How to Cut Birch Bark Into Shapes
Birch bark has a pleasant color and falls off in thin strips, making it a useful component in many craft projects. Harvest and cut the bark into shapes to create a silhouette with the attractive texturing of birch bark. Verify that the tree you harvest is paper birch (betula papyrifera) before you begin. Paper birch is the best birch bark to work with because it’s the thinnest.
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Instructions
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Harvest the bark in late June, a time when it comes off the tree most easily. Find a lip where the bark starts peeling off the tree and insert a craft knife under it. Slowly drag the knife under the bark, creating thin sheets of bark and separating them harmlessly from the meat of the tree.
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Wash the birch bark with warm water and dish soap to remove the insects hiding in its creases. Set it to dry on a paper towel. Flatten the bark with your hands.
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Flip the bark onto its back once it dries. Set it on a work table you aren’t afraid to scratch. Draw a faint sketch of the image you want to create using a pencil.
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Carve along the sketch lines using a craft knife. Gently score the lines until you separate the entire shape. Gently press on the cut edges to remove the shape from the rest of the bark.
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Tips & Warnings
Set a heavy book on top of the bark to form it into a flat sheet. If you don’t, it may start curling again.
References
- Photo Credit Hemera Technologies/PhotoObjects.net/Getty Images
