How to Slice on Cricut Step-by-Step

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Last Updated on December 30, 2022 by Chris Butler

How to Use the Slice Tool in Cricut

Hello crafty friends! Today I’m going to show you how to use the Slice tool in Cricut Design Space so that you can split images and letters, and make all sorts of fun designs.  It’s an easy tool to use once you know how, but it does have a few tricks to get used to.

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Let’s get started.

What does slice mean on Cricut?

“Slicing” is taking two overlapping layers and separating them in order to make a new design. You can use this to split an image, make new images, and more.

So how do you use the Slice tool? There are tons of possibilities, but in this video and post, I’ll show you a few examples of different designs you can make using Slice.

Video: Slice on Cricut

 

 

How do you slice two shapes to make a new shape?

Your Shapes menu, located on the left-hand side of Design Space, has a few options to choose from, including a square, a circle, a star, etc., but you aren’t limited to these. You can use these shapes and the Slice tool to create new shapes and designs.

The first shape I made in the video was a crescent moon. Start by selecting two circles from the Shapes menu. Then change the color of one (I used yellow), so you can easily see which circle is which.

Next, overlap the circles until you can see a crescent shape on one side. Then select both circles.

If you look down at the Layers menu on the bottom right, you will see that all of those tools have lit up, which means you can use them. Click “Slice.”

You will now have four pieces instead of two circles.   Select each piece and move it apart.   And you can delete any pieces that you don’t want, and make your design with your crescent moon.

How do you slice an outline of a shape?

Since I started with a moon, I decided to make some stars next. There is already a star shape in the Shapes menu, but you can also use the Slice tool to make just an outline of a star (or any other shape).

Once again, start with two stars and change the color of one. I used yellow again, but the color doesn’t really matter. It just makes it easier to see.

Then I made the gray star just a little smaller than the yellow one.
Once your stars are the sizes you want, you can select them both, click “Align” at the top, and select “Center” from the dropdown menu.

That centers the stars on top of each other, and you’ll be able to see the outline that you’re going to cut out.
Both stars are still selected, so you can go ahead and click “Slice.”

Remove the gray star and the center of the yellow star, and you have your outline.  Easy, right?

 

How do you split an image on Cricut?

Sometimes you might want to split an image so you can put something else inside of it. For example, you might want to make a split monogram, where you have your name running through the middle of your last initial.

You can use Slice to do this, too.  I have a post on How to make monograms 3 different ways using the Slice tool here 

So now you know a few different ways to use the Slice tool, but let’s talk about when not to use Slice.

Why can’t I slice?

Sometimes when you select your overlapped images, you may find that the Slice tool is not available.  That means you have three or more layers selected.  Slice can only work on two layers at a time.

For example, let’s say you’re trying to slice two shapes, one on top of the other, but you have accidentally also selected a shape that is near those two.  Even though the third shape isn’t touching the others, Design Space still sees it as a third layer, and Slice will be grayed out and unavailable.

You’ll need to select only the two shapes that are overlapped.

You can also think of layers as colors. Slice will not work on more than two colors at once.

Start by slicing out a shape from two of your layers, and then use that new shape to slice the next one.

 

Using Slice on Cricut

As you can see, there are lots of fun designs you can make using Slice, as long as you do them one at a time.  Now that you’ve learned a few of the tricks, you can have fun making new shapes and splitting images. 

If you have any questions, be sure to leave them in the comments.

Thanks for crafting with me today