# How to slice, attach, flatten, contour and offset in Cricut Design Space

Updated 2026-11-02 · 6 min read · Design Space

Six tools do most of the work in Cricut Design Space. Slice cuts one shape out of another. Attach holds pieces in place on the mat. Flatten turns layers into one printable image. Contour hides cut lines you do not want. Offset adds a larger or smaller outline. Curve bends text. Pick the tool by what you want the machine to do, not by how the design looks on screen.

## Which Cricut Design Space tool do you need?

Most "my cut came out wrong" problems come from using the right-looking tool for the wrong job. This table matches each tool to its result.

Cricut Design Space tools and what they do

| Tool | What it does | Use it for | Select first |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Weld | Joins overlapping shapes into one outline | Script names, connected lettering | Two or more layers |
| Slice | Cuts one layer out of another, leaving separate pieces | Words knocked out of a shape | Exactly two layers |
| Attach | Keeps layers in the same position on the mat | Text placed on a tag, pen lines on a card | Two or more layers |
| Flatten | Turns layers into one image to print | Print Then Cut stickers | Two or more layers |
| Contour | Hides cut lines inside an image | Removing small details | One image layer |
| Offset | Adds a larger or smaller outline | Sticker borders, shadow layers | Text or images |

## How to slice on Cricut

Place one layer over another, select exactly those two, and click Slice at the bottom of the Layers panel. You get new pieces: the overlap, plus what is left of each layer. Delete the ones you do not need.

If Slice is grayed out, you have more or fewer than two layers selected. Multi-layer images and multi-line text have to be ungrouped or welded down to one layer first.

## How to attach on Cricut

Select the layers and click Attach. On the mat preview they now stay where you placed them on the canvas. Without Attach, Design Space rearranges every layer to save material, which is why text you lined up can come out somewhere else.

Attach is not Weld. Attached shapes keep all their own cut lines; welded shapes lose the overlapping ones. To write on a card with a pen, attach the writing to the card layer.

## How to flatten on Cricut

Select the layers of a printed design and click Flatten. They become one image that prints in full color, and the machine cuts only around the outside. This is the step that makes Print Then Cut stickers work, and forgetting it is why a sticker prints in pieces.

## How to contour on Cricut

Select an image layer with several cut lines and click Contour. In the window that opens, click the lines you want to hide. It is the quick way to remove a detail too small to weed, without leaving Design Space.

## How to offset on Cricut

Select text or an image and click Offset, then drag the distance. Design Space adds a proportionally larger or smaller outline on a new layer. Use it for sticker borders and shadow layers behind lettering.

## How to curve text on Cricut

Select the text and open Curve in the top edit bar, then move the slider one way to arch it up and the other way to arch it down. Curve the text before you weld it: welded text is a shape, and shapes do not curve.

## Doing these edits before you upload

If you build designs outside Design Space, weld, slice and offset in your design tool and upload a finished SVG. CricutCraft Studio has these in the browser, and each fill color arrives in Design Space as its own layer. Attach and Flatten still happen in Design Space, because they are instructions for the machine rather than part of the artwork.

## Questions

### What is the difference between weld and attach on Cricut?

Weld merges shapes into one outline and removes the overlapping cut lines. Attach keeps every cut line and only locks the positions on the mat. Use Weld for connected script letters and Attach for text placed on a tag.

### Why is Slice grayed out in Cricut Design Space?

Slice works on exactly two layers. Select only two, and ungroup or weld anything that counts as more than one layer first.

### Do I need Cricut Access to use Slice, Attach or Offset?

Cricut lists Background Remover, Convert to Layers, Warp and unlimited collections as subscriber design features. Slice, Attach, Weld, Flatten, Contour and Offset are not on that list.

### What is the difference between Cricut fonts and system fonts?

Cricut fonts come from Cricut's library, and some need Cricut Access or a purchase. System fonts are the fonts installed on your own computer or tablet, and using them in Design Space costs nothing extra.

## Sources

- [Cricut: Slice tool in Design Space](https://cricut.com/blog/how-to-use-the-slice-tool-in-cricut-design-space/)
- [Cricut: Offset feature in Design Space](https://cricut.com/blog/offset-feature-in-cricut-design-space/)
- [Cricut: How to Contour](https://cricut.com/blog/how-to-contour/)
- [Cricut: How to curve text](https://cricut.com/blog/how-to-curve-text/)
- [Cricut: Cricut fonts vs system fonts](https://cricut.com/blog/cricut-fonts-vs-system-fonts/)
- [Cricut Access plans](https://cricut.com/en-us/join-cricut-access)

---

Canonical page: https://www.cricutcraft.com/guides/cricut-design-space-tools

CricutCraft Studio is independent software and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Cricut, Silhouette America, Brother, Glowforge or xTool. Product and machine names are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here only to describe compatibility.