Using multiple colours of Foil in one project using Cricut Design Space
Have you purchased the We R Memory Keepers Foil Quill? If you have, I hope you love it as much as I do! It makes it so easy to foil text and images using your Cricut Explore or Maker.
There is one drawback that I've found though when using the Explore or Maker, and that's the fact that you can't easily pause the machine where you want. This makes it difficult to remove the foil from a project before it goes on to cut your cardstock, or to easily change colours of foil.
And until recently, there was no way to tell the order that Design Space was going to draw with in projects that used more than one colour.
However, there seems to have been an update that has made it possible to predict the pen colour order. (Click here to download the chart from my Google Drive)
The following process will force the cutting mat to be pulled back towards you, allowing you to remove your foil and add the next colour.
🔷 Add an 11.5" x 11.5" square to your canvas. Change the colour to white so you’ll be able to see your images/text on top. If you’ve already added your images/text to the mat, select the square, click Arrange, Send to Back.
❖ If you're using the desktop version of Design Space you can also use the Template option and select the basic canvas and set it to 11.5 x 11.5". This option isn't available in the mobile apps.
❖ You're only using this square as a guide for placement of your images/text. It will be deleted later.
🔷 Place the text/images you want to foil towards the bottom of the square. Make sure you have set their Linetype to Draw. Count how many different colours of foil you'll be using. I'm just using four of the basic shapes for this tutorial.
🔷 At the top of the large square place some small shapes and again make sure you set their Linetype to Draw. You'll need one less shape than the number of colours of foil you'll be using.
In my example I'm using four colours of foil, so I have three shapes at the top of the square.
Next you’ll be changing the pen colour of each of your images/text and shapes. Use the chart at the end of this document as a guide. The chart shows the order that the colours are drawn in Design Space. Black will always be drawn first and yellow will always be drawn last.
🔷 Click the colour swatch button and set the colour of your first image to a colour that’s low in the colour chart.
In my example, I’ve set my first image (the square) to Dark Green.
🔷 Next, set the colour of the first shape at the top to a colour that comes further down in the chart. I’ve set my first star shape to Blueberry which is 5 colours below the Dark Green.
🔷 Set the colour of your next image (in my example - the circle) to another colour further down in the colour chart. I’ve used Candy Crystal.
🔷 Again, set the colour of your next extra shape at the top of the mat to something that comes after the previous colour. In my case I’ve set the next star to Magenta.
🔷 Continue this process, making sure that you move from bottom to top, bottom, to top etc always selecting a colour further down in the colour chart. Here's mine with four "images" at the bottom and three shapes at the top.
🔷 Now that you've set up all your colours you can delete or hide the 11.5" square.
🔷 This next step is VERY important: Select all the images/text and shapes and click the Attach button to hold everything in place. If you don’t do this step, the colour order will be ignored, and the images will not be placed in the correct position.
Now you're ready to set up your cutting mat.
🔷 Place the cardstock/material you’ll be foiling at the bottom of your Cricut mat so it covers the area that you'll be foiling. Place your first colour of foil in the correct position on your material.
🔷 At the top of the mat you can place some scrap cardstock. There's no need to put foil on this scrap piece.
🔷 Click the "Make it" button. The Prepare screen should show your images for foiling at the bottom and your extra shapes at the top. If that's not the case, then go back and make sure you selected and attached everything.
🔷 Click the Continue button, select your Cricut device and the material type.
Design Space will prompt you to insert the first colour "pen". This will be the colour you'll use for your first foiled image. You should have your Foil Quill heated (for at least 5 minutes) and inserted into the Accessory housing of the Cricut.
🔷 Load the cutting mat into the Cricut and click the flashing Go button. Your first image will be foiled.
🔷 When that image has been foiled, you’ll be prompted for the next pen colour.
🔷 Press the Go button and the blade carriage will move to the top of the mat and “foil” your first extra shape. (There’s no foil there so the Foil Quill will just move over the scrap of cardstock.)
