These wood photo ornaments are quick and simple to create with the help of printable iron on and the new EasyPress from Cricut.
Christmas is still a few months away, but last year, I was so rushed in December that I promised myself I would start earlier this year. I always make ornaments for our parents and grandparents, so that was the first task to tackle. These wood photo ornaments are made with iron on, which adheres to the wood much better than vinyl. I can’t believe I haven’t used this on wood yet!
Note: Cricut’s printable iron on has been discontinued, but this one is highly recommended.
WOOD PHOTO ORNAMENTS
All you need for this project is (affiliate links):
- wood slices or tags
- printable iron on
- glitter iron on
- Cricut EasyPress (or an iron or heat press).
WOOD PHOTO ORNAMENTS – THE HOW TO
To start, go into Cricut Design Space and start a new project. Click “Shapes” on the left, and draw a circle that is the size of your wood slice, or .25″ larger than the diameter if you are using a scalloped piece.
Next, click “Upload an Image”, and upload the photo you want to use. Select “complex” as the image type, and then select the cut type as a “Print and Cut”.
Arrange your circle over the portion of your image that you want to use on the ornament.
Click “Slice” (bottom of the right hand layers panel).
Move the circle, and underneath the circle, your image will be cut into a circle. Delete the extra layer of your image, and delete the original circle. All that will remain is the circle shaped image. Then hit “Make It”.
It will print on your printer, and then place on your mat and have your Cricut machine cut out the circle.
Use the transfer tape to pull up the circle and throw out the excess. Arrange it over your wood slice, and heat up your EasyPress.
WOOD PHOTO ORNAMENTS USING EASYPRESS
This was actually my first project using my EasyPress, and I immediately remembered why I was so impressed at the launch in Salt Lake City! It was way easier than using my iron. There were actually no settings listed for using the printable iron on with wood, but all types of iron on required the EasyPress to be set at 300 degrees for 40 seconds, so I tried that and it worked great.
Seriously, you guys. If you use HTV or iron on vinyl at all, you NEED an EasyPress. Ah-maz-ing. The iron on was secure and evenly adhered across the whole design – no lifting corners!
40 seconds later, my image was permanently attached to the wood. I cut “Christmas 2017” out of red glitter iron on and used the EasyPress to adhere that as well. Then I used a craft knife to cut around the scallops of my wood slice. (And I know what you’re thinking – why didn’t I just cut the scallops out with the Cricut, and to be honest, it was because I didn’t want to be bothered lining all of those edges up exactly.)
All that’s left to do then is add some twine and hang it up on a tree. Isn’t it adorable? The EasyPress makes it so simple to whip out a whole bunch of these at one time, which knocks a major task off my to-do list for Christmas.
NOW IT’S YOUR TURN…
Have you tried the EasyPress yet? And if not, what would you love to create with it?
And, if you love these wood photo ornaments, you won’t want to miss all of my other Christmas ornament posts – you can view them all, including my super popular wood slice ornament, by clicking here.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cricut. The opinions and text are all mine.
Laura says
Hi amazing project and I would love to try it. I clicked on the printable vinyl link but it gave me an error msg. Would you be able to tell me what brand it is? Thank you
Sarah says
Hi Laura – oh no, I’ll have to update the link. This one should work: http://shrsl.com/nzkk
Leslie says
The link still doesn’t work:(
Sarah says
Cricut discontinued its printable iron on – you could do the same thing with printable vinyl though!
Kaye says
I cant print the pictures right. It keeps on smearing!
Sarah says
Hmm… maybe adjust your printer settings? I think it might be something that varies between printers.
Bridget Binns says
I followed all of your directions up until the ‘slice’ image….On my cricut design space, the ‘slice’ button is faded out….It won’t work! 🙁
Sarah says
You may have more than two layers selected. Make sure only two layers are selected at a time.
Tricia says
Hi. Love this. Excited to try it. I have a couple of questions. 1st, the printable iron-on you recommended says it doesn’t work on wood. Have you actually tried it? Also, did you put any sealer on the wood before or after the iron-on? How long does the finished product last? Finally, can I use a printable iron-on made for light colored fabrics for this project? Thanks!
Sarah says
Oh no! I used Cricut iron on in the project, which they dont make anymore. I have tried the other iron on, but not on wood. I didn’t put a sealer on, and it lasted fine. I was afraid sealer would make the ink run. I used iron on for light fabrics. Hope that helps!
Tricia says
Thanks for getting back to me. I tried it. I used Jolee’s Printable iron-on for dark fabric and the settings you used on my easy press. The image shrank on the 2 that I tried. The ink peeled off of 1, the other bubbled up. I’m using regular transfer tape with nothing over it. Both times they stuck to the bottom of the press. I love this idea. I hope I can figure out why it’s not working for me.
Tricia says
Ok. I just tried it again. This time I adjusted the easy press to 275 for 40 sec. I also used the parchment paper, that was included with the iron-on, b/t the transfer paper and the press. Success! It came out great. Thank you so much for this awesome project.