For years I have been using the standard #11 Classic Fine Blade from X-ACTO. It has served me well, they aren't too expensive when you buy them in packs of 100 and they hold up pretty good while cutting through paper.




I found that they both wore out at about the same speed, so, if you're budget friendly, the X-ACTO blades are going to be your go-to blades (at 20.66 for Prime members, what a steal). But if you want to cut with something that feels like you're cutting through clouds, try the OLFA blades. I'll bet it's so excellent because it comes from Japan. Japanese people have mad paper crafting skills. I'm still more fond of my X-ACTO X2000 knife though. I like the way it feels when I hold it.

What about you? Is there something different that you try? Are you a craft knife type of person or a scissors person?

If you've ever have a problem figuring out how to cut teeny tiny circles, well, look no further - here is the answer! You can do this in 4 easy steps:

1. Cut a half circle. 
2. Place your finger over that half circle. 
3. Lift up your knife, go back to the beginning of your cut and cut the rest of the circle out. 
4. Practice! Practice! Practice!

 Do you have a different way of cutting circles?


Download the instruction sheet on how to cut circles: Cutting Circles 
Or, you can cheat and buy a teeny tiny hole punch, but sometimes you can't get into the middle of a larger cut with that, so you might as well man up and learn how to do it someday!

Nobody ever asks me this, but maybe there are some people who want to know. Here's how I cut thin lines.

1. Cut from left to right (unless you are left-handed, then cut from right to left).
2. Keep blade SHARP! Dull blades will rip paper more often than a slip of your hand will.
3. Practice! Practice! Practice!

I made a sheet with illustrations and everything about cutting thin lines. You can download a copy here in vector format: How to Cut Thin Lines

Frequently I'm asked, how do you get the designs on the paper? Well, here's how I do it. First, I always carry a sketchbook with me most everywhere I go. Who knows when you might be stuck at Jiffy Lube or on the bus or in the middle of a field somewhere with nothing to do? A lot of my drawing time happens at church. It helps me listen, I promise. So, for this particular papercut, I wanted to draw the outline of a fox. I don't know what a fox really looks like. I don't own a fox. What I do own, or at least subscribe to, is the internet and I can search for the word fox and find an inestimable source of fox photos. Here's one I liked that helped inspire a lot of this drawing.

So now I've got the inspiration, what do I do next? Well, I draw. I drew this fox like five times before I got him how I wanted him. Then I drew in the lettering and scanned it into my computer. You can also draw right onto the paper you are using, but this gets tricky if you are cutting out words.

After scanning it, I adjusted the size to be the size I wanted the final product to be. Then, and this is important, if it has words, flip the design. Flip it! Or if it's facing a certain direction you want it to face, flip it! I can't tell you how many times I've printed something out, started cutting it and halfway through, turned it over to admire my handiwork and then let out a few choice words because the reverse side was in reverse. Here's what that fox looks like mostly cut out, see how the letters on the side I'm cutting are flipped?


Then, when all the cutting has been done, I scan it into the computer again! So much scanning going on!

The above picture was scanned without a background to show you what it would look like if you were scanning it, just in case you are from somewhere strange and don't know how to scan. Usually I scan the artwork in with a background behind it like the blue one below.


That's how I go about transferring my work. Do you do it a different way? I'll cover how to do something with a template another time.

Whenever you are creating a silhouette, it's important to use paper that is comfortable for you to cut. Everyone has different preferences. The best kind of paper to cut is the kind that works for you. What I'm going to tell you isn't the end-all be-all of papercutting, it's just what works for me.

1. Make sure it's archival. You're going to want acid free paper or else it'll get brittle, yellow and fall apart after time. If you don't care how long it lasts, use whatever you want. There are a lot of phone books out there that don't get any love anymore!

2. Try a variety of things. My first papercut I ever did was on cardstock. That just didn't work for me. Or maybe it's because it was the first papercut I ever did.

3. The first paper I used that I felt worked the best for me and I still use it often is Origami paper. It has a nice weight to it, it doesn't tear that easy and you can buy whole stacks of it in certain colors on the internet. Plus it generally has a white backing to it and you can draw or print your design right to the paper. Just search for "large origami paper black" and there are a bunch of different places to purchase this paper online.


4. The next thing I experimented with was scrapbooking paper. You can find a lot of nice colors in the scrapbooking aisle of your local craft store. Generally the paper is a little thicker, I prefer the thinner brands. Whatever you get, just make sure it's something you can see your design if you print or draw it on the paper. If you're taping a template to it, that's a different story.


5. This is the most traditional of all the papercutting papers and I only recently started using it and I love it. Silhouette paper is made specifically for silhouettes - go figure. It has a nice soft feel to it and it cuts really easily. I purchased a bunch from Dick Blick's.


That's what I use. Is there anything different that you use?