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Today’s challenge was inspired in part by the paper cutting book I was reading and in part by a super simple Valentine’s card I once made with a drawing of the girl’s.
It’s easy to cut paper in simple shapes — or even not-so-simple shapes — and use the cutout as a sort of frame for a painting or drawing.
And because I’ve had flowers on my mind lately, I went with a flower shape.
Making a Cut Paper Frame
All you need for this project is a piece of cardstock or paper, a pencil, a craft knife and a mat.
I drew out the design I wanted on the back of the cardstock. Clearly it was not perfect but it gave me a guideline to start with.
Use the craft knife to cut out the shapes more or less like you drew them.
I decided in the end I didn’t like the teardrop shapes I drew at the top so I didn’t cut them out.
Flip the piece over and place it in front of some art.
I tried this painting the girl made the other day by mixing lots of colors together and then folding the paper in half. It gave it a look like leather that is really cool.
I also tried it with a using-up-the-leftover-paint project that’s just lines and dots. It’s fun to see the difference in the look depending on where you place the openings.
If you find a piece of art you really like with the cut paper overlay, you can tape the frame on using double-sided tape.
Have you done a cutout project like this before? It’s an easy way to give an old project a completely different look. And if you try it I’d love to see how yours turns out!
