Scherenschnitte

Template Tuesday - Simple Animal Valentines

2012-01-31T01:00:00.000-08:00

Today's Template Tuesday is a twofer. I tried to make these a little more simple for kids to do, but I think I always wind up doing things a little too adult. I'm going to see if my boyfriend's son can help me with figuring out what little kids might want. Check back next Tuesday to see if I'm successful. For now, here are two things I enjoy -- love-birds and squirrels. Go ahead and take a whack at these and see what you think.

I separated the templates into two different files. One has just the animals on it and the other just the hearts. When I created the final piece, I pop-dotted them to each other so that there was more depth. You can do whatever you want.

Hope you enjoy these simple valentines! Here's the templates: Animals & Hearts.

Bidden or Not Bidden

2012-01-30T13:29:00.001-08:00

A little before Christmas, I was asked to do this papercut. If you can't tell what it says, it reads, "Bidden or not bidden, God is present." Meaning to say that whether you know of Him or not, whether you want Him there or don't, He's there and that's that. There's comfort in those words for those who seek it.

Template Tuesday - Pioneer Valentine

2012-01-24T06:56:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I went to the Daughters of Utah Pioneer Museum up by the capitol. It was my second time going there and I enjoyed just as much as the first time. They have two papercuts in the museum and I love looking at them and trying to see techniques from the past. One of the papercuts I saw was this Pioneer Valentine. The writing on it says "Pioneer Valentine cut by Clarissa Wilcox Mieling at the age of 84. Born March 20, 1863 at Mt. Pleasant, Utah. Address 893 N. 5th W, Provo, Utah." If Clarissa is making papercuts like this at the age of 84, I'd love to see some of the things she created in her heyday.

So I tried making up my own version of a pioneer papercut using some of the same elements that Clarissa used in her Valentine and this is what I came up with. Have any of you seen any other pioneer valentines before or any pioneer papercuts? I'd love to see more of them.

Here's what the template will look like. It's a folded cut, so remember not to cut through the areas like the beaks. You can cut through all the gray areas all you want.Enjoy! Pioneer Valentine Papercut

Wynken, Blynken & Nod

2012-01-23T12:10:00.001-08:00

Almost two years ago, I had a show called Winter Wonderland at the Gateway Mall Children's Museum. I don't think I ever actually showed details of too many of the pieces. I think by the time the show was over, I was exhausted. The other day, I did a piece for a friend that I had sold at that show to another friend. It's so adorable. Have any of you ever heard of the Wynken, Blynken and Nod poem? This is my take on how it might look.

If you've never read the poem, here it is:

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod (Dutch Lullaby)
by Eugene Field (1850-1895)

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night
Sailed off in a wooden shoe---
Sailed on a river of crystal light,
Into a sea of dew.
"Where are you going, and what do you wish?"
The old moon asked the three.
"We have come to fish for the herring fish
That live in this beautiful sea;
Nets of silver and gold have we!"
Said Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.

The old moon laughed and sang a song,
As they rocked in the wooden shoe,
And the wind that sped them all night long
Ruffled the waves of dew.
The little stars were the herring fish
That lived in that beautiful sea---
"Now cast your nets wherever you wish---
Never afeard are we";
So cried the stars to the fishermen three:
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.

All night long their nets they threw
To the stars in the twinkling foam---
Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe,
Bringing the fishermen home;
'T was all so pretty a sail it seemed
As if it could not be,
And some folks thought 't was a dream they 'd dreamed
Of sailing that beautiful sea---
But I shall name you the fishermen three:
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.

Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes,
And Nod is a little head,
And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies
Is a wee one's trundle-bed.
So shut your eyes while mother sings
Of wonderful sights that be,
And you shall see the beautiful things
As you rock in the misty sea,
Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three:
Wynken,
Blynken,
And Nod.

Template Tuesday - Little Jack Horner

2011-12-19T20:18:00.000-08:00

A few months ago, I asked Tom what his favorite nursery rhyme was and he said it was Little Jack Horner. So I drew up a picture of it and decided I should save it for a Christmas template since it mentions Christmas in the poem. Here's what I came up with:

Little Jack Horner sat in the corner
Eating his Christmas pie,
He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum
And said "What a good boy am I!"

Here's what the template will look like. It's not too terribly complicated, mostly just little details. Remember, for the face, use your blade from the inside parts to the outside parts. So, from the inside corner of the mouth out to the outside of the lips. You don't have to drag your blade all in a straight line. Lift it up.

Here's the link: Little Jack Horner

Chimney Sweep

2011-10-27T07:40:00.000-07:00

This little gem is based off of Andersen's fairy tale, The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep. They are both two little porcelain figures that are in love with each other. She is not allowed to marry him because her father, the Chinese porcelain figure, forbids it. This scene is the part where they run off together and climb up to the rooftop.

I made this a little while ago. I was going to make it as a Template Tuesday, but it was too complicated to explain. I would like to do more three dimensional pieces. Hope you like it!

Template Tuesday - Zombies

2011-10-18T22:40:00.001-07:00

So, some of my co-workers have put together a zombie political organization in hopes of truly bringing in some new brrraaainnnnns to the candidacy this voting season. If you're interested in joining go to votezombie.com and sign up - or at least click like on their facebook page. I made a few zombies for them that I don't think they're going to use, so you guys can. They are pretty great. I don't know what you'd use them in - maybe blow them up, stick them in a window - that seems to be all the rage nowadays.

Click here to check out this dead man's party: Zombie Template!

Template Tuesday - I Vant To Suck Your Blahd!

2011-10-11T20:38:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I'll bet you thought I forgot about you. I totally did. I went and fell in love with this really awesome guy and completely threw all blogging responsibilities to the wind. I will try to be a little more proactive. Or at least lay down strict rules that I need to make a Template Tuesday at least twice a month.

That said, I have an important thing to discuss. It's come to my attention that some of my templates are being used for commercial gain without my consent. I realize that I haven't put up any kind of messages saying not to do that, but I figured if someone wanted to sell some artwork, they'd want to sell some of their own. Obviously that's not the case and I would just like to make it clear that these templates are for personal use only. They are not to be used on your etsy site, they are not to be used in the cards you sell at a farmer's market, they are not to be used as your own templates to sell - stuff like that. They are to be used to give to your mom, to put up in your kid's room, to practice for yourself - stuff like that. If there's a gray area, like you want to put them on your cd or use them in a publication with credits, send me an email, I will be very accommodating.

So, now that that's over, here's a Halloween Template Tuesday to mess around with. Last Saturday we went to see Off Broadway Theatre's Dracula vs. Jekyll and Hyde. It was an excellent production, very kid friendly, so if you're in the Salt Lake area, try to give it a look-see. My favorite character in the production was Count Dracula. So charming. I thought I'd do a simple Dracula template for the holiday and in honor of the Count. Happy Cutting!

Here he is, about to suck some blood. He loves the ladies. Here's what the template will look like:

Download your free template here: Dracula

Outer Space Adventure!

2011-06-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

So, my friend Keith married this woman, Leslie, who is way super awesome and she commissioned me to do a piece for her husband a little while ago. I think I missed the Christmas and birthday deadlines and she was like, "Um...could you maybe get this done for Father's Day?" and amazingly it happened. The concept ideas for this piece were wide and varied ranging from kids in indian costumes to outer space. I chose to go for the outer space option. This is Keith saving his wife and child from an alien attack.

Well, I guess technically Keith, Leslie and Milton are the aliens on this forgotten planet, but still, they don't need to be dragged about in such a way!

Template Tuesday - Woodsy

2011-05-24T00:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think that people are sick of my paper cuts and they're like, "Cindy, paper cut, paper cut, paper cut...don't you do anything else besides paper cut?" And sometimes, really, that's pretty much all I do. So I feel like people might not want one, but when I receive gifts from people that they made, I generally like them. I like them a lot. So it was my friend Elin's birthday today and I asked her what animals she liked or what fairy tale and she said she liked woodland creatures, particularly owls, squirrels and deer. So I made her a little papercut based on those things. And in giving to her, I also give to you. Enjoy!
Download your template in pdf format here: Woodsy

Template Tuesday - Fairy

2011-04-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

We've got this little intern at our work, her name is Montana, and the other day she said, "You need to make me a papercut." Generally I don't succumb to demands like that and need a little bit more sweet-talking but since she was so blunt about it, I was a little taken aback. "What do you want?" I heard myself say. "A fairy. A fairy blowing on one of those puff things." I don't know if she actually said a puff thing, but that's what I heard. I made a different fairy a while back, more of an Arthur Rackham fairy, but changed it this week. I like this fairy better. Not to say that Arthur Rackham fairies are bad, because they aren't, they are beautiful. So anyway, I used to draw fairies a lot when I was a teenager, but my college professors shamed it out of me, so this is a nice "poo on you" to them.

