Episode 26: Papercutting Around the World

A quick reminder: if you'd like to join us for the Wild Pansy Stumpwork Stitch Along with MCreativeJ in March, please pre-order your kit or pattern today! You'll get everything you need (pattern, supplies, and a great Handmade History article) to make a beautiful hand-embroidered 3-D pansy & learn to do stumpwork! Get 15% off the kit or PDF pattern before 12/31/25. Want to share the Stitch Along as a gift? Just put a note in your order and we will send a cute e-card to your giftee to let them know they are in, and their kit/pattern is on the way! Visit https://www.patreon.com/posts/142281475 for more details.

The art and craft of papercutting is as old as paper-- and in this episode, we cover both! Listen in to learn about the history of paper and paper-like materials such as papyrus and tapa. Then, follow us around the globe as we explore traditions of papercutting in several countries. We cover Chinese papercutting, Mexican papel picado, Indonesian shadow puppets, the tradition of Jewish papercutting, and scherenschnitte in Switzerland and the US--among others! We also talk about the variety of tools and supplies used by papercutters in different traditions, and the wide range of motifs that papercutters create. Finally, we profile two papercut artists from the early 1800s, Adele Schopenhauer and Martha Ann Honeywell. This is by no means a comprehensive survey of papercutting--but it's a great start!

We will take a break for the holidays and be back in January with more Handmade History. Happy holidays, everyone!

Shownotes and sources here: https://tinyurl.com/4jf5xncd

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Quick note: If you'd like to join us for the Wild Pansy Stumpwork Stitch Along, grab your kit or pattern here! Pre-order before December 31 and get 15% off!