Step by step: Making stickers without a Cricut Machine

Did you know that you can print stickers at home with just an inkjet printer, without a Cricut Machine (a machine that cuts the stickers to the shape you like)?   I assure you it's easier than you think! 

I made some cute stickers for the packaging of my home made bread and buns today. I'll walk you through all the steps to create these:

Materials required:

• A4 self adhesive matte white paper labels (from Evergreen Goods)
• Portable paper trimmer (highly highly recommend to anyone who loves crafting, from Evergreen Goods)
• An inkjet printer (mine is Epson SF2750)
• Not essential but nice to have: Adobe Creative Suite

*Get 10% off if you use the code SHUNTAO10 on Evergreen Goods, you are welcome*

Step 1: Create a sticker design

I decided to call my home bakery goods 'BUN INTENDED" because you know, it's cool.  I did a few logo sketches and decided to go for this one.  I took a photo of it, recreated it in Procreate and then vectorized it in Illustrator using image tracing.  This is so that I can have a png file with transparent background and can change the colour of it in the future if I wish.  If you don't have Adobe Creative Suite, Canva is a web based design platform that allows you to create logos for free.

Step 2 Find a template for your stickers

Round stickers would be tricky without the Cricut machine to be honest. I decided to go for the square stickers since I have an awesome paper trimmer.  Evergreen Goods' website has lots of templates for pre-cut stickers and I found the 3x8 most ideal for the size I'd like to achieve.  The templates come in all different formats like docx, ai, idd, psd.  I used docx and ai today.

Step 3 Stick your logo/design into the template and print

I used Illustrator (ai) because it gives me a bit more flexibility to size and position the logo. Once all set, print it out on the label paper.  Note that when you place it in the printer, the top side should be facing down in the paper tray.

Alright, it's beautifully printed. Now how am I going to cut it?

Step 4 Print the template on the back of the label paper (I know, so clever!)

My solution is this: print the template on the back of the label, so it can be used as a trimming guide without showing up on the actual logo side.  I used the docx this time, selected the table and set all of the borders to black, then place the label paper with logo's side facing down back in the tray, then hit print.

Step 5 Trim it

If you have this trimmer then I don't need to explain the step much.  You can also trim it with a long ruler and a sharp knife, with a cutting mat underneath. Just be careful with your fingers.

Et voila!

Follow the same steps you can also make stickers for any other branding logo, journals or arts and crafts projects.  You can also experiment it with other adhesive labels such as glossy paper or even vinyl (which is waterproof!).  

Have a go yourself and have fun😁!