Download your free papercutting template here: Fairy

Template Tuesday - Bubbles

2011-04-19T20:51:00.000-07:00

I had a busy weekend this last week. It was filled with wonderful, fun things. Sometimes things don't turn out like you want them to though. That was the inspiration for this cut, the beauties of life being the fragile bubbles and the popped one the disappointments. But just because there are disappointments doesn't mean you should stop blowing bubbles.

Here's what the template will look like. The thin lines are tricky. On the loopy parts, cut the insides out first and then cut out the line. Cut from left to right, unless you're left handed. Also, I find it best to cut the intersecting parts, like the part where the lines meet the bubbles, going from the corners out.

Here's the free papercut template: Bubbles

New Cards

2011-04-04T08:12:00.001-07:00

I've got a set of new cards up on my Etsy site! I'm really pleased with these. They are quotes from the great Charlie Sheen and are so versatile. You can use them for enemies, for friends AND as thank you cards. They are prints based off of my cutout for the Blonde Grizzly show.

Size: A2 (5.5" x 4.25")
Printed on French's Kraft Cover paper with black ink.
Black Envelopes.

O Frabjous Day! Callooh! Callay!

2011-04-03T20:37:00.000-07:00

About a year ago, my friend Marie commissioned me to do a papercut for her. She didn't have anything in mind at that time but she knew she wanted me to do something. Eventually she settled on something from Jabberwocky, a poem found in the Alice in Wonderland books. What she had wanted was for me to illustrate just the first stanza:

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

For some reason my listening skills were not up to snuff and I just thought she wanted me to illustrate the whole poem itself. This threw me for a loop. I had never really been into the Alice stories, although some of my best pieces have come from Lewis Carroll's mind. There's not really a description of the Jabberwocky itself, except that he has eyes of flame. So I spent the whole year fretting about what the Jabberwocky looked like and I couldn't imagine it. So last month I just sat down and got to work. Sometimes that's just what you have to do, you have to sit down and work and stop freaking out about things. And it took a while, but I finished it. I'm quite pleased with the results. Here is my papercut of the Jabberwocky, complete with toves, borogoves and mome raths:

What does the Jabberwocky look like to you? Here's the poem if you're not familiar.

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought --
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! And through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

"And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
He chortled in his joy.

`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

No Rules Group Show

2011-03-17T07:37:00.000-07:00

So if you're in the Salt Lake area on Friday, I've got two pieces showing at the Blonde Grizzly's No Rules Group Show. Blonde Grizzly is located at 15 East 400 South and the show starts at 6 or 6:30ish. I think I will just hang out there most of the night because I like it there.

Here are the two pieces I'm showing:

This first one is inspired by the poetic Charlie Sheen. Even though the whole media coverage of the event was excessive and unnecessary, some of the things that were coming out of this mouth were just amazing. I would sit there and think, "Who talks like that?"

The other piece is from the M. Ward song, One Hundred Million Years. If you haven't heard his music before, maybe you should check it out. It's really pretty.

I am going to try to make these into cards, little cards that you can send to your friends when you want to tell them something special. I think Sheen or Ward's sayings can pretty much encompass anything you would want to say to someone.

Template Tuesday - Floral Bunch

2011-03-08T01:00:00.000-08:00

A few weeks back, a friend of mine lost her father and another friend lost his grandfather. I was able to go to my friend Andi's dad's funeral. It was a full day filled with remembrances, sadness, service and love from friends and family from all over the country. Andi's dad definitely left his mark on the world. I drew this little bouquet the Sunday following the funeral in hopes of posting it that following Tuesday, but life kind of happened and I didn't get around to putting it up. I put a small bell on in homage to the poem by John Donne called "No Man Is An Island"

No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.

My favorite part is where it says each man's death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind. We are all woven together here in this life in one way or another and the time we have together is short. Remember to make the most of it.

This is what the template will look like. Remember to cut the inside (gray) parts out first. The flowers took me a while, so don't lose patience! Also, the size it currently is fits on an A6 greeting card if you feel so inclined to use it in cardmaking. Download here: Floral Bunch

Template Tuesday - Paper Moon

2011-02-15T22:15:00.000-08:00

Someday, if I ever get married, I'm gonna have a paper moon at my reception and take pictures of all the guests. I was going to make this for Valentine's but everything just got too busy. I think affection is pretty year round though, so it's probably okay.

Here's what the template will look like. It's a pretty simple one.

Click here to download your free papercutting template: Paper Moon

Template Tuesday - Groundhog Day

2011-02-01T21:56:00.001-08:00

So, tomorrow is Groundhog Day. A day that, for most people, carries much hope and suspense. Will Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow, thus signifying the onslaught of 6 more weeks of winter or will he emerge from his hole, granting us a reprieve from this gloomy malaise? We'll see what happens. I, for one, wouldn't mind for this dreadful cold weather that we've suddenly received here in Salt Lake to disappear.

Here's a nice little Groundhog Day papercut for those who might be fixated with the holiday or just like groundhogs. It's a mirror image one, so be careful not to cut through the center parts that aren't grayed out. This is what the template will look like:

To download your free Groundhog Day scherenschnitt, click here: Groundhog Day

Template Tuesday - Circus Bear

2011-01-25T22:52:00.000-08:00

I'm super excited about this little guy. He's a dancing bear. Sometimes the squirrel likes to join him. I think, once a month, for template tuesday I'll try to do a circus themed one this year. I love the circus.

Here's what the template will look like. If you don't want the squirrel on his nose, you can just not cut out the squirrel. It's that simple!
Download your free Circus Bear template here: Circus Bear

Molly Bosley

2011-01-23T20:48:00.000-08:00

I saw Molly Bosley's work the other day on Paper Crave and I was so jealous! Dang it, I need to up my game! Go check out her beautiful paper cuts.

Salt Lake Art Center

2011-01-19T21:04:00.000-08:00

Today I did something very exciting. I went to the Salt Lake Art Center and dropped of these four pieces for them to sell in their gift shop. I kind of hate handing over art knowing that there's a possibility that I may never see it again. Particularly this first Alice piece. I love pretty much everything about it. If you live around Salt Lake and are downtown, go check them out! There will be prints there for sale as well.

Template Tuesday - Kitties

2011-01-18T08:00:00.001-08:00

I was mapping out a plan for the year of what I should do for Template Tuesdays and I realized that I had kind of neglected the birthday area. My mom's birthday is coming up in a few weeks and I wanted to make something for her that I could put on a card. I don't know if this is exactly what I would give her since she isn't much of a cat person, maybe a bird person, so maybe I'll do another birthday one. But I thought there might be a few cat lovers amongst you, so I did this little kitty scene which could also double as something one might put on a card.

Here's what the template will looks like. It's a pretty simple one. Enjoy!
To download your free scherenschnitte template, visit: Kitties

Template Tuesday - Jonah

2011-01-11T20:53:00.000-08:00

So, a little while ago, I was sitting in Sunday School and we were talking about Jonah and all I can do when I hear about Jonah is think of the song from my mission that some Pentecostals sang at a party once. It's stuck in my head and will forever be there, I think. It goes something like this:

Talkin' 'bout Daniel in the den of the lion
Jonah in the belly of the whale
Talkin' 'bout three Hebrew children in the furnace
And the fire didn't burn them.

Dang, I love that song. I found all the lyrics online a little while ago and it pleased me. So, here's my Jonah sketch from when I wasn't paying attention in class.

This is what the template would look like:

Click here to download your free papercutting template: Jonah

Template Tuesday - Rapunzel

2011-01-04T21:10:00.000-08:00

The other day, my roommate Kim and I went to see Disney's newest princess movie, Tangled. I enjoyed it. It was really pretty and very full of zippy adventure, romance and animal friends. Although I couldn't help but sneer my lip a little. I love the original. I love the poor man stealing vegetables from the witch's garden. I love that Rapunzel lets it slip to the witch that she's being visited by the prince by remarking how much lighter he was. I love how she gets knocked up and bears twins in the wilderness. I didn't realize that they were fooling around up in that tower until I was much older. It was like watching Grease when I get the innuendo. So, I thought I'd do a little Rapunzel cut in honor of the new and the old.

Here's what the template will look like:

Please feel free to download this papercut template for your own personal use: Rapunzel

Come, Ye Disconsolate

2010-12-30T17:44:00.001-08:00

The only commissioned piece I managed to create this holiday season was for my friend Sarah to give to her husband Dennis. She said his favorite hymn was Come, Ye Disconsolate and was wondering if I could create something from that. I gave it a shot. At the end of the second verse, there's a line that goes, "Here speaks the Comforter, tenderly saying, "Earth has no sorrow that heav'n can-not cure." That line spoke to me and I tried to create something from this, using part of this line and depicting a sphere inside of a more celestial orb. They both said they were happy with the results!

