs too.

Project ideas

I have divided these beginner projects into the following sub-categories:
    1. Gifts
    2. Home Decor
    3. Just for Fun
    5. Party Crafts
 

Gifts

#1: Money Tree

A money tree is a great gift for a wedding, a teens birthday, or a graduation gift.
beginner easy cricut craft money tree

#2: Burlap Zippered Pouch

What a fun gift for the kid in your life (or adult!). This easy tutorial uses heat transfer vinyl and fabric pens to make a stunning personalized present.
cricut craft beginner narwal coloring pouch

Burlap Zippered Pouch

#3: Personalized Socks

What a clever way to make someone laugh!
cricut project beginner mom socks htv

#4: Geometric Heart Shirt

Making a shirt with this design is a great way to practice with and get comfortable with HTV. Its a simple geometric design with a single layer that will allow you to get your feet wet with using heat transfer vinyl.
CRICUT PROJECT BEGINNER SHIRT HEART

#5: Can Koozies

If you are wanting to step-up your heat transfer vinyl game and start layering multiple colors, this is a great entry-level project for learning how to layer vinyl onto can koozies.

cricut crafts beginner can koozies

Can Koozies

#6: Print and Cut Vinyl Shirt

While I feel that print and cut using printable transfer vinyl is not the easiest first project, I love this step-by-step tutorial from Jennifer Maker (with video!) about how to use the printable transfer vinyl on a shirt.

beginner cricut project print and cut shirt

Print and Cut Vinyl T-shirts

#7: Personalized Insulated Tumblers

This is a great first project! It is inexpensive, easy to make, personalized, and such a great gift.

cricut project beginner water bottles

Personalized Insulated Tumblers

#8: DIY Glass Etching

Did you know that you can create a stencil with your Cricut and use etching cream to create perfectly etched works of art? Custom wedding monogram stemware made with this technique is one of my favorite gifts to make.

cricut beginner project glass etching wine glasses

DIY Glass Etching

#9: Hot Cocoa Mug

To be honest, making hot cocoa mugs for my kids was the FIRST project that I ever made when I unboxed my Cricut Explore Air 2. It was a great project to start with because you learn some key basics: designing, sizing, and placing permanent vinyl onto a curved surface.

cricut craft beginner hot cocoa mug

Hot Coca Mug Gift

Home Decor

#1: DIY Stenciled Staircase

Thinking about a project to spruce up the interior of your home? Look no further than a painted staircase riser using a repeating pattern and some paint.

beginner cricut project staircase paint

DIY Stenciled Staircase

#2: Tea Towels

I made 30 tea towels for my co-workers last Christmas, each personalized with their name and an image. It was a huge hit! This tutorial explains how to make your own tea towels. These can be a great item to make for your own home, as a gift, or to sell.

cricut project beginner tea towel gift

Tea Towels

#3: DIY home decor

Check out this article with a long list of home decor projects for the novice Cricut enthusiast, such as candles, reverse canvas, removable wall decals, and more. 
cricut beginner project wall art

#4: DIY Modern Calligraphy Art Using Pens

Hankering to try the writing feature that Cricut Explore and Maker machines have? This tutorial has very comprehensive explanations of the process, from designing in Cricut Design Space to using a calligraphy pen for the lettering.

cricut project beginner calligraphy art writing

DIY Modern Calligraphy Art Using Pens

#5: Farmhouse Signs

Farmhouse decor is a very popular decorating style in the last couple years and this project is an inexpensive way to freshen the design in your own home.

cricut project beginner farmhouse signs

Easy DIY living room décor using your Cricut or Cameo – Creative Fabrica

#6: DIY Serving Tray

Creating a serving tray for your home is the perfect first project for a beginner Cricut enthusiast. The tutorial also includes a link for this beautiful floral design.

cricut project beginner tray htv

DIY Serving Tray

#7: Pillow Cover

Another twist on using heat transfer vinyl is by making pillow covers to update décor, add seasonal flair to your home, or make personalized gifts for family and friends.

cricut beginner project diy pillow

Pillow Cover

Just for fun

#1: Stickers

Print and cut stickers are one of my favorite things to make with my Cricut Explore Air 2! Follow these tutorials to make your own custom stickers.

cricut craft beginner sticker sheet kiss cut

Kiss Cut Sticker Sheets

cricut beginner project print and cut stickers

Print then cut stickers with Cricut

#2: Car Decals

Car decals are a great beginner project, usually involving a single layer of vinyl and no bigger than 8×8 inches.

cricut beginner project vinyl window decal car decal sticker

Car Window Decal Sticker

#3: Gift Tags

Gift tags can be used for a variety of holiday and gift-giving events, so this is the perfect, year-round project to build your Cricut confidence, as its one of the most simple crafts you can make.

cricut beginner craft gift tag easy

Easy Love Gift Tags

#4: Debossed Gift Card Holders

This website shows you how to use your machine and the scoring tool/stylus to deboss foil kraft board for one-of-a-kind gift card holder. The image designs even come directly from Cricut Design Space, so they easy to find and access.

cricut craft easy birthday card

Birthday Gift Card Holders

#5: Gift Bags

Another great way to practice using heat transfer vinyl (HTV) as a newbie to crafting is by making a personalized gift bag like the one here.

cricut project beginner gift bag Easy Cute Birthday Gift Bag

#6: Kids Storage Box

As kids, my friends and I would decorate Tide soap boxes with craft paper and stickers and write on them with markers. Make your kids the envy of the neighborhood with this storage boxes. Let your kids decorate them to make it their own.

cricut project beginner diy storage box

DIY Storage Box For Kids

#7: Adult Coloring Book

If you have some time on your hands, you may want to try to make your own coloring book using Cricut pens!

cricut craft beginner diy coloring book

DIY adult coloring book

#8: Printable Decals for your Kitchenaid Mixer (or, well, anything you own!)

