Discover the Best Papercraft Classes Online
Popular among both crafters and professional artists, papercraft includes a motley of crafts that rely on paper as their chief medium. Paper is a convenient choice because it’s readily available, relatively easy to work with, and generally inexpensive. In addition, it’s extremely versatile, allowing artists to create a huge variety of two and three-dimensional objects with an endless pool of techniques. Popular papercraft methods include folding, cutting, gluing, painting, dying, and even mixing the paper into a clay-like paste.
As an art form, papercraft began with the ancient Egyptian invention of papyrus, or paper. In addition to painting and writing on paper, early artists decorated boxes with curled paper arranged in elaborate patterns, known as quilling. Soon after, paper’s popularity migrated to Asia, where Japanese artists folded Origami, and Chinese artists sculpted elegant papier-mâché masks. Over time, papercraft has grown to encompass even more craft forms, including paper cutting, paper layering, decoupage, paper flower making, scrapbooking, paper modeling, and bookbinding. To this day, papermaking is still an important facet of papercraft and owes its thanks to ancient Egypt.
Why You Should Learn Papercraft Online
You don’t need to be an incredibly gifted artist to start learning papercraft. With gentle learning curves and plenty of easy project options, paper is a much more beginner-friendly medium than materials like ceramic, metal, and wood. In addition, paper is generally significantly cheaper than these other mediums, making papercraft a less expensive way to break into art. Once you learn basic papercraft skills, you’ll never grow tired of exploring the endless expanse of creative possibilities that the medium offers, from flat two-dimensional crafts to three-dimensional ones.
Along with nourishing creativity, papercraft has many positive effects on mental and physical health. It’s often used as a tactile teaching method in children’s education thanks to its ability to improve spatial reasoning and fine motor skills. Because of its limitless potential for expressing feelings, papercraft is also commonly treated as a therapeutic activity and has been shown to raise self-esteem, lower anxiety, and boost focus. For the lonely, learning papercraft can become a way to connect with other people at local papercraft clubs.
Interested makers can even transform their papercraft from a simple hobby into a stream of income by selling their crafts on handmade markets like Shopify and Etsy. Similarly, some makers earn a small income by hosting paid advertising on their DIY blogs.
Virtual Papercraft Classes
When local papercraft classes run dry, online courses offer high-quality instruction in real-time with plenty of options to choose from. Learn from experienced paper crafters who can demonstrate skills and answer questions when you hit a wall.
In preparation for class, you’ll need to collect a few tools and materials. To make life easier, your instructor will likely provide you with a list of supplies, as well as recommendations for where to purchase things. Launch your creative journey with one of the online papercraft classes available on CourseHorse.
If intimidation has stopped you from learning bookbinding in the past, why not first Make a Photo Book with One Sheet of Paper? In her beginner-friendly course, professional bookbinder Elizabeth Castaldo will give you a step-by-step process for cutting and folding a book from just one piece of paper. No glue or sewing is needed. By the end of class, you’ll have a beautiful handmade photo book that can be used to display art, prints, or photos.
Looking for a new way to express yourself? Evanston Art Center’s Paper Remix I: Inspired Collage I will teach you all about collage, from creating stunning compositions to sneaky places to collect images. You’ll also get the chance to work with unfamiliar papers that will get your creative milk flowing. As inspiration, you’ll be given plenty of prompts to work with, from poems and themes to landscapes and imagery.
If you’ve ever admired the marbled paper on the insides of books and wanted to learn how to recreate it for yourself, check out the Suminagashi (Japanese Marbling) course by Food Craft. As you learn basic techniques, you’ll use Sumi ink to create marbled rice paper and coasters that you can be proud of.
Private Online Group Papercraft Classes
If you’re looking for a fun sit-down activity that will spark creativity and encourage team-building, group papercraft classes are exactly that. In addition to being beginner-friendly, papercraft classes are less messy than many other art classes, making them the perfect option if you don’t want to deal with a huge clean-up afterward. View exciting online papercraft classes for private groups by visiting CourseHorse’s class catalog.
Groups of up to 500 can learn to fold fun animal shapes in a Virtual Origami Workshop that comes complete with 200 sheets of rainbow origami paper per guest. Alternatively, a Virtual Shadow Light Making Workshop for up to 200 guests will give you a fun evening of sponge-painting custom lamps in your ideal colors. If you love sending cards to friends and family, why not get your group of up to 100 involved in a Virtual Holiday Card Workshop? During the Christmas season, you can also join a Virtual Holiday Ornament Workshop that provides ball ornaments, papier-mâché supplies, and decorating memorabilia for up to 100 people.
If the currently-available papercraft classes aren’t quite everything you’d hoped for, you’re in luck, because CourseHorse can create new classes to fit your interests. Using their online contact form, just reach out to CourseHorse and they’ll help you find a course that speaks to you.
After deciding on a class, signing up is easy and won’t incur any booking fees. Within 24 hours, CourseHorse will send you a confirmation to let you know your class is scheduled, but you’ll still have the flexibility to change your group size up until the day of class. You’ll only need to give CourseHorse a size estimate when you sign up, meaning that if additional guests RSVP or one person gets the flu, you won’t have to scrap your original plan. In addition, CourseHorse is prepared to accommodate a variety of technology platforms, including Zoom, Google Meets, WebEx, and Microsoft Teams.
Online vs. In-Person Papercraft Classes
From library books to online instruction, there are plenty of ways to learn papercraft besides the traditional in-person course, which can be both a blessing and a curse for anyone trying to choose a learning method. It may help to write down a few top priorities, such as having a social learning environment or being able to move at your own pace. Then compare the pros and cons of each learning style.
Whether you learn in a live online course or a traditional classroom, you’ll work with an experienced instructor who can answer questions, show demonstrations, and give you feedback. In addition, you’ll have the chance to make friends with other students, either in-person or from afar.
If you choose traditional learning, you’ll work in a studio space that’s typically stocked with all the supplies you’ll need for the class. You won’t need to purchase materials for the class, though you might need to pay for parking depending on your class location. Thanks to your dedicated classroom, you’ll have a chance to step away from your regular life distractions and be creative in a focused environment where you can connect with others who share your interest in papercraft.
Is getting out of the house difficult for you? Live online learning allows you to tune into a live class without leaving your space, making it possible to add creative time to an otherwise hectic schedule. In exchange for supplying your own papercraft supplies, you can forget any worries about traffic or parking. Owing to the mass of papercraft classes available across the world, choosing live online learning gives you a wider array of papercraft classes to choose from.
Can I Learn Papercraft for Free Online?
If joining a class without any base knowledge sounds intimidating, the internet is a great place to learn basic papercraft skills. There are plenty of blogs featuring tutorials and detailed supply lists, as well as videos giving visual demonstrations. The main downside to self-teaching via the Internet is that you’ll learn more slowly than you would in a class where instructors can give you direct feedback and answer questions. With encouragement from a teacher, you’ll find it easier to move through discouraging moments in the learning process and gain insider knowledge that you’d otherwise have to stumble on by chance.