Template Tuesday - Creche

2010-12-21T22:12:00.000-08:00

I'll bet you were thinking, "There's no way Cindy's going to do another template, she doesn't have any of her Christmas shopping done. How can she have time?" These are valid thoughts, but I created this last week at the same time I created the other one. Two birds with one stone!

Christmas day is almost upon us. My bishop requested that all the members of the ward read the 4 gospels and 3rd Nephi in order for us to gain a greater knowledge of Christ this Christmas season. So far I've read Matthew and Mark. It's been a wonderful refresher of who exactly He is and what He has done for us. I hope we can all get to know Him a little bit better this season.

This is what the template looks like. Be careful around the star! Cut the gray areas out first!
Download here: Creche

Friendly Friday - Valerie Atkisson Nativities

2010-12-17T13:48:00.001-08:00

If any of you are interested in a beautiful nativity that will last for many, many years, check out my friend Valerie Atkisson's work made out of precious metals. These nativities are for sale right now and the perfect gift for those créche collectors out there or to have in your own home.

Valerie Atkisson Design

Template Tuesday - Nativity

2010-12-14T21:12:00.000-08:00

Every year for Christmas, I have this grand ambition to cut out a life-sized Nativity silhouette from wood and place it in my front yard. I sketched out a possible Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus scene in church and that's about as far as I got with it this year. It's closer than I got last year! I hope you are all enjoying this holiday season and for those of you who believe that our Savior was born a little over 2,000 years ago, that you are remembering Him in your hearts at this time. Merry Christmas!

Above is what the template looks like. You can download the pdf of it here: Nativity. Remember to try and cut out the inner parts first. For the halo, cut from the inner points of the stars, outward. Enjoy!

Friendly Friday - Songs of the Sea

2010-12-10T14:37:00.000-08:00

I don't know if I'll keep this up, but I'm gonna try. I have quite a few extra super talented friends with extraordinary skills that I would love to share with you.

I'm going to start off by showcasing my friend Cory. The name of her company is Songs of the Sea and she does hand-embroidered pieces of clothing and accessories. I have a skirt she made for me that is one of my most favorite skirts ever. Here is her blog: Songs of the Sea. She has an etsy store that doesn't have anything in it right now (I can't critique because mine is currently blank as well).

Take a gander!

Template Tuesday - Mistletoe Santa

2010-12-07T21:57:00.000-08:00

Look at this! Two Template Tuesdays in a row! I was actually going to make this one as a wallpaper, but December 1st happened and then December 2nd happened and then it was the second Template Tuesday of the month and I thought I would just use it for today. Maybe my goal for next year will be to actually do calendar wallpapers a month ahead of time. What I wanted to do was make a bunch of people smooching under different mistletoe, but I only got around to making Santa and Mrs. Claus (in their lean years).

Here's hoping that some of you get some mistletoe action because heaven knows I'm not getting any as of yet. Christmas is still a little bit away, so there's still time! Here's what the template looks like. It's moderately simple. Just take it easy on the faces. Try to cut from the inside crooks of the face out towards the negative space. It works better for me that way.
Download your free template here: Mistletoe Santa

Template Tuesday - Hanukkah

2010-11-30T22:54:00.001-08:00

At sundown on December 1st, Hanukkah begins. I thought I'd make a little menorah of my own for Template Tuesday. I tried to pattern it after traditional Jewish papercutting. I hope I didn't do their craft a disservice.

According to wikipedia, here is the origin of the holiday:

From the Hebrew word for "dedication" or "consecration", Hanukkah marks the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem (Second Temple) after its desecration by the forces of the King of Syria Antiochus IV Epiphanes and commemorates the "miracle of the container of oil". According to the Talmud, at the re-dedication following the victory of the Maccabees over the Seleucid Empire, there was only enough consecrated olive oil to fuel the eternal flame in the Temple for one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days, which was the length of time it took to press, prepare and consecrate fresh olive oil.

This one is a folded cut, so it's half as much work, but this still took me about an hour to cut, so expect to be spending at least that much time with your penknife.
Download your free scherenschnitte hanukkah template: Hanukkah

Template Tuesday - Mayflower

2010-11-18T15:52:00.000-08:00

So, maybe this Template Tuesday is on a Thursday. Semantics. The gauntlet was thrown at me on Tuesday and I had to pick it up (thanks Johnny for making me jealous that you were going elsewhere). I've mostly been lazy AND I've been needing to do a commissioned cut for my friend Marie and I've got papercutters block and I don't want to do anything else until I get hers done. But, I guess it's better to do something than nothing at all. Which brings me to this:

The Mayflower! I was trying to think of something Thanksgivingy to do that wasn't too corny and I thought of the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria and how they would be PERFECT to do and then I remembered that those were from when Columbus sailed the ocean blue. I had to think for a bit what famous ship the pilgrims sailed over on. And that is how this Mayflower papercut came about. As I was cutting this, I had no clue what year the ship sailed in and so I did a little research and found out it was 1620. This got me all excited because I came to realize that I would probably (hopefully) be alive in 2020 (which will just be an awesome year anyway) and I hope to have an amazing 400th year Thanksgiving birthday party. I wonder if the country will do anything special or if anyone will care? I think it's care-worthy.

Anyways, if you want to do the Scherenschnitte of the Mayflower, click here: Mayflower
Here's what the template will look like. I hope I've got another thankful one in me for next Tuesday.

Monster Mash

2010-10-06T21:54:00.000-07:00

So, Caleb and Hillary, over at Blonde Grizzly, invited me to participate in their Classic Monsters Group Show on October 15th and I finally completed my papercut tonight after lots of thought. I'm pretty pleased with it. It's of the Stygian Witches. Those are the awesome witches from Clash of the Titans (I prefer the old CoT, but the new one's witches are pretty great too). Traditionally they each share an eye, an ear and a tooth between the three of them. Here's my version. I also made computer wallpaper with a calendar if you're into that sort of thing.

Here's what the wallpaper looks like. Go ahead and download!

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Template Tuesday - Cinderella

2010-09-28T23:26:00.001-07:00

I drew this in my sketchbook a little while ago and wanted to make it a Template Tuesday, but never got around to it. Now I have. It originally had a bazillion little dots all over the dress to ornament it, but I thought that might be too tricky.

Anyway, here's Cinderella. This one comes from the Grimm Brother's version in that she gets her gown from a wishing tree. The Perrault version is the one that the Disney fairytale is most like. I like them both, especially the Grimm's one where the stepsisters cut off portions of their feet to fit them into the glass slipper.

Here's what the template will look like. I forgot to flip it in my illustrator file. It's a pretty straightforward cutting. The trickiest parts are her apron strings and the parts where the birds connect to the gown. Keep practicing if these are a little too tricky for you.

Here is what the pattern looks like:

Download your free papercut template: Cinderella

Template Tuesday - Varga Girl

2010-09-21T22:18:00.000-07:00

I know I've got a long way before I'm even close to being anything like Alberto Vargas, but here's my attempt at a Varga Girl. I went to Disneyland with a guy who is in the Air Force a few weekends ago and I told him it kind of stunk that they don't get to do nose art of sexy ladies on their planes anymore. He agreed with me. I think I would like to flush this out a little more someday. I like the concept.

If you're going to try this one, remember to go from left to right on the thin lines (right to left if left-handed). Have fun!
Download your free papercut template: Varga Girl

Sycamore Street Press

2010-09-17T15:04:00.000-07:00

Eva, over at Sycamore Street Press did a wonderful write-up about me on her blog.

Check it out: sycamore q + a {no.65}: Cindy Ferguson of Scherenschnitte

P.S. If you want to purchase the most awesome cards/prints or find out about beautiful things or take letterpress classes, Sycamore Street Press is a blog you should really check out.

Template Tuesday - Love Lasso

2010-09-14T22:35:00.001-07:00

It's been a little while since I've done a Template Tuesday. I'm out of practice! Here's one that has some tricky parts. Mostly, you'll have to be careful at the areas where the thin lines intersect. Always remember to drag your knife away from the intersection. Don't drag towards the intersection.

I've had this in my sketchbook for a while. I modified it last night a bit so it didn't look like all the other Template Tuesdays where there's a person leading something in their hands.

Do you think she's capturing love or keeping it captive?

Here's what the template will look like:

You can download your very own pdf here: Love Lasso

Last Minute Papercut Class!!!

2010-09-07T06:16:00.000-07:00

I am super excited that Blonde Grizzly is allowing me to teach a class in their gallery. It will be on Thursday night, short notice, I know. I will be teaching people how to make this Alice in Wonderland papercut. I cut silhouettes with an x-acto blade, so that is how I will be teaching, but if you have scissors, please feel free to try those out too. I will be cutting out the papercut with the class and can give personalized attention while you cut your very own. I will have a few other templates along with the Alice one in case you are interested in a different design. Hope you can make it!