🔷 The carriage will then stay in that top position and you’ll be prompted for the next colour.
This will be the colour of your second foiled image.
🔷 While the blade carriage is at the top of the mat, remove the first colour of foil (admire how pretty it looks!) and place your next colour of foil. (Be careful not to place the tape on the image you have just foiled.) At this point you can also change to a different size Foil Quill if you need to.
🔷 Once you're ready to proceed, press the Go button and the carriage will move to the bottom of the cutting mat and foil your next image.
🔷 You’ll then be prompted for the next pen colour. This will be the next extra shape at the top of the mat. Press the Cut button so that the carriage moves to the top and “foils” that shape.
When you’re prompted for the next pen colour, remove your foil and replace with your next colour of foil.
Continue this process until all your images have been foiled. This image shows the order of how each image will be drawn/foiled and how the blade carriage will move from bottom to top.
I know it looks confusing, so I recommend you create a test project to see how it works. There’s no need to add the foil. You don’t even need to insert the Foil Quill or a pen to test it out. You will get to see how the carriage moves from top to bottom and how Design Space prompts for the pen colour.
If you like you can use the Design Space file I created while writing this tutorial. Here's the link: https://design.cricut.com/#/design/145522630
Please feel free to contact me if you need help. You can comment below or post a question at either of my Facebook groups: Foil Quill Fans or Cricut Explore, Maker and More.
Product info: (affiliate links)
If you're looking to purchase the Foil Quill you can get 10% off at Scrapbook.com by using the code NSD2019. (All-In-One kit currently out of stock). (Offer expires Sunday, May 5th at midnight, MST.)
You can also find it at Amazon
The butterflies are from Design Space and are free if you have a Cricut Access subscription
Foil Quill Fans font is the Bon Voyage Duo from Creative Fabrica. Use code ExploreMore20 to save 20% on products and subscriptions.
Get your Cricut Explore or Maker and supplies at Cricut here: CRICUT.COM
Or at Amazon HERE
You can download a PDF version of this tutorial from my Google Drive HERE.
There is one drawback that I've found though when using the Explore or Maker, and that's the fact that you can't easily pause the machine where you want. This makes it difficult to remove the foil from a project before it goes on to cut your cardstock, or to easily change colours of foil.
And until recently, there was no way to tell the order that Design Space was going to draw with in projects that used more than one colour.
However, there seems to have been an update that has made it possible to predict the pen colour order. (Click here to download the chart from my Google Drive)
The following process will force the cutting mat to be pulled back towards you, allowing you to remove your foil and add the next colour.
🔷 Add an 11.5" x 11.5" square to your canvas. Change the colour to white so you’ll be able to see your images/text on top. If you’ve already added your images/text to the mat, select the square, click Arrange, Send to Back.
❖ If you're using the desktop version of Design Space you can also use the Template option and select the basic canvas and set it to 11.5 x 11.5". This option isn't available in the mobile apps.
❖ You're only using this square as a guide for placement of your images/text. It will be deleted later.
🔷 Place the text/images you want to foil towards the bottom of the square. Make sure you have set their Linetype to Draw. Count how many different colours of foil you'll be using. I'm just using four of the basic shapes for this tutorial.
🔷 At the top of the large square place some small shapes and again make sure you set their Linetype to Draw. You'll need one less shape than the number of colours of foil you'll be using.
In my example I'm using four colours of foil, so I have three shapes at the top of the square.
Next you’ll be changing the pen colour of each of your images/text and shapes. Use the chart at the end of this document as a guide. The chart shows the order that the colours are drawn in Design Space. Black will always be drawn first and yellow will always be drawn last.
🔷 Click the colour swatch button and set the colour of your first image to a colour that’s low in the colour chart.
In my example, I’ve set my first image (the square) to Dark Green.
🔷 Next, set the colour of the first shape at the top to a colour that comes further down in the chart. I’ve set my first star shape to Blueberry which is 5 colours below the Dark Green.
