I have two very picky eaters at my house and one way I have found to make meal time easier is with some fun kid’s plates. It can be hard to find ones that my kids will love, so I decided to make my own with my new Cricut Joy Xtra. Here is the full tutorial so you can create your own DIY kid’s plates for your children.
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When I did the full Cricut Joy Xtra unboxing and review, I mentioned that it was great for new and experienced crafters alike. I wanted my first project to be something fun but simple that anyone would feel comfortable doing. That is why I wanted to show you how to make these DIY kid’s plates. You can make the design as simple or as complicated as you want but the application process will be the same.
Supplies for DIY Kid’s Plates
For this project you will need the new Cricut Joy Xtra ( or any other craft cutting machine). I found some blank kid’s size plates at Target. They were only $3.00 for a set of 6!
I used Cricut Permanent smart vinyl in a variety of colors. I had 2 different sampler packs on hand that I was able to use. They are available in five solid colors or 5 different Samplers with 3 sheets each. I love that I don’t have to use a mat with the smart vinyl, you just push it right into the Cricut Joy Xtra.
You will also need some transfer tape and a scraper ( or even a credit card will work).
Create your Design in Cricut Design Space
The first thing you want to do is open Cricut Design Space to create your designs. I used a Happy Halloween design that was already created and then used texts and images to create the other two designs.
My son loves anything dinosaur or construction related so I made him a dinosaur plate and an excavator plate. You can click on the links to be taken to each design on Design Space if you would like to make the same for your child.
My image was around 5 in x 5 in but this will vary based on the size of your plate. Once you have the image looking the way you would like it is time to hit “Create”.
Cutting Images on Cricut Joy Xtra
It was so easy cutting out the designs with the Cricut Joy Xtra. I didn’t have to change out any blades or turn the dial for the correct cutting pressure, it uses one blade to cut over 50 different materials! Choose the correct color of vinyl you will be using, choose permanent smart vinyl for your material type in the pop up on design space, and simply push the vinyl into the Joy Xtra. It will run it back and forth to make sure you have enough material, and then click “Go” to begin cutting.
Applying Your Design to the Plates
Once your design has been cut out, peel away the excess vinyl and weed round any lettering or smaller cuts to remove the vinyl until you have only your image. Take the transfer tape, cut as much off as you will need and apply it to your image. Use the scraper tool (or a credit card) and rub the transfer tape over your image to make it adhere. Pull off the backing of the image so that it is now only on the transfer tape.
Line up your image on the plate and apply. Use the scraper tool again to make it adhere to the plate and then peel off the transfer tape. I like to remove it at an angle to make it easier. That is it, your plate is finished!
I do want to be honest when I run into problems and let you know that I did have some trouble getting the letters that were in the excavator image from the backing of the vinyl to the transfer tape. I think the font I used was just too thin and it made it almost impossible to adhere to the transfer tape. That is why you don’t see it on the plate, I just couldn’t get it to work.
I was going to change the font and try again but my son saw it and wanted it right away. As long as he is happy with it, I think it turned out fine! If you would like to add the “Dig In” letters to your plate, I would just change the font on the design if you want an easier application.
This is a great beginner project to get a feel for how to use the new Cricut Joy Xtra. You don’t have to spend a lot on the materials and it lets you get a feel for Cricut Design Space if it is your first time using it.
The Joy Xtra is a great affordable cutting machine at only $199 and you can use it to make the most popular craft projects like shirts, mugs, stickers, home decor, cards, and so much more.
Try out this easy DIY kid’s plates project for yourself and see just how simple it is for anyone to start crafting at home.
For even more crafting ideas you can see all of my Cricut Projects here.