Here are the details:

Thursday, September 9 at 6:00pm.
Class will be 1 hour long.
Limited space available.

$20 for the class without a t-shirt (here is the link for this item: Basic)
$30 for the class with a "Bear Murdering Puma" t-shirt. That is 50% off for the t-shirt. (here is the link for the class with the shirt: Deluxe)

Please bring your own supplies (an x-acto knife and a cutting mat). Please let us know if you are unable to bring supplies...we will have a limited amount to lend out.

Glory, Hallelujah! The Art

2010-08-25T06:13:00.001-07:00

Here is all the artwork from the show! This took a lot of work and so much research. I am so pleased with how it turned out. I arranged them in order of their statehood for a little educatin'. If you are interested in buying any of them, please contact Blonde Grizzly and they will be happy to help you out!

#1 Delaware
State Flower: Peach blossom
State Bird: Blue Hen Chicken
$80

#2 Pennsylvania
State Flower: Mountain laurel
Ruffed Grouse
$80

#3 New Jersey
State Flower: Purple violet
State Bird: Eastern Goldfinch
$120

#4 Georgia
State Flower: Cherokee rose
State Bird: Brown Thrasher
$80

#5 Connecticut
State Flower: Mountain laurel
State Bird: Robin
$80

#6 Massachusetts
State Flower: Mayflower
State Bird: Chickadee
$140

#7 Maryland
State Flower: Black eyed susan
State Bird: Baltimore Oriole
$80

#8 South Carolina
State Flower: Yellow jessamine
State Bird: Great Carolina Wren
$80

#9 New Hampshire
State Flower: Purple lilac
State Bird: Purple Finch
$140

#10 Virginia
State Flower: Dogwood
State Bird: Cardinal
$150

#11 New York
State Flower: Rose
State Bird: Bluebird
$140

#12 North Carolina
State Flower: Dogwood
State Bird: Cardinal
$150

#13 Rhode Island
State Flower: Violet
State Bird: Rhode Island Red
$80

#14 Vermont
State Flower: Red clover
State Bird: Hermit Thrush
$80

#15 Kentucky
State Flower: Goldenrod
State Bird: Cardinal
$80

#16 Tennessee
State Flower: Purple iris
State Bird: Mockingbird
$80

#17 Ohio
State Flower: Scarlet carnation
State Bird: Cardinal
$80

#18 Louisiana
State Flower: Magnolia
State Bird: Eastern Brown Pelican
$80

#19 Indiana
State Flower: Peony
State Bird: Cardinal
$120

#20 Mississippi
State Flower: Magnolia
State Bird: Mockingbird
$80

#21 Illinois
State Flower: Native violet
State Bird: Cardinal
SOLD

#22 Alabama
State Flower: Camellia
State Bird: Yellowhammer
$80

#23 Maine
State Flower: Pine cone & tassel
State Bird: Chickadee
$80

#24 Missouri
State Flower: Hawthorn
State Bird: Bluebird
$140

#25 Arkansas
State Flower: Apple blossom
State Bird: Mockingbird
$80

#26 Michigan
State Flower: Apple blossom
State Bird: Robin
$80

#27 Florida
State Flower: Orange blossom
State Bird: Mockingbird
$80

#28 Texas
State Flower: Bluebonnet
State Bird: Mockingbird
$140

#29 Iowa
State Flower: Wild rose
State Bird: Eastern Goldfinch
$120

#30 Wisconsin
State Flower: Wood violet
State Bird: Robin
$80

#31 California
State Flower: Golden poppy
State Bird: California Valley Quail
$140

#32 Minnesota
State Flower: Lady slipper
State Bird: Common Loon
$80

#33 Oregon
State Flower: Oregon grape
State Bird: Western Meadowlark
$80

#34 Kansas
State Flower: Native sunflower
State Bird: Western Meadowlark
$80

#35 West Virginia
State Flower: Rhododendron
State Bird: Cardinal
$80

#36 Nevada
State Flower: Sagebrush
State Bird: Mountain Bluebird
$140

#37 Nebraska
State Flower: Goldenrod
State Bird: Western Meadowlark
$140

#38 Colorado
State Flower: Columbine
State Bird: Lark Bunting
$120

#39 (or 40) North Dakota
State Flower: Wild prairie rose
State Bird: Western Meadowlark
SOLD

#40 (or 39) South Dakota
State Flower: Pasque flower
State Bird: Ring-necked Pheasant
$80

#41 Montana
State Flower: Bitterroot
State Bird: Western Meadowlark
$120

#42 Washington
State Flower: Western rhododendron
State Bird: Willow Goldfinch
SOLD

#43 Idaho
State Flower: Syringa
State Bird: Mountain Bluebird
SOLD

#44 Wyoming
State Flower: Indian paint brush
State Bird: Western Meadowlark
$80

#45 Utah
State Flower: Sego lily
State Bird: California Seagull
$140

#46 Oklahoma
State Flower: Mistletoe
State Bird: Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
$80

#47 New Mexico
State Flower: Yucca
State Bird: Roadrunner
$80

#48 Arizona
State Flower: Saguaro cactus
State Bird: Cactus Wren
$80

#49 Alaska
State Flower: Forget-me-not
State Bird: Willow Ptarmigan
SOLD

#50 Hawaii
State Flower: Hibiscus
State Bird: Nene
$80

Do you have a favorite?

Glory, Hallelujah! The Show

2010-08-23T13:51:00.000-07:00

So it came down to the wire on Friday night. I had finished all my papercuts on Thursday morning and had to frame them all that day. All 50 of them. I actually hadn't finished the largest papercut until Friday. This is me, Friday morning, finishing the United States papercut. I look trashed. My dog has overtaken the house and is destroying a cardboard tube she found lying around.

I was able to shower and get everything together by 5 and head over to the gallery. Caleb and Hillary, owners of the Blonde Grizzly, had hung most everything and we managed to complete it by 6:45 (it started at 6, my fault!). Here I am with Caleb and Hillary.

Quite a few friends came to the show. I only managed to take pictures the first 15 minutes of the show and then I totally spaced it and talked to everyone and took pictures of no one. I took pictures in my heart though. This is one of my co-workers, Natalie, and her husband Josh.

These are some more of my coworkers, Tara, and her daughter Gwen and husband Brett, and Jenny.

My old friend Keith showed up with his wife, Sarah. They are so nice and this was their first gallery stroll without their kids, so they had more time for strolling.

Yes! We had lost the Daniels family to Texas, but they got brought back into the fold. They've been placed into the giant BYU bubble for me to visit. I'm super excited.

This is me! Here are some of the cuts from the show. There were 51 in all. You know, when you say that doing 50 things isn't that big a deal, don't listen to yourself.

A wall from the show.

Closeups.

More closeups. I will put up individual ones tomorrow.

Me and my largest piece, The United States of America. I have to pat myself on the back for this one, it's kind of pretty.

A closeup of the America one.

It was a great night! Thank you to all who showed up and an extra big thank you to all who helped me get everything prepared. I loved seeing everyone. If you didn't get a chance to see it, the show is still up and will be until the next Gallery Stroll. Visit the Blonde Grizzly on 15 East 400 South Salt Lake City, UT 84111.

They are open:
Monday - Friday: 11am - 7pm
Saturday: noon - 5pm

Help!

2010-07-23T19:49:00.000-07:00

I got an email from a woman named Kathy Russ who is in need of some help. She has had a pair of cutting scissors that she's used for years and wants to find a similar pair but she doesn't know where to find them. Here is what she said to me:

33 years ago this Christmas, a couple weeks after our marriage, my husband gave me an scherenschnitte book to cut out and a pair of scissors. The book was cut out long ago, but my scissors have finally gotten dull. I make a lot of cards with rubber stamps and love to fussy cut (a quilting term that fits, perfectly) and pop up images, probably a left over love from all those years ago. I bought some Cutter Bee's, but they are just not the same. The little cardboard holder for my scissors wore out long ago, so I can't even look on it to see who made them. Do you know where I can get another pair of these scissors?

I'm attaching a pic of the scissors. In tiny letters on side it says "Stainless Pakistan". I love these scissors, but the tips are just worn out after 33 years.

Does anyone have any information for her? I pretty much strictly use an exacto blade. What kinds of scissors do you guys use if you use scissors?

Thanks!

Cindy

Glory, Hallelujah

2010-07-18T17:50:00.000-07:00

I'll be having a solo show at Blonde Grizzly. The show starts on August 20th and lasts until the next Gallery Stroll in September. My theme is the United States. I've been feeling pretty patriotic for some reason lately and this is what I've come up with. Here's a taste. I think I'm going to try to make flash cards.

