One of my favorite things about papercutting is how little amount of materials you need for making the pieces. I basically use a knife, a self-healing cutting mat and paper. I prefer to draw the design directly on the paper and for this I like to use a pencil and an eraser. Here are some photos of my materials:
The SELF-HEALING CUTTING MAT is the green one in the picture, they come in different colors, I prefer the dark colors better for more contrast with the papers that I use. These mats are made out of some kind of rubbery material that is wonderful for extending the life of the blades. I have more than one self-healing cutting mat: some are large, some are medium size and some small; the small ones are great to take with you when you travel. I am planning to get a X-Large one which is much taller than I am. I will be able to lay down on it and even take a nap if I get too tired :o
I also have more than one KNIFE but I prefer the ones with a nice handle covered with rubber like the one in the picture, that little detail is key, so comfortable. These knifes come in different colors.
I replace the BLADES in the knife all the time because that way the cuts turn out very clean plus it is so much easier to cut with a super sharp blade, my hand gets less tired when I don't have to press too much to make the cuts. In the picture you see this little plastic box that comes with 15 blades, very convenient. The right kind of blade for papercutting is the #11 because the tip is extremely sharp, it could hurt you if you look at it for too long :)
And here you see the kind of PENCIL that I use and the ERASER. The brand of the pencil is not important to me at all, as long as it is a 2B kind of pencil I will be happy. 2B has a soft graphite but not too soft, just perfect. I use these two amigos a lot, I don't start cutting until I am completely happy with the design.
And here is a picture of a special papercut, the special thing about this piece is that it is the only one that I never completed since I started making papercuts. I left it incomplete because I made a bad paper choice. This poor kitty is trapped in the wrong paper but I love him anyway (even though he ate four fish from a fish tank :o)
In this detail you can see how the back of one of my papercuts normally looks in the process of being made. After I finish the piece I don't erase the pencil marks because that would destroy the paper plus I think that they look nice anyway.
In terms of PAPER all I need to make sure is that it's acid-free for a long and healthy life. There are tons of acid-free papers available out there in all weights and colors..
