Wall Sticker for Room Decor

Whether you're moving into your new college apartment or redecorating your room at home, wall decor can truly elevate any space and make it feel more inviting. As I settled into my first apartment this year for college, discussions about decor with my roommates quickly became a major focus. We wanted our place to reflect our personalities and create a welcoming atmosphere, so we dove into the details.

Selecting curtains, couch covers, and kitchen accessories was a breeze; we found some fun patterns and colors that suited our style right away. However, finding the right wall decor proved to be a bit more challenging. We came across some beautiful floral and abstract prints that caught our eye, but they just didn’t feel quite right. We all felt that our apartment lacked that personal touch that would truly make it ours.

Once school started and our schedules became jam-packed with classes and activities, it was tough to carve out time to continue the search for the perfect pieces. Just when I thought we might have to settle for generic decor, I learned how to use a vinyl cutter. Suddenly, I realized we could create custom designs that would bring a personal touch to our space in just a few simple steps. The idea of making something uniquely ours reignited our excitement for decorating, and I couldn’t wait to get started!

Materials:

1. Vinyl Paper
2. ruler/credit card or something to help peel your stickers back

Tools:

1. Vinyl Cutter
2. Canva
3. Silhouette Studio

To begin your design process, start by considering what you want to create. Where will it be placed in your apartment? What colors will complement the environment? Is there a specific font that resonates with you? These are essential factors to consider when developing your design.

I found Canva to be the simplest and most effective tool for selecting the font and size of the text in my design. While I focused solely on letters for my decor, it's important to remember that you can also incorporate pictures of your choice. Whatever you feel will complement your room the best!

Next, download your designs to your device. A png. file will work just fine. Make sure that you name your file so you can easily find it and open it. You will need it in the next step!

Silhouette Studio is the software that facilitates sending your design to the vinyl cutter. To start, you’ll need to upload your design. Click the folder tab in the top left corner of the screen, which will open a window for you to navigate to your files. Locate the document you downloaded in the previous step; once you find it, click to upload it. Your design should then appear on the blank canvas. Take a moment to adjust the size and position of your design on the canvas to suit your preferences.

On the right side of your screen, you’ll find the trace tab, which looks a bit like a butterfly. Click on it to access a variety of tracing options. Once you're in the tracing menu, select the "Select Trace Area" option. This feature is particularly useful as it allows you to highlight the specific area of your design that you want to print.

When working with text, this tool is awesome because it automatically identifies and cuts out the interiors of certain letters, such as "a" and "e." To ensure that your entire design is properly captured, carefully cover it with the selection box, making sure to include all the elements you want to trace.

After you’ve highlighted everything necessary, simply click the trace button located at the bottom of the panel. This confirms the outline of your design, setting it up perfectly for cutting. With that step complete, your design is now ready to be sent to the vinyl cutter.

To send your design to the vinyl cutter, start by clicking the "send" button in the top right corner of your screen. Then, choose the material you’ll be using for your project. I went with glossy vinyl paper because it makes awesome wall stickers! Lastly, make sure that your device is connected via Bluetooth to the vinyl cutter.

To position your paper in the vinyl cutter, you must begin by placing it on a cutting mat. With the arrow on the mat facing the vinyl cutter, align it in the slit with the arrows on the vinyl cutter, but do not push it in! Simply hold it there or let it rest while you press the glowing arrow button on the printer pointing up. Hitting this button will allow the machine to take in and position the paper to where it is properly loaded. Now you are all set to proceed with the printing process!

Now hit send on your device and let the printer work its magic!! This should be a fairly quick process. 5 minutes max!

Begin by pressing the down arrow on the printer to release your vinyl paper. Now simply pop out and peel your stickers! Sometimes it can be tricky to peel the stickers, so using a credit card or ruler can be useful in separating the vinyl from the paper back. Put them wherever you feel they are suited best!

The vinyl cutter has quickly become my new favorite tool! I love all the creative possibilities it offers. It’s not just for vinyl; you can use it with all kinds of materials like cardstock, paper, foil, and more.

As I’ve started playing around with it, I’ve realized how awesome it feels to bring my ideas to life. Whether I’m making cool decals for my walls or fun crafts for friends, the versatility of this machine really inspires me. It’s a great reminder that creativity can take many forms, and having the right tools makes it so much easier. I can’t wait to see what other projects I can come up with using my vinyl cutter!