Hawaii
State Bird: Nene
State Flower: Hibiscus

Washington
State Bird: Willow Goldfinch
State Flower: Coast Rhododendron
Virginia (for lovers)
State Bird: Cardinal
State Flower: American Dogwood

Rumpelstiltskin

2010-06-08T23:16:00.001-07:00

So one of my more favorite fairy tales as a child was the story of Rumpelstiltskin. The fact that she could spin straw into gold AND got to marry the king was so wonderful to me. Now I have a different view of the story and wonder these things:
What kind of father tells a king that his daughter can spin straw into gold?
What kind of king believes that someone can spin straw into gold?
What kind of little craggy guy gives up his secrets just so he can have a baby?
Was the baby really the king's? Is that why Rumpelstiltskin wanted it so much? Was he teaching her more than how to spin straw?
These things I wonder and more. I also just enjoy the story.

This is what the template will look like. I tried to do a bit of a cooler one since I've kind of been neglecting Template Tuesday. I don't think there's really anything fancy to this in the creation.

Download your free Rumpelstiltskin papercut template here: Rumpelstiltskin

New London Safari

2010-06-05T07:37:00.000-07:00

My friend Dave recently commissioned me to do a papercut for him to give to his partner. He wanted something that captured where they live, where Mark is from and one of Mark's favorite things to do. So I had the daunting task of combining New York, London and Safari into one complete papercut. I think I did pretty good. My favorite is the giraffe.

Cheshire Cat

2010-05-09T20:21:00.000-07:00

So, way back in December, my church had a Sub For Santa Auction. I donated a custom papercut and my friend Diane purchased it. It's taken a little while to get it together, but we finally figured out a theme and I sketched it out and cut it this last weekend. Diane liked the Alice in Wonderland papercut template I did a little bit ago and wanted something from that story. The Cheshire Cat has always been my favorite. I'm glad I was able to do this for her!

Deer Car Thriller

2010-04-09T09:23:00.000-07:00

Last year I had the opportunity to be pen pals with some kids from my friend Rama's grade school class. They were some of the more fun experiences in papercuts that I did all year. (Dinosaur vs. Robot; Watership Down; Giant Squid Attacks a Frigate) So I got a postcard this year from a boy who drew a Maglev train. I had to look up what a Maglev train was. I figured he'd like something with more of a speed theme. So I did a speeding car jumping over a Bambi. Now, the question is, is it going to hit the deer or breeze right over it?

Humbly Kneeling, Sweet Appealing

2010-04-01T21:15:00.000-07:00

I've been buying up dome glass thing at thrift stores a lot lately to make a series of 3D papercuts. I keep buying the domes and not using them. My church had a Relief Society dinner a few weeks ago and I needed to do a centerpiece. I thought it would be the perfect time to create something with these jars. I didn't know it was a competition and I won for most creative! My goal for all these is to do heavenly visitations, and not just those from the LDS religion. I would like to do visitations from the Old and New Testaments, from Catholic saints and from non-Christian religions. Do any of you have favorite stories of people who have had a brush with the divine?

Template Tuesday - Easter Scene

2010-03-30T19:22:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of Template Tuesdays. You know how sometimes when you have something important to do but you don't want to do it and you put it off and put it off and everything else seems to get put off along with it? That's what's going on in my head. Anyway! Easter is coming up! Such a wonderful time. Here's a little mirror image cut that you can use for a variety of things.

This template is a little ragged, so you'll have to imagine smooth lines where smooth lines should be. Also, the holes in the flowers, I just used a .25 and a .125" hole punch. So much easier. The trickiest part about this cut is remembering not to cut out the chicken part while it's folded. Cut out everything else (well, you can save the hole punching for last) and THEN cut out the chicken.
Here's your free template: Easter Scene

Template Tuesday - Mermaid Anchor

2010-03-09T21:53:00.000-08:00

When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a mermaid and I believed that mermaids really did exist (part of me still does). Often, while swimming, I would pretend I was a mermaid and that my name was Brook. It's really difficult to swim with your legs together when you don't have fins. Anyway, here's a template Tuesday for all y'all who wished you were mermaids.

This is what the paper cut will look like. Fold along the dotted line. Do NOT cut out the dotted line parts that are white. DO cut out the dotted line parts that are gray. Also, remember to cut out the gray, inside areas first.
Download your free papercutting template here: Mermaid Anchor

Template Tuesday - Alice in Wonderland

2010-03-02T19:15:00.000-08:00

Are you guys super excited for the new Alice in Wonderland to come out? I am. I kind of want to read the book before I see it though because it seems like the movie is going to be out of control and I'd like to create a few images in my head from my own imagination before having them skewed by Tim Burton. I'll probably see the movie first though. So, I thought in honor of the upcoming presentation, I'd do a little papercut of a scene from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Here she is playing croquet with a flamingo for a mallet and a hedgehog for a ball.

This is what your template will look like. Remember to cut the inside areas out first. All the inside parts are shaded gray. Then cut out the outer perimeter. Enjoy!
Download your free Scherenschnitt here: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Lost Things

2010-03-01T11:30:00.000-08:00

Isn't this just beautiful?
Director Angela Kohler and her boyfriend Ithyle Griffiths latest work -- a little short stop-motion film with their friend Alison from A Fine Frenzy. So stunning. I kind of want to go out and dye my hair this red. Found on Black Eiffel.

Template Tuesday - Papercuts for Kids

2010-02-23T01:00:00.000-08:00

So I get asked a lot if I have any templates for children. I generally tell people to look at my previous templates for some that are easier. Last Friday, I had to teach a workshop to little kids on how to papercut. I had made a page of templates and sent it to Dana who called me the next day and told me they were way too hard. They needed to have more round shapes and less holes on the inside. It was kind of difficult for me to tone the details down. But here is what I finally came up with. Feel free to download these and enlarge them on your computer or copier.

This was the easier sheet. I found that even some of the easy things were way too hard for some of the kids. They were small fries! Some kids had different artistic abilities, but they all were proud of their results.
Download your free easy level shape template: Easy Level

Here is the more medium page. Probably maybe even better for the beginning papercut adult artist. Give it a go!
Download your free medium level shape template: Medium Level
Thank you all for your suggestions from one of my previous posts. They were sooooooo helpful!

Here's a freebie for all you Star Wars nerds. I really tried to get Han Solo's profile just right.

Winter Wonderland - The Show

2010-02-21T18:42:00.000-08:00

Friday's event has come and gone and it was such a wonderful success. There were a ton of people and everyone seemed to really like the show. So much work went into it by the people at the museum and I was so happy with how everything turned out.

Here I am with Dana, the artist in residence at the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum. This was the first time I've ever had a sign that had my name and bio at the bottom of it. So wacky!

This was the favorite piece of the show. I called it, "What Lies Beneath." There were these two ice fishermen who had caught a small fish (I don't know, a trout? What do people catch in the wintertime?). Unbeknownst to them, there is a whole school of gruesome scary fish dwelling in the water below. Andi was the purchaser of this piece and I'm super glad because now I can come visit it every once and a while.

Dana did so much to make this show happen. She had to prod me to get things in on time and we spent a whole Saturday one weekend painting windows and walls. She even cut out these wooden animals to adorn the room.

Me. I haven't been drinking real Coke or eating excessive sweets anymore so I fit into something from Forever 21 with ease. I was pretty proud of myself. I had actually only had time to eat some cereal and a cookie that day and I almost passed out by the end of the evening. Luckily a nice boy made me dinner at his house afterwards.

Thank you all who came to the show. If you are interested in seeing it still, the gallery is open to the public from 4:30-6 on Fridays and by special appointment. It's also open on March 19th for next month's gallery stroll from 6-9.

In Utah This Week

2010-02-17T08:59:00.000-08:00

Yay! I got featured in "In Utah This Week". Check out the article. It takes a little while to load though.

Template Tuesday - Dinoride

2010-02-16T00:32:00.000-08:00

Finally, Valentine's is over and I can reprogram myself again to think that next year I'll have a Valentine. It will happen! Anyway, here's a boy and his dinosaur. I cut this one out and put it on pop-dots so that my paper would have more of a shadow. I think it turned out nice.

Here's how the template will look:
Download your free template of a boy with his pet dinosaur here: Dinoride

P.S. For those of you who were asking about the Mushroom Bunny and the Bike Ride templates, those links are active once more.

Dress Launderette

2010-02-10T08:34:00.000-08:00

I am featured on the Dress Launderette blog. Check it out!

Template Tuesday - Hedgehog Love

2010-02-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

There's nothing quite so romantic as two hedgehogs in love. Okay, maybe there is, but hedgehogs are really cute. Anyway, here are a couple of lovehogs for you for Valentine's day. It's a mirror image cut, so after you print it out, fold your paper in half and cut the top part out. Don't cut the letters while it's folded or you will get something terribly wrong. After you've cut out the top, THEN unfold it and cut out the letters.

