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Cricut Gifts: Special Kid’s Artwork on Tote Bag

Make your own custom Cricut gifts like flower tote bags with your children’s artwork.

I’ve been having more fun using Cricut’s new product, Infusible Ink. This time I wanted to figure out a way to transfer my daughter’s artwork onto a tote to make a gift and it worked!

This opens up so many possibilities! I have always made Father’s Day T-shirts with my kids’ artwork but the transfers grow faint. I’m excited next year to have them use the Infusible Ink markers on shirts so that they will never fade!

flower tote pin

Materials Needed for Flower Tote

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links from Amazon and/or Cricut.com. I receive a small commission at no cost to you when you make a purchase using my links (purple text).

Go shop all Cricut items at Cricut Shop page!

cricut gifts

How to Use Cricut Infusible Ink Markers

You can use images in Cricut Design Space and color them in as I did for these cool coasters. You can also read everything you need to know about Infusible Ink on that post too!

But for this one, I wanted to try to add my child’s artwork to the gift. So I had her draw a few flowers with pencil and then she used Sharpie to make them thicker.

cricut gifts

You can just have them draw directly on the laser paper, but since she had erased lines and pencil under the Sharpie, I uploaded it to CDS and had my Cricut draw it.

This is a similar process to use when making stickers with the Cricut print and cut function.

I took a picture of it with my smartphone and saved it to my Google drive. Then I opened the Google drive on my computer, downloaded it, and then uploaded it to CDS.

I used the erase tool in the top left corner to click on all the white parts. Magnify to get into the smaller areas if needed.

screenshot

Once all the white parts are the checkered pattern, click continue and save it as either. Insert it on the canvas, click on it, and change the top left drop-down from “cut” to “Draw”.

I also added the saying which was a design in Cricut Access. Size everything to how big you want them by using the top right arrow circle. If you need help in CDS, make sure to check out my Cricut Design Space basics and Cricut Design Space 101 series.

Click Continue. On the preview screen, make sure to turn the toggle on Mirror Setting to green for both mats. Everything needs to be on mirror setting with Infusible Ink. Also, change the Material Size to 8.5×11 for the laser paper mat.

screenshot

Once you click continue, make sure your machine is connected (the Maker or Explore family will work!). Select copy paper as your material for the marker mat.

Apply a piece of laser paper to a light grip Cricut mat. CDS will prompt you to insert a marker. I put a black marker to outline all of the flowers.

screenshot

Load the mat when you are prompted and watch the Cricut draw your kid’s artwork! It’s so amazing!

cricut gifts

Remove the copy paper from the mat, put it on top of a scrap piece of paper and have your child color it in however they want.

infusible ink tote
infusible ink tote

Cutting Out Infusible Ink Transfer Sheets for Cricut Gifts

Cut out the Infusible Ink sheet with the ink facing UP. There will be a setting for “transfer sheets” in the setting menu.

infusible ink tote

Remove it from the mat and bend the sheet until you hear a cracking sound. All of this is in the video so make sure to watch everything in action if that helps!

infusible ink tote

Pull out the middle of the letters with your fingers and the rest of the extra transfer sheet.

infusible ink tote
infusible ink tote

Trim around the edges of the plastic sheet.

Preparing the Tote

Turn on your EasyPress 2. I always use the EasyPress heat guide which will tell you exactly how to layer everything and what temperature you need to be at. For this, it said 385F for 40 seconds.

infusible ink tote

Trim around the colored in images. Since I was using a colored heart for the dot over the i, I stuck that right onto the transfer sheet.

infusible ink tote
infusible ink tote

Prepare your Cricut compatible tote! Put an EasyPress mat inside and then place a piece of white cardstock paper in between the mat and top of the tote. Roll the bag with a lint roller.

cricut infusible ink pens

Preheat the tote for 15 seconds with the EasyPress 2.

cricut infusible ink pens

Once it’s cool, lay the wording so that the ink side is down in the middle of the tote.

Since you are only supposed to press once and the EasyPress plate is supposed to cover the entire image, I pressed the images side by side.

