Papel Picado {Dia De Los Muertos}

Although this blog primarily features my crochet endeavors, It is true that my love for paper crafting far preceded development of my crochet skills.

A couple years ago I got a Silhouette machine on a fantastic Black Friday/ holiday type deal (read about other Silhouette crafts here). The depth and breadth of this machine is really awe-inspiring. It is a tough learning curve though, and I will admit that I have kept things pretty basic. Nevertheless, I have enjoyed developing my skills and trying new things! I posted this on Instagram earlier, the crafting process has begun!

The tradition of papel picado has always interested me. I remember visits to Olvera Street in Los Angeles. You can easily find all types of papel picado peppered throughout the shops, streets and merchant carts. Translating literally to "peckered paper" it is the art of cutting intricate designs out of paper. Usually it is done in a very light paper such as tissue paper. The thought of that actually kinda stresses me out, so today I will be doing my papel picado in cardstock. 

[Source]

The Mexican folk art tradition of papel picado is used to decorate at a variety of religious and non-religious celebrations. It is commonly associated with the ornate altars of Dia de los Muertos. This week I am presenting a Dia de los Muertos lesson to a group of youth. I am really excited because I have always been drawn to the color, vibrancy, respect, and honor that are associated with the celebrations. I feel Day of the Dead has really gained traction in mainstream USA culture in recent years. Before I think people regarded calaveras as pretty morbid. It's a skull, but also really pretty?! What is with that?! I love it because death is not to be feared. We can be with our loved ones always.

[Source]

I knew that this could be pretty easily done with the Silhouette software "trace" function. I just had to find the perfect template. After a bit of browsing I figured I didn't want to rip-off someone else's design, and I didn't want something so intricate that I would need a new blade, or be here all day while the machine cut. All that lead me to do something a bit uncharacteristic. I actually bought a set. I definitely got suckered in, because as I submitted my email for this FREE set of skulls, I got a 50% off coupon for this Day of the Dead printable craft set. I figured I would get some good use out of it, so I decided $2.50 was doable.

**Even if you do not have a Silhouette machine, the free calavera printable would be a blast to do with kids out of paper or tissue paper! Click here for link. **

From there I took a screen shot of the PDFs. Then I opened them in Microsoft paint and cleaned them up a bit (I erased the dotted line since I wouldn't be folding). After that I opened them in the Silhouette software and using the "trace" function I got had a cut file to work with! Below you can see all the tiny pieces left on the cutting mat. Just a little bit of a pain to clean. This particular calavera was one I got from the Silhouette design store with some credit from my initial machine purchase!



Ultimately I manipulated the banner designs, adding a little more ornamentation and on some. You might be able to tell the difference in the two garlands. Below are some of my favorite pieces of the garland. I am happy with the amount of detail, even if it isn't 100% authentic.


Since they are so lightweight, I just used some white yarn to string them, and tape to hang them. They go so perfectly above my Fall and Halloween themed table.