🔷 Set the colour of your next image (in my example - the circle) to another colour further down in the colour chart. I’ve used Candy Crystal.
🔷 Again, set the colour of your next extra shape at the top of the mat to something that comes after the previous colour. In my case I’ve set the next star to Magenta.
🔷 Continue this process, making sure that you move from bottom to top, bottom, to top etc always selecting a colour further down in the colour chart. Here's mine with four "images" at the bottom and three shapes at the top.
🔷 Now that you've set up all your colours you can delete or hide the 11.5" square.
🔷 This next step is VERY important: Select all the images/text and shapes and click the Attach button to hold everything in place. If you don’t do this step, the colour order will be ignored, and the images will not be placed in the correct position.
Now you're ready to set up your cutting mat.
🔷 Place the cardstock/material you’ll be foiling at the bottom of your Cricut mat so it covers the area that you'll be foiling. Place your first colour of foil in the correct position on your material.
🔷 At the top of the mat you can place some scrap cardstock. There's no need to put foil on this scrap piece.
🔷 Click the "Make it" button. The Prepare screen should show your images for foiling at the bottom and your extra shapes at the top. If that's not the case, then go back and make sure you selected and attached everything.
🔷 Click the Continue button, select your Cricut device and the material type.
Design Space will prompt you to insert the first colour "pen". This will be the colour you'll use for your first foiled image. You should have your Foil Quill heated (for at least 5 minutes) and inserted into the Accessory housing of the Cricut.
🔷 Load the cutting mat into the Cricut and click the flashing Go button. Your first image will be foiled.
🔷 When that image has been foiled, you’ll be prompted for the next pen colour.
🔷 Press the Go button and the blade carriage will move to the top of the mat and “foil” your first extra shape. (There’s no foil there so the Foil Quill will just move over the scrap of cardstock.)
🔷 The carriage will then stay in that top position and you’ll be prompted for the next colour.
This will be the colour of your second foiled image.
🔷 While the blade carriage is at the top of the mat, remove the first colour of foil (admire how pretty it looks!) and place your next colour of foil. (Be careful not to place the tape on the image you have just foiled.) At this point you can also change to a different size Foil Quill if you need to.
🔷 Once you're ready to proceed, press the Go button and the carriage will move to the bottom of the cutting mat and foil your next image.
🔷 You’ll then be prompted for the next pen colour. This will be the next extra shape at the top of the mat. Press the Cut button so that the carriage moves to the top and “foils” that shape.
When you’re prompted for the next pen colour, remove your foil and replace with your next colour of foil.
Continue this process until all your images have been foiled. This image shows the order of how each image will be drawn/foiled and how the blade carriage will move from bottom to top.
I know it looks confusing, so I recommend you create a test project to see how it works. There’s no need to add the foil. You don’t even need to insert the Foil Quill or a pen to test it out. You will get to see how the carriage moves from top to bottom and how Design Space prompts for the pen colour.
If you like you can use the Design Space file I created while writing this tutorial. Here's the link: https://design.cricut.com/#/design/145522630
This image shows how I set up a real project:
And here’s the completed project
Please feel free to contact me if you need help. You can comment below or post a question at either of my Facebook groups: Foil Quill Fans or Cricut Explore, Maker and More.
Product info: (affiliate links)
If you're looking to purchase the Foil Quill you can get 10% off at Scrapbook.com by using the code NSD2019. (All-In-One kit currently out of stock). (Offer expires Sunday, May 5th at midnight, MST.)
You can also find it at Amazon
The butterflies are from Design Space and are free if you have a Cricut Access subscription
Foil Quill Fans font is the Bon Voyage Duo from Creative Fabrica. Use code ExploreMore20 to save 20% on products and subscriptions.
Get your Cricut Explore or Maker and supplies at Cricut here: CRICUT.COM
(Current Cricut sale details HERE)
Or at Amazon HERE
You can download a PDF version of this tutorial from my Google Drive HERE.
Happy crafting! ♥
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