Using Cricut Explore & Duck Tape Sheets to Personalize Harnesses

I finally found a project that I was able to use the green Duck Tape Sheet that came with my Cricut Explore.  I have two dogs - a three year old Boxer and an 11 month old Boxer-cross.  The puppy hates car rides and since he has grown so much I can no longer get him into the kennel that I had placed in the backseat of my pick-up truck.  I actually put out my back twice trying to lift him up.

I was in PetSmart last week and thought I would check out the seatbelt harnesses.  I found them on sale - discounted with my PetPerks and Buy One, Get One 50% off.

One problem, once I got them adjusted was being able to tell the difference. I don't want to readjust if I happen to grab the wrong one.  And the puppy is way bigger than the Boxer.

I took a good look at the Duck Tape sheets and the Iron-on Vinyl that came in the box with my Explore.  I didn't think the harness fabric would hold up very well with the heat from an iron so I decided to go with the Duck Tape sheet.

Since my designs were pretty basic I didn't need any transfer paper.  If you were doing an intricate cut then it would be a little easier to apply.

For the Boxer profile I searched Google images to find a silhouette that I liked.  I uploaded a photo into Design Space and cleaned up the edges a bit and removed the white background.  I've uploaded svg files before but this was my first png file.  It was pretty easy and I had watched a YouTube video by Melanie Lane a few months ago so I had a good idea of what the process would be.

Here's my image - I love the Boxer head tilt!

Here's the Boxer cut out. The only spot where it was tricky was by the ear but it was easy to smooth out once I placed it on the fabric.

I lined it up and slowly peeled it away, smoothing it out as I went so there were no bubbles or wrinkles.  Wasn't too hard, the Duck Tape is thick so I think that helped. 

Applied and all smoothed out.  It even stuck over top of the stitched area towards the bottom.

Here are my finished harnesses.  I found the goofy-looking dog on my Paper Pups cartridge, perfect for my goofy, giant puppy.

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links.