I've been working on a couple of things this week, one being a papercut heart for my Auntie. I haven't quite finished it yet as it's quite intricate! An early birthday present of a craft knife is making things a little quicker though, it's easier to cut around all those little curves than the stanley knife I'd been using before.
Someone asked me last week if I could show the process behind one of these papercuts, so I've taken a few photos as I've gone along.
I start by drawing the pattern out in pencil and outlining the most intricate bits in fine line pen.
Then I begin cutting either side of the lines, stopping and turning the card to go around corners.
It's best to cut out the insides of shapes first, for example, the insides of leaves or butterflies. If you cut the shape out first and then try to cut the inside, it tends to rip or bend the card at the weak points.
That's about it, just continue growing it outwards. This is as much as I've done so far.
This is it from the back, where the cutting is done. One thing I would say is make sure that you write any words backwards, I speak from experience!
And again from the front. It's the sort of thing that once you start, you get quite addicted!
Another early birthday present that I received from some friends this weekend is this beautiful papercut! Aren't I lucky! It was bought on a trip to China and seems to be some sort of transparent paper painted gorgeous colours.
Finally I'd like to introduce you to our new pets! These are zebra danios and the first additions to our tank.
I've named them Fred, Cecil, Barney, Sparky and Wonk (as he's got a kink in his tail). I'm not convinced they're all boys (how does one tell?) but I'm sure they won't be too offended if they're girls.
Sorry about the terrible photos, they're so speedy it's hard to get a good snap. We're working on making the tank a little more interesting for them too.
If you haven't entered my giveaway yet to win this papercut heart, head over to my Facebook page for instructions, you've got until the evening of Monday 10th Feb (UK time)!
I'm sharing this post on the following blogs: Manon Popje's Illustrations and Handmade Harbour. Labels: chinese papercut, intricate papercut, papercut, papercut flowers, papercut heart, papercut leaves, tropical marine fish, zebra danios
