Ali Harrison discovered a passion for papercutting quite by accident. “The first paper cutting I did, I used my kitchen cutting board and a borrowed box cutter,” Harrison shared with the Etsy blog. “It didn’t turn out amazing, but I fell in love with the craft of doing it.”
It wasn’t long before she purchased a sharper blade and an actual cutting mat, and the studio Light & Paper was born. Harrison’s original take on paper art hadn’t gone unnoticed. Her unique works include anatomical organs hand cut out of paper, including a heart cut out which had quickly become viral. Those are sold on her Etsy shop.
Aside from her original freehand-cut pieces, which focus on anatomical organs, Light & Paper also sells more “approachable” merch including wedding cake toppers, pop-out 3D cityscapes, and greeting cards. At first, all items were hand-cut originals – but when it was near impossible to keep up with orders, Harrison decided to begin laser-cutting her designs.
“For a simple piece like one of my little ornaments, the cutting could take me just a couple of minutes,” she says. “For my larger pieces like the anatomical heart, it takes well over 40–50 hours. But I don’t usually time myself.”
Take a look at some of her incredible creations: