Showing posts with label papercutting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label papercutting. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Nesting for Creativity

As I mentioned last week, I recently did a little spring cleaning around the office.  Now my art space - my first, real, all my own spot reserved 24/7 solely for my creative work - is feeling much fresher.

Or at least it was up until I got back to work the following day.  At the moment, my desk is again cluttered with papers, pens and projects in-progress.  Does it help that it's at least all organized into separate piles?

My mind tends to reflect the state of my surroundings, so I generally try my best to keep my space neat and clear.  In fact, one of my favorite morning rituals is sweeping the floor.  Maybe that sounds hopelessly OCD, but it really enhances how I feel and think.  It's like wiping down my mental and emotional chalkboard and starting with a clean slate, first thing in the day. 

But sometimes I get lazy, things get messy, and my mind starts to feel a little scattered or sticky.

For this reason, I am currently working to cultivate a space that feels neat, nurturing and inspiring.

Just as we make nest for our baby-babies, this ritual is equally important in the rearing of our creative-babies.  My goal is to surround myself with colors, images, and textures that nourish my heart and creative spirit.  My hope is that putting a little love into my studio will both motivate me to keep it consistently clean and organized, and also enhance my process and productivity.

I haven't got much to work with starting out, but a quick trip to the Goodwill provided adequate fodder.  For less than $2, I brought home a couple of cute and colorful frames, complete with hangers and matting.


I just wiped down the glass and frame, made a few little snippity snips, and in no time at all had some cute, original artwork to perk up my otherwise bare walls. 


I never seem to get tired of foxes. 


I love thrifty deals and making old things like new :-)

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Free Paper Cut Template!

I dunno about the rest of you, but birthday season is coming up for me.  

Which also means: It's card-making time!

As you may recall, a few months back I decided to dabble in paper cutting.

After a brief hiatus, I am back at work with blade in hand!

Today I thought I'd share this cute template with you so you can give it a whirl for yourself.




Once finished, the paper cut may be adhered to the front of a blank card.  And voilĂ !  Handmade sweetness sure to brighten someone's special day.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Trying My Hand

So I got all excited the other day and decided to try my hand at papercutting.

I've been playing with some fun designs, attempting to mimic the quaint antique papercuttings of yore and working to improve my technique.  It's an art form that will take some time to master, but I didn't fare too poorly after just a few hours of slicing and clipping.

I think I may need to get my hands on some finer, higher quality paper.  These were cut on plain ol' inkjet printer paper - which seemed surprisingly thick and difficult to cut.   




I love the look of the white paper against a vibrant background.




This one was really fun to design.

I see many hand cut Valentine's appearing in the New Year!






Wuv Birds.