February ATCs

The theme for this month's ATCs is "everyday things that surround us". It took me awhile to come up with an idea, but in the end, I thought that I would challenge myself to cut something that would require lots of thin lines. Thus the wire whisk. Thin lines are not easy. I cut two of these, and I accidentally cut through one of the lines on the second one. Ooops!

Okay, maybe an antique phonograph is not a typical everyday item, but it is something that I see everyday and thought it could make a nice cut. I love the sound of these acoustic machines.

Something Funny Is Going On

Here is the latest papercut. I just finished it, yesterday. It is based on another old photo that I dug up somewhere awhile back. It caught my eye because it just looked like something funny was going on between these two. Maybe, the guy just told a really bad joke, and now he is waiting for the girl to laugh. He maybe waiting for awhile. I loved the girl's dress with the tie. The color is just colored paper that I glued to the back of the main cut. I kept the colors simple and few in order to help retain the idea of an old photo.

A Lady with a Bag

I found a copy of an interesting old photo in one of my file folders the other day that I thought would be a challenge to make into a papercut. I was drawn to this lady's great handbag. I was pleased with how it turned out. Sometimes when I try to use a photo for reference, I can't seem to make it work.

The papercut felt like it needed some color and a backdrop to finish it off, so I broke out my watercolors. After painting behind the cut, I must have been feeling really brave because I attempted to paint the rest of the photo for the background. I like how the lady with the bag stands out against the grays like she has a new hope for her future.

Roosters

This is what I have been working on the last couple of weeks. I think it is the most complicated papercut that I have tried up to date. I like how it turned out. I don't like to cut through too many layers so I only folded the paper twice. I used tracing paper to create the design. My husband told me that it would have been easier to do in Photoshop, but I don't know Photoshop that well. I didn't want to wait for him to find some time to do the pattern for me, so I did it the hard way. It has a 12 inch diameter. Now I only have the scary part left (gluing it down). I will have to try something like this again.

The Last Nuele for This Year

This is the last nuele for this year. I'll have to make more next Christmas. I was happy to find a free hour yesterday morning to hang up my nueles in the front room. They look great hanging from the ceiling.

Another Neule

This neule is along a more traditional theme. I still haven't hung them yet. I wish things would slow down just a little bit more.

A Geometric Neule

This neule is more simplistic in its design, but I thought that worked better with a star. Now I just have to find enough time to hang it. Things get too busy this time of the year.