Paper crafting has become much more than simply cutting and pasting today. It has become much more complex and detailed and thus more people are taking to paper creations. Here is a look at the top five paper crafts (in no specific order). Keep in mind these may not be your top 5 paper crafting projects, but may become such after reading about them. They are quite intriguing.
1. Origami. Who know that the ancient oriental art would be such a hit in the United States? This art has been part of many cultures for a long time, but began with a story of a Japanese girl named Sadako. He quest as a dying girl was to fold 1000 paper cranes, and apparently the story caught on. The most popular symbol for origami is of course the crane, but it has taken many other forms since then. Not all origami styles today have originated in Japan but are considered now one art under the title "origami." You can find many different kinds of origami paper such as foil-back, two-toned, and patterned paper depending on the look you are going for. Origami has become an art form today as many upcoming and established origami artists have proven.
2. Cards. It is probably no surprise to you that making cards and gift tags has become extremely popular today. With so many options available to the avid card maker it makes it so easy to produce a great outcome. From Holiday cards, to birthday cards; thank you cards, to announcements; you can create a card for every occasion you need one. There are also many new crazes that give card maker endless possibilities. Embossing, stamping, using embellishments, and now the latest craze, chip board; these are all just the tip of the ice berg with card making.
3. Paper weaving. This may not be one of your favorites, but there are enough people out there who love it to make my top five list. Weaving is the process of forming cloth fabric (or in this case paper) on a loom by interlacing them. I’m sure we have all heard of basket weaving; well this is the same only with paper. Kids especially love this craft because they are fairly quick (depending on the project) and easy to catch on. These are fun to use in paper quilts because they add dimension and creativity; some have actually weaved paper baskets, and many people have also used them in their scrapbooks to add a bit of a flare. Whichever way you use them they’re always a hit.
4. Holiday craft items. I know this is a very general statement but it seems that as you get closer to the holiday seasons crafting becomes more popular. The paper Thanksgiving Turkey is very popular among children, as are the angels and any sort of Santa Clause. Snow flakes are also extremely popular. Of course there is always your typical Valentines card, Father’s and Mother’s day paper crafts, and let’s not forget all those spring flowers that come out during Easter. Everyone loves the holiday seasons and paper crafting always seems to make its way out during these times especially.
5. Quilling. This was actually a foreign term to me, but for those who know a lot about paper crafting quilling is quite an art. Defined as the art of creating decorative designs fro thin strips of curled paper. Quilling has been around since the Renaissance age. How it works is that with the use of some simple tools you tightly wind long strips of paper to make forms some very complex shapes. It has also become quite popular to create three dimensional quilling crafts. Much more complex in design but very cool looking. You can be as simple or detailed as you like with these.
These of course may not be your top five paper crafts but give them a try, you might be surprised at how hooked you become.