Here's how to make pretty paper hearts from old books
We're always looking for clever new ways to give pieces lying around our homes new leases of life. These sweet paper hearts are made using the pages of old books, and will look lovely hanging up in your home.
Follow the simple step-by-step guide from author Clare Youngs to make your own paper hearts craft project.
She says: "Rummaging through a box of old books at a flea market recently, I came across one without a cover and a little worse for wear. But it was very old, with interesting type and decorative details, so I bought it. I have used a few of the pages to embellish these delicate wire and paper hearts."
These would look lovely hanging across a mantlepiece, or over a series of bookshelves.
Happy crafting!
What you need
Pages from an old book
How to make paper and wire hearts
1. To make the heart with the loops, cut a piece of wire approximately 20in (50cm) in length. Bend it in half and twist a small loop at the bend.
2. Working along one side of the bent wire, use pliers to make loops approximately ½ in (1cm) apart. Start them small and gradually increase their size as you progress along the wire. Leave approximately ¾ in (2cm) of wire after the last loop.
3. Repeat Step 2 on the other side of the wire, trying to match the first half as closely as you can. Bend the two sides around to make a heart shape. Use the pliers to twist the two cut ends together, and trim any spare bits of wire.
4. To make the paper decoration attached to this heart, take a page from an old book and cut seven or eight rectangles measuring approximately 2 x 1½ in (5 x 4cm). Lay the rectangles one on top of another and sew a line of stitching down the centre, sewing through all the layers.
5. Fold the stitched papers in half and use a pencil to draw half a heart shape on the front as shown. Cut along the pencil line and open out the pages to reveal the 3-D heart.
6. At the centre of the paper heart—at the top—push a needle through from one side to the other. Push a small piece of wire, approximately 2in (5cm) in length, through the hole. Twist the two ends of wire together. Place the ends of wire through one of the loops at the bottom of the wire heart you made in Step 3. Bend the wires to make a small loop and twist them around the wires at the top of the paper heart. Cut off any spare bits of wire.
7. To make a tassel, cut a rectangle of paper measuring 2 x 4in (5 x 10cm). Cut snips all along the length 1⁄16in (2mm) apart and 1óin (4cm) deep.
8. Place a small amount of craft glue along the unsnipped edge and roll the strip up to make the tassel.
9. Following the illustration, cut a small strip of paper ¾ x ½ in (2 x 1cm) and fold this in half over a piece of wire measuring approximately 8in (20cm). Glue the two ends of the folded strip to the top of the tassel. Cut a small piece of paper 1⁄8in (3mm) in width, and ¾ in (2cm) in length. Glue and wind this around the top of the tassel.
10. Bend a length of wire into a heart shape, thread the tassel onto the wire, and twist the two cut ends of the wire together as in Step 3.
11. To make a heart with spirals, first make a heart shape from a length of wire. Start by making a loop at the centre point in the wire—the dip at the top of the heart—and curve the two halves either side, so that they meet in a point at the bottom of the heart. Twist the two wires together, leaving two long ends.
12. Wrap one of the long ends around the nose of the pliers. Gently pull the pliers out of the coiled wire. Use the end of the pliers to manipulate the coiled wire, flattening and opening up the spiral. Repeat at the other end of the wire.
TIP: Practice bending and twisting the wire and don’t worry if it is not perfect, it is all part of the charm.
Taken from Papercraft Art (CICO books) by Clare Youngs, out 13 February 2024.
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