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When I first started getting into my Cricut Explore Air, I’ll admit – I was completely clueless.
I had done a million Pinterest craft projects before, but never with vinyl! Honestly, I didn’t realize that there were so many different types of vinyl.
I thought that heat transfer vinyl was just those printable iron-on sheets of paper you can buy at Walmart (that have seriously NEVER worked for me).
I joined a few Cricut Machine & Silhouette Cameo Facebook groups, hoping to get some answers.
I mostly found a lot of people who might as well have been speaking another language! Talking about Oracal this, or HTV that. I was even more confused than when I started!
I needed to learn my basics first.
After much research (and tons of trial and error), I navigated my way through the confusing, but amazing and vast world of vinyl.
In an effort to save you guys some time, and to cut down on some of the trial and error, I made this beginners vinyl guide!
In this vinyl guide, I explain what the different types of vinyl are called, and what projects suit each type best.
If you’d like to save this page so you can refer back to it while working on your next project, I made it easy for you with this Pinterest friendly image.
The Ultimate Beginners Guide to Vinyl
Oracal 631 Vinyl (Removable)
This type of vinyl is great for projects that are a little more temporary in nature. Oracal 631 is mostly for indoor projects, as the adhesive is strong enough to last a little while, but can’t stand up to heavy use.
Oracal 631 has a matte finish, so it looks especially good for wall decals, since there is no light reflected from it. Sometimes it can even make designs look like they’re painted on the walls!
This makes it ideal for:
- Removable Wall Decals
- Phone Cases
- Stencils
- Interior decorations
Sometimes when I’m working on projects, I prefer to use Oracal 631 to test out an idea to see if I love it. If I do, I often replace it with a more permanent vinyl like Oracal 651 to ensure that my design lasts.
Oracal 651 Vinyl (Permanent)
If a vinyl says it is permanent, then it is likely to be Oracal 651. This type of vinyl can stand up to heavy use and is even used on commercial signs.
Oracal 651 is water resistant, so it can be used outdoors no problem! You can technically use it on more temporary projects, but the strong adhesive is likely to leave a lot of residue, and possibly peel up paint from your surface.
This makes it ideal for:
- Outdoor signs
- Car Decals
- Mugs
- Glasses
- Tumblers
- Outdoor projects
- Things that will receive heavy use
I’ll be honest here. I don’t believe that there’s any vinyl that would be considered “dishwasher safe”, but I’ll admit there’s been once or twice that my Oracal 651 vinyl decorated mugs have made it into the dishwasher, and they came out perfectly fine.
This may not be the case for everyone, but for me, it just showed that Oracal 651 is the real deal!
HTV (Heat Transfer Vinyl)
This is the type of vinyl you need if you’re going to be making custom clothing! It’s also known as T-Shirt Vinyl or Iron-on Vinyl.
It comes in a variety of brands, but the most often recommended is Siser EasyWeed.
When I was first starting out with my Cricut, I tried to cut costs by using different brands. I always had problems with them pulling up while I was trying to weed, or peeling off after ironing – even with my heat press.
Once I tried out a sheet of Siser EasyWeed, I was an instant convert! Seriously, they don’t call it EasyWeed for nothing! This stuff weeds like a DREAM!
Plus it holds up through the washing machine, and looks amazing.
After cutting it out, you use a heat press or an iron to apply the vinyl to a fabric surface.
You can layer this vinyl on top of itself, so you can layer different colors to make more intricate and beautiful designs.
HTV comes in a variety of colors and styles (glitter vinyl, metallic, holographic, glow in the dark, stretch & more), and is insanely versatile.
This makes it ideal for:
- T-shirts
- Canvas tote bags
- Canvas Shoes
- Aprons
- Socks
- Costumes
- Stuffed animals
- Anything with fabric (make sure your fabric can handle heat!)
Printable Vinyl
Printable vinyl might seem familiar if you’ve ever used one of those printable iron-on transfers where you buy a pack of “light” sheets for white shirts, and “dark” sheets for shirts with color, and after a few washes the transfer is ruined. However, I can confidently tell you that times have changed!
Printable vinyl comes in both Heat Transfer and Adhesive varieties. Using a regular old inkjet printer, you simply print out the design onto the vinyl and you’re good to go!
You can combine this with your Cricut or Silhouette to do a print n’ cut. You then have an amazing, unique sticker or iron-on!
If you’re wondering why printable vinyl isn’t quite as popular as the other types of vinyl, here it is: the quality of printable vinyl varies wildly depending on the brand.
After going through many, many types of printable vinyl, I finally found a brand that works perfectly every time.
For printable heat transfer vinyl, my go to is Expressions Vinyl Inkjet Printable HTV. These printable vinyl sheets work for both light AND dark fabrics. I’ve used it on both and it holds up great!
Everything I’ve made has lasted several washes without fading. I used my basic Canon inkjet printer, and my Cricut and that’s it!
The main downfall of this printable HTV is the availability. It’s only available in 8.5 x 11 sheets, and for nearly 1.50 a sheet, it can add up for sure! But if you’re like me, and you’re obsessed with the watercolor clipart trend, it’s totally worth it.
