Simple Guide to Making Cricut Infusible Ink Coasters

If you are wanting to make infusible ink coasters, this is a tutorial showing you how to use Cricut's Infusible Ink Pens or Infusible Ink Transfer Paper. No one will believe you made it at home!

I know that there are a lot of ceramic coaster tutorials around the internet, but this one is a tutorial around how to make coasters using Cricut infusible ink, an amazing innovation in crafting technology. Your projects are going to look totally PROFESH and look like you had them made at a store professionally.

For those that don't know what infusible ink is, I explain it all in my post: Overview and Guide on Types for Cricut Infusible Ink. In short, infusible ink allow you to INFUSE the ink that comes from the pen/transfer paper into the material you are working with. The artwork and the material have a seamless boundary, unlike vinyl. Infusible ink comes in two forms: ink pen and transfer paper.

Infusible ink markers and pens by Cricut are absolutely amazing because you can create a truly beautiful piece of artwork and transfer it to a blank. The markers provide the ability to draw your own design on a piece of cardstock, trace it with the infusible ink pens, and transfer it with some heat into the blank. It is truly an incredible piece of innovation that was created! My kids absolutely love drawing and seeing their artwork come to life on another medium.

The infusible transfer paper comes in a multitude of designs and is incredibly versatile to use on almost everything. I love the multitude of designs that Cricut has in their lineup of Infusible Ink Transfer Paper. This one is my absolute favorite.

Using Infusible Ink Coasters with Infusible Ink Markers and Transfer Paper

Making these coasters with infusible ink pens and transfer paper is incredibly easy.

What is needed to use Cricut Infusible Ink on coasters?

Cricut Infusible Ink works in a similar fashion to the sublimation transfer process. You can use either ink pens or transfer paper to design the artwork. After they are designed and weeded, you need to use an iron that can heat all the way to 400°F.

If you do not have an iron that heats up to 400°F, you can use a Cricut EasyPress 2, which will do more than just transfer artwork on coasters. It can be used to transfer the designs from infusible ink artwork to shirts, bags, blankets and so much more. You'll also need to make sure you have Teflon paper or butcher paper to protect your heat source as well as your table top. I like using the EasyPress Protective Heat-Resistant Mat because it's thick and will definitely protect my surface area.

Note: The Cricut EasyPress original version only heats up to 350°F.

Tips and Tricks for Layering the Coaster, Infusible Ink, and Artwork

First off, the colors of the infusible ink and the infusible ink transfer papers will look more DULL until they are transferred onto the intended medium. Once they are sublimated into the medium, the ink will be more vibrant and full of color.

The instructions sublimating the artwork to the coasters with infusible ink pens and infusible ink transfer paper are different. Below, I've listed the order in which you stack the supplies and materials in order to ensure the correct sublimation process depending on if you are using pen/marker or transfer paper onto the coasters.

Make sure you also MIRROR your design. We made that mistake:

Lastly, make sure you COLOR in your image if you are using a craft cutting machine to outline. I totally forgot to color int he "hustle hard" coaster, which still turned out cute.

Using Infusible Ink Pens with Coasters

When you use the ink pens, you'll want to make sure you that the design doesn't shift, so it's recommended that you attach the cardstock design to the coaster with heat safe tape. I've done it without the tape, but I had to make sure that I stood there holding the heat in place so that it didn't shift.

1. EasyPress Mat - To protect your surface
2. White card stock - To protect your mat
3. Coaster, shiny side up - The medium for the artwork to transfer to
4. Infusible pen drawn artwork, artwork side down on coaster - The artwork
5. Teflon or butcher paper - To protect your EasyPress or Iron
6. Easy Press or Iron - The heat source at 400 degrees for 60 seconds

Using Infusible Ink Transfer Paper with Coasters

When you use transfer paper, you'll need to be doubly sure that you are protecting your mat and your iron with butcher paper because of the amount of ink that is being transferred. Here is how you layer the supplies and materials for using Infusion Ink Transfer Paper for a coaster:

1. EasyPress Mat - To protect your surface
2. White Card Stock - To protect your mat
3. Weeded transfer artwork color side up - This is your artwork to transfer
4. Coaster centered on image, shiny side down
5. Teflon or Butcher paper - To protect your EasyPress
6. EasyPress or Iron - The heat source at 400 degrees at 240 seconds

How to Make Infusible Ink Coasters with Pens

Material for Making Coasters with Infusible Ink Pens

• Infusible Ink Pens
• Coasters (Cricut brand or Off-Brand Sublimation blanks)
• White Cardstock
• White Cardstock with artwork
• Heat Resistant Tape (optional)

Supplies for Making Coasters with Infusible Ink Pens

• Iron that heats up to 400°F (or use the Cricut EasyPress 2)
• Heating pad for iron (or use the Cricut heat mat)
• Teflon or butcher paper
• Lint Free Cloth (to wipe off lint)

