Beginner Project – Birthday Card from Simple Cards

This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.

When you are first getting started using your Cricut and Design Space, you may wonder where to start. Cards are a great way to learn and build your skills, but how do you make a card? This post will walk you through the steps of making a card from the Simple Cards image set in Cricut Design Space. This image set is included in the Cricut Access subscription. You get a two-week free trial with your machine. (The terms “image set” and “cartridge” are interchangeable in Design Space. Since physical cartridges are no longer necessary and many cartridges are now only available digitally, the term “image set” is more accurate.)

Supply list:
Cardstock for card base (I used 12″ x 12″ card stock but 8.5″ x 11″ will work)
Pearl Paper for inside piece (Any paper or card stock will work)
Easy-Tear Tape, 1/8″ (or glue such as Tombow)
A7 envelope (or you can make your own)

Log in to Design Space (design.cricut.com). From the home screen, start a new project.

Click on “Images.”

UPDATE: Image navigation in Design Space has changed. Cartridges are now called “Image Sets.” Please see this post for more details.

Click on “cartridges.” We want to find a card that is on the Simple Cards image set. Put the word “simple” in the search field. On the Simple Cards image set, click “View all 50 images.”

Scroll down to the “Happy Birthday to You” card and select it. Click on “Insert Images.”

Before you do anything else, SAVE your project. Click “Save” and give your project a name.

For this project, I put the name of the card and the image set in the project name. Click “Save.”

The card and the envelope will be in one big group. Click “Ungroup.”

This card includes an envelope, but I’m not going to use it. I’ll make this card 5″x7″ and use a standard A7 envelope. (Available on Amazon: #ad https://amzn.to/2N4ljkL) Close the “eye” on the envelope group to hide it.

Next, size the card. Select all and set the width to ten inches. (The card will be five inches wide when folded in half.)

Now, we’re ready to cut. I always save my project before clicking, “Make It.” Save often to avoid losing your work.

Because the tops of my mats tend to be less sticky after a while, and the weight of the mat can cause the top of the card stock to pop up, I will move my card base down to the bottom of the mat on the Prepare screen. If I’m using an older mat, I’ll use a little bit of painter’s tape to hold the card stock in place.

Tip: If you are using card stock with a textured side and a smooth side, an image this complex will cut better if the textured side is placed down on the mat. I recommend doing this and mirroring the image. This has the added benefit of giving you a smooth surface to write on inside the card.

Place the card stock on the mat and smooth it down. Put the mat under the guides on the machine and hold the mat against the rollers while pressing the load button.

If you don’t have the scoring stylus, you can score this project by hand with a scoring board or just fold it without a score line.

Once it’s cut, flip the mat over and carefully peel the mat away from the paper. You may need to use a spatula or other tool to coax some of the smaller pieces off the mat.

You can use glue to stick all the tiny pieces down, or you can use double sided tape around the edges.

Here is the Design Space project link.

Here’s my video tutorial:

The above post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.