The best part about having a Cricut machine is that you can slap a custom made sticker on everything you own, including your Kitchenaid mixer.

cricut project beginner kitchenaid mixer decal

Kitchenaid decal

#9: 3D flowers

Paper flowers have so many uses, such as party decorations, feature walls, used on reverse canvas, and on cards.  You can cut them in a variety of sizes and shapes with very little effort for a stunning effect. 

cricut project beginner 3d flowers

3D Paper Flower Magnets

Seasonal items

#1: Fall Door Wreaths

What better way to spice up your front door for every holiday than with a DIY wreath using inexpensive materials that can be changed out often? This link has a great video tutorial on how to make a burlap wreath.

creative cricut project beginner fall wreath

DIY Dollar Store Burlap Fall Wreaths

#2: Porch Decor

This site has some great ideas for Halloween porch decorations perfect to make your home the envy of the neighborhood.
cricut craft beginner front porch decor

#3:  Addressing Christmas Cards

I use my Cricut pens to address cards year round but this tutorial shows how to use your machine to address your envelopes for the Holidays.

cricut craft beginner address labels writing

Christmas Cards

#4: Santa Letters

What is more timeless than helping your kids write letters to Santa? Using your Cricut and following this tutorial will make your letters stand out for Santa.

cricut project beginner santa letter

Free Santa Letter Printable

#5 Easter Cards

I love that this simple tutorial can be adapted for any holiday and includes a fun activity for the little ones.

cricut project simple easter card

DIY Easter Card

Party Time

#1Birthday Banner

The wonderful thing about this tutorial is that you can customize the colors to suit your theme, decoration, or event. What screams “Happy Birthday” more than a banner?
cricut project beginner happy birthday banner

#2: Party Supplies

Take your party to a whole new level with your Cricut machine. Follow this guide for easy decorations for your next bash. What I love it that these ideas can be adapted to any theme.

cricut project beginner summer decorations

Summer Themed Party Decorations

#3: Custom Cake Toppers

Speaking of party decorations, custom cake toppers have been all the buzz on social media and you can adapt this tutorial to a design that fits your party theme.

cricut project beginner fiesta cake topper

Cake Toppers

#4: Graduation Decorations

This link has some perfect ideas for graduation party decorations. There are tons of smart tricks and tips integrated into this article as well, which makes it perfect for beginners. Who doesn’t love making things easier?

cricut project beginner graduation

DIY Graduation Party Ideas

#5: Party Headbands

How adorable are these headbands? They make the perfect addition to any party wardrobe.

cricut project beginner unicorn headband

DIY Unicorn Headband

#6: Mermaid Tail Favor Boxes

This tutorial explains in depth how to make a favor box for your next party.

cricut project beginner mermail tail favor boxes party

Mermaid Party Favors

#7 First Birthday Decorations

Besides weddings, babies first birthday is one of the biggest bashes around, and I love the ideas from Play Party Plan for creating a smashing first birthday celebration.

cricut beginner project first birthday craft

First Birthday Decorations

Cricut Maker 

#1 DIY Leather Journal

Since the Maker has a deep cut blade or knife blade option, you can cut hundreds more materials, including leather. This journal is a wonderful project and makes a beautiful gift.

cricut project beginner leather journal maker

DIY Leather Watercolor Travel Journal with The Cricut Maker and Scoring Wheel

# 2: Wooden Book Mark

Since the Cricut Maker can cut through some wood with the deep knife blade attachment, you can use it to make stunning wooden book marks.
cricut project beginner wooden bookmark maker

#3: Hair Accessories

Hair bows and barrettes are a huge fashion trend. With the Cricut maker, you can create your own. Follow these easy steps to make bows and other hair accessories.

cricut project beginner hair accessories bows headbands

Leather Hair Accessories with Cricut

#4: Leather Key Fobs

Leather keychains make a great gift, are simple to make, and can be personalized with permanent vinyl to include names, sports teams, graduation year, and more. I love that depending on the color and style, these can be masculine or feminine and suitable for anyone on your gift list.

cricut project beginner leather keyfob keychain maker

Leather Key Fob

#5: Leather Wallet or Business Card Holder

Another fun leather project is a DIY leather business card holder or wallet. This is best if you have some skills with hand sewing.

cricut project beginner leather wallet maker

Leather Wallet with Cricut Maker

#6: Quilted Baby Blanket

Since the Maker can cut fabrics, it makes making a quilted baby blanket like the one below a breeze to make.

cricut maker project beginner baby quilt

Baby Quilt with Cricut Maker

Other ways to spark your creativity

With so many different ways to try your new Cricut machine, what’s stopping you from getting creative? Many of the projects can be adapted to your personal taste and design. Get creative and design your own images or use the templates supplied with many of the tutorials. Don’t be afraid to try new things. Have you mastered single layer vinyl images? Try layering with various colors. Love making decals for tumblers? Learn how to make epoxy glitter tumblers. The sky is the limit! If you need additional craft ideas, check out 7 easy projects from Jennifer Maker at Cricut Projects for Beginners or Creative Fabrica’s quality craft designs. Enjoy your new machine and happy crafting.

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