{"id":1255,"date":"2018-07-05T12:45:19","date_gmt":"2018-07-05T16:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/crystalscrafties.com\/?p=1255"},"modified":"2020-03-17T20:36:50","modified_gmt":"2020-03-18T00:36:50","slug":"how-to-add-shadow-to-letters-in-cricut-design-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crystalscrafties.com\/index.php\/2018\/07\/05\/how-to-add-shadow-to-letters-in-cricut-design-space\/","title":{"rendered":"How to add shadow to letters in Cricut Design Space"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you ever seen those decals with a decorative shadow behind the text and you\u2019re wondering how did they add shadow to letters like that? Well there\u2019s a ton of different ways to get the shadow effect using all kinds of different programs like Photoshop or Inkscape but not everyone has Photoshop and Inkscape has a bit of a learning curve so I\u2019m going to show you the fastest and easiest way to add shadow to letters in Cricut Design Space.<\/p>\n

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You\u2019re going to need a smartphone app called Phonto. It\u2019s a free app and there\u2019s SO much you can do with it but we\u2019ll just start with the shadow. Head to your app store and download Phonto so you can continue the tutorial. Also make sure to watch the video on how to add shadow to letters for some extra tips on getting fonts in Phonto and how to thicken skinny fonts to make them easier to cut with your Cricut.<\/p>\n

\"How<\/p>\n

Phonto Steps<\/h2>\n

Step 1:<\/strong> Open Phonto and click the camera at the bottom of the screen then select \u201cplain image\u201d.<\/p>\n

Step 2:<\/strong> Choose the white square in the top right hand corner (it\u2019s next to the black square and may be hard to see). Once the white square is selected click the \u201cupload icon\u201d in the top right hand corner of your screen and select \u201cuse\u201d. You will now see a white square in the middle of your screen.<\/p>\n

Step 3:<\/strong> Tap the white square, tap \u201cadd text\u201d, add in your text and click \u201cdone\u201d (you can change the font later, I\u2019ll show you how).<\/p>\n

Step 4:<\/strong> Once you have your text added select \u201cstyle\u201d. You will see 3 options, text, stroke and background. Text will be highlighted in grey and this is where we want to start. Change your text color to white by clicking the white color box under the word text. You will see your text turn white (you may not be able to see it at all but that\u2019s okay, don\u2019t worry about that).<\/p>\n

Adding the Shadow<\/h2>\n

Step 5:<\/strong> Now that your text is white you\u2019ll select the \u201cstroke\u201d box so that it is highlighted in grey. Turn the stroke black by clicking the black square under the word stroke. You will now see a black outline around your word. Go down to the bottom of the screen and find the \u201cwidth\u201d slider. Slide that up until you get your desired shadow. (Note, some words may not achieve a full shadow but you can fix that in design space.) Once you have the shadow you want click \u201cdone\u201d, click the \u201cupload icon\u201d in the bottom right corner and save the image to your phone.<\/p>\n

Step 6:<\/strong> Awesome, you have your shadow saved but now you need to save the text inside the shadow. Click your word and select \u201cstyle\u201d again. This time go to \u201cstroke\u201d and pull the \u201cwidth slider\u201d back down to remove the shadow. (Tip, you may want to leave some of the shadow if your font is super skinny. The Cricut has a harder time cutting skinny font and this is a good way to thicken the font a little.)<\/p>\n

Step 7:<\/strong> Once the shadow is removed select \u201ctext\u201d again and turn your text back to black. Select \u201cdone\u201d and then the \u201cupload icon\u201d and save that image to your phone.<\/p>\n

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Cricut Steps<\/h2>\n

You\u2019ll need to transfer the 2 images you saved from your phone to your computer if you\u2019re doing this on a desktop. You can do it in the Cricut app too if you prefer.<\/p>\n

Step 1:<\/strong> Once you\u2019re in Cricut Design Space you\u2019ll need to upload the images you saved into a new project. Make sure you\u2019re only deleting the white background around the shadow and not the inner white part. For the word you\u2019ll delete the white background and all the inner parts of the letters just like normal.<\/p>\n

Step 2:<\/strong> Resize and arrange your design. Choose your colors and cut.<\/p>\n