The canvas is blank however if you click make it, the preview image of the design will be on the cutting board. But like I said, the canvas where you actually customize and edit it is blank. I called Cricut and they are saying everyone with the new update is experiencing this and cannot give me. Canvas – The Cricut Design Space canvas refers to the screen that you are designing on. To start a new project on the Cricut Design Space landing page, simply click on one of the two 'new project' buttons. This will open up your canvas. Now let the magic of creating begin!
In this article, learn how to connect cursive letters when using script fonts in Cricut Design Space to create the look of cursive handwriting. I'll show you the three easy steps you need to take to make beautiful script lettering with the weld tool.
Have you ever tried to use a script font in Cricut Design space and found that the letters weren't connected?
Knowing how to connect cursive letters is a fundamental skill when using script fonts in Cricut Design Space. In this article, I'll teach you how to adjust the spacing between letters and weld them together correctly.
Whether you are designing wedding invitations or a wooden sign for your home, I think these simple tricks will empower you to design your own projects using script style fonts!
So, let's open up Design Space to a new canvas, and I'll walk you through the tutorial step-by-step.
Note: If you don't already have Cricut Design Space, you can download it for free. You can use the program on Mac, Windows, iOS (iPhone or iPad), and Android devices.
Okay, let's learn how to make your script lettering designs look polished and professional.
To get started, use the Text tool to type a word on your Canvas. Select a script font from the Font drop-down menu. In this example, I'm using a super cute font called Elderflower.
The best place to find new fonts is Creative Market. (Don't forget to check out their 6 free goods every week!)
Right away, you'll see that the script letters are not connected. That's okay – we are going to fix it!
Adjust Letter Spacing
The first technique you can use to connect cursive letters is to adjust the letter spacing.
Cricut Design Canvas
You will find the Letter Spacing tool on the top panel of Cricut Design Space, right next to Font Size. (Make sure to select your text first, so that the Text Editing options will appear.)
Click the down arrow to reduce the letter spacing, which will move your letters closer together. For this particular font, I changed the letter spacing to -0.7. You can experiment with Letter Spacing to see what looks best with your particular font choice.
Canvas Cricut Design Space
Use 'Ungroup to Letters'
At this point, depending on your particular font, you may be done.
However, if your letters still look 'wrong' or disconnected after adjusting the Letter Spacing, you can use Ungroup to Letters adjust the position of each letter individually.
To do this, first select your text. Then click the Advanced drop-down menu, and select Ungroup to Letters. (You will find the Advanced menu on the top panel of Cricut Design Space, on the right-hand side.)
After you click Ungroup to Letters, you will see that each letter is now on its own layer. You can use the mouse cursor to click and drag each letter to adjust its position individually.
Use Weld to Connect the Letters
After you have positioned the letters exactly how you want them, use the Weld tool to connect them. Alfred pc alternative. Don't forget to weld your letters together or Cricut will cut each letter out individually.
Select all of the letters that you would like to connect, and click the Weld button in the bottom-right corner of Design Space.
The thin black lines between each of the letters will disappear. This tells you that all of the letters are merged, creating one single shape.
You can double-check that your letters are welded together by looking at the Layers panel on the right-hand side of the screen. You should see just one single layer with the whole word in the thumbnail.
Then, when you send your design to the mat, you should see the word as one shape, with one single black outline around the outside of the word.
Troubleshooting Script Fonts in Design Space
Here are some commonly asked questions I see about connected cursive letters in Design Space.
Should I use Letterspacing or Ungroup?
You may be wondering which of the two techniques you should try first: Letterspacing or Ungrouping. Neither technique is better than the other – think of them as two tools in your toolbox. In fact, I often use both techniques in the same project!
I like to start by reducing the Letterspacing. Sometimes that's all you need. For other projects, reducing the letterspacing doesn't quite cut it, and you need to use the Ungroup to Letters tool to adjust a few letters manually.
Letterspacing can you about 90% of the way, and Ungroup to Letters can fix that last 10%.
How much space should I leave between letters?
When I adjust a script font, I like to overlap the letters as much as is needed to make the handwriting look natural. Be careful not to leave too long of 'tails' between letters, or you may have a hard time getting your word off of the mat without ripping or tearing.
Can I use Attach instead of Weld?
Attach and Weld can seem similar at first glance, but they will give you very different results when it's time to send your design to the mat.
When you use Attach, the letters' position relative to each other is fixed. But, they are still separate overlapping shapes. And Cricut will cut them out individually, rather than and one word.
For more information about the difference between the Attach and Weld tools, check out this article: When to Use Weld vs. Attach in Cricut Design Space
The insides of letters disappeared when I welded!
Sometimes the Weld tool fills in the open letters. If you weld letters that are too close together, you might find that the inside spaces of letters like 'a' and 'o' disappear.
This happens when the letters are too close together, or when the letters are overlapping just a little too much.
