Free Circle Keychain SVG and Tutorial
Make Keychains with Your Cricut
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Acrylic Keychain Tutorial and Free Summer SVG
The weather in Ohio has been absolutely beautiful this week! The warmer temperatures and sunshine have been such a welcome change after a long stretch of cold days. As someone who lives close to Lake Erie, I enjoyed spending my summer days at the beach growing up. That’s what inspired me to create this week’s free circle keychain SVG – “Life is better at the beach.” And to help you bring this design to life, I’ve also created a craft tutorial that shows you how to add adhesive vinyl to an acrylic keychain. I hope you enjoy making it as much as I did creating it!
How to add Adhesive Vinyl to an Acrylic Keychain
I will show you exactly how to make this circle keychain! I used my Cricut Explore Air 2 to cut the adhesive vinyl for this keychain tutorial.
Acrylic Keychain Tutorial
See exactly how I made this keychain in my video tutorial, or keep scrolling if you prefer written step-by-step instructions.
What’s that font?
The font I used for this week’s free cut file is called Ask Why.
What do I need to make a Keychain with my Cricut?
Here’s the supply list for all the products I used for this acrylic keychain tutorial.
3 Inch Acrylic Blank I purchased my keychain blank from 3rd Degree Laser Blanks.
– Here is a link to purchase them on Amazon.
Permanent Adhesive Vinyl
–White and Black
-Outside of Sun: Old Gold
-Inside of Sun: Yellow
-(1)First Color: Starling Blue Skies
-(2) Second Color: Blue
-(3) Third Color: Sky Blue
-(4) Fourth Color: Robin Egg Blue
-(5) Fifth Color: Camel
Umbrella Stick: Brown
Umbrella: Light Red
Cricut Explore Air 2
Standard Grip Mat
Weeding Tools – Pin Pen
Brayer
Rubbing Alcohol-Pump Bottle
–Lint-Free Cloth
Transfer Tape
Spray Bottle with Water & Liquid Dish Soap
Squeegee
Parchment Paper
Bead Reamer
Tools to Apply Keychain Hardware
–Bent Nose Pliers & Small Needle Nose Pliers
–Sunglasses Charm
Acrylic Keychain Tutorial Step-by-Step Instructions.
How To Apply Adhesive Vinyl to an Acrylic Keychain | DIY Keychain
This keychain is double-sided. There is adhesive vinyl applied to both sides.
- Locate the file on your computer.
2. Upload your free keychain SVG and add it to your Cricut design space canvas. Your keychain SVG is sized for a 3-inch keychain.
3. Ungroup your SVG and select the top blue piece of the keychain design. Click on the contour button on the bottom right side of your design space screen.
4. Click on the hole. This will remove the sliced hole from your keychain design. I do not cut the hardware hole with my Cricut. I cut it with a bead reamer after my vinyl is applied to my keychain.
5. Add the numbers 1-5 to your canvas using the text tool. Align each number with one color and attach. This will help you to remember the order of the colors when applying your vinyl.
Moving Objects to Different Mats in Design Space
6. Click on make it.
7. Move objects to one mat to speed up the vinyl-cutting process.
8. I set my Cricut Explore Air 2 dial to custom and select the wax paper setting. This setting works best for my machine when cutting small pieces from adhesive vinyl for keychains.
Cutting Your Adhesive Vinyl.
9. After applying your adhesive vinyl to your cutting mat in the correct places, use a brayer to help adhere your vinyl. Load your mat and let your Cricut cut your vinyl.
10. Remove your vinyl from your cutting mat by flipping your mat over and pulling the mat away from your vinyl.
Weeding your Adhesive Vinyl.
11. Weed your adhesive vinyl. Remember to go slow as you peel back your vinyl.
12. Remove the protective paper from your acrylic blank. Clean your blank with rubbing alcohol.
13. Arrange your adhesive vinyl. Apply transfer tape to the top color (1), and burnish with your squeegee.
Using the Wet Method to Apply Adhesive Vinyl.
14. Add water and a drop or two of liquid dish soap to a spray bottle. This will be for applying the adhesive vinyl using the wet method.
15. Spray a small amount of the soap/water mixture onto the acrylic blank. Move the mixture around with your finger and apply a small amount to the sticky part of the vinyl/transfer tape. Apply the vinyl to your blank and move it until you have it in the correct place. *Note- this part of the design is applied to the back side of your keychain blank.
16. Holding down the vinyl/transfer tape, push out all the water using your squeegee. Carefully pull back your transfer tape. You may need to apply pressure to your vinyl to help it adhere to your keychain blank while you remove your transfer tape.
17. Repeat this process until all the colors are applied.
Apply your Keychain SVG to the Front Side.
18. Turn your keychain over and apply the rest of your vinyl pieces.
19. When all of the vinyl is applied to your keychain, flip it over and find the hole. Press your finger over the hole to create an indent. Insert the bead reamer and use the file to “cut” out the hole.
*If you choose to seal your keychain, you would do that before proceeding to the next step.
Applying Keychain Hardware
20. I use two tools to apply my keychain hardware. A pair of bent nose pliers and small needle nose pliers. This really helps when attaching small parts to your keychains.
21. Hold the jump ring in one set of your pliers and twist to open it. Insert the keychain hardware and twist the jump ring to close it. Add an optional charm following the same steps.
That’s it! You made a keychain! Wasn’t that easy? I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and feel confident to make more!
Bonus Summer Keychain SVG Bundle Offer!
Life may be better at the beach, but that’s not all! With fun designs like “Life is better at the cottage,” “Life is better at the lake,” and “Life is better at the cabin,” you can capture the essence of summer no matter where you are.
The Free Life is Better at the Beach SVG download can be found in the freebie library. But I also would love to offer this bonus summer keychain bundle exclusively to my community! This bundle is available to purchase here and won’t be sold on any other platform!
Add some fun to your summer and grab this exclusive bundle of Summer Keychain SVG files today!
TERMS OF USE FOR PURCHASED FILES. This bundle of keychain files follows the same policies as my free designs. Check out my Terms of Use (TOU) here.
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Here’s where you can find your Free SVG Download
Design #151-Life is Better at the Beach SVG is available in my freebie library. Get the Password by clicking the button below and Joining our Freebie Club!
If you enjoyed this week’s Free SVG, here’s another you will love!
SVG Files in my Design Bundles Shop
SVG Files in my Etsy Shop
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