If you're a last minute holiday decorator, like me, I have a quick and easy project you can have ready for tomorrow's Fourth of July celebration in less than an hour!
I have always loved papel picado. Those beautiful brightly colored cut paper banners fluttering in the air.
From wikipedia:
Papel picado ("perforated paper", literally "pecked paper") is a decorative craft made out of paper cut into beautiful and elaborate designs. It is considered a Mexican folk art. The designs are commonly cut from coloured tissue paper using a guide or template and small chisels, creating as many as forty banners at a time. Papel picado can also be made by folding tissue paper and using small, sharp scissors. Common themes include birds, floral designs, and skeletons. They are commonly displayed for both secular and religious occasions, such as Easter, Christmas, the Day of the Dead, as well as during weddings, quinceañeras, baptisms, and christenings. In Mexico, papel picado is especially incorporated into altars during the Day of the Dead.
When thinking about decorating for Fourth of July, I suddenly thought: Why don't I make a banner inspired by papel picado? I knew that I wanted to use red, white, and blue and the same rectangle format as papel picado. However, I wanted to create a more linear finished design that really embraced the flag shape of the…well, flags.
Cutting all those flags by hand seemed like it could be fun, but time consuming. I wanted fast. Remember, I'm a last minute kind of gal! So, I designed a cut file for my ScanNCut. You can see it here in ScanNCut Canvas (Brother's free online editing program):
It was pretty easy to do. I simply started with a rectangle and then added and subtracted bits as I needed. Watch my video on Process Overlap to learn how to weld and subtract images.
I used my ScanNCut to cut the pattern 5 times: 2 red, 2 white, 1 blue — for ease of workflow, I used two mats and while one was cutting, I was cleaning and prepping the other mat (it takes about 6 minutes for each of these flags to cut) — and then strung the paper cuts together on a piece of embroidery floss.
Then I hung my fabulous new banner in the window!
Even without color, that lacy paper looks so fantastic against the window:
I love it! I think this banner looks awesome and says Fourth of July without being too spot on the nose!
If you'd like to make your own, you can download the .fcm file for FREE, right HERE.
Thanks for stopping by!
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I am a paid spokesperson for the Brother ScanNCut. It is a machine that I love and use. All projects and opinions are my own.
P.S. If you're looking for other Fourth of July crafts, why not make a ribbon flag?
The complete tutorial can be found HERE.
Fun, festive and simply stated at the same time.
Happy 4th Julie!
Fun, festive and simply stated at the same time.
Happy 4th Julie!
Fun, festive and simply stated at the same time.
Happy 4th Julie!
Fun, festive and simply stated at the same time.
Happy 4th Julie!
Fun, festive and simply stated at the same time.
Happy 4th Julie!
Fun, festive and simply stated at the same time.
Happy 4th Julie!
Congratulations Julie, you did a great work, as Mexican i can tell you they look amazing! Felicidades!
Congratulations Julie, you did a great work, as Mexican i can tell you they look amazing! Felicidades!
Congratulations Julie, you did a great work, as Mexican i can tell you they look amazing! Felicidades!
Congratulations Julie, you did a great work, as Mexican i can tell you they look amazing! Felicidades!
Congratulations Julie, you did a great work, as Mexican i can tell you they look amazing! Felicidades!
Congratulations Julie, you did a great work, as Mexican i can tell you they look amazing! Felicidades!
This is so darn cool. Love it and appreciate you sharing it….. you are enabling me as I consider the scanNcut. I mean that in the best possible way!
This is so darn cool. Love it and appreciate you sharing it….. you are enabling me as I consider the scanNcut. I mean that in the best possible way!
This is so darn cool. Love it and appreciate you sharing it….. you are enabling me as I consider the scanNcut. I mean that in the best possible way!
This is so darn cool. Love it and appreciate you sharing it….. you are enabling me as I consider the scanNcut. I mean that in the best possible way!
This is so darn cool. Love it and appreciate you sharing it….. you are enabling me as I consider the scanNcut. I mean that in the best possible way!
This is so darn cool. Love it and appreciate you sharing it….. you are enabling me as I consider the scanNcut. I mean that in the best possible way!