Here is what the template will look like:
Download your free Valentine's papercutting template here: Hedgehog Love

Winter Wonderland

2010-02-07T21:47:00.000-08:00

Okay, I keep blathering about this to my friends but I don't know if I've made it clear on this blog. I'm having an art show at the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum on February 19th. It will be during the Gallery Stroll in their street level room on 100 South. The part that is open to the general public will be from 6-9pm. Please come and see! Dana, the woman at the museum who is helping me put together the whole show, has done so much work to make everything look just spectacular, including hanging branches from the rafters and cutting out life sized wooden pieces. It should be really pretty.

For those of you with small children, there will be a workshop that I will teach at 4:30. This workshop is the cost of entrance to the museum plus a small fee for materials. Call 801-456-5437 x130 to reserve your spots and for more information.

Now Available! Paper Cuts: 35 Inventive Projects

2010-01-27T16:24:00.000-08:00

Hey! Do you guys remember a while back when I said I was going to be in a book on how to papercut? Well, it's available now! I actually don't have one yet, but I'm looking forward to seeing it.

Here is is, "Paper Cuts: 35 Inventive Projects"

It's a compilation of 35 different papercut projects, 8 of which are mine! I'm super excited to see it. Let me know if you got the book and if you like it or not. This is one of the projects I submitted. I gave it to the publisher for photographing and need to make another one because it's sure cute.

Template Tuesday - Lion Hearted

2010-01-26T01:00:00.000-08:00

Okay, before we get down to brass tacks, I've got a question to ask of all of you. At the gallery/children's museum that I'm going to be showing my work at really soon, they are going to have a little section where the kids can go and try their hand at paper cutting. I am coming up with the artwork for this portion as well. My question is, what do kids love nowadays? I think when I was a little girl, I would have loved to cut out princesses and bunnies. What is hip with the younger crowd these days?

Now, on to the template. Boy, it feels like forever since I've done one of these. Here's one I did this weekend. I didn't have anything to reference when drawing the big cat, so I'm imagining he's more of a leopard than a tiger or lion.

Here's what the template will look like. I think the most difficult part will be the hands and the leash. Just remember to cut from left to right (right to left if you're left handed) so that you can see what you're cutting.

Download your free template here: Lion Hearted
Don't forget to write in your suggestions for what kinds of things kids would like to cut out!

Winter Wonderland

2010-01-16T21:10:00.000-08:00

Today I went to the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum to prepare for my upcoming art show there. Dana and I spent the whole day preparing the gallery.

When it was lunch time, we decided to try out the Bruges Waffle's & Frites place that I had heard about. Dana got one of the waffles and shared it with me and let me tell you, if I could bury my face in one of those waffles every Saturday for the rest of my life, I would be so happy. We each got a medium fry and their medium fry is NOT like McDonald's medium fry. We should have shared.

Then it was back to work! This is Dana. She is the one who is responsible for this whole event. I was having my show at the Masonic Temple and she came up to me and asked me if I would be willing to do one at the children's museum. I thought she would maybe call me a few months later, but no, she called right away and now here we are. One of the walls was a 90s yellow color and here she is painting it blue.

Kim! Kim came by after her date (I'm not going to tell you about it) and we put her to work. Here she is denuding the branches. We're going to spray paint these white and hang them from the rafters.

Here's a long view of the gallery. I'm kinda nervous about the whole thing.

Here's one set of windows. It's hard to see what it looks like because of the sparkly lights on the trees in the background.

This one is easier to see. This is the doorway to get into the place. The trees look better from the outside in the daytime and better from the inside during the nighttime.

The window beside the elevator. It was the last one and I had lost all my desire to paint another tree and then I got a second wind and got 'er done.

The window with the squirrel.

The first window on the left. There were 6 of these size windows and one door.

A good day's work. I hope that everyone can come to this show. It's going to be super fun. It opens to the public at Gallery Stroll on the 19th of February. There will be a kid's room where they can cut out their very own scherenschnitte. It should be very kid friendly. More information to come!

No Excuse

2010-01-13T08:52:00.000-08:00

Ugh! I'm so sorry that I haven't posted anything lately. The holidays were crazy and life in general was just plain crazy. Things are calming down now. They're also not calming down. I have a gallery show coming up in February that I'm crazily getting ready for (more info to come). I promise I will be better though!

Also, if you live in the Salt Lake area and have always wanted to learn Letterpress Printing, my friend Eva is teaching a class. It's a great price and a fun lesson to learn and I would suggest if you have the time to take advantage of this opportunity!

Sycamore Street Press :: Introduction to Letterpress :: Valentine's Class

I am hoping to be able to take the class! If I can't this one then definitely next one!

Template Tuesday - Utah

2009-11-03T02:00:00.000-08:00

So, the audience scope for this one is kind of narrow, but it was one I felt like doing. Last week I went to Oregon and Washington for work. While in Oregon, I saw all sorts of bumper stickers that had the shape of Oregon with a little heart symbol in the middle. I thought, "I don't think we have anything like that that is really prevalent in Utah." We're kind of like the girl with the low self-esteem that goes around saying, "I'm fat..." until everyone starts to believe her. I've heard, countless times, and have even been guilty of it myself, the question, "Why Utah?" when asking someone why they moved here. So, that trip, I decided to change my attitude. I like it here. I bought a house here. I have a dog here. I have great friends here. My neighbors left me a care package for Halloween. I can go hiking here and the streets are wide enough for my carriage to turn around on. So, here's to Utah, the 45th state.

Here's what the template will look like. However you create it, make sure that the tall part of the state is on the left hand side when it's finished.
Download your free papercutting template of Utah Love.

Here is some of the reasoning for my images:
State Bird: California Gull
State Flower: Sego Lily
State Insect: Honeybee

I have the gull eating a Mormon Cricket. My friend Kim in an entomologist and I helped her stuff some of those Mormon Crickets for pinning. They are huge! For those of you who don't know the story, and it's a good one, check out Miracle of the Gulls.

Teaching!

2009-11-02T05:35:00.000-08:00

I keep forgetting to talk about this, but I'm very excited to teach a class on Friday! I'm going to be one of the teachers at The ART Weekend. If you live in the Salt Lake area (or even if you don't) come and join us for a weekend of the arts. This little scene from the Frog Prince is what I will be teaching people how to make (quite timely if I do say so myself):

My class is on Friday from 4:00-5:50. I think one class costs about $45 and the more classes you take, the greater the discount. The class is located at the Salt Lake Plaza Hotel on 122 W South Temple. Hope to see you there!

Template Tuesday - Halloween Witch

2009-10-20T01:02:00.000-07:00

My Halloween templates all seem to be on their way somewhere. This witch, maybe she's going to a party? I love it when I see cats on leashes. They never seem to really enjoy it.

Here's what the template will look like:

Please download your free papercutting template here: Halloween Witc h

The Silence

2009-10-19T06:04:00.000-07:00

This one was my favorite piece of the whole show.

The Saint

2009-10-16T06:08:00.000-07:00

I have always loved deer. Growing up in Las Vegas, I heard that Wayne Newton had a deer in his backyard (he also had penguins and raised beautiful Arabians). In my head, that made Wayne Newton the coolest person in the world. It still kind of does.

The Pirate

2009-10-15T06:13:00.000-07:00

The Gardener

2009-10-14T01:01:00.000-07:00

I have a fondness for all of the pieces I came up with for this show, but I really enjoy that she is growing birds in her garden.

Template Tuesday - Halloween Werewolf

2009-10-13T06:48:00.000-07:00

This werewolf is so excited for trick-or-treating. He brought his pet raven along with him.

I still haven't gotten around to making the template for the 3d spider, but I will! Hopefully before Halloween! So here's a papercut that's a little bit more on the easy side. The thin lines of the pumpkin handle and the leash might be a little tricky. Just remember to cut from left to right so that you can see where you're cutting (unless you're left-handed). Also, make sure you have a fresh blade if you're using a craft knife.

Here's what the template will look like:
Download your free template here: Halloween Werewolf

The Diviner

2009-10-12T22:18:00.000-07:00

Here's one of my pieces for the Festival last Saturday. This one I called, "The Diviner" but I don't know if that guy is really a diviner. I don't know if that guy is even really a guy. When I drew him, I was thinking of him as a guy but everyone I've shown it to thinks that it's a woman. I guess I just drew a pretty decent shim.

I have five that are similar to this. They are all pretty small - the green part measures 4.75" square. So teeny!

Anyway, thanks to all who came to the show. It was nice to meet those of you who I hadn't met before!

