How to papercut

As I was featured in the wonderful Mindful Crafting Magazine I thought I write a tutorial post just in case you missed it. DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE TEMPLATE HERE

Tools you will need:

• ​A4 paper I use a lovely textured paper like 160gsm Hammered and Conqueror paper
• And some spare paper to practice on
• Craft knife (I recommend an X-Acto knife with the #11 blade) 
• Self-healing cutting mat or a glass cutting board

Supplies Tip: The quality of the paper you use will affect your cutting. Very cheap printing paper may tear, so it’s better to start off with good quality printing paper, or a craft paper of your choice. Thinner paper is better as it doesn’t take as much effort to cut, so saves your fingers from aching!

Step 1 - Before you start working on the template I recommend that you take a piece of paper and make some cuts on it just to “warm-up” with a pencil draw circles and wavy lines and practice cutting around these shapes first. 

​Step 2 - To start cutting, hold the knife in the position that is most comfortable to you. I do it in the same way that I hold a pen.
Top Tip: when cutting a circle move the paper around and keep the knife steady, this will give you a smoother finish

​DOWNLOAD AND PRINT YOUR FREE TEMPLATE - Once you’ve downloaded the template, set it to print at high quality on your chosen paper. The side of the paper which is printed on will become the back. As you will have found out by working on our supplied template you need a mirror image of your design so you can work from the back-side of your paper. Cutting from behind will give your papercut a clean look. To note if you draw and cut your design on the front of the paper, it's almost impossible to rub out the lines without damaging the delicate papercut. When you feel confident to design your own papercuts you can either use tracing paper or scan in your drawings and reverse them using your computer software.

​​Step 3 - Start by cutting out all the small fiddly sections first, then go around the text trying to keep the paper in place, this will help to keep the design more secure

Step 4 - Remember to relax and enjoy yourself.

Step 5 - Once all the middle sections are cut out, you can move on to the outside bits of the design being careful not to cut your fingers.

Step 6 -  You can now choose a background colour card or paper. Add a few tiny dabs of glue to the back of your cut and stick it down.
Well done, you’ve completed your first paper cut! 

​Please tag me on social media posts to let me know how you got on. 
Comments also welcome below.

I have a few more templates on my Etsy shop if you have caught the papercutting bug!