To fix this, click Undo to un-weld the letters, and readjust the spacing.
If you are having trouble seeing where the overlapping parts are, you can increase the font-size of the whole word, correct the spacing, and then decrease the font-size to what you want for the project. Then, Weld again, and send the design to the mat.
Have questions? Join the Facebook Group!
I hope this tutorial was useful for you! If you have any additional questions, feel free to join my Facebook Group. I created this group for you to share your pictures, WIPs, ask questions, and help each other out.
What's Next?
Pin this post: Save this tutorial to your Pinterest boards, so you can come back to it later.
Leave a comment: I love to hear your feedback. Tell me in the comments below!
Share on Instagram or Facebook: When you make this project, share it on social media and tag me @sarahmaker. I love to see what you make!
Yes you can Erase in Cricut Design Space!
Learn how to Erase in Cricut Design Space to create the perfect image for your project.
Everyone wonders how to erase in Cricut Design Space. It makes sense because not all images are perfect for our needs. Personalized images are so much more fun to put on our projects.
I have found 5 (6 really, but you have to watch the video tutorial to learn the extra one) different ways to erase in Cricut Design Space using several different tools because sadly, Cricut doesn't have an erase button….so don't be looking for one.
How to Erase in Cricut Design Space – The Video
1. Use Slice Tool to Erase in Cricut Design Space
The first way you can erase in Cricut Design Space is using the Slice tool. This is probably the tool I use the most.
When you have an image that you want to erase something out of, add it to your canvas and then use shapes to Slice out the pieces of the image you don't want. It's easy, and yet time consuming.
For instance, let's say you want to use the feather in the image above, but you don't want the birds. I used the square and the circle to Slice out the pieces of that image I didn't want. Watch the video tutorial if this didn't make sense.
This way works really well on Cricut Design Space images because they are already uploaded.
But if you are uploading an image, the next 4 ways to erase will work better for you.
2. Using Upload Image Area – Select Tool
This is for when you upload an image to Cricut Design Space.
On your CDS canvas click (1)Upload, then (2)Upload Image, (3)browse . Now find your image you have saved on your computer and click it.
Any time you upload an image you will be sent immediately (unless it's an SVG File) to the Upload area where you have to (4)choose Simple, Moderately Complex, or Complex. I always choose complex. Then click continue.
This image is my web site signature, but let's pretend I don't want the flowers and only want the signature.
Once I have it uploaded and in the (5)Select & Erase section, I can start erasing the parts I don't want. You can also make the image bigger and smaller by clicking in the top right corner the + and – that you see. This really helps get the small areas.
First we know we don't want the back ground. So select the Wand in the upper left corner, which is the Select & erase tool. With your mouse, hover over the area you want to erase and click your mouse once. Keyboard macro recorder. Boom….GONE.
Now continue doing that all over the image till the areas are gone that you don't want. Be sure to get the inside of letters too. Check your work by clicking the Preview button on the bottom of the page.
You are going to notice that you can erase all the background, but the fine lines are harder to erase. That's ok. Keep reading
3. Using Upload Image Area – Erase Tool
Now that you know how to use the Select & Erase tool, lets move on to the Erase tool. It sits right next to the wand and looks like an old fashioned school eraser. See it? Click on it.
Right away you can see that you have control over how much area your eraser will cover, from very tiny to huge.
Hover over your image again and you will see a circle. If you click on your mouse and hold it, you can drag it over the areas you want erased.
If you get carried away use the back arrow on the top right. It helps when we make a mistake.
What if you have a big area you need to erase? Keep reading
4. Using Upload Image Area – Crop Tool
The Eraser tool is great, but what if you have a huge area you need to erase? The use the Crop tool.
It is located next to the eraser tool on the top left hand corner. Click on it and then hover over your image again. You want to crop out what you want to KEEP, and remember, the back arrow is your friend. It took me a minute to get the hang of the Crop tool.
Now you have a much smaller area you need to erase.
But what if you image has a million little specks? Keep reading
5. Using Upload Image Area – Advanced Option
If you have an image you pulled off the internet, sometimes they aren't very clear or clean. Using the Advanced Option you can usually play with it and get it cleaned up quickly.
Under the Advanced Option (you must be under the Select & erase icon to see this option) click on the drop down. It's the Color tolerance we want to play with. Notice the difference when I use the Select & Erase tool in the same area on the image, but at a different Color Tolerance level. 16, 50, and 85 levels…in that order.
Can you see how much more detail is deleted the higher the tolerance is set? So by playing with the tolerance level you can erase pretty much all the little details and specks in an image.
But be careful, sometimes it erases things you don't want gone. When I set it too high and clicked on the white background, it also cleared all the cream colors. Just use the back arrow to undo it.
Ok…I have given you 5 (6 really) ways to Erase in Cricut Design Space. You can use them all on one project or just use one. It is a great trick to know.
Now go out there and have fun!
Happy Crafting!!!