In this week’s tutorial, we are going to learn how to make a crystal grid with a simple Cricut drawing tutorial. These crystal grids are just as beautiful as they are helpful in setting new intentions and a consistent tool I use to reach new goals. If you have never made a crystal grid before, it is basically the physical representation of your intention or goal that you’re currently working on/ manifesting / calling in.
While each crystal has different symbolism and lore and such intriguing backgrounds, it’s equally important to note that just like a vision board, simply creating a crystal grid is not going to change your reality if you’re not also taking action towards your goals. I like to think of creating a crystal grid as a beautiful, intentional practice. It’s creating a work of art that’s deeply meaningful, personal, and also served as a constant reminder of your intention and the goal you are working towards right now.
While crystals have been used across the world in nearly every culture for centuries, it’s difficult to find the exact time and place crystal grids were first created. However, the ones I’m most drawn to consistently have incredible symmetrical lines that can feel impossible to create by hand. By using our Cricut Cutting Machines, we’re able to get these precise lines, geometrical symmetry, and have hundreds of options…. that don’t require any artistic expertise.
Wait- What is a crystal grid?
A crystal grid is an intentionally organized set of crystals, stones and other items that energetically align with your intention or manifestation. They can be used in a variety of ways dependent on the intention when you create them. Crystal grids are commonly as beautiful home decor, in manifesting, healing, meditation, intention setting, or simply an artistic endeavor.
While it’s important to follow your own intuition, they usually consist of a center stone, surrounding stones, and occasionally include other items that enhance their beauty or general vibe.
Center Stone- The center stone is usually the largest stone that intentionally anchors the piece.
Surrounding Stones- Surrounding stones of a crystal grid are what create the geometrical and detailed designs. You can decide how complex or simple you’d like your crystal grid to be based on how many stones you choose. Your surrounding stones can paint a more thorough intention for your grid as a whole.
A few days ago, I gathered several close friends together for the most incredible wine and craft night. We set new intentions through our crystal grids, shared our stories, and created some beautiful art in the process. After they created their artwork, we pulled out the new Crystals 365 book by one of my favorite online crystal shops, Energy Muse and interpreted their grids.
It was such a fun (yet reversed) method of constructing a crystal grid… However it was also deeply insightful and so much fun. Each work of art painted a picture that perfectly embodied each guest’s intentions. One friend (who has been working on building her savings account) accidentally created a crystal grid that revolved around wealth and luck. It consisted of Pyrite, Adventurine, Tiger’s Eye, and Black Tourmaline. Another friend who recently went through a breakup and is navigating a new romance was subconsciously drawn to crystals that represented self love and self care. Her grid evolved into a beautiful self love crystal grid of Rose Quartz, Gold, and Clear Quartz.
Regardless of if you choose to get the girls together for a wine night or make one solo, creating a crystal grid can be so much fun. I have absolutely loved creating these crystal grids to set new goals and new intentions over the past several years. Now I’m excited to share the process I use with you.
To begin, you’ll need a few Cricket supplies
Cricut Materials You Will Need
- Cricut Explore Airâ„¢ 2 machine
- Cricut Light Grip Cutting Mat
- 12″ x 12″ Black Cardstock
- Cricut Metallic Pen Set – ON SALE NOW
- SVG file to build your grid from
Part 1: Cricut Drawing Tutorial
Step 1: Plug in your Cricut Explorer Air 2 and connect it to your laptop. While it is loading, let’s use this time to prep your light grip cutting mat. It’s important to use the light grip mat because it’s made specifically for paper crafts and other lightweight materials. I like using a piece of 12 by 12 black card stock because it covers the entire working space of our mat. That way, when you are designing your grid on your computer, you have as much working space as possible. Bigger is better right? 😉
The next step in prepping your Cricut Explorer Air 2 is to load it with Cricut Metallic Pen Set. Unfortunately you’ll need this specific kind of marker because it fits inside your Cricut machine to get those really crisp, awesome lines. I have tested knock-off adapters to make your standard pens fit into a Cricut, but have yet to find one that actually works.
Step 2: Next, we get to decide how our grid will look. I really love being creative with the SVG files for these projects. I mean, who says a crystal grid needs to look a certain way? I love playing around with new ideas from grids to unique prints. There’s truly no wrong way to do it. However, in this tutorial I’m going to be using a traditional, symmetrical shape. Once you’ve chosen your SVG file, upload it to Cricut Design Space.
Step 3: After your chosen SVG file is uploaded to Cricut Design Space, be sure to change your settings from “basic cut” to a “pen”. This will adjust the settings on your project so the machine starts drawing your project rather than attempting to cut it with a pen. lol.
Step 4: Select the base material for your project. Start out by clicking browse all materials and then scroll down to light card stock. This makes any adjustments to your machine.
Step 5: Next, we are going to load our pen into clamp A and choose whatever color you like. Since the metallic marker set comes with so many options, it’s fun to experiment. To install the marker, just press the Cricut Metallic Pen into Clamp A until you feel it snap. Next, use the pressure clamp to close it.
Step 6: Now all that’s left to do is load our mat into the Cricut and click the blinking light. Your machine is going to take care of the rest…. and it’s really fun to watch. Design Space is going to show a percentage bar that will tell you how far your project is until completion. I almost always use this time to walk away, make a cup of coffee, do some laundry, or pour a glass of wine.
