How I Got Started with Cricut – My Traditional Christmas T-shirts

by | Nov 30, 2021 | Oma's Musings

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If only I would have heard about Cricut and their amazing cutting machines much sooner!

I need to determine precisely when I began this tradition. My youngest grandson, Joshua, was already born. It might have been that first year, his inaugural Christmas. As is well-known, I craft Christmas t-shirts for my grandchildren, which they don for our Christmas Eve gift exchange. I take great pride (the positive kind) in creating the designs myself.

Discovering the Cricut cutting machine and heat transfer vinyl (HTV) was a revelation. I persuaded my husband that we could save money if I made the shirts myself. And so, the tradition was born. I acquired my first Cricut, the Explore Air 2. They seem to have discontinued this one, however, there are many others to choose from. Take a look!

Here are my grandchildren with my inaugural design from Christmas 2019. I always add “Happy Birthday Jesus” to the shirt and note which Christmas it is for each child. My eldest granddaughter, Kayla, was born the day after Christmas, which often leads to confusion about which Christmas we’re celebrating for her. These are cherished moments that I’m confident she will always remember.

My grands with Christmas 2019 shirts made by me with my Cricut

This is what led me to the world of Cricut. Having purchased numerous SVG designs, I chose to learn how to create my own. I enrolled in Pen and Posh’s course on Adobe Illustrator, which also offers advice on starting your own Etsy shop.

I hope I have inspired you to start your tradition with your grands and even buy a Cricut and or design your own SVG designs and earn a passive income by selling them on Etsy.

HTV

Shirts

Heat Press 

Sidenote: My designs can be easily uploaded to any print shop like VistaPrint or Printful. You do not have to own a Cricut to use my designs. I always include them in a PNG format as well as PDF. Print them out on card stock and frame them!

Merry Christmas!

Sidenote #2: To keep my life simple, I do not do custom orders, but…please visit my shop for all your Christmas DIY gift ideas!

Here is a freebie for you. Maybe you want to make your own Christmas t-shirt with this design!

Click here to see more designs in my Etsy Shop

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