One thing I never thought I’d be doing is using my Cricut to help me cut out shapes and letters from pine boards. When I got my very first Cricut machine about a decade ago I always thought I’d just be using my new fancy cutting machine to cut paper and make decorations for my kid’s birthday parties. That’s was the case for the first few years. But now my Cricut craft horizon has been broadened and I’m using it for more than I could have dreamed!
Pairing this wonderful little machine of magic with my power tools has been a GAME CHANGER for my crafting abilities. And it can be for you too!
If you’re not totally comfortable using power tools I totally understand and know it’s a very real fear. I was in that same boat not that long ago and slowly was able to put that fear behind me. Here’s a list a power tools that I recommend all lady crafters get. I started off small, mastering the handheld sander, this thing can be SUPER intimidating, then worked my way up to being able to using all the power tools with no hesitation.
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USE YOUR CRICUT TO HELP YOU CUT OUT WOOD PROJECTS
Here’s what I used:
The first thing I did was decide how big I wanted my wooden stars to be. I always have scraps of 1×6 boards so I decided 5.4” at the star’s widest would be a good size. I opened up my Cricut app on my computer and added a simple star from the shapes section.
I highlighted it and clicked on the width, since that had the biggest number, and changed it to 5.4”. I left the image locked so that it would be proportionate.
I set my image to cut. Added a piece of cardstock to my green mat and set my blade to light cardstock then hit cut. I also want to add that you can use an older machine like I’m using. I have yet to buy a Cricut Maker, even though I would LOVE to have one but my Cricut Explore is getting everything done for now.
After my cardstock template was cut out I used that to help me cut out the a wood star from a piece of pine.
I traced around the star using a pencil then used my Ryobi scroll saw to cut the shape. If you’ve never used a scroll saw it’s a lot like using a sewing machine. Don’t go too fast or you will not get as precise of a cut.
When I’m cutting out shapes that have lots of angles I don’t do one continuous cut. I cut till I get to an angle then back out. Then make another cut from the opposite side to meet at that angle point. This is just works for me, I know everyone is different so you’ll have to find your own rhythm.
I hope you can use this new information to help you explore all the possibilities of what your Cricut can do. You can take it so much further than just card making and vinyl projects.
Like with all of my tutorials if you have any questions please ask away. I am happy to try and answer :)! Click here to check out how I finished my wood star cutouts.