Step 7: When your project is done, the Cricut Light Grip Cutting Mat will pop out and look something like this:
Part 2: Prepping Your Frames
Supplies You Will Need:
Step 1: Start out by setting your other supplies aside and flipping your frame over to open it up. Remove the backside of your frame, the demo photo, and plexiglass from the frame.
Step 2: We are going to be using the glass portion of the frame /Plexiglas as a template to see how big we need to cut our foam board. This way it fits inside our frame perfectly.
Step 3: Use an X-Acto Knife to create precise cut lines on one side of your foam board before flipping it over and cutting on the other side. This is going to keep your surface underneath (like your table) from getting damaged.
Step 4: Begin bending and separating the foam board using light pressure to separate your pieces. Next, set aside the pieces you don’t need.
Step 5: Place your newly cut foam-board back inside the frame and close it up. Depending on the size frame you use, you might need to trim your card stock down. Since my frame is larger than the card stock I’m using, then I’m just going to glue it into the center of my frame after everything is secured and in place, since I’m not totally sure where I’m going to be displaying this crystal grid, it’s really important to me that I reuse the back of the frame that has the hanging clips attached.
Tip: If you are using large frame like mine, center your paper using a grid ruler. That way, you can make sure it’s symmetrical within the frame itself.
Part 3: Assembling Your Crystal Grid
Now is the fun part where we get to start decorating our grid, setting intentions and playing with crystals! For this next part, it’s really important that you follow your own intuition and have fun with it, just give yourself permission to play.
With that being said, I also like to do a little bit of research and be intentional. That’s why I’m referencing Crystals 365 by Heather Askinosie. You can snag this book on Amazon by clicking here. I love this book because she has some really cool “recipes” with different intentions and different crystals that work together well.
For this grid, I decided to use Tigers Eye, Garnet, and some Black Tourmaline. I like to pull a few of each from my collection and play around until I find something that looks and feels right to me.
I decided to add Selenite because it brings light to challenging situations, reminding you to stay positive on your journey. Tigers Eye gives you courage to venture into the uncomfortable and Garnet inspires you to be passionate about the track you’re on. I’m going to round this grid out with an Agate center stone for balance and clarity and some Selenite for just overall general goodness, and positive vibes.
Some Crystal Lore & History
Selenite Crystal Lore and History
Different crystals represent different intentions and have different meanings and historical significance. For me, it’s really fun to learn about and create beautiful art that represents these goals. For example, in mythology, Selenite is associated with Seline (the Greek goddess of the moon) which is where the crystal gets its name. For centuries, we thought it only existed on earth. However, in 2004, we found a mountain ranges of Selenite on Mars.
Black Tourmaline Crystal Lore and History
Another crystal I’m using in this grid is Black Tourmaline, which is said to help you stay positive and release negative energy. What’s so cool is it’s been valued since medieval times, but it wasn’t until the late 18 hundreds when Tiffany & Company started using it, that it began gaining more popularity. Even before then, Black Tourmaline has been used by shamans in African, Aboriginal and Native American tribes to protect themselves from danger and unwanted bad energy. It is believed to transform negative energy into positive energy. In the 18th century, Dutch traders discovered that by rubbing Black Tourmaline, it causes the stone to become electrically charged – with a positive charge on one end of the stone and a negative charge on the other.
Agate Crystal Lore and History
In ancient China, wearing Agate was believed to purify your mind and energize a person’s Chi. It’s been found among artifacts of the Stone Age man in France dating back to 20,000 BC. In ancient Mesopotamia, Agate represented strength and was carved into cylinder seal for business transactions. During medieval times Agate was tied to the horns of oxen to promote a good harvest. In some legends, a gate is believed to calm thunder and even lightning storms.
If any of this is interesting to you, I encourage you to dig a little deeper and have some fun with it. At a minimum, play around and be intuitive to create a crystal grid that feels good and looks beautiful to you. The point of the practice is to remind you of your intention.
Part 3: Assembling Your Crystal Grid Continued….
Now that I’ve played around with my grid quite a bit and finally settled on a basic idea of where I want all of my stones to be, it’s time to add details. To create texture and a little more dimension, I wrapped my Selenite with craft wire.
To wire wrap my crystal, just hold it with one hand and wrap it around the Selenite, trimming the excess with jewelry pliers. I suggest using 18 gauge craft wire. I’ve used these to make my wire wrapped rings, which you can find the tutorial for here.
Next, it’s time to secure all of my stones and details in place. To secure your crystal grid, use hot glue to adhere everything to the foam board. This is also why having the foam board is so important because it’s a lot more stable and can hold significantly more weight than card stock.
If you want, it’s time to energetically sync everything together and activate your grid. Take the center stone and lightly touch all your pieces to energetically form one individual unit before adhering your Center stone in place. Keep in mind that if this doesn’t resonate with you, skip this step.
Now, you have a gorgeous, intentional crystal grid! I think it turned out so beautiful. I’m going to keep this in my little meditation corner where every morning I start my day, meditate, and get clear on my goals. Thank you so much for joining me on this craft tutorial and I would love to see how your projects turn out! Tag me with your projects on Instagram at @Creative.Fashion.Blog
