Review: Home, Paper, Scissors

I was so excited to see Home, Paper, Scissors come out, because, like a lot of us, I’m always amazed by Patricia Zapata’s blogged paper projects.

I really love the idea of a papercraft book that bypasses all the usual greeting cards and paper chains and such, and instead offers actually-useful stuff for the home. There are some crazy-innovative designs here.

… Like this clock, which has a clock mechanism attached, and does tell time. How cool is that? Patricia even figured out how to build a shadowbox frame from paper.

This is another favorite project – this mobile uses simple punched circles, folded a couple times, and strung with seed beads to keep them in place along the string. Such simple materials and processes, and such a beautiful result.

I also love this wall art – three sheets of paper, each cut a slightly different way, with some balsa wood between them to add dimension. I imagine this would also cast some pretty little shadows with the right light.

The instructional quality here is excellent, too. Patricia shot step-by-step photography for each project, and templates are included where they’re needed, so you should have no trouble re-creating these projects.

Patricia really excels at boiling her designs down to their purest form. And it’s very cool to see that they’re construction is so accessible.

(Can’t resist showing you that leafy centerpiece project in finished form. I just love the simplicity, and the perfect detail of adding that smaller leaf on top of each large one.)

The book is divided into three sections: Decorating, Entertaining, and Gifting, with projects for each. These wine glass markers are one of several festive entertaining projects, along with paper placemats, table runners, and cupcake toppers, to name a few.

…And here’s one from the Gifting section. What a perfect little bow form! Patricia also suggests lots of alternate uses for her projects – for example, this one could also become a napkin-ring topper, a tree ornament, or the basis of a gift tag.

Be sure to check this one out – it will get you thinking in creative new ways.