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Design Space: Selecting Operation

Edited: September 15, 2026

Cut, Draw, Score, Engrave, Deboss, Perf, and Wavy are all referred to as Operations. Operation type tells your machine how to interact with your materials.

To select an Operation for your design layers, follow these steps:

  1. Insert your image(s) or text onto the Canvas.

    1 windows insert images or text onto the Canvas.png
     
  2. From the toolbar, select the Operation dropdown. The current Operation type is pre-selected and other Operation options for your machine will be displayed. 

    2 windows open Operation menu.png
     
  3. Select the desired Operation. The image on the Canvas will update to reflect your selection, and the Operation will be listed in the Layers panel. When you send your project to the machine, Design Space will prompt you to insert the appropriate tool.

    3 windows select desired operation.png

Tip: You can change the Operation of multiple layers at once. Just select the desired layers, then use the dropdown to select the Operation you want. Use the Attach tool in the Layers panel or the toolbar that appears under the selection box to fasten Draw, Score, or Foil layers to the appropriate Cut layer.

  1. Insert image(s) or text onto the Canvas.
     
  2. On the tool bar at the bottom of the screen, select Operation. The current Operation is pre-selected and other Operation options for your machine will be displayed.

    1 ios choose operation menu.png
     
  3. Select the desired Operation, then select Done in the upper right corner.

    2 ios see all the operation types.png
     
  4. The layer on the Canvas will change to reflect the selection, and the new Operation will be listed in the Layers panel. When you send your project to the machine, Design Space will prompt you to insert the appropriate tool.

    3 ios choose a new operation.png

Tip: You can change the Operation of multiple layers at once. Just select all the layers you want, followed by the desired Operation from the dropdown. Use the Attach tool in the toolbar that appears underneath the selection box or in the Layers panel to fasten Draw or Score layers to the appropriate Cut layer.

  1. Insert image(s) or text onto the Canvas.
     
  2. On the tool bar at the bottom of the screen, select Operation. The current Operation is pre-selected and other Operation options for your machine will be displayed.

    1 android choose Operation menu.png
     
  3. Select the desired Operation. Then tap the back arrow at the top to return to the Canvas.

    2 android see all the operations.png
     
  4. The layer on the Canvas will change to reflect the selection, and the new Operation will be listed in the Layers panel. When you send your project to the machine, Design Space will prompt you to insert the appropriate tool.

    3 android choose new operation.png

Tip: You can change the Operation of multiple layers at once. Just select all the layers you want, followed by the desired Operation from the dropdown. Use the Attach tool in the toolbar that appears underneath the selection box or in the Layers panel to fasten Draw or Score layers to the appropriate Cut layer.

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