House of Cards, by Sarah Hamilton. Review.

House of Cards

By Sarah Hamilton

Pavilion Books 2017

Hardcover £14.99

ISBN 9781-1-919904-57-2

Star rating: ****

This  just in and I couldn’t wait to share – House of Cards – great title, great book. This is a compendium of step-by-step card designs from talented expert contributors. Very nice, you say – been there, done that? No. This book has a super angle. Its aim is to provide nitty gritty info so that you can become a successful commercial cardmaker – if you want to that is. If your goal is a personal creative outlet, you will find quality projects in a variety of craft techniques (silkscreen printing, decoupage, papercutting, linocut printing, collage, handstitched paper, digital illustration, textile foiling, and letterpress printing). A tempting mix, yes?

The author of the book, Sarah Hamilton, founded the Just a Card  Campaign in 2014, with the goal of helping to support indy artists and retailers, who find it so very difficult to stay afloat financially. Sarah Hamilton is an artist and designer with impressive credentials, having designed for Paperchase, The Conran Shop, and Habitat. Sarah has written a section on Finding Inspiration for the book, pro tips shared. 

The upfront section of the book is invaluable – and a delight. Here you will find a capsule history of the greeting card, tips on selling cards (including the “To Bag or Not to Bag” dilemma faced by all greeting card crafters), licensing designs, and a section on charity cards. Plenty of fascinating info to keep you informed and entertained.

Each project welcomes you into the designer’s studio – you learn what makes them tick. The project is then provided with photographic step-by-steps.

Not all of the projects are papercrafted – designer Kirsty Elson creates cards from found objects. This involves toolshop lite skills. Lucy Featherstone does handstitched card on paper – string art (as popular in the ‘70s), with a contemporary spin. Jessica Hogarth’s project is an intro to digital illustration – transforming your sketch into vector artwork (suitable for colouring). Papercutter Sarah Morpeth’s contribution is lovely woodland scene in “beak book” format – this is a dimensional card.

House of Cards is extremely giftable. Perhaps you know a crafter who is thinking of taking the leap into selling. Or perhaps you yourself deserve a treat...

Note: I was provided with a review copy of this title.

Decorative Paper Craft, by GMC. Review.

Decorative Paper Craft

Origami/ Paper Cutting/ Papier Mâché

By GMC Editors

GMC Publications May 2016

Paperback £9.99 UK/ $14.95 US

ISBN 978-1-78494-174-1

Star rating: ***

This title is a pleasant compendium of papercraft projects – sourced from Making magazine. I get the impression that it was compiled a bit hastily (carousel-style memory book looks a bit dated with 2011 labels, lack of spelling agreement, etc.), although for the most part the projects are attractive (as you would expect, coming from Making) and  well-chosen.  

The makes are divided into four categories: Gifts, Celebrations, and For the Home. Projects within each category are a grab bag of papercraft techniques. Confession: I’ve never been a fan of papier mâché. Labour-intensive and results often underwhelming.  Having said that, the projects in this book are very appealing. The Money-Box Bear (polar!) is lightly painted – I love how the newsprint shows through - not fake anything - real pm. Its construction is very clever. The paper mâché teacups are charming and would make sweet desktop storage containers. 

The paper cutting projects are simple yet elegant. The Valentine’s Papercut, Moroccan Cards, 3D Flower Picture, and Papercut Note Cards (stylish Scandi-style bird motifs) are all winners and do-able as handcuts. (Not as keen on the Cutaway Clock.)

Sometimes the how-tos are a bit sketchy. Example: Fans & Windmills. “Attach to a stick” is a bit vague for the nitty gritty of the project – the bit most novice crafters would want a detailed assist on. (How do you attach the papery construction to the stick, yet allow it to rotate freely???)

Other projects include a Rolled Paper Bowl – magazine paper coils – a clever take on recycling (sure to appeal to paper bead enthusiasts). If you are OK on repurposing books, then the Book Sculpture is a simplified take on the book-folding trend - the pages are cut to shape, rather than folded. 

