How to Make Funny Face Cupcake Toppers with Canva and Cricut

Hi everyone, welcome back to Alina Craft Studio! Today I am going to show you how to create custom face cupcake toppers using Canva and Cricut. These are always a hit because they are fun, personal, and perfect for birthdays, graduations, office parties, or any celebration.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

For this tutorial, I am making graduation-themed toppers using my son’s photo, but you can use the exact same method for any party theme. You can add birthday hats, sunglasses, bows, crowns, funny text, or anything else that matches your celebration.

Here are a few examples of face cupcake toppers I made for previous parties. They are such a simple way to make cupcakes and desserts feel more personal.

Materials I Used #

Start the Design in Canva #

First, open Canva and create a new project. I upload the photo I want to use and place it on the canvas.

For this design, I am using a graduation photo. The first step is to remove the background so only the person is left.

Canva’s background remover makes this part very easy. After the background is removed, I resize the image so the head is the main focus.

Then I use the eraser tool to carefully remove the neck and any extra areas I do not want in the topper. If you erase too much, you can use the restore option to bring details back.

Clean Up the Photo #

Usually, Canva is enough for this kind of project. This time, I was not completely happy with the original photo quality and the head angle, so I used Gemini to retouch it.

I asked Gemini to remove the background and keep the face clean. After that, I asked it to place the edited photo on a white background so it would be easier to bring back into Canva.

Decorate the Topper #

Next, upload the cleaned-up image back to Canva. Now comes the fun part: decorating the face topper.

For a graduation theme, I searched for graduation caps and other graduation elements. You can customize your toppers with party hats, glasses, bows, crowns, signs, balloons, or anything that fits your party.

I like to test a few different variations before choosing the final designs. Once a design looks good, download it as a PNG with a transparent background.

Upload to Cricut Design Space #

Open Cricut Design Space and upload each topper design. When Cricut asks for the image type, choose “Flat Graphic” and add the image to the canvas.

I usually size my cupcake toppers to about 2 inches tall. Repeat the upload and sizing process for each design you want to cut.

Add an Offset #

To give the toppers a clean, professional look, I add a white outline with the Offset tool. This border makes the images pop and gives Cricut a nicer shape to cut around.

For each topper, create the offset, change the offset layer to white, and then flatten the design and offset together so it becomes a Print Then Cut image.

Arrange the Print Then Cut Sheet #

Once all the toppers are ready, arrange them efficiently on the Cricut canvas. I like to treat this step like a little puzzle and fit as many toppers as possible onto one sheet.

When the layout is ready, select everything and click Attach so the arrangement stays in place when you send it to print.

Print the Toppers #

Now it is time to print. I use high-quality matte photo paper, but glossy photo paper also works very well for this project.

For printer settings, choose a photo paper or photo matte paper option if your printer has one. This helps the colors print brighter and cleaner.

Load the Mat and Cut #

After printing, place the sheet on a Cricut StandardGrip mat. I use a brayer to press the paper down evenly so it stays flat during cutting.

Load the mat into the Cricut and let the machine cut around each topper.

When the cut is finished, carefully peel the toppers off the mat.

Add the Toothpicks #

To turn the cutouts into cupcake toppers, flip each piece over and hot glue a bamboo toothpick to the back.

Use a small amount of hot glue so the back stays neat, then press the toothpick into place and let it dry.

And there you have it! Your custom funny face cupcake toppers are ready for the party.