Instructions for Making Coasters with Infusible Ink Pens

1. Prepare the artwork. Outline the coaster with a pencil on the cardstock. Draw your pattern within the boundaries of the coaster outline. Draw your art on the cardstock, outline and color it in with the Cricut Infusible Pens and Markers. For Silhouette users, use this marker holder adapter if you are using the Cricut infusible ink to draw your art with your Silhouette Cameo. Roughly cut around the design.
2. Prepare the coaster. Remove any debris from the coaster by wiping down with a lint-free cloth. 
3. Layer. Layer the items in the following order: EasyPress Mat, white card stock, coaster shiny side up, cardstock with artwork with artwork side down, Teflon paper, EasyPress Iron.
4. Set your Cricut to 400°F and heat the layer for 60 seconds.
5. Wait a few minutes for the coaster to cool down. The coaster will be extremely hot, so ensure that you allow it to cool before removing your artwork.

I also decided to make some coasters using my Cricut Explore Air 2 with Infusible Ink Transfer Paper as well as a designed layered on top of it.

For this you will need the following:

How to Make Coasters with Infusible Ink Transfer Sheets

Infusible ink transfer paper is a little different to work with. It's almost like weeding cardstock rather than vinyl. When weeding, you can bend the paper in order to loosen the areas that you need to take out.

Material for Making Coasters with Infusible Ink Transfer Paper

• Infusible Ink Transfer Sheets
• Coasters (Cricut brand or Off-Brand Sublimation blanks)
• White Cardstock
• Heat Resistant Tape (optional)

Supplies for Making Coasters with Infusible Ink Transfer Paper

• Iron that heats up to 400°F (or use the Cricut EasyPress 2)
• Heating pad for iron (or use the Cricut heat mat)
• Teflon or butcher paper
• Lint Free Cloth (to wipe off lint)

Instructions for Making Coasters with Infusible Ink Pens

1. Prepare the artwork. Cut out the artwork using your craft cutting machine. If you are using Cricut Design Space, follow the instructions and choose Infusible Ink Transfer Paper as the medium. If you are using Silhouette Studio, the settings for Infusible Ink Transfer Paper are: Blade-5, Speed-4, Force-26, Pass 1. Make sure you MIRROR the image.
2. Weed the artwork. Weed the design like normal. You'll find that you can easily remove the unwanted pieces by carefully bending and flexing the paper.
3. Prepare the coaster. Remove any debris from the coaster by wiping down with a lint-free cloth.
4. Layer. Layer the items in the following order: EasyPress Mat, white card stock, weeded Infusible Ink Transfer Paper artwork side up, coaster shiny side down, teflon/butcher paper, and EasyPress Iron.
5. Set your Cricut to 400°F and heat the layer for 240 seconds.
6. Remove the heat source. Wait a few minutes for the coaster to cool down. The coaster will be extremely hot, so ensure that you allow it to cool before removing your artwork.

Frequently Asked Questions About Cricut Coasters

How are infusible ink pens and transfer paper better than using Modge Podge or acrylic sealer?

DIY coaster ideas are endless, however if the coasters are used frequently, the underlying artwork may not hold up over time. They can also "look" like a IDY project rather than a project that has that finished, professional touch. Using infusible ink will allow the artwork to be infused into your material as long as it is compatible.

Do the Cricut coasters absorb condensation or does it just allow it to puddle?

The Cricut brand coasters absorb the condensation from my experience.

How do you clean these infusible ink Cricut coasters?

The coasters can withstand normal wear and tear, so all you need to do is use a damp cloth and wipe it down. If you have larger than normal stains, you can use a little vinegar and water to wipe down the coasters without the need to use chemicals.

Can you remove Cricut Infusible Ink from ceramic coasters?

No, the ink is infused into the medium, so you cannot remove them.

There are lines between my design. Why is this happening?

Oils and moisture from your hand can be transferred to the transfer sheets and cause an uneven ink transfer. In addition, lint and fibers on the surface of the blank can cause this issue too, especially if you don't use a lint-free cloth to cover it.

The design shifted during pressing, how do I prevent this?

You can use a heat resistant tape in order to adhere to art to the medium that you are trying to transfer it to.

When you use infusible ink or infusible ink transfer paper, do you need to mirror the image?

Yes, when using infusible ink and infusible ink transfer paper, you need to mirror the image.

Can you layer infusible ink?

You can, but you need to be careful to ensure that the background layer is of a lighter color than that of your layered color.

Summary

Making a coaster with infusible ink pens is a really EASY and a fun project to start using them with. The possibilities are absolutely endless on the designs you could have with these coasters. This new innovation in crafting ink allows you to create custom and personalized gifts for everyone in your family.

Related Post: All About How to Use Cricut Infusible Ink Pens and Cricut Infusible Transfer Sheets

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