I absolutely adore faux leather. Not only is it an inexpensive material, but the leathery look of it allows you to create so many different products; from bookmarks to jewelry! Crafting your own jewelry is fantastic because you can customize it to your specific tastes, which is oftentimes hard to find in the stores. Not only is this project fun to make, but it’s easy too – which is perfect for Cricut beginners, and; you can use either the Explore or Maker!
Supplies Needed
- Cricut faux leather (or other)
- Measuring tape
- Snap button closure
- Embellishments (rhinestones, gems, HTV – optional)
- Cricut cutting machine (or other)
- Standard grip mat
Let’s Make a Summery Bracelet!
Cricut Design Space: Create the Design
While there are many templates for quickly creating bracelets, if you are a beginner, I highly recommend creating your own from both the Shapes and Images Libraries. Doing so will help you in getting better acquainted with Design Space and its various tools.
To begin, first measure the diameter of your wrist at the widest part, taking note of that number. You will now need to add a little extra to compensate for the overlap of the snap button closure, as well as how loose you would like your bracelet to fall on your wrist. For the snap button allowance, it will depend on the button size, but in general, you will want to add an extra 0.5” – 0.75” for the allowance…of course, this number will increase if you want to use a larger sized button.
You can also add even more to the measurement if you like your bracelet to be a little roomier. My wrist measures 6.75”, so after adding an extra 0.75” for my snap button, I then added another 1” because I like my bracelets to hang loosely, my final number becoming 8.5”.
Now just determine how wide you want your bracelet to be. I made mine 1.2” wide – if you would like it to be a little smaller, just refrain from going too narrow, as the Cricut may have a harder time cutting small, intricate designs on the faux leather.
Now that you have your measurements, let’s get to designing!
Insert a square shape and unlock it. Change the width and height of your shape to the measurements that you determined you will want your bracelet to be.
Now open up the Images Library and search for Sunrise Art Deco Accent (#M13296F3C). Insert the design into your canvas and place it on your bracelet template. Size it appropriately so that it fits nicely, and then Align>Center.
After aligning it, select everything and then slice.
Now you will want to add on some small holes for the snap button closure. From the Shapes Library again, insert a circle and size it down to the size that will fit your button components. Duplicate it and place one of each at the side edges of your bracelet. Depending on your button diameter, you may need to place them a bit further in from the edges to avoid any overhang of the button.
Select only the circles and Align>Bottom, then group them together. Now select the bracelet and the circles and slice. Delete all of the sliced pieces (except for the bracelet of course!)
Now you are ready for cutting!
Cutting and Weeding
Click on that “Make It” button and choose the correct material setting. If you are using the Cricut faux leather as I did, then you can select the “Faux Leather (Paper Thin) setting, however, if you are planning on using some faux leather that you purchased off of from Amazon, then you will need to adjust this setting. Most of the leathers that I get from Amazon are a little bit thicker than the Cricut brand, so I discovered that the “Felt, Wool Bonded” setting gives some great results when using that type of material.
You can choose any color of faux leather you wish to make this bracelet. Seeing as this one is a summer tribute, I decided to use the copper color from Cricut.
To get the cutting process underway, just copy the placement on Design Space’s digital mat to your physical one, then place your faux leather piece accordingly. It’s extremely important to ensure that you are using a very sticky standard grip mat to keep the material from lifting and moving while it cuts. My standard grip mat was losing its “stick”, so I used a strong grip mat instead.
You will also want to place the faux leather face down!
- 👉 Cutting Tip: I almost always choose more pressure to cut faux leather. I find that this helps to create a perfectly clean edge.
Once cut, weed the excess material away and get your snap button kit ready!
Finishing
To finish this project up, follow the instructions for securing your snap button pieces, most kits are supplied with this.
While faux leather is easy to puncture, I find that adding the pre-cut holes helps to make this process go a little faster and easier.
If you are feeling especially creative, have some fun with some embellishments such as rhinestones or gems. Simply glue them on with a strong-bond adhesive and allow them to thoroughly dry. You can also add on some decorative heat-transfer vinyl pieces, like a few glittery birds or a flourish. There really are no limits!
Just be sure to follow Cricut’s heat guide recommendations for applying HTV to faux leather.
Voila! That’s all there is to it. With just two materials your pretty bracelet is ready for wearing! I find it’s the perfect accessory for a summer market, don’t you? 🛍️ 🌞
Keep on Crafting! 💖
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