UTLFA

2009-10-08T21:31:00.000-07:00

Here's a little hint of this weekend's show at the Utah Local Festival of the Arts (see below for more information).

Template Tuesday - Halloween Spider Attack!

2009-10-06T01:00:00.000-07:00

Don't you just hate getting attacked by a giant spider?

Okay, guys, I don't have time to make the template for this because I have an art show on Saturday, but I will post it shortly thereafter.

BUT...if you want to learn how to make this papercut, I will be doing a demo at this art show if you're in the general vicinity.

Website: http://www.utlfa.org/
Tickets: $4/Adults Advanced, $5/Adults at the Door, $3/Students Advanced, $4/Students at the Door, $2/Seniors Advanced, $3/Seniors at the Door
Dates: Saturday, October 10,
Times: 5-11pm
Location: Salt Lake Masonic Temple
650 East South Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84102

It's at this place, which, to tell you the truth, I'm pretty excited about.

I don't know how chaotic everything will be, but I'll try to do a demo around 7pm and 9pm. I'll just show you how I make it and then you can take the template home and try it for yourself. It needs to be done on something at least as thick as regular scrapbooking paper.

Template Tuesday - Beetle Birthday

2009-09-29T06:45:00.000-07:00

This one is for my friend Kim. It's her birthday today. She's an entomologist and so, while probably overused and she's probably tired of getting bug things, the theme still works. Here is one dung beetle giving another dung beetle a birthday present.

Happy Birthday, Kim!

Here's what the template will look like. Remember, do not cut on the parts that fold.

Download your free template here: Happy Birthday Beetles

Template Tuesday - Fall Equinox

2009-09-22T05:00:00.000-07:00

Today is the first official day of Fall and it's not being shy about it. Last night I went to a little gathering at a park and it was downright chilly. I guess I'm going to have to start wearing socks again. I did buy a couple sweaters at the mall this weekend, so I'm pretty excited for that. I did a simple papercut today because I've been doing a lot of more tricky ones lately and I just need to tone it down. I'm getting out of control. Here's a mirror image cut. These are so fun to do because you do half the work and get a really pretty end result.

Here's what the template will look like. Remember, fold your paper and put the dotted line on the fold. Then cut out the inside bits first and then the outer lines. Careful not to cut the hinging parts on the dotted line.

Download your free scherenschnitte template here: Fall Equinox.

Minneapolis

2009-09-18T05:04:00.000-07:00

I'm at the Mall of America for Scrapfest this weekend (I work as a product designer for Making Memories). If anyone is in the area and swings by, come say "hi!"

Will You?

2009-09-17T22:05:00.000-07:00

My friend Joe proposed to his wife on the catwalk of this building. It was his anniversary just a little while ago and he commissioned me to make a papercut of it. It took me forever because I was moving and I finally finished it this week. Do any of you know which building this is?

Template Tuesday - I Had The Time Of My Life

2009-09-15T07:11:00.000-07:00

In honor of one of my childhood favorites, here's a little bouquet of flowers for Patrick Swayze. He just seemed like he was a really nice guy.

Here's what the template will look like:

Click here download your free papercutting template: I Had The Time Of My Life.

Sorry about the sparseness of posts lately. Filling holes in hardwood floors and finding my way through boxes takes time. I think it will get better soon, I hope!

Template Tuesday - End of Summer Bike Ride

2009-08-18T11:51:00.000-07:00

My co-worker, Audre, has always been a fan of papercuts. When I gave the previous scherenschnitte to my other co-worker who just had a baby, she was a little miffed. I told her I'd do the next one for her and asked her what she wanted. She said a mountain scene and then I completely went and disregarded what she said. She has this little demon dog, Looey, who only loves her. She also loves to ride her bike and has a basket to go with it. So I thought I'd combine the two. The nights are getting a little chilly again and the scent of Fall is in the air. There probably won't be too many more bike rides left in the year for us working girls. Here's a little papercut to remember the days.

Here's what the pattern will look like. Remember to cut out the inside parts first. Also, remember that whatever way you cut something out on the back, the image will be reversed on the front.
Here's your free papercutting template: End of Summer Bike Ride

Also, a big THANK YOU to One Pretty Thing, Craft: and How About Orange for featuring Scherenschnitte on their blogs! I'm gonna have to send you guys some papercuts too!

Template Tuesday - Mushroom Bunny

2009-08-04T08:23:00.000-07:00

I just moved into a new house and everything is so overwhelming so I'm trying to ignore the chaos and put some normality back into my life. I figured I'd do that by starting up exercising again. This silhouette was going to get pushed aside but I decided to take advantage of my new porch and the moonlight and the giant floodlights the old lady had put up who previously lived there and sketch a little something. I'm researching mushrooms for a different project I'm doing and thought I'd try out a little scene with that theme.

Here's what the template will look like. Remember to cut out the gray areas first and then the outlined area in the back.

Download your free scherenschnitte template here: Mushroom Bunny

I cut this out at work and am using a different mat than I normally would use. This one doesn't suit me. If you are trying to use a craft knife to cut out your papercuts and it tears all the time, maybe try getting a different mat. It'll make a big difference.

Deseret News Feature

2009-07-24T21:09:00.000-07:00

Hey! Look who's featured in an online Deseret News article!

It's A Lovely Cage

2009-07-23T05:29:00.000-07:00

This one is one of my favorite pieces from the show. It's a small one, but one of the more intricate ones. How often do we find ourselves stuck in the same place, time after time, doing the same thing we always do without trying something different? We have the option of getting out and expanding, but we like the false sense of security developed in the everyday patterns of our lives. Go on, get out there! Try something new!

Available at the Terra Nova Gallery.

Template Tuesday - Pioneer Day - Sarah's Handcart

2009-07-21T07:02:00.001-07:00

So I was sitting in church on Sunday and I turned to my friend Sarah and said, "I've got to do a template for my papercutting blog on Tuesday, do you have any ideas?" Then, for the next hour, she proceeded to whisper a variety of ideas to me from pioneers standing around burning woodchips to the invasion of the Mormon crickets (which are both excellent ideas that I will be using in the future). I went with the idea of a pioneer crossing the plains with a handcart. It's called Sarah's handcart. I don't know where Sarah got those two kids since she's not married. Maybe they're from a sibling who passed away while crossing the plains? Maybe Sarah had a rough life before she joined the church? Maybe that dog warns them when wolves are around? I don't know. So much happened while crossing the plains.

Here's what the template will look like when you download it. The parts you cut out are the gray areas. Be sure that however you cut it out, the finished piece has the pioneers facing to your left (like in the color image above). We don't want them going back to Missouri.

Download your free template here: Pioneer Day - Sarah's Handcart

He Was Demanding More and More Sacrifices

2009-07-20T06:05:00.000-07:00

The poor mini people of the village were always getting terrorized by this bird until they started offering up sacrifices to him. It's a good thing that there are always plenty of bugs around!

Size: 5" x 7"

This one is still up and showing at the Terra Nova Gallery!

The Squirrel King Shows No Mercy

2009-07-19T08:18:00.000-07:00

Here is one of the small papercuts I did for the show. This one is pretty simple. I love squirrels.

Template Tuesday - Harry Potter Owls!

2009-07-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

You know what happens at midnight tonight, don't you? The next Harry Potter is available for the American masses! I think everyone in Europe has already seen it. I thought and thought about what papercut to do for template Tuesday and when my friend Joe asked me to go with him to the first showing of Harry Potter, I decided that would be the perfect theme for today! I researched quotes from the movie and this one I thought was pretty nice and not too terribly dark. Most of the other quotes I found had to do with messed up spells and You Know Who. This one isn't accurate though, technically it's supposed to be, "Don't count your owls before they are delivered," but the design works well this way.

Here's what the template will look like. It's different than other ones in that I made the positive parts gray. Please remember to cut out the inside bits (negative space) first and then cut around the outside. This image is reversed so that if you print it directly onto the back of your paper it will read right on the reverse side. If you want to print this out and then tape it to your paper to cut it out, you will want to flip the image so that the words read right to you.

This has a lot of thin lines. When you cut these, it's easier to cut from the place where they start towards the middle of the line, then pick up your blade and do the same at the other end of the line, drawing it into the middle. I don't know why this works, but it seems to make it so that I don't cut through too many things. Does that make sense? Also, if you're right handed, be sure to work from left to right so that you can see the thinness of the lines you're cutting.

This papercut takes a bit of time to do. If you complete it, be sure to let me know!

To download your free scherenschnitte, click here: Harry Potter Owl

He Wasn't Very Coordinated But She Liked His Eyes

2009-07-13T05:40:00.000-07:00

Here's my final large piece from the show. This was one of the first ones I did and I hadn't struck upon the cloud idea yet. Originally, for my theme, I wanted to have it about "The Things We Do For Love" and show all sorts of people in weird situations, good or bad, that they only got into because they were infatuated with someone. The theme is pretty much carried throughout all the pieces, but I think this one carries it's essence. Here is a guy who doesn't know how to dance. He's surrounded by a world of people enveloped in a new culture of dance, fashion and lifestyle. There's this girl he really likes who he wants to impress and he'd try anything to get her to be his.

