How to Engrave Acrylic With Cricut...

How to engrave acrylic with Cricut Maker is the most frequently asked question I get in the comment section of my blog. Finally, I have time to answer it briefly in my write-up today.

But what is the easiest way to learn the engraving process? Many of you might be trying engraving for the first time. And for beginners, everything should be explained in detail in this tutorial to avoid any confusion. However, you don’t have to worry about it; I will make it simple for you all as I have a project idea that I created a month ago. Throughout the blog, I will unfold my entire journey of engraving a circular piece of acrylic.

Thus, I will first give you step-by-step instructions for making or choosing a design. Then, I will explain how to set up the materials and make the essential settings before cutting. Finally, you will learn to engrave the acrylic. Are you excited to learn about engraving acrylic with Cricut Maker? Let’s get into it to learn!

What Materials Will You Need for Making a Cricut Project?

As always, I am again telling you that having the right tool or machine with materials is a must for creating an exciting project. So, let’s first gather the supplies, and then we will move on to learning how to engrave acrylic with Cricut Maker.

Here are the supplies you will need to gather:

StrongGrip mat
Masking tape
Engraving tip
Cricut Maker
Acrylic blank (I am using a 4-inch circle blank with 3.176-inch thickness)
Knife blade
Brayer

Now, let’s shift our focus to the steps to learning about engraving acrylic with Cricut Maker.

How to Engrave Acrylic With Cricut Maker to Create a Keychain?

A month ago, I made a keychain. I used a 4-inch circular acrylic blank, which I engraved using my Cricut Maker. When it was finally done, I couldn’t believe my eyes as it looked really enticing. Yes, the intricate designs that were engraved on the blank can make your jaw drop. Those fine cuts were amazing when cut on a robust machine like Cricut Maker.

Don’t worry. You can also learn to engrave acrylic with Cricut in a few minutes. So, let me take you to the steps that thoroughly explain everything:

Step 1: Create or Choose a Design on Design Space

When picking a design to engrave, I specifically looked for intricate, fine-line designs without solid areas. However, these fine lines should also not be so close. Otherwise, it will look blurry after engraving.

Hence, you can choose something similar to this one (see the example image below).

You can either get a new design or create your own. But you have to line up your design in the software. For this, I used a circle to make the shape of my acrylic blank (Make sure the size of your acrylic blank and this circle is the same).

Next, add your design to the Design Space and select Engrave from the Operation drop-down menu.

Then, you need to attach the shape and design in your software using an Attach option.

Once done, hit the Continue button. After that, you need to choose the materials. In other words, I have chosen acrylic-thin (1 mm) material.

Step 2: Prepare Your Acrylic

Make sure you have pre-cut your acrylic blank. You can easily get them from various online e-commerce or craft stores. Since they are available in different shapes and sizes, you can buy them as per your needs.

However, I didn’t buy a new blank as I already had one. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have a hole, so I decided to make one later after engraving. Now, place it on the cutting mat after removing the protective film.

The mat’s grid can help you locate your blank in the center of the mat. So, place the blank in the correct order. Besides, I have used the StrongGrip mat. So, make sure you are also using the same. Then, use the painter’s tape to secure it at a place.

Step 3: Load the Mat and Start Engraving

Insert the cutting mat into your Cricut machine and start the machine by pressing the C button. Now, wait until it finishes engraving. Finally, when it was done, it looked like this.

Now, you might have understood how to engrave acrylic with Cricut Maker. Now, you can easily engrave any material you want.

FAQs

Question 1: How can I engrave acrylic plastic?

Answer: To engrave the glass, follow the following points:

Choose the design and upload it to the canvas.
Choose Engrave in the operation menu.
Then, hit the Make It button.
Now, load the engraving tip into Cricut.
After that, insert the cutting mat.
Press the arrow button to load and hit the C button to start the cutting.
Once the engraving is finished, you must unload the mat and remove the blank.

Question 2: Can I cut the acrylic with Cricut?

Answer: You can easily cut the acrylic with your Cricut-cutting machine if it is the right type. The Cricut machine is capable of cutting materials up to 2.4 mm. Also, when you are using the Cricut Maker, it works faster than another machine, providing top-notch quality. So, yes, you can cut the acrylic with a Cricut without any problem.

Question 3: What thickness should my acrylic be to cut it on Cricut?

Answer: An acrylic sheet that measures .007 mm deep and .020 mm deep is the most widely used with Cricut. This is the thickness compatible with cutting acrylic on your Cricut cutting machine. Also, you can use the knife blade on your Cricut Maker to cut the sheets intricately.

Final Words

Overall, you might have a basic idea about how to engrave acrylic with Cricut Maker. As I have explained all the points thoroughly in this blog, I am confident you can engrave using this guide. Whether you want to make a key chain or something for decorations, this tutorial will surely help you there. So what are you waiting for? Learn the instructions and get your design ready in a couple of minutes.

Leilani lawrence

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How to Engrave Acrylic With Cricut Maker: Easy Guide