Should I Buy a Cricut Joy?

One of the most common questions I get asked when people start thinking about getting a Cricut machine is, “Should I buy the Cricut Joy?” If you ask me this question, the answer you’re going to get time and time again is — yes, yes, YES!

I LOVE my Cricut Joy and honestly, it’s the machine I pull out the most. After using practically every Cricut machine to hit the market, I can confidently say that the Cricut Joy is my go-to and for several reasons — which I will explain here for you through out today’s post but to get started, I thought it would be fun to unbox a Cricut Joy together and I can walk you through what to expect — and hopefully answer all your questions that you’ve no doubtably had on your mind.

Disclosure: some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. This post is sponsored by Cricut. All opinions are my own.

To get things started immediately, the Joy is the easiest machine to set up. It’s basically a machine and a plug. Sounds simple right? And that’s why I love this machine so much. Super easy to move around and set up making it perfect for small quick projects.

Inside your box you will have:

• Joy Machine
• Plug (2 parts)
• Cricut Joy Pen
• Open Me envelope
• Cricut Joy Blade (this will be located already inside the machine)

Inside the “Open Me” envelope you will find everything you need to get started and walk you through the process. You will also get inside the envelope, a Standard Grip Mat, a test material for cutting and a sample of cardstock.

To set up your machine, you will first want to plug the two parts of the power cable together and then insert the correct end into the power source hole located on the back of the Joy.

Plug your plug into a power source and you will see a white light on the top of the Cricut Joy and it will be lit up.

When you pull down the cover of the Cricut Joy, there will be a styrofoam piece protecting the blade, make sure you take that out.

When you flip the machine over, you will notice on the bottom your machine has a serial number. This number is unique to your machine and you will need it for connectivity for Bluetooth but I will explain more about that later on.

So once you have your machine plugged in and ready to go we can now go ahead and set it up. To do this you just need to simply follow the instructions found inside the “Let’s Get Started” booklet.

Start with 1 and follow the instructions from cricut.com/setup. It’s helpful if you already have Design Space downloaded and you have created a Design Space profile. If you need help with this you can find more information on that here.

The new machine setup process on Cricut is super easy to follow and understand. All you have to do is follow the prompts and instructions. Cricut guides you through every step of the way.

I won’t go through the whole online machine setup as like I mentioned it’s soooo easy. Honestly, Cricut couldn’t have made it any easier. But the one thing I did want to touch on is to make sure you connect your Bluetooth for your machine.

When you get to this page in the setup process, it will search for your machine. If you don’t see your machine listed that means that it’s not connected through your computer’s Bluetooth settings.

So if you open your computer’s Bluetooth settings, this is where you will look for the serial number for your machine.

Once you do this you can go back to the Cricut.com setup page and then you should see your machine.

In the setup process, Cricut will have you test your first cut to ensure your machine is functioning properly. You can use the piece of Smart Vinyl they included in the envelope.

Again, this is super easy to do — just follow along with the setup guide on Cricut.com.

Once the cut is done, you can use a weeding tool to weed (remove the areas you don’t need) the design and make sure the cut is perfect.

Then after the test cut is complete, you’re ready to get creating!

When you’re finished with the test cut, you will be taken to this screen in Design Space. If you are brand new to the world of Cricut, I highly recommend spending some time on this screen as there is lots of help available here and great resources from Cricut.

If you feel ready to create, I also thought I would thrown in a great beginner project for you here.

St. Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and I have to admit, I am a big sucker for cinnamon hearts. I just love them and I always like to have a bowl on the table so I thought I would take just a moment (yes, a moment that’s all it takes with the Joy) and whip up a cute bowl to put them in.

For this project all you need is:

• Cricut Joy
• Bowl
• Smart Vinyl in Light Pink and Party Pink
• Weeding Tool

Step One:

Load up a new project in Design Space or to make things even easier you can open the project I created for this here.

I will mention though that the heart images I used are a part of Cricut Access so if you are not a subscriber you will have to pay for the images or you can create something similar with a free image.

I do highly recommend Cricut Access, though. It’s totally worth it and makes creating in Design Space so much easier. I use so many images and I find there is no shortage of amazing designs and projects.

Step Two:

Load the Smart Vinyl into the Cricut Joy in the order it’s laid out in Design Space and then follow the prompts in Design Space to cut.

Step Three:

Once the machine has cut the vinyl, weed out the areas that are not needed and then you can place the hearts on the bowl. This project is so easy you don’t even need transfer tape.

The design is simplistic but pretty and I was able to place them on the bowl using my hands.

You will want to make sure that you smooth them on well and make sure to smooth out any wrinkles or air bubbles.

I also saved the inside of the hearts that I didn’t use in the Party Pink vinyl. I can use these on a future project! I love double duty!

This project is sooooo easy yet so cute! And is a perfect home for my favourite St. Valentine’s Day candy!

I hope that you enjoyed this post and I hope that it has inspired you to get creative and get started with Cricut.

The Joy is a great beginner machine but also amazing for Cricut users of all levels. It’s a cute, compact machine that packs a big punch and is so versatile when it comes to quick and easy creating.

If you have any questions, for me do not hesitate to leave them below! And if you’re ready to dive into the world of Cricut and take a chance on the Joy — I am telling you, you won’t regret it. You can scoop up a little “Joy” for yourself here.