Curious which materials the Cricut Joy cuts? This is a quick overview of what the cricut joy is, who it’s best for, what the heck smart materials are, and a full list of all materials it can cut.
There’s a new Cricut machine in town and I. am. here for it!! The Cricut Joy is much smaller than the others and has some cool new features that make it a dream for labeling and organizing all the things.
I’ve been busy testing out the capabilities of the Cricut Joy and have some fun project tutorials coming your way, but first I wanted to share a quick overview of what the Cricut Joy is and what sets it apart from its bigger siblings. I’ve also compiled a mega list of all of the materials known to be compatible with Cricut Joy!
Related: Cricut Joy Shopping Guide – What Supplies You Need & What You Don’t
Related: How To Make Labels With Cricut – A Getting Started Guide
There’s a lot of information in this post, so use the quick links below to jump around!
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What is the Cricut Joy?
The Cricut Joy is Cricut’s newest cutting machine. It’s the smallest machine in the Cricut family which makes it more compact for storing and portable for traveling.
Unlike the Cricut Maker and Cricut Explore machines that cut designs on 12×12 cutting mats, the petite Cricut Joy’s cutting mat is only 4.5 inches wide so it’s best for smaller projects. The new Smart Materials specially designed for the Joy mean that although it’s limited on width, it can cut long rolls of material (more on that in a minute)
Check out the video below for a quick overview of the Joy:
What projects can you make with the Cricut Joy?
The Cricut Joy is the perfect match for smaller projects – and if you’re into organizing like I am, then labels quickly come to mind!
The Joy is an amazing option for those who enjoy creating vinyl labels (like I do all over my house including my pantry labels) as well as paper labels and writable labels using the new Smart Label Materials (more on that in a sec).
In addition to DIY labels, the Joy has specialty insert cards and a card mat to create greeting cards in a hurry.
If you want to create labels, greeting cards, and smaller projects out of paper, vinyl, and iron-on materials, then the Cricut Joy is an awesome option for you. Its size will limit you from cutting large paper designs or larger iron-on T-shirt projects.
I think the Cricut Joy is an awesome machine for beginners and casual Cricut users as well as anyone who uses their Cricut mostly for smaller projects like labeling (aka me!). I know I will be using mine a lot – it does just about every type of project I tend to create!
What comes in the box?
The base machine comes with:
- Cricut Joy machine
- Blade + Housing
- Fine Point Pen, Black (0.4 mm)
- StandardGrip Mat, 4.5” x 6.5”
- Welcome card
- Power adapter
- Free 30-day trial membership to Cricut Access (for new subscribers)
- 50 ready-to-make projects online
- Materials for a practice cut
Related: Cricut Joy Shopping Guide – What Supplies You Need & What You Don’t
How large of a design can you cut?
If using Smart Materials (designed specifically for the Cricut Joy), you can cut continuous shapes up to 4.5 inches wide and 4 feet long! And you can make repeated cuts (like stars, confetti, and shapes) up to 20 feet long.
If using regular materials (paper, vinyl, iron-on, etc), you are limited to the size of the cutting mat. Cricut Joy cutting mats come in two sizes: 4.25 inches x 6.25 inches or 4.25 inches x 11.75 inches.
What materials does the Cricut Joy cut?
The Cricut Joy cuts a wide range of materials including most of the long-time Cricut favorites plus a brand new line of “Smart Materials”.
The biggest thing to remember is that the Cricut Joy is a smaller machine so the width of your material is limited to 4.5 inches.
What Are Smart Materials?
Smart Materials are specific to the Cricut Joy and don’t require a cutting mat! They are sized for the width of the Cricut Joy and go straight into the machine. Because there’s no mat, you can cut longer designs if you load a roll of Smart Material!
Smart Materials include…
Cricut has a ton of information and FAQs and Smart Materials if you want to learn more!
Note: Cricut Joy can still cut other materials but they will require a cutting mat. See below for a full list.
Full List Of Materials Compatible With Cricut Joy
Related: Cricut Joy Shopping Guide – What Supplies You Need & What You Don’t
Paper And Cardstock
The Cricut Joy cuts all kinds of paper ranging from basic scrapbook paper to delicate crepe paper and everything in between.
- Construction Paper
- Copy Paper
- Deluxe Paper
- Deluxe Paper, Adhesive Backed
- Deluxe Paper Foil Embossed
- Flat Cardboard
- Foil Paper – 0.36mm
- Foil Poster Board
- Glitter Cardstock
- Insert Cards (Cardstock)
- Medium Cardstock (80 lb / 216 gsm)
- Pearl Paper
- Post Its
- Poster Board
- Scrapbook Paper
- Shimmer Paper
- Smart Label Writable Paper
- Sparkle Paper
- True Brushed Paper
Vinyl
Cricut machines also cut vinyl which is one of my personal favorites for projects. You can use it to make labels, signs, graphics, etc.
- Adhesive Foil
- Chalkboard Vinyl
- Dry Erase Vinyl
- Holographic Sparkle Vinyl
- Premium Vinyl
- Premium Vinyl – Frosted Glitter
- Premium Vinyl – Frosted Gray
- Premium Vinyl – Frosted Opaque
- Premium Vinyl – Holographic
- Premium Vinyl – Holographic 3D Textured
- Premium Vinyl – Holographic Art Deco
- Premium Vinyl – Holographic Bubbles
- Premium Vinyl – Holographic Crystals
- Premium Vinyl – Holographic Threads
- Premium Vinyl – Mosaic
- Premium Vinyl – Pearl
- Premium Vinyl – Textured
- Premium Vinyl – Textured Metallic
- Premium Vinyl – True Brushed
- Smart Label Writable Vinyl
- Smart Vinyl – Holographic Patterns
- Smart Vinyl – Holographic Sparkle
- Smart Vinyl – Matte Metallic
- Smart Vinyl – Permanent
- Smart Vinyl – Removable
- Smart Vinyl – Shimmer
- Stencil Vinyl
Iron On Material
I love iron-on vinyl! Also referred to as heat transfer vinyl (HTV), it is so fun to use to create custom shirts, bags, hats, etc.
- Everyday Iron-On
- Everyday Iron-On Mosaic
- Glitter Iron-On
- Glitter Mesh Iron-On
- Holographic Iron-On
- Holographic Iron-On Mosaic
- Holographic Sparkle Iron-On
- Infusible Ink Transfer Sheet
- Smart Iron-On
- Smart Iron-On – Glitter
- Smart Iron-On – Holographic
- Smart Iron-On – Patterned
- SportFlex Iron-On
Other Specialty Materials
The list of materials a Cricut Maker can cut just keeps on going! Cricut has a large variety of specialty materials that would be fun to incorporate into a project.
- Faux Leather (Paper Thin)
- Foil Acetate
- Infusible Ink Transfer Sheet
- Party Foil
- Window Cling
- Window Cling – Frosted
Is your mind bursting with project ideas after reading that giant list of materials a Cricut Joy can cut? I know mine is!
Stay tuned for future Cricut Joy projects and inspiration here on the blog soon. In the meantime, be sure to add the Cricut Joy to your wish list!
More Cricut blog posts:
- Cricut Joy Shopping Guide – What Supplies You Need & What You Don’t
- The Complete Guide To Cricut Blades For Beginners
- What Is The Cricut EasyPress 2 And Do You Need One?
- DIY Labels Made With Vinyl And The Cricut Maker
- How To Make Pretty Pantry Labels With Cricut Vinyl
- 25 Personalized Gifts Made With Cricut
- What materials does the Cricut Maker cut? [A look at my new Cricut cutting machine]
Have a fantastic day!
