EveryCutFileGroup, Attach, Weld and Flatten compared
Each one is in the Layers panel on a computer; on a phone or tablet, Attach, Flatten and Combine are under Actions. Unite, in the Combine menu, makes the same outline as Weld but keeps every shape editable.
| Action | What it does | On the mat | Use it for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group (Ctrl + G) | Moves and sizes the selected objects together on the Canvas | No effect: pieces are placed by Design Space | Keeping a layered design in proportion while you resize it |
| Attach (Alt + A) | Holds objects in their Canvas arrangement, and fastens a draw or score layer to a cut layer | Exactly as arranged on the Canvas | Score lines on a box or card; pieces cut from one sheet in a set layout |
| Weld | Joins overlapping objects into one single-layer shape and removes the cut lines where they overlap. It is permanent: the welded objects can’t be edited again | One shape | Joining touching letters or shapes into one piece |
| Flatten (Alt + F) | Merges the selected layers into one printable layer | Printed, then cut around the outer shape only | Print Then Cut |
Ungroup an uploaded SVG
An SVG with layers arrives on the Canvas as one grouped image. Design Space separates its shapes into layers by their flat colors, so each color in the file becomes a layer. Select the image and choose Ungroup to move, size or change one layer on its own.
Resize before you ungroup: while the layers are grouped they scale together and stay lined up. After ungrouping, select all of them before you change the size.
Which one keeps a score line in place
Attach. When you select Make, Design Space sorts every object onto mats by its operation and material color, and only attached objects stay together as arranged. Attaching a score line to its cut layer tells the machine which piece the line belongs on; left unattached, it is placed on its own and won’t sit on the panel it should fold.
Group doesn’t help, because it doesn’t change the mat layout. Weld makes a single-layer object, so the score line can no longer be a layer of its own set to Score. Flatten turns the design into a printed image and the machine cuts only the outer shape, so slits and folds are lost.
Which one keeps layers in position on the mat
Attach, for pieces cut from the same sheet. Attached pieces go onto one mat together, so Cricut’s advice is to attach by layer or color. Layers in different colors are cut from different sheets, one mat per color; you line them up when you stack the cut pieces.
Without Attach, Design Space packs pieces close together to save material, so the layout on the mat isn’t the layout on the Canvas. Moving pieces on the Prepare screen doesn’t change the Canvas, and those moves are reset when you go back to it.
A worked example: a box net with score lines
Our tuck-top box file is 210 × 140 mm, which is 210 ÷ 25.4 = 8.27 in by 140 ÷ 25.4 = 5.51 in. It holds three groups, each in its own color, so Design Space makes three layers: cut-outlines, the dark filled net; cut-slits, four thin blue lines; and score-guides, seven thin rust lines.
Without Attach, the blue slits would go to a mat of their own color and the score lines would not be tied to the net.
- Upload the SVG, select it and choose Ungroup.
- Select the rust score layer and choose Operation > Score in the Edit bar.
- Select all three layers, the net, the slits and the score lines, and choose Attach. The Layers panel now shows them as one attached set.
- Select Make. The net, its four slits and its seven score lines go onto one mat in the places the file gives them, well inside the 11.5 × 11.5 in cutting area of a 12 × 12 in mat.
From the maker’s documentation: Cricut: Canvas screen guide, Cricut: using Attach, Cricut: Prepare screen, Cricut: Combine, Slice and Weld, Cricut: image upload instructions, Cricut: unsupported image items, Cricut: Print Then Cut, Cricut: change the mat or material size.