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Cricut has done it again! They’ve come out with one of the cutest crafting items ever! If you’re wondering What is Cricut Joy? We’ve got all the details here for you! Keep reading to learn why the Cricut Joy machine is your new crafting best friend.

This post was updated to include more information on Cricut Joy.

What is Cricut Joy?

Cricut Joy is a brand-new smart little cutting machine from Cricut. It’s a compact bundle of crafting fun and is perfect to use alongside your current Cricut machine or if you’re brand new to Cricut (or crafting in general), it’s the perfect thing to get you started. Not only is Cricut Joy the cutest little machine ever it has so many features we know you’re going to love. It’s small enough to keep almost anywhere, but still gives you many of the same functions as full-size Cricut machines.

Who should buy Cricut Joy?

I feel like Joy is great for everyone. Because it’s a compact machine, it looks less intimidating and would be perfect for the new Cricut users who want to get into making their own water bottles, birthday cards, custom stickers, cupcake toppers, shirts, vinyl decals, and greeting cards.

It’s also great for the crafter who is limited in space. Its small size means you can have it sitting on a shelf, tucked away in a cupboard, or even just keep it out on your counter because it’s so adorable.

For serious crafters who already own a full-sized Cricut machine, this is a perfect companion for your crafting stash. You can pull it out for quick and easy crafting projects without all the extra crafting mess.

What’s so special about Cricut Joy?

Well, obviously it’s adorable! But even more than that, it makes crafting quick, easy, and no fuss. It uses Cricut Design Space and Cricut Access images or your own designs. You can be creating quick projects at a moment’s notice.

Joy can cut long cuts of a single image of 4 inches wide and up to 4 feet long! If you are doing repeated cuts (say you need a million stars cut out) it can cut up to 20 feet long using Cricut Smart Materials. Another great thing? Matless cutting! That’s right, you don’t need a 20-foot mat, using Cricut’s new Smart Materials, no cutting mat is needed!

For certain items, you’ll still need a mat, but they have the coolest card mat! It’s perfectly sized to make cards and they have Insert Cards that make it so you don’t even need adhesive!

They also have cute Joy sized mats for cutting other Cricut products or scrap pieces that you may have. They will be available in StandardGrip and LightGrip.

Can I use my Maker Tools with Joy?

Cricut Joy was created to pack a lot of punch in a tiny package. Because of that, it’s an entirely different machine. It has its own blades and its own pens that are different than the full-sized machine options. You won’t be able to use Maker Tools or any blades from your Maker or Explore family machines with Cricut Joy.

Which of my existing Cricut tools can I use with Cricut Joy?

Basically, any of your accessory tools will work with Cricut Joy. You can use your scrapers, tweezers, spatulas, scissors, TrueControl Knife, weeding tools, etc! And even better, you don’t need any new software! That’s right, your existing Design Space Desktop App, iOS and Android mobile apps will all work with Cricut Joy. That means all the projects you’ve already created will be there waiting for you. How great is that?!

What materials can I cut with Cricut Joy?

In addition to the Cricut Smart Materials, you can cut regular vinyl, iron-on, Infusible Ink, paper, and cardstock. So if you already have materials at home, you can use those or give the Cricut Smart Materials a try.

The new smart vinyl does have a thicker backing than regular vinyl that allows it to work matless. You’ll still use transfer tape just like you would with regular vinyl.

Smart Iron on is another new material that works matless with Cricut Joy.

Why do WE love Cricut Joy?

When we first heard about Cricut’s new machine we were a little skeptical. Like you, we thought “I already have a machine why would I need something smaller?” We quickly found out that sometimes smaller is better! The new Cricut Joy has a companion Cricut Joy App. It has a plethora of projects that are perfectly sized for the Joy. Smaller projects using all the different materials available for use with Joy are featured in the Joy app.

Matless cutting is a game-changer. While it doesn’t take long to lay Iron-on or Vinyl on a mat not having to do it really does save on time. Especially for a quick project.

We also love being able to cut such long lengths. There have been many times when we’ve had to piece a project together to get the right size and now we don’t have to.

Another project we’re so excited about is card making. There are so many card designs that require no adhesive. Sign us up for those right now! Never again will we be caught last minute without a birthday card, Joy makes it so easy you’ll be able to whip up a whole collection to just have on hand if you want.

If you already know the Design Space software there will be almost no learning curve. It is different than the full-size Cricut Maker, Cricut Explore Air, Maker and Explore 3 machines but not so different that it will be difficult for you to use.

I’ve got Joy, what should I make first?

Each Cricut machine comes with a project to make to get you started. We highly suggest starting with that one. It gives you a great introduction to the machine and gets you making immediately. After that…the world is your oyster! Make cards, shirts, personalized tumblers, a birthday banner, the possibilities are basically endless.

If you have any questions we didn’t answer about Cricut Joy or just want to share your excitement about this new crafting product leave us a comment.

Cricut Joy will be available through Cricut and most retailers on March 1st, 2020.  It will have an MSRP of $179.99.  We are so excited about this new machine and we can’t wait to show you more about it and share all sorts of new and fun projects!  Make sure you follow along and we’ll share everything about Cricut Joy, Maker, and Explore machines to get your creativity flowing!

Don’t forget to join our Facebook Group to help you with all things Cricut!

If you have any questions we didn’t answer about What is Cricut Joy or just want to share your excitement about this new crafting product leave us a comment.

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