Note: These new pieces are all on display at the Terra Nova Gallery.

P.S. If you're on Facebook, click on that little link on the right and be a fan!

Because They Have Taken Away My Lord

2009-07-12T05:53:00.000-07:00

This is one that I've been thinking about for quite some time and I'm sure I'll revisit the theme again. The scene depicts the moment directly after Mary has seen two angels within the sepulcher and they asked her, "Woman, why weepest thou?" She replies, "Because they have taken away my Lord." She turns from them and looks into the garden and sees a man standing there who she identifies as the gardener. From that moment, to me, happens one of the most beautiful interactions in the scriptures. John 20:11-16

Note: These new pieces are all on display at the Terra Nova Gallery.

She Wasn't Nagging, She Was Telling Him How To Get There

2009-07-09T21:45:00.000-07:00

My parents came to the show on Saturday. Even though they had no clue this papercut would be in the show, my mom spotted right off that it was about them. If there's one thing I dread, it's driving in the car with my parents. My mom tells my dad how to get to a place and he gets all mad at her for telling him what to do, but when she doesn't tell him what to do, he misses the turn or gets lost or whatever.

When I was a kid, my dad went away to go get a car. He towed it back to our house in Las Vegas. It was a 1959 Chevy Impala, the last year it had it's wings. It was a beautiful car.

Art Show!

2009-07-07T21:04:00.001-07:00

I just got back from Nebraska so I don't have a Template Tuesday yet, but hopefully I'll have one tomorrow and I'll sneak it up and pretend like it was posted today.

What I DO have are pictures from the art show opening at the Terra Nova Gallery last Friday. Featuring Randel McGee, Ada Gardner and Rick James Marzullo. You're very excited, I know. Here's me with one of my coworkers, Hillary and her sister, Ashley. Kudos to Hillary for coming all the way down!

Jamie, who has a friend who likes my stuff but she didn't come along with her!

These are my old landlords who became friends from my college days, Mike and Jenni. I would someday like to be as cool as they are.

My mom and my dad are to my right, to my left is my dental hygienist and her husband. Random, right? Especially when you learn that they heard about the show because they were up here flying hot air balloons and Kim's parents told them about it.

Erin! One of my most favorite companions from my mission. She can sing like an angel.

Kim, who was such a wonderful help the whole show, and Stephen.

Marie, Lena, me and Rachel. I really like these ladies. I'm so glad I've gotten to know them a little better over the past little while.

Kim's parents, Ron and Carol!

Randel and his wife, Marsha! Randel is the reason I was in the show in the first place. He's a talented papercutter AND a talented puppeteer.

Kellie and Brigham! I was so excited to see them again and they even bought the roaring 20s piece. It was one of the ones that I got some of the most comments about the whole evening.

Ryan was someone I met that night but have known for a little while. I'm so glad he showed up!

El Stevo! Steve and Krista showed up too. The time is farspent in between viewings of these two.

Christian and Kirsten! It was so good to see them as well. Christian has a new movie coming out pretty soon.

Whitney with Mary poking her head in between us.

Michelle! Michelle bought this piece for her collection. I think she has the largest collection of Cindy Ferguson papercuts of anyone I know besides maybe my mom.

Erin. I can't even say how happy I was that she was there at the show.

This is David Hawkinson, the owner of the gallery where we had our show. He is such a nice guy and I was so glad to be able to work with him.

All in all, the show was a great success and I hope that if you haven't seen it, you can go down to the Terra Nova Gallery and take a gander (41 W 300 N, Provo). Thanks all!

They Said She Wouldn’t Like It But They Were Wrong

2009-07-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th of July!

To all of you who came to the show last night, thank you! It was a great success and a whole lot of fun.

Here's one of the pieces. This was inspired by my mom's friend, Garnet. Garnet and her husband were sheep ranchers and would travel many miles transporting their sheep from place to place.

When I have more time I'll post more photos from the show.

Template Tuesday - 4th of July Liberty Bell

2009-06-30T20:26:00.000-07:00

Sweet freedom. You know how you get to a point where almost all the things you have to do are done and you think you're about finished, but eventually a whole new slew of things gets thrown your way? I feel like I'm almost to that point. It's nice. I'll just trick myself into thinking I'll have a load of free time sometime soon.

It's been a little while since I've done a papercut template and I kept wracking my brain as to what I could do for the 4th of July. I kept thinking of doing fireworks, but that's kind of boring. Then, the other day, I got this awesome mirror at the thrift store with 13 stars and an eagle at the top and my friend Kim suggested I memorize the Declaration of Independence while I go swimming. Voila! I have a little bit of Declaration of Independence, a little bit of the 13 colonies and a little bit of the Liberty Bell. Happy Independence Day, America, enjoy a free scherenschnitte template!

Here's what the template looks like:

Download the free template here: Liberty

C'est Fini!

2009-06-28T20:47:00.001-07:00

This weekend I took all my pieces down to the gallery in Provo. It is such a relief to have them all completed and in someone else's hands. I'm excited for Friday, if anything to see some old friends who I haven't seen in forever. I'm also excited to start back up Template Tuesday! Woot! Just in time for the 4th. You guys have no idea how guilty I felt not doing them.

This one is called, "He had No Idea what He Doing Out Here but He Sure Did Love to See Her Smile," or something like that. I can't remember what I wrote.

Mother Said This Would Come To No Good

2009-06-18T20:37:00.000-07:00

Ooo, you guys, I finally got one of my pieces finished for the art show on July 3rd. Wanted to put up a sneak peek. Of course, this is my most favorite piece of any of them that I have done so hopefully if you come to Provo to see you won't be too disappointed.

July 3, 2009
6-9pm

Terra Nova Gallery
41 West 300 North
Provo, Utah 84601

Papercut Family Tree

2009-06-08T10:05:00.000-07:00

Something fun I've been working on lately has been these three family trees. They are cut out of census papers of my ancestors. I scanned them in and blew them up pretty large and cut out these giant family trees.

It's interesting the different color variances you can get with different eras of census records. I think the first one is from the 1920s, the second one is from the 1910s and the third one from the 1880s.

I'm going to give one to my parents, one I'll keep for me and I'm still debating what to do with the third one.

Ugh!

2009-06-03T10:27:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts. I've been pretty busy. But a lot of busy doing papercuts, so that's pretty cool. Remember how I told you that I'm going to be featured in a book about papercuts? I think I might have mislead some of you into believing that this was going to be all my stuff. It's lots of other artists in it as well. Well, I just got word that it's definitely being produced and will be available January 2010! It's called
Papercuts: 35 Inventive Projects and I think about 8 of them are mine. Pretty exciting, no?

Also, and I'm sure I'll post more about this as it gets closer, but I'm going to be in an art show with two other papercutting artists down in Provo from July 3rd-31st at the Terra Nova Gallery! If any of you are in the area, I hope you can make it! The opening reception is on July 3rd from 6-9pm.

Template Tuesday - Memorial Day

2009-05-19T22:00:00.001-07:00

Okay! I missed last weeks, but there's been lots of stuff going on. Here's a little Memorial Day papercut with some criss-crossed guns, poppies and flags. Oh, and stars. I don't have the template done yet, but I wanted to post this to show that there's something in the works! Hope you guys have a good long weekend, if you're here in the States!

Giant Squid Attacks A Frigate!

2009-05-11T08:25:00.000-07:00

Remember that little boy I was trading artwork with? He sent me something back and it's taken me forever to return something to him. Last night I bit the bullet and finished another one for him. It's a papercut of a giant squid attacking a frigate. I kind of like oceaned themed stuff right now.

Template Tuesday - Mother's Day Deer

2009-05-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

If there's anything I like, it's deer. I've been thinking about what to do for mother's day for a while and kept having all these elaborate ideas and then I thought, just keep it simple. A mother and her baby will suffice.

This is what the template looks like. Don't freak out about the little spots on the fawn. If you can't cut them out, don't. If you can, don't worry about following my outline exactly. Happy cutting!
Here's the free template: Mother's Day Deer

Template Tuesday - Mother's Day Hen

2009-04-27T17:28:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day is coming up and I'm always so bad at remembering until it's too late or I procrastinate thinking that I have plenty of time. This Mother's Day, I'm prepared! I have a craft book and I think I'll give her this little papercut with the Mother Hen and her chicks.

Here's what the template will look like when you download it. Remember, cut out the gray part first and then the outer outline.

Here's the free template: Mother's Day Hen