For adhesive printable vinyl, Expressions Vinyl makes a regular adhesive Inkjet Printable Vinyl. I’ve had great luck with this as well! You can use it for indoor and outdoor projects.
If you’re using the printable vinyl for something that will receive heavy use or somewhere where the design will be exposed to the elements, I would recommend using one of these laminate sheets over your vinyl to make sure it stays just as beautiful as the day you made it.
I’ve used this brand before with great success on indoor projects, but I have not tested it outside yet. However many of the 5 star reviews of this product say they’ve had amazing long lasting results.
I have also heard good things about Cricut printable vinyl, however I have not had a chance to use it. It has great reviews on their website, so it may be worth a shot!
Transfer Tape
While similar to adhesive vinyl, transfer tape, as its name suggests, it is used to transfer designs from one place to another. It is often transparent with a grid which is used to help line up designs.
Transfer tape is essential for lifting vinyl from your cutting mat and placing it on your desired surface. It’s also used for lining up multi-color designs.
There are many brands of transfer tape available. You’ll definitely want something that is sticky, but not stickier than your vinyl or else you’ll have issues transferring designs from one place to another.
My usual go to brand is this one on Amazon. However, I’ve also used the Cricut brand in the past and it worked just fine! Feel free to shop around for transfer tape, but make sure you check reviews!
To try to help you guys out even more, I made a cheat sheet for the different vinyl types. It’s Pinterest friendly, so feel free to save it to refer back to!
Thanks so much for reading my guide to the different types of vinyl! I hope it was helpful.
Are there any questions you guys have about vinyl that I haven’t answered here? Let me know in the comments!
If you’re looking for some amazing fonts to use with your new vinyl, I’ve got you covered. Here’s a list of 14 script fonts that are completely FREE for commercial use.
Plus – check out my freebies library for a bunch of free SVG designs you can use with your vinyl cutting machine!
Looking for some brand recommendations? Check out my resources page for my recommended sources for a heat press, free fonts & designs, and even a Cricut or Silhouette if you don’t already have one!
Between Cricut and Silhouette as a vinyl cutter, which brand do you recommend in general?
I think it depends. Both brands are similar enough that the differences are mostly in the design software.
For a complete beginner, I would recommend the Cricut. Cricut Design Space is more user friendly, and it’s easier to upload SVG files or use one of their templates.
For more experienced users, I’d recommend the Silhouette Cameo. Silhouette Studio is more advanced, and you can do a lot more with it, but it might be more confusing for beginners. I also don’t like that it costs more money to upload SVG files.
If you sew, or you need a machine with more power and features, you really can’t beat the Cricut Maker!
This is great information. Thank you.
What type of vinyl would I need to use if I wanted personalise a clear PVC make up bag/pouch? Heat transfer or standard vinyl without heat? I’ve not been able to find out which will work best for the PVC material
I use the Cricut and also find it great for beginners. Really simple.
PVC has a very low melting point, so I would steer clear of using HTV. I would use a standard vinyl in this case! Hope this helps.
Your page was really useful – thank you for sharing!
Hi!
Do you recommend roll or sheet vinyl? Is there pros or cons for each, other than pricing?
Thanks!
Hello! I think it honestly just comes down to preference! There’s no real difference. Sometimes rolls will have bubbles and creases depending on the quality and how it is packaged during shipping, but if you purchase from a reputable vendor, that shouldn’t be an issue! 🙂
When using HTV do you have to get specific transfer tape to easypress or iron onto clopthes?
Nope! For HTV, there’s no transfer tape needed. 🙂
Thank you fir your thoughtful blog!!! Very helpful info and easy to read site …. no needless banter to take up space! I’ve just ordered a Cricut, and am still awaiting delivery!, so I’m completely naive to the process. One thing I’m still unsure about, is the transfer tape used for materials other than those with adhesive such as the various vinyls? The only item that comes to mind is fabric maybe?? Thanks again and any insight is appreciated ❤️
Thanks so much for your kind words! 🙂
That’s a great question! As far as alternative uses for the transfer tape go, off the top of my head, I’m not aware of many. I know I’ve used transfer tape as an emergency stencil before with varying results, but as far as I know, it’s mostly for transferring adhesive vinyl to a different surface. However, don’t let that discourage you from trying new things and thinking outside the box! Folks come up with new clever tips and tricks every day, experimenting might lead to something new!
how does the quality of cricut permanent vinyl compare to oracal permanent?
Cricut has recently updated their vinyl and the quality has improved tremendously! I will update this post soon to reflect this change. I think at this point you really can’t go wrong with either. Cricut’s website often has some great sales, so you may be able to grab it for less.
Falyn,
I have the Cricut Explore Air 2. I have been kind of nervous about using it, so I have been doing a lot of research and not able to find many answers to my questions. Until I came upon your blog, you have been most helpful on explaining the different materials for which type of project to use them on. I thank you very much for taking the time to write this blog for us beginners LOL.
Thank You from KS
Tricia
I just loved your tips, you don’t know how much helped me. This post guided me a lot. Thanks