So, I only put one flower on for the first press. Tape it down with heat resistant tape so it doesn’t move.

cricut infusible ink pens

Put a piece of butcher paper over the entire images and press for 40 seconds. Let everything cool for a few minutes and then remove the backings.

cricut infusible ink pens
cricut infusible ink pens

It’s already so pretty! Since I had one more flower I wanted on, I taped it on and then covered everything with butcher paper. I pressed only that side so that I wouldn’t be pressing everything twice.

cricut infusible ink pens
cricut infusible ink pens

Wait for it to cool and remove that backing. The tote is all set to go! No drying time is needed.

cricut infusible ink pens

I love the fact that I have my daughter’s artwork on my flower tote. Cricut gifts like these are one of my favorite ways to use the machine. I love all the extra touches, just like when I added my kid’s handwriting to my mom hat or transferred my Grandma’s recipe to an oven mitt.

infusible ink tote
infusible ink tote

This would be a perfect gift idea for grandparents, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthdays or Christmas! The person will always have something that will never fade or peel off.

If you’d like to save this tutorial for later, simply hover over the top left of the image below and PIN It now!

diy tote pin

Thanks for stopping by and have a creative day!

partysignature

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  1. Jessica says:

    This is such a beautiful way to use your daughter’s artwork!

  2. Jessica says:

    This is such a beautiful way to use your daughter’s artwork! Thanks for being a part of the Summer of Flowers event!

  3. Thanks so much for hosting!!

  4. I try it this weekend and i love them

  5. Marcia julissa says:

    You’re page is super awesome! I will definitely come to your page for ideas. Thanks

  6. Jes says:

    <3 thanks for this awesome giveaway

  7. Victoria says:

    That’s so cute. Your so creative. Love that they came up with the idea.

  8. Victoria says:

    Im kind of in a flower obsession phase. Those are adorable

  9. Victoria says:

    That’s so cute. I think I need to do a fun project like this with my 4 year old. She’d have a blast. Your daughter did some beautiful flowers

  10. Kitty says:

    I want to ink everything! I love the finished look. I would use them for all the sports merch I make and for my dad’s swag bags for his customers. There’s so much I want to try with it.

  11. Kitty says:

    I don’t want to leave a double comment in case my last one posts…moral of the story.. I want to ink everything!

  12. Sherrill bland says:

    If I won I’d make all the things! I’d check out the books for the cricut at my library, then visit the maker space there to get all crafty so I’d be ready to make my own Infusible ink creations!!!!

  13. I love the customization options this package gives!

  14. Yes, you can do so much!

  15. There are so many possibilities with this package!! Good luck!

  16. Lol! Me too! I think sports merch would be great since they would never peel off! Good luck!!

  17. It would be so fun with little ones! When my kids were younger they always did so much artwork that I would hang up. Now that they’re older, it’s not as easy to get out of them!

  18. Yes, it is! The markers are so fun!

  19. Thanks so much for the kind words! I hope you do!

  20. Nancy B says:

    I would start with totes and t shirts!

  21. Rachael Michael says:

    Love your detail of how to use the infuse ink on totes. Thank you and keep being you!

  22. Rachael Michael says:

    Love the directions. You make it look so simple.

  23. Tory Myers says:

    Love this! Thank you for the tutorial and giveaway!

  24. Laura Scott says:

    I have made coasters & a shirt so far, but I’d love to make more!!!

  25. Thank you! Good luck!

  26. Krystal Dandie says:

    I would love to make some new totes or the coaster with the infusible ink!!!!

  27. Jenifer says:

    If I win a cricut I would make shirts for all the teachers in my kids school to represent the universities they attended

  28. Michelle J. says:

    I would make personalized bags!

  29. Sara Griffin says:

    Thanks for the giveaway! A t-shirt or tote like this one would be my first project!

  30. Thanks for stopping by!

  31. Connie Gruning says:

    I would love to make a tote bag first. I can’t wait to try the infusable ink. It looks soooooo amazing! Thank you for the chance!!

  32. Charlotte says:

    I just got my first infusible ink pens for my birthday last week. Cricut has come out with some really neat stuff recently. Good idea to include your children’s art in your craft projects.

  33. Mar says:

    I would make shirts, especially Christmas and Grandma shirts. One would say, “Do the Mawmaw Dance” so I can embarrass my grandchildren 😀

  34. Paula Gorrell says:

    I would start with t shirts and totes for the family ❤

  35. Amanda Whitley says:

    i would make my kids back to school tees

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