I have seen these paper heart decorations in the past and loved their shabby chic appearance but have never attempted to make one so when I saw that there were instructions on pages 94-95 in Issue 33 of the May Edition of Docrafts Creativity Magazine (£2.95) I was determined to have a go, especially as there was a free sheet of A4 Docrafts Portobello papers included to make them with (as well as a set of Portobello Road stamps)
I'll have to admit that I found the instructions a bit confusing, but there again I am easily confused ..... so once I got the gist of what to do, I, to quote Frank Sinatra, "Did it my way!"
As per the instructions I cut three pairs of strips of my chosen Portobello patterns in 5cm widths and then cut them down to make pairs 22cm, 18cm, and 14cm long.
I then scored each strip down the middle and folded them in half ..... (but, if I were to repeat this project again I would definitely use double sided paper). The next step was to make a teardrop shape from each strip.
I then layered the teardrops inside one another to make one half of the heart, gluing them at the bottom and holding everything together with a small bulldog clip. I then repeated this for the other side
When both sides were dry I put a loop of ribbon between the two halves and glued both sides together again using a clip to keep it all from falling apart while they dried. I also punched a small hole through all the layers at the bottom, putting a small brad through to further secure the joining of the two halves. As a finishing touch I added a rather large jewel, which I am not sure I really like.
I will definitely have another go at making more hearts probably nearer Christmas, making them into a garland like the original magazine article.
Original Article by Julie Kirk in Docrafts Creativity Issue 33 May 2012
