10 Best Free Fonts to Make ‘Hand-drawn’ Posters on the Cricut

It’s taken me a while to ‘get’ the point of the ‘Write’ feature on the Cricut. First of all, I had the familiar experience of having outlined text every time I tried to use it.

Then, when I realised that single-line fonts were the ones to choose if I wanted something that wasn’t an outline. Although – the Cricut can also draw some rather brilliant ‘fun fonts’ – and they can be combined with the single-line fonts to great effect.

This cut down the choices a fair bit…but I was able to get hold of a few free fonts that promised to be single line. Only trouble is – you put a lot of them into Design Space and they become outlines again! (I’m talking to you, Existence font!) It’s rather frustrating, and it seems to affect some users and not others. Quite often, the font appears as single line until the very moment you click on the ‘Write’ icon…then it goes back to an outline!

Anyway – I wanted to choose fonts that would work well in a poster if you wanted a rather arty ‘hand-drafted’ effect, and here are the fonts I was left with (with links to where you can download them all for free). The Cricut pens were all a bit too fine to draw up posters with though, so I had to use something else – and I settled on Sharpies, which I used with an adapter I was given (made out of a bit of tubing!). I’m giving a set of 30 Sharpie pens away as part of my big crafting giveaway, so wanted to use them as one of my projects. However, PLEASE NOTE: I am not suggesting you use non-Cricut pens with your machine, as you can void the warranty if you do. It’s also likely to make a real mess of your cutting mat:

Use them at your own risk!

1. Rawengulk This stylish font does actually have outlines around the edge – but you would never guess! Certainly not when using the Sharpies. We used it at 130 points.
2. Zengo – Got a few hours to spare? Then give Zengo a chance! This isn’t a single-line font, but your Cricut will draw it with ease (even though it takes its time over it!). Aside from the time taken, though, there’s a slight drawback. No numbers! (Rawengulk was generous enough to stand in with the ‘2’!) We used it at 126 points, though it’d probably work better at an even bigger size or with a narrower pen, as it’s rather more elaborate than it appears here.
3. Stymie Hairline – nice minimalistic typeface and one of the few truly single-line fonts that didn’t somehow change back in Design Space. We used it at 78 points.
4. Take Me Out – a really good informal font, this will give you the feel of casual handwriting without you having to give in to Comic Sans and all it represents. Though described as a single-line font, it actually wrote with outlines, but the end result was perfect using the Sharpies at 132 points.
5. St Marie – Beautiful, minimalistic – we want to be St Marie when we grow up!  She did draw outlines, mind, but drew perfectly when sized to 165 points as shown here.
6. Always Here – we love this font; it’s so different from all the others. It drew outlines when put in Design Space but appears single-line. We can imagine it being used in an arty bookshop, or alongside illustrations – we’ll definitely be using it again. Here, we’ve used it at 107 points.
7. Always Forever – this is probably your best option if you want a free font in a decorative handwritten style. It has a habit of drawing outlines too, but works perfectly at this size (179 points).
8. Cast Iron – a masterpiece! This typeface would look even better in a bigger size than the 88 points we used, and has a real circus feel about it! You’ll struggle if you need any punctuation but…think fairground atmosphere!
9. Partridge – it draws as a single line, but at this 139 points (as shown), drawn with Sharpies, this italic typeface works perfectly.
10. Rose Water – a truly single-line font, but barking mad. We’ve thrown this in for anyone who fancies something a bit wacky and ‘out there.’ It’s pictured here at 117 points but would probably work better larger when used with thicker pens like these.

We’re giving away a set of 30 Sharpies (but please note – no adapter, as we don’t want to encourage using something that might void your machine’s warranty unless you’re properly sure about it!) as part of the CraftAGoGo Great Crafting Giveaway! We’ve got over £100-worth of stuff to give away to one lucky winner. If you haven’t entered you’ve still got time…and don’t forget, if you share the competition you get more chances to win!