Silhouette wall decor with household cardboard

Try as we might, household cardboard overwhelms us like nothing else does. It's so invisible, but difficult to discard. It's messy, and seemingly essential. Among the many uses for household cardboard is how you can make quickie silhouette wall decor. Frame it, or stick it up the wall or hallway door, cardboard decor is not just inexpensive, but earthy and authentic too.

I had some boxes that came with shirts and baby frocks in them. And it got me thinking, if we could maybe just avoid trashing them right away. I am not so happy with the result, but it sure is something you can try at home, can find easy to modify to suit your needs and decor.

What you need as basic for the project is household cardstock - which is plain or patterned paper.

Besides, keep the following handy:

-- household use cardboard that needs to get trashed

-- a pair of scissors

-- craft glue

-- string, or burlap ribbon, or satin ribbon

-- wool, if need be

-- old newspapers

-- a rag cloth

-- a pen or pencil to mark and draw out sillouettes

Start by drawing silhouettes of your choice. I looked up the internet to find umpteen shapes of birds and animals, sometimes inaninimate household objects.

If you draw on the thicker cardboard, there is no need to add an extra layer or stick more cardboard to it for thickness. However, if you use patterned paper, try increasing thickness by adding a layer of cardboard to it. Use your pen or pencil to draw out shapes. I chose birds for a start, as something about flying birds appeals to me no end.

I made a bunch of vector shapes. Different bird silhouettes, a lion silhouette, a birdhouse, and the likes. If you have a cardboard that is design heavy, fret not. You never know how the final product will turn out.

For the next step, you can always pick up satin ribbons that are somewhat wider. I had some jute or burlap ribbon and cut it in the middle, to bring its width down. Stick the silhouettes up one by one. Remember - burlap or jute is porous, so the glue will bleed. Keep some newsprint beneath its surface.

If you notice, the size of my silhouettes are smaller than you would expect.Try diffeerent thicknesses. Let the glued pieces dry. If you notice bending of the cardboard, put it all up under a bundle of books so that the cardboard flattens out.

And lo, your cardboard silhouette is ready.

You can get artistic and use your imagination for the silhouteets when you stick. This is not just a classy piece, but a convenient alternative to temporary decor and during events such as baby shower.


Pictures and content: Radhika M B

Write for permissions to reuse: radiscribe@gmail.com

Rangolis on my bookmarks

My love for rangolis on bookmarks continues.

I am a non-traditionalist. Certainly not the kind who washes the doorstep and decorates it with rice flour everyday. But I love the universality of rangolis, with their focus on the center, and expanse from there, the importance of dot...in creation, in design...

This time, I also tried out design inspired by Chittara, the rich folk art of Karnataka.

Rangolis, that adorned the doorstep and verandah in my grandma's home...rangolis, that changed with the festival and season in front of the doorstep at my parents' home.

The material did not have to be much...

This cardboard was what I saved from an earlier purchase of household repair threads. 

Some sandpaper...

And cardstock, known in India, simply as cardboard, with some cutting tools and glue.

I glued the sandpapered  cardboard to the deep blue cardboard, after cutting to a required size. When it comes to cutting the household cardboard, I am really not bothered about a standard size. It is because I want to use every inch of the material possible, instead of trashing it.

That is intrinsic to handmade crafts probably. And I like the lack of identical results.

And after enough gluing and trimming, I used white paint with a size zero paintbrush.

Here is how it turned out:

And here are the bookmarks with Chittara influenced design.

I read about Chittara art, and love the intricacy of this art, though I would not want to agree with its feudal origin based on caste.

Am hoping to use more of it in my other projects.

Try the designs yourself, and you will love yourself for not trashing household cardboard.

Pics Courtesy: Radhika M B

For permissions to use, write to: radicreative@gmail.com

All pics are watermarked.