The on-page step-by-steps are mostly fine. Projects are accompanied by how-to photos or detailed illustrations as needed. Templates are back of book – lots of photcopier enlarging to do.

So – a likable mixed bag of papery projects. Might make a fun gift for a newbie.

Paper Cut Cards, by Emily Gregory. Review.

Paper Cut Cards

30 stunning handmade cards with eye-popping 3-D designs

By Emily Gregory

Search Press 2016

Paperback £12.99

ISBN 978-1-78221-386-4

Star rating: ****

This charming book is, perhaps, mis-named.  If you are looking for a papercutting book, you should probably look elsewhere. If you are looking for an ace 3-D cardmaking book with designs contributed by a talented bunch of international paper artists – you’re in the right place. This book contains projects of graded complexity – but even the simplest designs are hooky and original. This is a go-to title for getting your paper engineering skills in gear.

The feats of paper engineering magic are divided into three sections – Cuts & Folds, Tabs & Slots, and Discs & Spirals. So – you’ve got your standard pop-ups and fold-ins, plus mechanical cards. All the projects are handmade (but they could certainly be adapted for digital cutting if you are so inclined).

Star projects include Pot of Flowers (Freya Lines) – a simple papercut with a colourful backing  so both the design and the background pop; Fiesta (Freya Lines) – Mexican papercut-inspired pop-up; Bird Box (Whispering Paper) – a pop-up kraft paper shadowbox with a delightful papercut bird, Knight’s Fortress (Lynn Hatzius) – a spectacular concertina castle that is deceptively easy to make. In the second section, Carousel  (Tina Kraus) would make a splendid birthday surprise, Snail on a Leaf (Rosa Yoo) is a super dimensional pull-tab pop-up. In chapter 3, Bird in a Cage (Kyle Orman) impresses (as the name says, it is a paper cage card - pull the string to reveal the lattice cage).

These cards are all-singing, all-dancing – in many cases, you will have to rely on the description to use your imagination to create a mental gif of the card action. As you would expect, step-by-step how-tos accompany each project.

Outstanding features of the book include a picture gallers "Project Selector" and capsule bios of the contributing papercrafters. Nice.

There’s a template section at the back of the book – due to the nature of the cards, enlargement is necessary in most cases.

So – a pleasing round-up of all-occasion interactive cards. 

Paper + Tape: Craft & Create, by Marisa Edghill. Review.

Paper + Tape: Craft & Create

Cut, Tape, and Fold your way through more than 75 creative & colourful

papercraft projects & ideas

By Marisa Edghill

Walter Foster 2016

Paperback £12.99 UK/$19.99 US/$23.95 CAN

ISBN 978-1-63322-048-5

Star rating: ****

Papercrafters love washi tape. That’s a given. But what to do with the washi stash? All suggestions welcome. This new title by Marisa Edghill has plenty of fresh – yet simple – ideas for washi-wonderful creations.

Many washi-craft titles limit themselves to using stuck-on snippets of washi as decorative elements – an all-too-obvious and unimaginative use. This title even includes projects that use washi tape as a functional connective element (pleated doily bows, Paper Pyramid Pouches). Wow.

The author is especially good on generating decorative patterns using washi tape. The Vintage Flower Design teacup is a cinch – and delightful. The concept is to recreate the vibe of handpainted pottery using washi tape. Modern Geometric Mosaics and the Fruit Salad Stickers are winners.

Yes, you’ve seen the paper beads before – but they are well-executed and deserve inclusion. The Papercut Bouquet idea is good – using an engineered washi tape underlay with a papercut topper. Shooting Stars – pleated paper star-topped tassels – nice dimensional project – fun to fold.

Self-adhesive sheets of washi paper are now available for crafting. It would have been nice to include a project or two using this new creative material on its own or in combination with conventional washi tape strips. Also – the eraser stamp project looks like it belongs, but doesn’t quite tie in with the washi theme.

The book would make a fab gift for a child’s half-term break.