If you’re like me and many other Cricut Explore owners you’ve probably been doing a bit of exploring with your machine’s new print then cut feature.
Seriously, I have been printing then cutting everything in sight.
I started simple with the three bears~

Cute, right?
And yes, I need dimension.
I have to layer and use pop dots!!
With my bears looking so good I decided I was ready to make flair buttons with all those adorable Cricut images from my favorite cartridges like Create A Critter and Teddy Bear Parade.
My first two attempts~

These weren’t so good.
I originally calibrated my Explore with the kids’ new Canon Pixma printer.
Needless to say I think I loaded my paper incorrectly leading to the buttons looking “off” color.
So I switched back to my Epson R2000 printer, and still I wasn’t very happy with the print quality.
The images look blurry.
The Epson buttons are on the left and the Cannon on the right.
To show you exactly what I mean I have buttons printed with my Epson using Lettering Delight images and the Silhouette Studio software.

Do you see a difference? I do.
A close-up~

However, I understand that the Cricut images weren’t originally made for this purpose where many of the Lettering Delight images were.
Especially the Lettering Delights graphic sets.
Hmmm…maybe I’ll add those to my To Try In Design Space List.
I also think the larger your image, the better the quality.
Panda-palooza~

So what’s a girl do when she wants to decide which machine to leave sitting in the place of honor on her desk?
She tries them with the same image~

The fairies above were created with the Silhouette, with the Cricut with bleed on and with the Cricut without the bleed.
After much studying and debate with my son and Facebook friends I like the printing from the Silhouette a teeny, tiny bit better as it appeared to use more or thicker ink.
And her eyes look sharper. More crisp.
However, the cut quality was far better with the Cricut Explore.
My Silhouette left a tiny white border where the Explore did not.
Now what to do with all those fairies floating around?
Make a card~

A close-up~
And what’s better than a fairy on a stick?
One that wobbles!!
And one last tidbit of information.
I love, love, love the fact that if I print then cut a PNG file, the Cricut Explore automatically sets the cut lines.

There’s no having to trace or set cut lines. Yippee!!
So…what do you think of the Cricut Explore Print Then Cut?
Do you have as many images as I do just laying around waiting for a project?
Any tips you’d like to share?
I used~
American Crafts White Textured Cardstock, Epson Presentation Paper, Recollections Craft It Glassine Bags, Paper Straws, Gems
American Button Machine, Silhouette Cameo, Cricut Explore, Epson R2000, Canon Pixma MG7120
Images from Lettering Delights and Cricut Library
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