13 Days of Cricut Halloween – Washiween

For this year’s Washiween I definitely had to use my Cricut. And not just because I’d decided to a blog series about Cricut Halloween crafts. Think of the possibilities! It would be so much easier to cut washi tape with the Cricut.

Soon after Sam, the creator of Washiween, posted the prompt list for the year, I had some ideas.

I had a scene in my head of bats bursting from a book – perhaps some magic performed by wolves. I used images from Cricut Access to create a scene on Design Space.

I had a very clear plan.

Step 1: Mirror the image and have the Cricut draw it out on 12 x 12″ white cardstock.
Step 2: Flip the cardstock and put it on a lightbox.
Step 3: Colour in the moon around the bats.
Step 4: Apply washi tape where the characters and features would be.
Step 5: Put back through the Cricut to do all the cutting.
Step 6: Peel off excess washi tape.
Step 7: Admire my own genius.

Yeah. That’s not quite how it happened.

I dug out all the green, red, and grey washi tapes that I had.

Then, before I threw it at the Cricut, I figured I needed to test the tapes. I did a line of tapes, and measured it so I knew what I had to work with. Fatty helped.

This very light grey didn’t like the machine too much. I don’t think it was sticky enough.

But the cut depth was just right. Cutting through the tape, but not the card.

Some tapes were a little too sticky and tore the paper up.

But I had proof of concept.

I had an idea of layering sticky back plastic on the card, thinking that the tapes would peel up a lot easier.

I was right.

Okay, time to begin.

Step 1: Draw out the design.

Step 2: Flip over and place on a lightbox.

Step 3: Start colouring the moon.

Step 4: Realise you forgot to mirror it.

Step 5: Redraw it.

Step 6: Flip over and place on a lightbox.

Step 7: Decide to cut out a moon shape instead.

Step 8: Lightly glue into place.

Step 9: Start applying washi tape.

Step 10: Remember you were gonna place sticky back plastic under the washi tape.

Step 10: Peel off washi, apply sticky back plastic.

Step 11: Apply washi tape. I realised the bat over the book was gonna be difficult so I decided to cut one seperately and apply it afterwards.

Step 12: Admire how messy the piece looks right now.

Step 13: Realise you hadn’t considered how you were gonna line the card up again.

Step 14: Add a little mark and that not-very-sticky-tape somewhere you can align on Design Space.

Step 15: Align as best as you can.

Step 16: Send through the Cricut to cut.

Step 17: Curse the little bits of tape that didn’t stay stuck.

Step 18: Apply to lightbox and realise you weren’t aligned correcly.

Step 19: Decide to proceed anyway, since you won’t see the lines in the finished piece.

Step 20: Be impressed with the lettering.

Step 21: Be more impressed with the lettering with the lightbox turned off.

Step 22: Struggle with whole piece. The bats didn’t all cut fully, it was hard to see the cut lines and the draw lines just confused everything. The book was completely impossible.